328 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
No. 154 . 
Unloading hay in a barn by means of horse¬ 
power pitchforks or elevators is becoming quite 
common in some sections of the country, and will 
be practiced everywhere, as soon as farmers un¬ 
derstand the operation, and its advantages. To 
pitch off a load of hay into a barn bay, or on a high 
scaffold, which formerly required twenty to forty 
minutes, and much hard lifting, can now be done 
in four to seven minutes, and with very little la¬ 
bor. A man working a large farm in Pennsylva¬ 
nia said to us the other day : “ I would quite as 
soon give up my horse-rake as my horse pitch- 
fork.” There are several forms of this imple¬ 
ment. The one shown in the accompanying en¬ 
graving, the invention of C. E. Gladding, of Brad¬ 
ford Co., Pa., is the best we have seen in opera¬ 
tion. The fork is suspended by a rope running 
over a pulley on a rafter, or high beam—down un¬ 
der another pulley on the floor, and out of the door 
in a horizontal direction, where a horse is at¬ 
tached to it. The fork, set in the manner seen 
in fig. 1, is thrust into a mass of hay by the man 
on the load, and the horse started. A large mass 
of hay is elevated, the fork being steadied by 
holding on to the left hand portion of the rope 
in the fork handle. When at the desired hight, 
the hay is swung into the mow, and then by pul¬ 
ling the other part of the rope which passes along 
the inside of the fork-handle, the tines are loosen¬ 
ed as shown in fig. 2. The fork is then lowered, 
and readily takes the position of fig. 1 again. 
To Break tie Force of “Sudden Jerks.” 
Every one who has used a lever horse power, 
is aware how frequently cogs, or other parts of 
the machinery, are broken by the sudden starting 
of the team. From this cause, we have more 
than once had threshing brought to a full stop, 
and a dozen men delayed for a whole day, or 
more, while a new wheel could be obtained from 
the distant manufactory. Fig. 1 gives an outline 
of a simple arrangement we have seen in a few 
localities lately, which will effectually overcome 
the difficulty referred to. To the lever or arm, 
a, a pretty strong piece of tough wood, s, is at¬ 
tached in the manner shown in our engraving. A 
short chain from the whiffle-tree, or the evener 
(“ double-tree ”), if two horses be used, passes 
through a hole in the end of the arm, a, and is 
attached to a hook in the end of the spring, s. 
In pulling with moderate force, this spring stands 
as seen in fig. 1, and if sufficiently stiff, it will 
break the force of any sudden “jerk” at starting. 
So also it yields to the uneven motion of the team, 
and must necessarily equalize the draft, and les¬ 
sen the wear upon the neck of the animal. This 
spring is very easily attached to any horse-power, 
by simply beveling one end, and fastening it with 
bolts or clamps. We are not aware that this 
convenient and valuable appendage is patented. 
A similar spring might be readily placed upon 
the forward axle of a wagon, from which a chain 
could run to the whiffle-tree, or evener. This 
would save the sudden jerking always felt by 
any one riding after a spirited or fractious horse 
—or even after a slow team, when the whip is 
applied. If the spring be placed upon the axle, 
to give free motion, it would only be necessary 
to have the bolt pass through a link or clevis, 
instead of through a hole in the whiffle-tree, or 
evener. For a two-horse wagon, perhaps a better 
arrangement would be, to place the spring on the 
tongue, the raised end pointing back. If put on 
the upper side, the evener would best be placed 
on the under side, and be fastened to the spring 
by a chain, running through or over the rear end 
of the tongue. Or the spring may be put on the 
under side, and the chain connect it to the evener 
in the same manner. 
Fig. 2. 
We have also seen a similar attachment to a 
plow, (patented, we believe), to break the sudden 
force of the team, when the implement strikes a 
fast stone, or other obstruction. Not having at 
hand one of the plows thus fitted up, to sketch 
from, we have made the accompanying illus¬ 
tration (Fig. 2) partly from memory, and partly 
from imagination, to show how the thing works. 
In practice we believe the “ angle ” under the 
plow-beam is partly set up into the beam, so as to 
be out of the way. If patented, and the patentee 
is reasonable in his charges, this attachment must 
come rapidly into general use, and save much 
wear and breakage of harness and “plow-points.” 
Balky Horses. 
