MANAGEMENT IN TRACTION PLOWING 251 



accounts should be kept in order that the repairs and other 

 overhead charges for the season may be accurately divided 

 among the total units of work. Accounts with each customer 

 should show the date of the work; the total acreage; the cus- 

 tom rate and the dates of payment. Fields should be accurately 

 measured and full value received for all work done. Blank 

 forms for keeping these records are sometimes supplied free 

 by the manufacturer. The custom operator should regard 

 himself as a public benefactor, but not necessarily a philan- 

 thropist, and should be prudent in making concessions in the 

 face of real or fancied competition. Prompt, and if necessary 

 vigorous collections should be the rule. 



The efficiency of the tractor must not be cut down by in- 

 adequate accessory equipment. This applies with particular 

 force to the big steam outfit. For satisfactory attendance 

 there must usually be at least one coal wagon, at $75 to $80 

 complete; a trap wagon for carrying the repair parts, tools, 

 and odds and ends; and a tank wagon, costing anywhere from 

 $75 to $200 complete. Chains, clevises, tools, and black- 

 smith outfits will usually cost from $50 to $125. Complete 

 equipment of this sort will save many delays occasioned by 

 the failure of some trifling part, and will save enormously on 

 the time required for sharpening plows. Time and money 

 have often been saved by sinking wells at intervals over a 

 large ranch and using a small portable gasoline engine to pump 

 water for the tractor. For plowing at some distance from 

 headquarters it is advisable to have either a tent or shack 

 for cooking, and possibly another for sleeping. The cook 

 shack and sleeping van are frequently on wheels, and form 

 part of the regular outfit which is taken from place to place. 

 Thus no time need be lost in going to meals, and proper care 

 of the men is made much easier. Either shack complete 

 and mounted on substantial trucks will cost from $200 to $500, 

 according to finish and equipment. 



While the greatest need for mechanical power lies in plow- 



