USA > Illinois > Ford County > Ford County, Illinois, county directory, 1917 > Part 2
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Fig. 9 indicates a needle trouble. For some reason the needle has not placed the twine in the disc. Most likely the needle has carried up some green stuff of some kind which mo- mentarily clogs the disc. If this band occurs frequently, however, then prob- ably the eye of the needle has be- come so badly worn back, due to too tight a tension, that the needle can not advance far enough to place the twine in the disc. The needle should advance until it just barely touches the stripper or breast plate.' If it does not advance that far it is prob- ably slow and the needle pitman should be shortened slightly.
Make all binder head and knotter head adjustments gradually. A quar- ter of a turn of the studs on the disc and knotter bills springs is ample to remedy most troubles in those parts.
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PRAIRIE FARMER'S RELIABLE DIRECTORY
CORN PLANTER ADJUSTMENTS
By C. O. Reed, University of Illinois in Prairie Farmer.
Not all of our implement troubles are to be found in the plow or in the binder. The corn planter has troubles of its own, and it is the purpose of this article to discuss some of the corn planter principles and troubles that are often misunderstood.
Accuracy in Drop
Some corn growers say that ac- curacy of drop is not an important factor with them because two kernels in one hill and four in the next gives an average of three kernels per hill and that is the number desired. The fallacy of this statement is very ap- parent when we stop to consider that in such planting we have not the de- sired three kernels in either hill; and if the soil is three-kernel soil, two kernels per hill are too few while four kernels are too many. The re- sult is probably a loss in each hill.
A certain soil may give the best yield with either two, three or four kernels per hill, but after it has been ascertained which number of kernels is best every effort should be made to secure that number in each hill where the soil conditions remain constant. The variable drop devices on planters afford ample opportunity to shift from two to three or from three to four kernels per hill as the soil conditions through the row may demand, but the advisability of permitting inac- curacy in drop from hill to hill is questionable.
The first two requisites for accu- racy in drop are (a) seed of uniform size, and (b) the selection of the proper seed plate. Hand tipped and butted corn or machine sorted corn will give seed as uniform in shape and size of kernel as is practical, but unsorted seed may be relied upon to cause inaccurate dropping.
Testing out the planter to make sure that the proper plate is used is to be strongly advocated. Last year's plate may not be the best one for this year's seed, for if there is a slight difference in the average size of ker- nels between the two years, a corre- sponding change may be necessary in
the size of the seed pits in the plate used. The following table taken from laboratory tests shows the danger of carelessness in selecting the seed plate. The planter was set to drop three-kernel hills, and the plates "small" and "large" were plates next size smaller and next size larger than the proper or right sized plate found.
Right Small sized Large plate plate plate
Per cent of blank hill .. 9.34 .00 .00
Per cent of hills contain-
ing 1 kernel. .29.36 .26 .28
Per cent of hills contain-
ing 2 kernels .37.54 8.66 5.3
Per cent of hills contain-
ing 3 kernels .20.48 88.12 81.28
Per cent of hills contain-
ing 4 kernels 2.66 2.84 11.48
Per cent of hills contain-
ing 5 kernels .62 .12 1.66
These figures tend to show that a slight mistake in plate selection may lead to a direct loss in stand. There may be but a very slight difference between two pairs of plates-so slight perhaps that we can not detect the difference by eye-but a test of the two pairs will quickly show that one of those pairs means a good drop while the other pain is dangerous and its use should be avoided. Testing can be done when time at the barn permits and will not only mean a sav- ing of time in the field but will also enable the operator to avoid a mis take before it is too late.
Each operator will have his own method of testing out the planter but he should heed these three rules: (1) Let each test consist of at least 50 or 60 hills; (2) run the planter parts at field speed; (3) do not give up until the best plate is found. Probably the quickest way to test is to run the planter in the farm yard, providing the chickens do not get the corn be- fore we can count it. Rainy day test- ing on the barn floor is a little more troublesome but can be very success- fully accomplished by two persons as follows Jack the planter up over a blanket stretched tight on the floor so that the furrow openers will be about three inches above the blanket when
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FARMERS AND BREEDERS, FORD COUNTY
the depth lever is thrown forward. One man can then turn the drive wheel, trip the check arm and call out the number of kernels dropped, while the second person records the count. After each hill is dropped the kernels are brushed away by foot of the man turning the drive wheel. Glancing at the drop without recording the count simplifies the process but it is not an accurate method and should be avoided when possible.
