Threshing Day 131 



cised some care it was quite within the realm of 

 possibility to acquire a self-inflicted bump on the 

 head. Of course, a skilled operator, using this 

 old-time threshing instrument, would be immune 

 but a greenhorn would be running in great luck if 

 he escaped some hard knocks in the schooling of 

 flailing experience. 



Many farmers, too, used to thresh oats for feed, 

 in the early fall, with the flail. Machine threshing, 

 in those days, was done much later in the season 

 than in these modern times. As horses were nec- 

 essary for power and there was the ploughing to 

 be done, threshing was put off till the fall work 

 was well along and cool weather had set in. In 

 order to get oats for horse feed, many farmers 

 would flail sheaves, partly, without untying them, 

 and put these through the machine to complete the 

 job, when it arrived. 



That's how I learned the art of hitting some- 

 thing else than my head, with a flail. I recall that 

 I had dreams of beating a big drum some day but 

 the fates intervened. 



"threshing day'' on the faem 



** Threshing Day," with the machine, was, of 

 course, of more than ordinary interest to the 

 farmer and his household. Dairying was not then 

 so extensively engaged in, the grain crop being of 

 premier importance. The neighbours would be 

 there to assist and several would bring their teams 



