John N. De Lamater

“ Usually at harvest the country is full of good stackers, and if, between that time and threshing, there is little or no rain, they live through and there is a good supply next year; but if, between stacking and threshing, a protracted rain occurs, vast multitudes are drowned, so that, at threshing time, but few good stackers are found alive. ”

“ If a man gets them well fixed in his mind and discards the idea that he must keep the middle full from the ground up, he will have but little damaged grain, even in the very worst of seasons.
A boy to hand bundles is usually more damage than good until a stack is half built, and then he should not be allowed to stand on outside course. If practical, drive alternate loads on opposite sides of the stack ”

“ Two stakes, one eight and the other ten rods away, and in line with the center of foundation, [Pg 12] will sometimes assist the stacker in keeping his stack well balanced, for at a glance he can tell whether the center is in line with the stakes. A man may build, as his fancy dictates, either round, elliptical or square, but in all, the same general principles must be observed—the lower part of the stack built straight up; put in a bulge which settles down around and nearly conceals the lower part, leaving the center of the bulge high; filling the middle to support the center of the top. ”

“ For a gothic stack, build an ordinary one until commencing to draw in, then draw in the oval corners and build center of sides and ends straight up. For an X stack draw in sides and ends; build center straight up. These stacks look very ornamental on a premium farm and will save well, but take more time to build than ordinary stack tops. ”

“ Now commence at the outside and lay a course around, neither laying out or drawing in, except to correct any little error that may occur in the elliptical form of the stack; complete the courses to the center, but don't fill the middle too full; if the outside is lower than the middle, lay a double course around outside; keep your stack flat—full as high at outside as center; build the first load straight up, neither laying out or drawing in, if the stack is to contain ten or twelve loads ”