Accuracy of drop may be secured further by keeping the seed hoppers at least half full at all times.
Blank Hills at the Ends of Rows
Accuracy of drop depends also to some extent upon the speed of the valves. It sometimes happens that at one end of the row we will happen to stop the team just as the button on the check wire has begun to force the check arm. The valves work so slowly at such a time or stop at such a point that in some planters the seed at the top of the boot drops clear through to the ground instead of be- ing intercepted at the bottom of the boot. Two hills drop at once, then, and when we have turned around there are no kernels at the lower valve ready for the first hill on the return trip. On some planters we may overcome the difficulty by foot dropping one hill while the team is turning. On other planters the only remedy is to stop sooner at the end of the row or to drive ahead at usual speed until the wire has released the check arm.
Accuracy in Check
Considerable attention is usually given to securing accurate checking, but a word regarding the adjustment will not be amiss. Accurate checking means possibility of closer cultivation and less loss by cultivating out hills. The manufacturer has found that un- der usual conditions the check wire will travel from one to three inches across the field, and inasmuch as the slack will always be ahead of the machine, he designs his planter to drop the hill at a distance behind the button equal to one-half the travel. On the return trip the hill is again dropped behind the button and thus the hills should check in spite of the wire travel. It can readily be seen then that if our shoes or furrow openers are dropping nearer to or farther away from the button than half the wire travel, our system for securing good checking will be ma- terially interfered with and adjust- ments must be made at A in Fig. 1.
This tongue adjustment will vary on the different makes of planters. On some it is at the rear end of the tongue, but it will be found on ali the popular makes. As a rule the front frame of the planter should be run level, and it can be so run with a properly drawn check wire. But dif- ferent tensions on the wire drawn by different drivers may necessitate throwing the front frame slightly out of a horizontal position. If the planter drops too close to the button, make such tongue adjustment as will
Fig. 1. Tongue Adjustment to Secure Accurate Checking
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PRAIRIE FARMER'S RELIABLE DIRECTORY
A
B.
A Spread Check Fork May Cause Stringing
drop the furrow openers back a little toward the wheels. To some extent tightening the check wire will accom- plish the same result in the check. Forcing the furrow openers a little ahead by means of the tongue adjust- ment will cause the hill to be dropped a little close to the button, or having the check wire a little more slack will have the same result in the check. In testing for accuracy of check by digging up hills, select hills pretty close behind the planter. Adjusting the neckyoke straps will also affect the check. The adjustment shown in Fig. 1 is also a means of maintaining a good check when different heights of teams are used and when the dif- ference cannot be compensated for by adjusting the neckyoke straps.
Uniform tension in the check wire must be maintained if accurate check- ing is to result. Some drivers even go so far as to make allowance for the expansion and contraction of the check wire due to varying tempera-
ture from day to day, but this is get- ting too particular to be practical. It is practical, however, where plant- ing is being done up and down a slope, to pull the wire tighter when setting the high stake.
Uniform Depth of Planting
In planting over a rough field, a more uniform depth can often be se- cured by floating the furrow openers, but when this is done the operator should keep the openers under foot control so that the shoes may be forced to their depth in dry spots and kept from planting too deep in moist, soft spots. There are a number of shoe gauges now on the market which attach to shoes to insure uniform depth when floating is desirable. Such attachments should prove valuable if properly used where the conditions demand. Stringing of the hill may be caused by (a) dirt in the boot, and (b) by a spread check arm. Trouble from the first cause will probably be
14
FARMERS AND BREEDERS, FORD COUNTY
due to the team having set back on the planter while the shoes were still in the ground. Clean out the boot bottom thoroughly and the rest of the remedy is obvious. Trouble (b) is less easily detected. If the check arm is spread as is shown at B in Fig. 2, the wire button will let go of the check arm before the valves have been forced wide open, to the result that the kernels will be strung out in the row rather than being dropped well together. By means of a ham- mer, drive the arm halves together to their original position, but in so doing care must be taken not to get the halves so closely together that bind- ing of the wire will result. The check arm halves can be left straight as shown at A in Fig. 2. Some opera- tors find that stringing is due to a badly worn shoe. If this is deter- mined to be the cause. new parts must usually be supplied.
Clutch Troubles
Clutches on the various planters differ so widely in design that no spe- cific rules can be given that would apply to all makes. Failure of the clutch to grip or release can often be overcome by thoroughly cleaning the parts, and if the striking forces are worn round, new parts may have to be secured. On most planters this ยท means but slight expense and a little patience.
Timing the Plate Rims
Breakage may necessitate removal of the rim which drives the plate. This rim is timed with the pinion on the shaft which drives the plates from the clutch, and when the rim is re- placed on the machine the "time" must be re-established. If the plate rim is out of time with the pinion, inaccu- racy will result because the plate it- self will not stop at the proper time.
On some machines the cog teeth of the rim and pinion are so marked or constructed that it is very easy to ascertain the proper relation between the two castings. Before removing the rim the operator should carefully seek any such guides so that he may know just how to replace the parts. If no guide is found on the arm and on the shaft pinion, make a mark on each by means of a cold chisel, and then in replacing parts bring these
two marks into the same relation to each other as at first. It sometimes happens that after replacing a rim or adding a new one, it breaks as soon as it revolves. This is due to non- timing.
The question is often asked: "Is the disc furrow opener preferable to the ordinary shoe runner?" The sin- gle disc opener has better penetration than the shoe and will cut through trash to better advantage, but it throws the soil to one side and cover- ing is made more difficult. The dou- ble disc has less penetrating ability than the single disc, but covering can be more easily accomplished after it.
In hard, trashy ground, then, the disc opener should prove preferable to the shoe opener, but in a well pre- pared seed bed, well free from surface trash, the shoe is strongly advocated because of its simplicity. The planter with disc openers cannot be consid- ered a heavy draft implement, but the discs carry bearings which must work in soil and one may always expect trouble with such a combination.
MRS. LENA STEVENSON MANN Household Editor of Prairie Farmer
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PRAIRIE FARMER'S RELIABLE DIRECTORY
HOW TO MEND THE HAY ROPE
By C. O. Reed, University of Illinois in Prairie Farmer.
To repair a broken or badly weak- ened strand, complete the break as shown in Fig. 1 and unlay each end of the strand back about 2 feet as
shown at A and B in Fig. 2. Take a strand about five feet long from a piece of rope exactly the same size as the hay rope, and lay it into the
A
B
Fig. 1. A Broken Strand to Be Repaired,
B
D
Fig. 2. Ready to Lay In the New Piece
C
B
Fig. 3. Starting to Lay In the New Strand in Repairing a Broken Strand
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FARMERS AND BREEDERS, FORD COUNTY
A
Fig. 4. In Laying In the New Strand the Original Twist and Tension Must Be Maintained
B
1
A
Fig. 5. The New Strand Has Been Laid In Ready to be Secured at the Ends.
place of the broken strand as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, great caution being taken to give the new strand its orig- inal twist and to draw it sufficiently tight, so that the old and new strands will have the same tension when the load is applied. We now have the ends, as shown in Fig. 5. With each pair of ends, tie a simple knot, as shown in the upper rope in Fig. 6, caution being taken to avoid tying the knot shown in the lower half of the same picture. Pull the knots well down into the lay of the rope. Now weave each end in, always working from right to left in weaving, or at right angles to the twist or spiral. Work each end under the two
strands, laying next to the knot as with ends B and D in Fig. 7. Work the ends in a second time and then cut them off, leaving about a quarter of an inch extending out of the rope, as shown in Fig. 8. This completes the repairing of a broken strand. The rope will be stronger than its pre- vious dangerous condition, and if the repair is properly made, it will be hard to detect and will last as long as the rope is serviceable.
If the hay rope is broken or breaks during the hay season, mend it with a long splice which can be quickly made with a little practice. The short splice should not be used in hay ropes. Proceed with the long splice as follows:
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PRAIRIE FARMER'S RELIABLE DIRECTORY
About 21/2 feet from the ends of the rope at the break, tie a piece of twine securely around the rope. Un- lay all three strands in each end back to the twines. Now bring the ends of the rope together securely so that each strand from one end lies alone between two strands of the other end, as shown in Fig. 9. Each strand from each end must now be paired with a corresponding strand from the other end, the strands of each pair standing in the same relation to each other as the strands in each other pair; for instance, in Fig. 9 strands 3 and 5 are paired and the other re- maining strands must now be paired in exactly the same way. The proc- ess now consists of unlaying one
strand of each two pairs and laying into its place its mate from the other rope. In other words, strand 5 in Fig. 9 is unlaid and strand 3 is laid into its place toward the reader's right. Then strand 2 from the left rope is unlaid and its mate, strand 6, is laid into its place toward our left. The third pair of strands remains in the center. Cut off each strand so that about five inches remains and we will then have the partially com- pleted splice, as shown in Fig. 10. With each pair of ends, tie a simple knot exactly as shown in the upper half of Fig. 6 and weave the ends in just as we did when repairing a broken strand above. In making the splice great care must be taken to keep the original twist in all strands
A
2
Fig. 6. Tying Ends in Repairing a Broken Strand and in the Long Splice. The Upper Simple Knot Is Correct. The Lower Knot Is Wrong
C
A
8
Fig. 7. Weave in the Ends as at B and D
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FARMERS AND BREEDERS, FORD COUNTY
laid in, and in pulling each just tight enough so that it will carry its one- third of the load. A properly made long splice is hard to detect except where the ends protrude. It does not increase the diameter of the rope, and is the only splice which should be used where the rope runs over pulleys. The lengths of long splices for ordinary farm ropes of different sizes should be as follows:
1/2 inch rope-4 feet
$4 inch rope-5 feet
1 inch rope-6 feet
This means that each end to be spliced will be unlaid back only one- half these distances. The same dis- tances can be safely used for repair- ing broken strands where new strands are laid in.
If you wish to "take the twist out" of a new rope before puting it into the hay rigging, tie one end of the
rope to a light wagon and drag the rope about a meadow for twenty min- utes or so, drawing it sharply around a tree or post if possible. This treat- ment will lessen objectionable twist- ing and snarling, so troublesome with new ropes. Do not drag the rope out on a dirt road, as is often done. It is hardly necessary to caution the wise driver to turn his fork team al- ternately to the right and to the left to avoid twisting the hay rope.
H. G. Brunning of Mason county, Ill., who has had considerable experi- ence with alfalfa on sandy lands, says that when he seeds alfalfa again he will not use a nurse crop, as on light, sandy soils the young alfalfa plants need all the plant food they can get and should not be robbed by the nurse crop.
3
A
Fig. 8. The Repair Completed
5
6
3
A
2
Fig. 9. Starting the Long Splice
B
4
3
2
Fig. 10. Ready to Tie the Knots in the Long Splice. Ends 1, 2 and 3 Are from Rope A. Ends 4, 5 and 6 Are from Rope B
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PRAIRIE FARMER'S RELIABLE DIRECTORY
LIVESTOCK FARMER'S MEDICINE CHEST
By Dr. A. S. Alexander in Prairie Farmer.
When a farmer can employ a com- petent graduate veterinarian at rea- sonable expense it always is best to do so, and in all serious cases such expert help should be used even if the expense will be considerable. Unfortunately it is not always pos- sible to find such an expert or he may live at such a distance that an ordinary or trivial case will not warrant the expense of his employment, or the nearest veterinarian may not be a properly qualified practitioner, or is one in whom the stockman has no confidence.
For these reasons every owner of animals should keep some simple remedies on hand, and these are nec- essary even on farms where profes- sional assistance can readily be had. It should be understood, however, that the untrained farmer should not attempt the administration of strong poisons, alkaloids and many prepara- tions used hypodermically by a gradu- ate veterinarian. Such preparations are extremely dangerous in the hands of the layman and are liable to do much more harm than good. The trained surgeon also should be de- pended upon for all major operations.
A cupboard may be set apart for storing medicines in a cool, dry place and where freezing will not occur in winter. A glass graduate and scales will be necessary for measuring and weighing medicines. Powdered drugs should be kept in tightly closed glass fruit jars and should be plainly labeled. They may soon lose their strength if exposed to the air. Poisons should be kept on a separate part of a shelf partitioned off for the purpose and away from simple, harmless drugs. Ointments, with the exception of fly blister, should be made up fresh at time of use. Liniment may be pre- pared and kept indefinitely if well corked.
The medicine case should also have a special division in which to keep a few instruments, bandages, suture silk
and absorbent cotton; or better still, these may be kept in a handbag for immediate use required. The emergency bag should contain a roll of absorbent cotton, several rolled three-yard bandages of unbleached muslin in strips three inches wide, a pound or two of oakum, a spool of strong suture silk, half a dozen suture needles of assorted shapes and sizes, most of them large; a half-ounce, short-barreled, strong-nozzled hard rubber syringe, a two-ounce metal syringe, a cow trocar and canula for tapping a bloated animal, a pair of curved shears, a combination operat- ing knife containing a curved bistoury, a probe pointed bistoury and a strong straight scalpel, a few milking tubes and a teat bistoury, an artery forceps, metal probe, castrating knife and pair of horse clippers.
These will suffice, but there are many other useful instruments such as a clinical thermometer, horse tro- car, catheter and dentistry "float," which may be added from time to time. Some of the medicines to be listed later may also have a place in the emergency kit or bag, notably those needed for the treatment of wounds, and at hand should be a strong quart drenching bottle and ten feet of quarter-inch cotton rope with which to hold up a horse's head for drenching. A veterinary force pump is added on a large farm, but its place may be taken by three feet of new lawn sprinkling hose fitted with a large tin funnel. This is used to give a horse or cow a rectal injection. There should also be a six-foot piece of new half-inch rubber tubing for use in giving a cow or mare a vaginal injection.
Simple necessary medicines may best be listed under the following special heads:
Physics.
Epsom and Glauber Salts. Average dose for an adult cow, one pound in
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FARMERS AND BREEDERS, FORD COUNTY
three pints of warin water. Dose for a horse, 12 ounces.
Castor Oil. Especially useful for young animals. Dose for a calf or foal, from 1 to 6 tablespoonfuls shaken up in milk.
Raw Linseed Oil (not boiled, which is poisonous). Average dose, one pint for constipation and to follow a dose of colic medicine, or contain medicine for colic.
Barbados Aloes (freshly powdered). Average dose, one ounce, to be given to an adult horse as a "physic ball."
Wound Medicines.
Keep in stock one pint each of car- bolic acid and coal tar disinfectant and a gallon can of the latter for dipping and disinfecting purposes. Two tea- spoonfuls to a pint of water ordinarily makes a sufficiently strong solution. Bleeding is stopped by applying Mon- sel's solution of iron on oakum or cotton batting, or applying Monsel's powder. As a wound lotion also keep on hand a mixture of one ounce of sugar of lead and six drams of sul- phate of zinc in one pint of water. This is called "white lotion" and should be plainly labeled "poison" and well shaken before use.
Dusting Powders.
A dusting powder of equal parts of slacked lime, charcoal and sulphur is useful for application to surface wounds and sores. Boracic acid also is needed and a little iodoform may be added to keep flies away.
Liniments.
Keep on hand a pint (pound) each of turpentine and aqua ammonia. One ounce each of these mixed with a pint of soft water, in which two raw eggs have been shaken up and the mixture left for 24 hours, will make a good stimulating liniment; or one ounce of each may be mixed with 6 to 14 ounces of raw linseed oil to make a very strong or comparatively mild liniment.
Lotions.
"White lotion" for wounds has al- ready been mentioned. Equal quan- tities of lime water and raw linseed oil make "carron oil," an excellent lotion for burns. Two to four ounces of Goulard's extract and one to two ounces of glycerine in one quart of
soft water form a useful lotion for scratches and mud fever of itchiness and "gumminess" of the legs. A good lotion for inflammation of the udder is made by mixing together one part each of fluid extracts of poke root and belladonna leaves and one part of tur- pentine with five parts of sweet oil, melted lard or camphorated oil. It is made weaker or stronger as required. Anodyne lotion for painful swellings is made by combining equal quantities of tinctures of opium, aconite, bella- donna and druggists' soap liniment. A small quantity of chloroform may be added. Mouth lotion consists of an ounce of powdered borax or alum in a quart of soft water; eye lotion of half a dram each of sulphate of zinc and fluid extract of belladonna in a quart of soft water.
Tonics.
Fowler's solution of arsenic is a good general tonic for rundown, thin, hidebound horses and those afflicted with chronic skin diseases or heaves (broken wind). The average dose is half an ounce (one tablespoonful) given night and morning until one quart has been given. The medicine may then be gradually discontinued, taking at least a week to the work. Dried sulphate of iron (copperas), dose one dram night and morning, is another good tonic, commonly com- bined with an equal dose of ground gentian root or ginger root, nux vomica, saltpeter and fenugreek as a condition powder. The dose is one tablespoonful of the combination of drugs mixed in the feed night and morning for ten days. Omit sulphate of iron for pregnant animals. Nux is poisonous and must therefore be given with care. It is most useful as a nerve tonic and appetizer.
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