184 



SUCCESSFUL FARMING 



Buying Farm Machinery. The farmers of the United States spend 

 more than $100,000,000 annually for the purchase of farm machinery. 

 The average life of such machinery is about ten years. Its durability 

 could doubtless be much lengthened if it had better care. 



It generally pays to buy the best makes of machines, even though 

 the initial cost is greater than that for cheaper ones. Whether or not 

 it pays to buy a machine depends on the amount of work for which it 

 can be used. If the amount of work is small, it is frequently cheaper to 

 hire a machine than to own one. In some localities the more expensive 

 machines are owned jointly by two or more farmers. 



It requires good judgment to know when to replace an old machine 

 with a new one. Frequently machines apparently worn out may be 

 made to work as good as new by replacing badly worn parts. On the 

 other hand, some machines go rapidly out of date because of important 

 improvements. A new machine may, the/efore, be purchased to advan- 

 tage and the old one discarded even 

 though not worn out. There is a 

 tendency on the part of too many 

 farmers to get along with the eld 

 machine at a sacrifice of much time 

 spent in continual repairing. 



Care of Machinery. Every farmer 

 should have a shed ' large enough to 

 house all his farm implements. This 

 may be a cheap structure, the two essen- 

 tials being a dry floor and a good roof. 

 There should be sufficient room to store 

 the implements without taking them 



all apart. It is well to arrange them in the shed when time is not press- 

 ing, so that those first needed in the spring are most accessible. 



The woodwork of all machinery should be painted whenever it shows 

 need of it. This should be done in leisure time. All machinery should 

 be examined and nuts and bolts tightened. The metal parts, such as the 

 surface of plow bottoms, cultivator shovels, the disks of disk harrows, 

 drills and cultivators should be greased, either with kerosene and tallow 

 or cheap axle grease, as soon as their work is done. This prevents rust- 

 ing and is easily removed when the machine is again needed for use. 

 Although paint is sometimes used for this purpose, it is not advised, as 

 it is too difficult to remove. 



Condition of Machinery. Every farmer realizes the importance of 

 having all machinery and implements in good working order. This 

 pertains to the adjustment of all complex machinery and applies also 

 to the adjustment of clevises on plows, so that they will run at the proper 

 depth. A machine out of adjustment not only does its work poorly, but 



* Courtesy of Altorfer Bros., Roanoke, 111, 



A WASHING MACHINE SAVES MUCH 

 HARD WORK FOR THE HOUSE wins. 1 



