CANE SUOAK. 



Cane Loading. In most districts the crop of cane after being felled 

 is altogether carried to the carts or other containers by hand ; the nature of 

 the cane fields is often such that it is impossible to bring conveyances on to 

 the field, and economy is only obtained by well-considered schemes in the 

 laying out of the plantation roads and portable track. In the Hawaiian 

 islands, the sleds shown in Fig. 86 (PLATE X.) are frequently used to convey 

 the canes to the cars. 



Cane loaders or transfers consist essentially of a crane or derrick which 

 may be portable or stationary. The Wheeler- Wilson loader is shown in 

 Fig. 87; it is operated by means of a gasoline (petrol) motor; the cane is 

 loaded into slings which are elevated by the crane and dumped into the cars. 



There are loaders of several designs essentially similar to the above ; some 

 are arranged to be moved on a portable track, and others are drawn about the 

 fields by horse or mule power ; it is in Louisiana that they have been mostly 

 developed. 



Instead of using slings, loaders of similar 

 action to the one described above are made, 

 provided with grabs similar to those originally 

 devised for the loading of hay. A sketch of 

 the grab is shown in Fig. 88. It consists of 

 a curved pair of forks cc ; the system is sus- 

 pended at a by a wire rope ; a second rope is 

 attached at I ; a pull on the rope at I causes 

 the forks to open ; the grab is then lowered 

 on to a pile of cane, and the rope at I being 

 slackened a pull on the rope at a lifts the 

 grab with its load of cane ; to manipulate 

 cane two or more forks are arranged on a 

 beam suspended from the end of the crane. 



A totally different device, which the 

 writer does not believe has ever been ex- 

 tensively adopted, consists of a portable 

 endless belt conveyor arranged at an angle 

 of about 60 degrees from the vertical ; the 

 canes are loaded on to the lowest part of the conveyor, and, being carried 

 upward, fall from the highest point of the belt into trucks placed so as to 

 receive them. 



In all the designs mentioned above it is necessary to bring the cane to 

 the loader, even to a certain extent in the case of the portable derrick ; 

 devices have been designed to rake the cane within a certain radius right up 

 to the lifting device, but such schemes have not been attended with very great 

 success. 



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