242 THE DAILY LIFE OF OUR FARM. 



we had the crop ready for harvesting, we have got the 

 showery weather down upon our last five acres. It is 

 in cock, however, and we shall steal it on to the mow 

 during the intervals of sunshine without much hurt I 

 hope. It is a lesson to us, however, not to loiter, how- 

 ever well advanced, another year. I am so delighted 

 with the excellent work that machine has done in its 

 mowing capacity that I have sent for the extra apparatus 

 for bringing down the grain crops. They must not be 

 allowed to get too ripe before we commence operations. 

 One can cut too soon, however, I know from experience, 

 no less than too late. Last year I had one field reaped 

 full early. The sample was so full and bright while it 

 stood in shocks upon the field, that I thought I had 

 attained a perfect success, and that the sap remaining 

 in the severed stem would sustain through the ripening 

 process the grain in its becoming embonpoint ; but, 

 alas, it withered sadly, and was a disappointing sample 

 to look at in its flow from the thrashing machine, 

 although it came to scale unusually heavy. The straw 

 was, however, deliciously greenish and sweet to chew, 

 and being cut up with some barley sheddings, kept my 

 stock in excellent fettle for some time. By the way we 

 learnt another lesson from these barley sheddings. 

 The regular clovers having comparatively failed, as I 

 mentioned on a previous page, we worked the stubbles 

 every way with sharpened harrow-tines. Then sowing 

 trifolium incamatum and rye-grass, we covered the seed 

 by help of chain-haiTows, and rolled the bed down hard 

 as ever the heaviest Croskill could compress a sandy 

 loam. Behold, the shed contents of the scattered 

 barley ears were spread evenly in every direction about, 

 and threw up a luxuriant fresh growth. This, when a 