The prime requisite for the successful manage¬ 
ment of a balky horse, is perfect self possession 
and patience on the part of the driver. It is quite 
common to see men fly into a passion upon the 
first restive symptoms of the horse, and to deal 
out fierce punishment until compelled to desist 
from sheer exhaustion, after which, when the 
driver has become calm, and the horse recovered 
from his fright, a start is effected and the trouble 
is over. Young horses before they are completely 
broken, may stop when in the harness, from a 
feeling of inability to draw their load, from 
fatigue, from misunderstanding the will of the 
driver, or from an excitable disposition, lead¬ 
ing them to act upon the impulse of the moment. 
In all these cases there is necessity for care and 
coolness in the driver. From the first, and for a 
long time, the load of a young horse should be 
such as he can draw with the greatest ease, thus 
giving him confidence in his own powers. A 
voung horse once “ set ” will thereafter pull with 
uncertainty—hence with only half a will ; he is 
then discouraged easily, and balks at trifling ob¬ 
stacles, or if he be of spirited disposition he will 
spring to it with might and main whenever he 
feels extra weight behind him, and if not allowed 
to work in this way will stop at once. It has 
been noticed that the worst balks usually occur 
at or near the foot of hills, and this may explain 
how the horse learns the habit. The driver 
should anticipate the wish of the horse to rest, 
by allowing even more frequent intervals than 
are required. This practice induces the habit of 
obedience, the horse willingly stops when the 
word is given, and thus is accustomed to heed 
the driver’s command, which is the first and 
great requisite in his education. These com¬ 
mands should be given in a way that can readily 
be understood. A well trained animal shows re¬ 
markable intelligence in perceiving his master's 
wishes, but it is by long familiarity with his ways 
that this ability is acquired. 
Balky horses are usually “ high strung,” pos¬ 
sessing the very disposition which, if properly 
treated, will give the best style and action. It is 
stated on good authority, that such horses may be 
so wrought upon by a single harsh exclamation, 
as to raise the pulse ten beats a minute. What 
wonder if such an animal should prove refracto¬ 
ry upon suddenly feeling the lash of an infuriated 
driver. For this class of horses a whip need sel¬ 
dom if ever be used when breaking them. They 
yield readily to kindness, and are as quick to 
obo-y when properly treated, as they are trouble¬ 
some when “ fooled ” with—we use this term 
for want of a more expressive one. These re¬ 
marks apply more particularly to the prevention 
of balking by proper management of colts. When 
the habit of balking is fixed, impatience of the 
driver only increases the difficulty. The treat¬ 
ment then requires the highest common sense, 
the first thing men lose when they fly into a pas¬ 
sion. The following directions given by Mr. Ra- 
rey, are probably as sound and complete on this 
subject as anything ever published: 
“Almost any team, when first baulked, will 
start kindly, if you let them stand five or ten 
minutes, as though there was nothing wrong, and 
then speak to them with a steady voice, and turn 
them a little to the right or left, so as to get them 
both in motion before they feel the pinch of the 
load. But if you want to start a team that you 
are not driving yourself, that has been baulked, 
fooled, and whipped for some time, go to them 
and hang the lines on their hames, or fasten them 
to the wagon, so that they will be perfectly loose ; 
make the driver and spectators (if there are any) 
stand off some distance to one side, so as not to 
attract the attention of the horses ; unloose their 
check-reins, so that they can get their heads 
down if they choose ; let them stand a few min¬ 
utes in this condition until you can see that they 
are a little composed. "While they are standing, 
you should be about their heads, gentling them ; 
it will make them a little more kind, and the 
spectators will think that you are doing some¬ 
thing that they do not understand, and will not 
learn the secret. When you have them ready to 
start, stand before them, and, as you seldom have 
but one baulky horse in a team, get as near in 
front of him as you can, and, if he is too fast for 
the other horse, let his nose come against your 
breast; this will keep him steady, for he will go 
slow rather than run on you. Turn them gently 
to the right, without letting them pull on the 
traces as far as the tongue will let them go ; 
stop them with a kind word, gentle them a little, 
and then turn them back to the left, by the same 
process. You will then have them under your 
control by this time ; and as you turn them 
again to the right, steady them in the collar, and 
you can take them where you please.” 
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Defile not your mouth with impure words. 
