FARM MANAGEMENT 149 



post and twisted on the other side of the same wire. Either plan is 

 good, but care must be taken to draw the fastening wire tight, or t 

 else stock trying to get through the fence may rise or crush down 

 the fencing with their heads. If any trouble is experienced, the post 

 should be roughened at the fastening point with a cold chisel. Ex- 

 pansion and contraction of the fence due to heat and cold are cared 

 for by the tension curves or kinks in the woven- wire fencing. (F. 

 B. 403.) 



Conclusions. Poured posts are easier to make than tamped ones. 

 They are somewhat more expensive because one mold will make 

 but one poured post per day, while the same mold may be used for 

 making as many tamped posts as the builder can mix and tamp in 

 the same time. According to the tests made poured posts are a little 

 over 25 per cent stronger than tamped ones of the same size, mixture 

 and reinforcement. Poured posts are not so porous as the tamped 

 ones and are therefore more nearly water proof, thus making them 

 better able to withstand the action of frost and alkali. The poured 

 post is enough better in every respect to justify its construction and 

 use in preference to the tamped one. Most commercial molds make 

 a post which tapers from the base to the top, but the most econom- 

 ical mold is one which casts a post as large at the ground line as at 

 the base, tapering from the ground line to the top. 



The best form of post is one which is equally strong from all 

 directions. The square, or round post, fulfills this requirement. The 

 triangular post does not meet the requirements because it cannot be 

 economically constructed so as to be equally strong from all direc- 

 tions. 



To be economical, the amount of reinforcement should be in 

 proportion to the size of the post and strength of the mixture. 



The material used for reinforcement should be strong, light 

 and rough enough to permit the mixture to get a firm grip upon it. 

 It should be very rigid, with little or no tendency to spring or stretch. 



The smooth reinforcement tends to slip even if hooked at the 

 ends. 



Two or more wires twisted together make as satisfactory a re- 

 inforcement as can be obtained. 



Crimped wire tends to straighten and thereby breaks pieces out 

 of the post at the point of greatest stress. 



The reinforcement should be placed in each corner of the post 

 at a depth of from % to % of an inch from the surface. 



There are several commercial wire fasteners now found on the 

 market, the most of which are either cumbersome or expensive. 



The posts should be cured in the shade for at least 60 days, the 

 first 30 days of which they should be sprinkled daily. (Col. Ag. 

 Exp. Sta. Bui. 161.) 



ROADS.* 



Roads on the farm are subject to comparatively light travel; 

 they may well be narrow. A very large number of farmers give 

 scarcely any attention to building roads on their farms, but if the 

 farm be large, and particularly if there be low spots here and there, 



* For illustrations, see pages 87, 267, 321, 339, 375, 429, 447, 519, 537, 555. 



