favourable, the hay was picked up almost immediately after raking. The hay in those days was hoisted into the loft by hay forks, and grapple forks. Some used rope slings on the wagons. This necessitated stowing the hay in the loft to keep it level.

The side delivery rake soon appeared on the market and this enabled the hay to be raked around the field following the same pattern as it was cut. This made raking hay much faster.

In the 1950’s, the hay baler made its appearance and the hay was gathered into bales of 50-70 lbs and, depending on weather conditions, it would be piled in groups of about ten bales. Later, an attachment was added to the baler that could throw the bales on a caged wagon attached behind the baler. Escalators now take the bales into the loft and in some cases a loft conveyor takes the bales the full length of the loft area. Lately, some farmers have begun using a round baler and many put all their hay up in round bales which weigh up to a ton. These bales turn the weather, and very few bother to store them in buildings. They are generally placed in rows at the corners of fields that can be easily reached in winter weather.

In recent years a number of farmers have changed these haying practices and now put up silage. The hay is cut much earlier and is stored in silos. In many cases a second crop can be taken up, depending on growing conditions. Some use rectangular silos while others use the round upright silos.

Other up-to-date haying equipment include a hay mower and conditioner that are designed into one machine. In this machine the hay is elevated through a press that squeezes the liquid juices out of it. This helps to cure it faster so that it will not have to lay out in the sun so long. A new type oftedder is now available that will shake and'spread the hay out for the sun and breeze to dry, making it possible to shorten the time required to cure it before baling.

THE COMMONS The land north of the Dunk River and south of the “Settlement Road”, now known as the Drummond Road, was known in the last century as “The Commons” and sometimes “The Bulls Run.” It was to this area that the Wrights and the Bradshaws from South West would bring their cattle in the spring ofthe year to pasture for the summer. They would brand all their cattle when they were calves. Tools for this were a thin board and a sharp knife. The Wrights would cut a large “V” in their left ear and one slit in their right ear. The Bradshaw brand was a large “V” in the right ear and a small “v” in the left ear.

The cattle were all corralled by men on horseback at one place in South West for the journey to the “Commons” each spring. In the fall the men would go on horseback to the “Commons” and gather up the cattle for the run back to South West. There they would be separated by their owners for the winter. This practice continued for a number of years until the land and forest was leased and cleared by people who became residents in South Freetown.

Submitted by Essie Wright

DAIRY FARMING In the early years of settlement there was no dairy industry in the province. According to MacGregor writing in 1825, the first milk cows were the breed left by the Acadians. When they arrived, British settlers would have imported some oftheir native breeds. The cattle were let run outdoors until November or early December when they were housed for the winter.

The 1834 census reports one hundred and seventy cows on Lot 25 and two hundred and twelve cows on Lot 26. In the late 1830’s some Ayrshire and Guernsey cows were imported into the province but these breeds did not spread. In 1842, Mr. George Broderick, the first veterinary surgeon arrived from England. Also during the 1830’s and 1840’s new types ofgrain and feed crops were introduced. These included red clover, Dutch white clover, two rowed barley, black oats, timothy seed and New England summer wheat. During the same era threshing machines were introduced becoming widespread by the early 1840’s.

The first Agricultural societies were founded in 1827. The Prince County Agricultural Society was formed at St. Eleanor’s in 1849 and included members from the Bedeque area. These societies promoted advancement in all forms of agricultural practise. In the 18505 the popular cattle breeds were the Ayrshire, Durham and Galloway. The first agricultural exhibition was held in 1851 and by 1854 it was reported that there was an improvement in the cattle shown at the Prince County Exhibition.

The 1861 census shows that the biggest farmers in Freetown had twenty to twenty—five cattle. The largest butter producers in the community would make around five hundred pounds a year. Only eight ofthe fifty nine farmers in Freetown reported making cheese in 1860. The biggest producers accounted for two hundred to two hundred and fifty pounds that year. John Cairns was the biggest dairy farmer in the district and

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