HARVESTING BROOM-CORN 35 
straws. When the upper leaf sheath surrounds the 
shank it is important that the knife cut through a 
sufficient distance to sever the head but leave the 
sheath partially attached, so that it will be left be- 
hind when the head is removed. A leather stall is 
worn on the right forefinger, so that by grasping the 
stalk between the finger and the knifeblade the head 
may be severed by a pressure of the thumb on the 
back of the knife blade. Not less than six inches of 
stem should be left below the attachment of the 
straws, but if more than eight inches of shank is left 
the value of the brush is decreased. 
As the brush is cut it is laid in small piles on alter- 
nate tables. The brush is so placed as to be within 
easy reach from either side as a wagon is driven over 
the empty table between. 
Figure 9g shows the tabled broom-corn ready for 
the cutters, and Figure 10 shows the cut brush piled 
on the table and ready to be loaded as the wagon is 
driven over the empty table to the right in the 
photograph. 
Hauling.—Since the quality of the brush is in- 
jured by rain, it is essential that the cut brush should 
be hauled to the scraper, seeded and put in curing 
sheds as soon as possible. In some sections the 
brush is cured out of doors, but this method pro- 
duces a bleached head of very poor quality and one 
that will not command the full market price. 
Where broom-corn is grown on a limited scale an 
ordinary handy wagon may be used to haul the 
brush, but where the crop is grown on an extensive 
scale a dump wagon (Figure 11) is usually em- 
