fiont. When the horses went on the treadmill, there was a pole between them to prevent thm from crowding, and one behind them to keep them from backing off. Fastened to the front spindle, there was a large fly-wheel at the side, about five feet " diameter and six inches wide for the belt to run on, to connect
. e threshing mill. .g,
.E There was a brake fastened to the side of the treadmill, close to the fly-wheel, and a rope tied to the outer end, and back to the thresher. When it was necessary to stop the mill, this rope was pulled. The horses soon caught on to this operation and, as soon as the rope was pulled, they would sit against the pole at the back and soon stop it.
'i
,, About the time the threshing machine was used, the first reaper came into being. This was a wonderful machine, but it Was necessary for the harvesters to bind the sheaves with wisps of twisted straw. A smart man could bind and stook about a hun- dred stooks a day. Many new inventions were added to this reaper, and around the turn of the century good binders were used, which had a carrier to turn out several sheaves, which made much less travelling for the stooker.
:. Edison Heaney owned the first tractor in the district. It was an Allis Chalmers, bought in 1940 and cost $550. At this time, it was thought unsafe to work hilly farms with tractors, but times
have changed and now every farmer has a tractor and some have two.
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In the same way, the idea of a combine was for the prairie farms or larger farms than Clinton farmers owned, but this has also changed and there is now not a single binder in use in Clin-
ton. If a farmer doesn’t own a combine, he has his grain combined by custom work.
The Stonehouse Pickerings owned, in the early 1900’s, the , rst gasoline engine used for farm purposes on P.E.I. The only
her engine before this on the Island was used by a publishing ,V ouse in Summerside to run the press.
James Pickering Jr. owned the first buggy in Clinton. Wesley 3 eaney owned the first automobile, a Ford bought in 1918. Among
,. her of the early car owners were: John Dunning, Edison Heaney ._I d George Riley.
.In the late Neil Matheson’s column, “Early Troubles of Auto— I; obiles”, he quotes from some of the letters written to the news- apers: “autos must be hung up for all time —— We have no right 3' allow such a nuisance on P.E.I. — only a foolish fad of mil- jonaires and fools.” In 1908, the legislature passed an act which anned cars from all Island highways. It was not until 1919 that 11 roads were declared open for traffic.