On Hay-making. 33 



one o'clock, so that the whole may lie to dry while the work-people 

 are at dinner. After dinner, the first thing to be done is, to rake the 

 staddles into double windrows * ; next, to rake the grass into single 

 windrows ; then the double windrows are put into bastard-cocks ; and 

 lastly, the single windrows are put into grass-cocks. This completes 

 the work of the second day. 



Third Day. The grass mown and not spread on the second day, 

 and also that mown in the early part of this day, is first to be tedded 

 in the morning ; and then the grass-cocks are to be spread into staddles, 

 as before, and the bastard-cocks into staddles of less extent. These 

 lesser staddies, though last spread, are first turned, then those which 

 were in grass-cocks ; and next the grass is turned once or twice be- 

 fore twelve or one o'clock, when the people go to dinner as usual. If 

 the weather has proved sunny and fine, the hay which was last night 

 in bastard- cocks, will this afternoon be in a proper state to be carried f ; 

 but if the weather should, on the contrary, have been cool and cloudy, 

 no part of it probably will be fit to carry. In that case the first thing set 

 about after dinner, is to rake that which was in grass-cocks last night 

 into double windrows ; then the grass which was this morning spread 

 from the swaths, into single windrows. After this, the hay which was 

 last night in bastard-cocks, is made up into full-sized cocks, and care 

 taken to rake the hay up clean, and also to put the rakings upon the 

 top of each cock. Next, the double windrows are put into bastard- 

 cocks, and the single windrows into grass-cocks, as on the preceding 

 days. 



Fourth Day. On this day the great cocks, just mentioned, are 

 usually carried before dinner. The other operations of the day are 

 such, and in the same order, as before described, and are continued 

 daily, until the hay harvest is completed. 



In the course of hay-making, the grass should, as much as possible, 

 be protected both day and night, against rain and dew, by cocking. 

 Care should also be taken to proportion the number of hay-makers to 

 that of the mowers, so that there may not be more grass in hand at 

 any one time, than can be managed according to the foregoing pro- 

 cess. This proportion is about twenty hay-makers, (of which num- 

 ber twelve may be women,) to four mowers : the latter are sometimes 

 taken half a day to assist the former. But in hot, windy, or very dry- 

 ing weather, a greater proportion of hay- makers will be required, than 

 when the weather is cloudy and cool. 



It is particularly necessary to guard against spreading more hay 

 than the number of hands can get into cock the same day, or before 

 rain. In showery and uncertain weather, the grass may sometimes be 

 suffered to lie three, four, or even five days, in swath. But before it 



* In doing which, every two persons rake the hay in opposite directions, or 

 towards each other, and by that means form a row between them of double the 

 size of a single windrow. These double windrows are about six or eight feet 

 distant from each other. J. M. 



f It seldom happens, in dry weather, but that it may be carried on the third 

 day. J. M. 



C 



