FARMING TOOLS AND IMPLEMENTS 



Then the seed was "firmed in" by the use of a heavy 

 stone boat loaded with stones or by a wooden roller 

 hewn by hand from a tree trunk, two feet or more in 

 diameter. 



The common form of harrow of one hundred years 

 ago was the wooden framed, A-shaped harrow, set with 

 hardwood pegs more than a foot in length. Of course, 

 on our rocky hills it became necessary frequently to re- 

 place the teeth, as they soon became dulled so that they 

 only slightly stirred the surface soil. 



The grain was for years cut by the sickle, a method 

 dating back to Bible times. From the New England 

 Farmer, issue of July 21, 1849, the following is taken 

 regarding "Grain Cradles": 



"This is truly a labor-saving implement, doing work 

 in a neat manner in good hands, and with great expedi- 

 tion, having decided advantages over the sickle with its 

 slow, tedious, back-aching operation. The gain in dis- 

 patching the harvesting of grain is not merely doing it 

 at less expense, but often the advantage is in perform- 

 ing it in the very nick of time and thereby saving the 

 grain from a storm or from standing too late." 



Although the first reapers had been patented prior to 

 the introduction of the grain cradle, for many years 

 they did not work satisfactorily. What proved to be 

 the first satisfactory style of horse-power reaper was 

 shown at the World's Fair in London in 1 8 5 i , and this, 



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