| Many
farmers kept a diary in the 19th-century, and while these are often
more notable for their cryptic and prosaic information, such as weather
conditions and the comings and goings of family and labourers, they
do provide a glimpse of the seasonal round of activity that typified
this way of life. In this diary, which begins on Sunday, February 7th
1875, Anderson paints such a picture by penning four or five lines at
the end of each day. Of interest is the work being done on his hay press
and the fact that the processing of hay was an activity that consumed
much of the winter. Over the course of several days in February, he
describes taking a pattern to Fawcetts Foundry in Sackville in order
that they might produce cast iron fittings for this machine. Another
member of the family works to build a scaffold around the press, and
a “set of double whippletrees” used to attach horses to
the machine were added. Later he describes “fixing and lowering
bridge over rope and chain in press shed and afternoon got to work and
put up first hay with the beater press...horse power wheel not working
well.” Initially the output from the press was 7 or 8 bundles
per day but on February 18th he reports making 21 bundles. Further modifications
to the press wheel followed such that Anderson stated that “Think
we are done repairs at present.” The following week he reports
hauling a hay stack from the "low marsh" and two loads from
upper barn “ [the] first from there this winter” However
the press suffered further damage, in this case to the “doors,”
and several days had to be devoted to repairing them. By February 26th,
having worked out further modifications to the press, he was again pressing
hay and “put out 22 or 23 bundles.” He was soon hauling
hay from other barns and in early March the rig was moved into Amos
Patterson’s portion of the barn in order that work could commence
on shingling the barn end to keep snow from spoiling the hay. It is
evident from later entries that Anderson’s press was being used
by a variety of other farmers and suggesting that this was a commercial
operation that no doubt provided him with an important income. |
