‘Ihe RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Plowing Roads with Motor Truck 
How It Is Done in Montana 
HE heavy snowfall in Winter in sections like 
Montana makes the roads impassable in many 
places. As the railroads are tied up completely for 
several days, it is all the more essential that the 
highways be kept open, not only for the farmers, 
but for inter-city transportation. Exceedingly poor 
freight and passenger service has developed the 
motor bus service, upon which farmers depend. All 
towns in the Flathead County region are served with 
large, capacious buses and by inter-trucking service. 
The poor train service necessitated that school 
children travel to and from the high school on the 
buses. The roads must be kept open if the education 
of the farmer’s children be maintained and business 
continue. It costs from five to six hundred dollars 
a mile to plow out roads with horses, and in Mon¬ 
tana drifts this is slow work. The business men of 
Kalispell were anxious to have the farmers come to 
town regularly, and so they raised a fund of $220 
by popular^ subscription to aid the 
county commissioner in keeping the 
roads clear. The county engineer set 
about to equip the motor truck used 
in road maintenance work with a snow¬ 
plow. Much of the material used was 
second-hand, but a satisfactory snow¬ 
plow was developed. 
Across the front end of the truck was 
bolted a heavy timber to which the 
plow was hung with heavy double 
hinges. The plow was made after the 
type of railroad plows, built out of 
heavy timbers faced with 2x4s, and 
covered with sheet tin, while the cut¬ 
ting edge was faced with quarter-inch 
steel. A 6x6 timber extends perpen¬ 
dicularly fi’om the nose of the plow; 
to this a block and tackle is attached, 
extending to the rear of the truck, by 
means of which the elevation of the 
plow is regulated. By this adjustment 
the sleigh road is not damaged, but 
widened and superfluous snow removed, 
thus permitting the automobiles to get 
over the roads. 
At the center of the truck on each 
side are attached spreader boards; 
across the back is bolted a heavy tim¬ 
ber and braces extend to the spreader 
boards. These are hung in such a 
manner that they can be raised to 
avoid poles, fences or bridge railings, 
and are used to push pack on each side 
of the road the ridge left by the plow. 
The rear wheels of the truck are 
equipped with special cleats securely 
bolted to the wheels, which give the 
truck good traction. The front wheels 
are set in specially designed runners, 
shod with half inch quarter round steel 
shoes. These run easier than wheels, 
and hold the road, while no difficulty 
is encountered in steering. 
The plow itself weighs between 700 
and S00 pounds, part of which is trans¬ 
mitted by the tackle to the rear of the 
truck. Gasoline, oil and tools are carried in the 
body which, with the plow and equipment, would 
make the outfit weigh about six tons. The truck 
and plow demonstrated its ability to plow more 
miles of highway out per day than six teams and 
as many teamsters, and not only made a great sav¬ 
ing to the county, but also made it possible for the 
children to attend school regularly and for the 
farmers to transact business daily, eakle w. gage. 
Employ ere’ Liability and the Farmer 
DANGEROUS OCCUPATION.—It is probably 
not generally kuown that farming is one of the 
most dangerous of occupations from the standpoint 
of physical injury. German accident records cover¬ 
ing long periods in that country have shown this to 
be true. In the United States the liability to injury 
is even greater, since here farm work is done more 
rapidly and by means of more complicated and dan¬ 
gerous machinery and also because of the more 
general use of horses. The workman’s compensation 
law of the State of New York excepts farmers from 
its provisions. They are not liable for injuries to 
their hired help while engaged in farm work. On 
the face of things, the farmer is singled out for 
special favor by this exemption. In fact, the finan¬ 
cial situation of the farmer is so precarious that 
liability under the compensation law would ruin 
nearly every one so unfortunate as to have an em¬ 
ployee seriously injured. Naturally the farmers pro¬ 
tested against the application of this law to his 
business, and the wise law-givers, knowing that he 
could bear no further burdens, exempted him. 
MEN AND HORSES.—In this matter the attitude 
of the public toward the farmer is like that of the 
farmer toward his work horses. On account of the 
docile disposition of the horse, the farmer can -work 
him to the limit of his strength throughout the span 
of his life. All the horse receives in return is his 
oats and hay and a sheltered place to eat and sleep 
in. But the Avise farmer knows better than to ask 
impossible things of his horses. He knows when 
they have done a day’s work, and he does not ask 
them to pull a load that he knows will cause them 
to balk. He feeds them enough to keep them in good 
working condition. They expect no more. Like his 
horses, the farmer has always worked for little more 
than his oats and hay. This is very satisfactory to 
the public, but it did not dare load him up with this 
workman’s compensation burden, lest he balk or lose 
his power to work. Recently there has been much 
concern lest the farmer cease work altogether. 
Obviously it would not be wise to overload him 
further so long as he has always been as docile as 
his horses. So he was exempted from the operation 
of the employers’ liability act. 
