PREPARED BY THE DEERING HARVESTER COMPANY. 7 



had been attempted. The twine binder, the crowning triumph, found its 

 way onto the market less than a quarter of a century ago, and cannot 

 be said to have reached its fullest perfection until within the last decade. 



The models shown in this collection may be considered as the most 

 important stepping-stones that have led to the present perfection. In 

 America alone over seven thousand patents have been granted for 

 improvements in grass and grain harvesting machinery. In the records 

 of inventions of Great Britain and Europe many are found. 



The century may be divided into six epochs: (i) That of the 

 improved scythe and cradle; (2) that of the hand-rake reaper, adapted 

 to deliver the cut grain in gavels by manual means; (3) that of the self- 

 rake reaper, in which the same was accomplished automatically; (4) that 

 of the Marsh harvester, on which the grain was bound manually by 

 operators riding upon the machine; (5) that of the automatic binder; 

 and (6) that of the machine of steel. The cradle saved one-half the labor 

 before required, the reaper a half of the remaining labor; the modern 

 twine binder saves nearly all. 



The models represent the machines as put on the market, mainly, 

 but many follow the drawings or models found in the United States 

 Patent Office. Many of the original models upon which patents were 

 founded, whittled out by unskilled hands, were crude indeed. In some 

 of the models of our exhibition the original wooden wheels are reproduced, 

 and in others modern chains and sprocket wheels have been substituted 

 for the bands, and shapely castings have been substituted for the clumsy 

 spokeless gears. The actual principles and means for carrying out the 

 object of each inventor have been carefully embodied in them, however. 



We take much pride in the fact that we were selected to make this 

 exhibit illustrating the development of this great art, and in the ful- 

 fillment of the undertaking we have had in mind the single purpose of 

 showing the history accurately and truthfully, with a just regard to 

 those, living and dead, who have done so much for the progress of the 

 world. 



Deering Harvester Company, 



April 15, 1900. Chicago, U. S. A. 



PREFACE. 



Dans les plus acciennes tombes eg-yptiennes on trouve du ble et 

 sur les pierres ciseleeson voitrepresentes desesclaves travaillant dans 

 les champs avec leurs crochets a recolter. Nous ignorons pendant 

 combien de generations on s'est contente d'arracher lestetes du cereal, 

 non cultive les de la fagon dont les Indiens de PAmerique occidentale 

 ramassent encore aujourd'hui les semences qui leur servent en grande 

 partie de nourriture, ni depuis quand on commenca a les cultiver avec 

 soin. 



Les archeologues, dans leurs recherches dans le passe trouvent des 

 instruments en pierre qui etaient les prototypes du crochet a recolter dont 

 se servaient nos ancetres. Des mines de VEgypte on rapporte des cro- 

 chets en bronze; dans la lie, parmi les pieux qui marquent les demeu- 

 res oubliees des anciens habitants du lac Neuchatel, on trouve 

 •des bles et des crochets a recolter; dans les marais des contrees de 



