472 MAIZE 



CHAP. Number of acres cut per day, average . 4'7 



XI. Number of horses used ........ 3 



Number of men employed ....... I 



Total cost of harvesting maize with shocker, per acre . . $i'o6, i.e. 4s. 5d. 



"The wear and tear is less than on a corn binder, and the 

 life of the machine ought to be greater. ... A corn shocker 

 arranged to load the shocks on a wagon, would no doubt prove 

 the cheapest method of harvesting corn for the silo. The 

 general verdict of farmers who have used both the com binder 

 and the shocker, is that the shocker is the preferable machine for 

 harvesting- corn." 



446. A Maize Shock Loader. — A loading device for hand- 

 ling the shocks adds greatly to the value of the shocker, for 

 with it the maize can be more cheaply handled. "An im- 

 proved loading device which can be carried along with the 

 wagon or left in the field and driven about independently, is 

 mounted on four wheels, and consists of an adjustable vertical 

 mast on which is a horizontal steel cross-arm. On this is 

 mounted a travelling block fitted with pulleys through which 

 a rope passes. To the end of this rope a horse is hitched 

 to lift the load. For loading corn shocks a grapple fork 

 is used ; this is slipped under the shock, the grapple arms 

 are closed, and with the pull of the horse the shock is lifted up 

 on the wagon and laid on its side or stood on end ; the grapple 

 arms are released by simply turning the handle of the fork. 

 This machine was originally designed to load corn shocks, and 

 it easily handles two shocks per minute, and will bear a stress 

 of 2,000 lbs. It can also be applied to many other uses, such 

 as loading hay, manure, small grain, dirt, lumber, telephone 

 poles, and other heavy objects." 



447. Husking Shocked Maize by Hand. — When the maize 

 is cut before it is dead ripe or dry, it must be husked after the 

 crop has cured. Where large acreages are grown, the Com- 

 bined Husker and Shredder is used to advantage, but where 

 the acreage is small and labour plentiful and cheap, husking 

 may be done by hand. 



A correspondent writing to the Rhodesian Agricultural 

 Journal, under date 13 May, 1910, describes the method of 

 husking adopted by him, as follows : — 



" I give each native a piece of hard pointed stick about 