BUSINESS PRACTICE.—Every business except 
farming is conducted on the principle that the price 
of the finished product includes the cost of work¬ 
man’s insurance and all other normal risks and 
expenses. This is sound business practice. It is 
also the most enlightened public policy that industry 
may pass on to the ultimate consumer the cost of 
insuring the individual against accident. In this 
way those who are injured in industry are relieved 
and indemnified. 
EXEMPTION NO FAVOR. — Doubtless many 
farmers have been misled into thinking that they 
have been favored by exemption from employers’ 
liability. As a matter of fact, they are injured and 
handicapped in many ways by such class legislation. 
It affords the average consumer grounds for think¬ 
ing that agriculture is unfairly favored. It is diffi¬ 
cult to counteract such wrong impressions. The city 
press diligently spreads them, while the farmer has 
no medium through which to correct them. All this 
adds to the difficulty of getting a fair hearing on 
the merits of other rights which the farmer must 
contend for. Even moi*e xxxxfortixxxate is the tacit 
1875 
admission by the farmers and the few who under¬ 
stand their problems that farming cannot keep step 
with progress in social legislation looking to the 
distribution of the misfortune of the individual over 
the broad shoulders of the many who are not injui’ed. 
Exemption fx-om the workman’s compensation cannot 
but have the effect of draining from the farms the 
best and all most foresighted help to work in indus¬ 
tries where the law protects them fi-om the dangers 
of their occupation. No doubt middlemen, large 
employers of labor and city consumers generally 
have thought that this exemption would make food 
cheaper. Yet its inevitable consequence must be to 
reduce the number of workers on the land, resulting 
in less food at higher prices. 
A SUGGESTED REMEDY.—The remedy for this 
situation, however, is relatively simple. Farmers 
can and should do it themselves. First, let the 
fanners organize mutual accident insurance com¬ 
panies similar to the mutual fire insurance com¬ 
panies which operate so successfully in the State of 
New York. Then when a farm hand is injured the 
compensation required by State law 
will be available from the local mutual 
company, and the cost assessed and 
spread over the entire farmer member¬ 
ship. (It would, of course, be only 
good sense for the farmers to insure 
themselves against accident in the same 
company. In this way one of the great 
hazards to the individual fanner would 
be removed and at a minimum cost.) 
Second, having safeguarded the indi¬ 
vidual farmer-employer by the device 
of the mixtual accident insurance com¬ 
pany, memorialize the Legislature to 
extend the workman’s compensation act 
to agriculture. This will help place 
farmers in the position of not wanting, 
asking nor accepting special privileges. 
A first step in the farmei*s’ fight for 
fundamental justice is to convince the 
average consumer that he is not already 
enjoying special favors. By the same 
action notice will be seiwed upoxx those 
who have hitherto assumed the shaping 
of agricultural affairs that farmers ax*e 
not to be sidetracked by substitutes or 
“something just as good’ 1 as funda¬ 
mental justice. 
IMPROVING FARM CONDITIONS. 
—Third, follow with a united front on 
the simple px‘ogx - am for a price for 
produce at the farm which will cover 
every natural expense and risk, includ¬ 
ing workmen's and employers’ accident 
insui-ance, plus a reasonable profit. 
That constitutes the x-ock of funda¬ 
mental justice. H. H. MO WRY. 
Watch Out for Your Seed Corn 
N all the yeax-s I have never known 
one where there was such danger 
to seed corn as during the Fall months. 
The custom of delaying huskixxg until 
the i*ush of work was over, and then 
tracing the ear's and hanging on the 
walls of the shed, or outside the build¬ 
ings. can hardly suffice this year. The continued 
moist, warm weather, with rain every few days, 
has loaded the cobs with moisture. All over New 
England, if not the Middle States, the sixper- 
abundance of moisture has prevented the proper 
curing of the seed corn, and when the freezing 
period comes thexe is gi-ave danger of loss of seed 
vitality. So important is this that every cora 
gx-ower will do well fo give attention to his seed 
traces at once, by hanging in a warm room, whex-e 
there is no danger of freezing, until thoroughly dried 
out. At the same time care may well be exercised 
not to ovei'heat. For one I have never been partial 
to artificial heat in curing seed, but conditions this 
year force action not to be neglected. When planting 
time comes it will mean much whether 60 or 90 per 
cent of the corn geimiinates in the soil. Right here 
it should be stated that actixal field tests can hardly 
be expected to equal the early germination tests in 
the house, whex*e all conditions are made favorable. 
There is the certainty that throughout New 
England, at least, we face the necessity for still 
further restriction of territory under cultivation 
because of lack of suitable man powei*. This recog- 
uized, forces a sharp study of all conditions, seed 
vitality being one of the most important, that we 
may realize all that is possible fi'om the acres 
worked. The corn crop is one of the most important 
grown, and its increase is essential to the best ad- 
Montana Motor Snowplow with Its Crew. Fig. 613 
A Six-foot Man Standing in a Field of Luce's Favorite Corn, Grown in Lack¬ 
awanna County, Pa. 
