[APG Public List] Scythe and Cradle

[Kathy Gunter Sullivan]

With no agricultural background, I looked it up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cradle_(grain)
In about 1800 the addition of light wooden fingers above a scythe blade 
produced *a form of scythe called the cradle* which soon replaced the 
simple scythe for reaping grain and mowing other tall vegetation such as 
reeds.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cradle_(grain) [has a line drawing of a cradle]
Reaping with a scythe before the invention of the cradle readily 
resulted in the grain forming a muddled carpet on the field, making 
gathering and transport time-consuming. [Just as Jean describes.]

In 1794, a Scottish farmer invented "a most marvellous and wonderful 
machine for cutting grain" [1]. This was the cradle, which 
revolutionized the harvesting of grains.

(The American cradle) The cradle was commonly used throughout the 1800s 
and into the beginning of the 20th century ...


>> MFP wrote: "... but again, I am not certain that sith [sic] and 
>> cradle are one instrument such as a sith with its storage place, 
>> cradle, or whether the sith was one item and the cradle was a baby's bed."
>>     
>
> Jean R. Legried wrote: "The cradle is a part of the scythe. It catches the grass/hay as it is 
> cut by the scythe and allows the grass/hay to be stacked in an orderly fashion."
>   
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