DEYING AND HANDLING THE CHOP. 35 



own to make all the difference between profit and no 

 profit. Had he been in the city where the crops were sold, 

 and seen the two lots on their arrival, he would have found 

 that his neighbor's corn was delivered in compact, tight 

 bales, with square, even ends, and that it was so closely 

 packed that at the end of a long journey it was difficult 

 to pull out a sample. On the other hand, his own bales 

 were shaky, lop-sided, and instead of its being difficult 

 to pall out a handful anywhere, it troubled those who 

 handled it to keep it from falling out altogether. No 

 matter how carefully and successfully every step in the 

 production of the brush has been performed, the profit of 

 the crop will depend, other things being equal, upon the 

 proper baling. 



THE PRESS. Several presses are made for hay, cotton, 

 etc., almost any of which can be adapted for baling 



Fig. 11. A BALE WITH LATHS. 



Broom-corn, and some are constructed with special ref- 

 erence to this crop. They are made to work by horse- 

 power or by hand. Where the crop is small, any one 

 with mechanical skill can devise a press that will answer. 

 The proper size of the bales is/ 3 feet 10 inches long, 24 

 inches wide, and 30 inches deep. The bale is bound by 

 four or five wires, that known as "No. 9 fence wire," 

 being the kind generally used. Some place a stout lath 

 at each corner to protect the brush and to strengthen 

 the bale, and some add a light wire which passes 



