28 Machinery and Production [826 



one line of production to another, even when the pros- 

 pects for profit in such other line may be unusually 

 bright. Thus the supply of the more profitable product 

 is restricted. On the other hand, farmers having their 

 capital in the form of machinery devoted to the pro- 

 duction of some particular crop, will continue to produce 

 somewhat of that crop rather than to have their capital 

 lie idle or to suffer a greater loss from an attempt to 

 change. This influence operates towards maintaining 

 the former supply. 



As a consequence of these two dissimilar forces, the 

 supply of any product is more constant, and the re- 

 sulting fluctuations in price less violent than they other- 

 wise would be. 



THE QUALITY OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS 



The use of machinery is not without some influence 

 on the quality of the product. Corn, which, by reason 

 of too early or too late planting, as was necessarily 

 frequent under hand methods of production, does not 

 mature properly, and is unwholesome ; and grain cut, 

 as formerly, under hand methods, before it is thoroughly 

 ripened, becomes shrunken and of less value. 



In the matter of preparing grain for use the advant- 

 ages of machinery are equally evident. The present 

 generation of Americans would be slow to eat bread 

 made of flour from wheat threshed by the treading of 

 horses or cattle. 



