THRESHING SHOCKED CORN. The idea of threshing shocked corn, and at the same time tearing and shredding the stalks by means of a common threshing machine, has lately attracted considerable attention. We have lately, seen the statement, however, that it is difficult to get the stalks dry enough to prevent the fodder heating when thrown into bulk. This point is well taken. It is often difficult to cure the shocks 'so dry that when the shredded stalks are stacked seri ous heating Will not ensue. But if this be the only difficulty, it is easily obviated in the winter by a dry system of slight ventilation, rails, etc., being used. There is, however, another strong objection to the threshing of corn ; the grains are much broken, thus seriously impairing the commercial value, but of course not impairing it for use on the farm. The idea is reported by Mr. Henry Collins, in the New York Tribune, to have occurred to Mr. J. T. Cobb, of the Grange ViNiter, who says the only preparation necessary is to remove a section of the concave, put a board in its place and lower the other sec tion a little ; just how much can best be deter mined by actual trial. If you have barn room, stick the end of the straw carrier into .the barn somewhere. If into the big doors, fix up a little platform to catch the fodder if there be space for it in the upper part of the barn, and much less space is required for twenty acres of corn than one would suppose. To get the shocks to the thresher, Mr. Cobb gives sugges tions, and says if the cornstalks are dry when threshed, the fodder will keep all right and be worth twice as much as when fed in the ordinary way. Cattle will eat it better when torn into shreds than when cut into pieces. It should
not be pressed down in the mow, but left loose as it falls from the straw carrier. The direc tions for hauling are as follows: Prepare a strip of wood nine inches long, one and one fourth inches wide and one-third inch thick. Bore a one-fourth inch hole near one end and saw a one-fourth inch notch at a holding angle near the other end. Cut one-fourth inch rope into pieces five or long, tie a knot in one end; run the rope through this block binder, tie a knot in the other end and two more knots eight inches apart. With a half bushel of these binding ties, three wagons with good hay racks and plenty of help you are ready, with all other necessary preparations made, to harvest your corn crop in a day. With these ties drawn tightly around the shocks, if not too large, two men with strong forks will pitch the shocks to a loader, who will find it very convenient to have an sssistant to drive and help unload. The binders are not removed until the shocks are on the table of the machine. There is still another matter that must be taken into consideration. If the fodder is damp the corn will be so. In deed, corn seldoffi dries out in the shock during the winter sufficiently so the shelled corn will keep sound in the bin, but the corn can be thrown on a platform and shoveled over occa sionally until dry enough to bin. So far as the West is concerned, where the bulk of the crop is husked on the stalk in the field as it grew, this mode will not be applicable, but for corn, shocked to be fed stalks and grain, the plan is' worthy of trial. (See Threshing.)