REAPING. 



ed with the knee, and tlie band drawn 

 tightly around it. The ends are 

 twisted together like a rope, and in- 

 serted under the hand, which eflect- 

 ually fastens it. Tliis operation is 

 soon learned, and i.s done very rapid- 

 ly. The sheaves should be so tied 

 that there may be no danger of their 

 falling loose when pitched into the 

 cart or stacked, without being so 

 tight as to prevent the moisture in 

 the straw from evaporating. They 

 should not be tied too near the ears, 

 but rather nearer to the butt. The 

 sheaves, when tied, are placed two 

 and two on the butt ends, with the 

 ears leaning against each other : 

 sometimes they are placed in a circle, 

 all the ears being together, and the 

 butts slanting outward: a sheaf is 

 then opened by inserting the hand 

 into the middle of the ears, and re- 

 versed over the tops of the preceding, 

 forming a cone, and covering all the 

 other ears, while it hangs down 

 around them. In this position they 

 will bear much rain without injury. 

 It is a good practice to place the 

 shocks across the furrows between 

 the stitches or lands, so as to allow 

 the air to circulate more freely around 

 them. In this case four or five sheaves 

 are placed in a row, leaning against 

 as many in a parallel row, and two 

 sheaves, being opened, are reversed 

 over them to protect the ears. "What- 

 ever be the mode adopted in reaping 

 the corn, the same kind of sheaves 

 are formed, and set up in shocks. 



" Wherever the sickle is used for 

 reaping, the straw is cut at a certain 

 height from the ground, and the re- 

 mainder forms a long stubble, which 

 may be mown at leisure after har- 

 vest, and carried into the yard for 

 litter ; but in the neighbourhood of 

 large towns, where straw is sold at 

 a good price, or exchanged for sta- 

 ble dung, it is important that as much 

 as possible of it should be cut with 

 the grain. This has introduced the 

 practice called fagging. The instru- 

 ment used for this purpose partakes 

 of the nature of a scythe, as well as 

 of a reaping-hook. It is shaped like a 

 sickle, but is much larger and broad- 

 656 



er, and, instead of being indented like 

 a saw, it has a sharp edge like a 

 scythe, which is renewed when^blunt 

 by means of a stone or bat. The fag- 

 ging-hook cuts the straw close to the 

 ground by a stroke of the hand ; and 

 its curved form is only useful in col- 

 lecting stray stems, and holding a 

 certain quantity of them between it 

 and the left hand of the reaper when 

 he makes up a sheaf A certain 

 quantity is cut towards the standing 

 grain, the left hand pressing it down 

 at the same time. When as much 

 is thus cut as would make half a 

 small sheaf, the reaper comes back- 

 ward, cutting in a direction at right 

 angles to the first, and rolling togeth- 

 er the two parts, which he carries in 

 the bend of his hook and places on 

 the band which had been prepared 

 for him. A full-sized sheaf is usu- 

 ally composed of two cuttings. Two 

 men will fully employ a third to make 

 bands for them, tie up the sheaves, 

 and set them up. This method of 

 reaping is laborious, on account of 

 the stooping required to cut near the 

 ground. The Hainhault scythe does 

 the work better, and with less f;itigue ; 

 it is, in fact, a faggmg-hook, not quite 

 so curved, of which the handle is 

 longer, and placed at an angle w^ith 

 the plane of the blade. It requires 

 some practice to give the proper 

 swing to it by a peculiar motion of 

 the wrist ; but when this is once ac- 

 quired, a considerable saving of la- 

 bour and lime is effected. A better 

 instrument, however, on extensive 

 farms, is the cradle-scythe, which, in 

 the hands of an expert mower, will 

 do more work, and more effectually 

 secure all the straw, than any other 

 instrument. 



"The objection to the great barn 

 room required for so much straw is 

 obviated by the practice of stacking 

 the grain in the open air on proper 

 stands, to keep it dry and out of the 

 reach of vermin. The additional 

 trouble in thrashing is not so great 

 as that of mowing orraking the stub- 

 ble, which is generally deferred till 

 half of it is lost by decomposition by 

 the air and moisture. When the sa- 



