HARVESTING THE CROP. 9 1 



As illustrated in Fig. 29, beans are frequently 

 thrashed direct from the field. The machine is set 

 at some convenient place in the lot and the beans 

 hauled to it. Two teams or two wagons and one 

 team will at least be required to keep the machine 

 at its full capacity. The number will depend some- 

 what on the distance of hauling, conditions of beans 

 for thrashing and help employed. If nothing better 

 than "kid help" or so-called "soldier help," is avail- 

 able, three crews at least will be necessary, one to 

 keep company with the other, and the third to do 

 the work. The loaded wagon is driven along side 

 the machine and while being unloaded another one 

 is being loaded in the field to take its place. Two 

 men will table the beans from the wagon to the 

 machine, another man will feed the beans into the 

 cylinder, two or three more will handle the beans, 

 straw, etc. The beans are usually sacked in two- 

 bushel bags and hauled to market or storage. By 

 thrashing in the field, less handling is required, but 

 as a rule, they are not thrashed out as well, though 

 this depends largely on the weather, and the con- 

 dition of the beans. Then, too, the beans have not 

 gone through the sweat and must be watched close- 

 ly in storage, and not too many put in one pile for 

 fear of heating. Beans will thrash out much better 

 in cold weather, and for this reason, it is often bet- 

 ter to have them stored in the barn until the weather 

 and other farm work make it most favorable for the 

 thrashing operation. Whether operated in the field 

 or the barn, the details of running the machine vary 

 but little. Feed the beans, pods and all, into the 

 cylinder and the machine will separate them, de- 

 livering the clean beans at one place and the refuse 

 at another. 



