FARM IMPLEMENTS. 231 



pletely changed; lie is then a master over a slave — a truly 

 soulless slave, that labors without sweat to do his bidding. 



There is another labor-saving implement, connected with the 

 hay crop, quite as important to the farmer as the mowing ma- 

 chine ; this is the hay-maker. It has been long known and 

 universally used in England, and is now coming into notice in 

 this country, much simplified in its construction, and in conse- 

 quence much cheaper in price. It is easily worked by a single 

 horse, and will save the labor of five or six men. This imple- 

 ment, with the mower and the horse rake, will make the hay 

 harvest an easy and comparatively inexpensive task, saving the 

 cost of all three of them on some farms in this county in two 

 or three years. 



But, in recommending the adoption of these and other labor- 

 saving implements, I may be told that they are expensive, and 

 will not therefore save labor enough to make it an object to 

 purchase them, except upon very large farms ; that a farmer, 

 for example, who cuts one hundred tons of hay may save by 

 their use ; but, for one who cuts only twenty or thirty, the outlay 

 would be out of proportion to the saving to be accomplished. 

 This objection is certainly a serious one, though capable of 

 being obviated in most cases. Massachusetts is a land of small 

 farmers, and we must therefore resort to the principle of asso- 

 ciation, so well known and practised upon for various other 

 purposes, to accomplish what is beyond our individual means. 

 We must combine together in the purchase of expensive agri- 

 cultural implements, and arrange for their use in a way to se- 

 cure perfect fairness and equality. This is only one of the 

 many ways by which the cost of them may be very much re- 

 duced. If sufficient encouragement were given, persons could 

 be found in every community to work them on their own ac- 

 count, going from farm to farm as a regular business, profitable 

 to all parties. This is practised to a very considerable extent 

 among the small farmers in England. It is not unusual there 

 to see a travelling steam engine on wheels, going through an 

 extensive district, threshing wheat and performing other work 

 which does not occur often enough to make it an object for the 

 farmer to purchase such expensive machinery for his own use. 

 Mowing machines have been worked in this way during the 



