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M;u.,1924.
CYRUS
'}.'HE SUNct AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL OF~S ..4.
41
H. McCQRMICK: 'INVENTOR' OF
THE' REAPER .
!
'.~
,
;-
J
"
.By DR. WILLIAM' MACDONALD
...
,
I expect to die in harness, becat~se ~his . is not, the wo;i'd,' -for, rest. 'This is the
wo'rld fpT work. In the next world we will have the rest.,
CYRUS H. MCCORM1C&.' ,-
migrateclto UJ;;t'er, ,),nd:then to the United
Sta,tes. i{obert 1\1 cC~;n5i~k, the, father of
CY;'us, \\'as'~ In;irly .:large farUl~r,' a~d all
imentor of no hi.'eaD ability. The.little
log workshop,.is stiil 5hm;"11 -t~ th~, e\lq~lir~
.l,ng tU)l]rist where father ancl ,son rlJoulde<i.
hnd mended machinery on lllahy a rainy
da,y. I n(leed, we arc told that .the ,]\I[ cCormick homestead was more like a sma li
factory than a fa,rmer's home, so full was
it of rnral inclllstries-s~)inning and weave
ing, >;oap and shoes, butter-making and
hacon-clll'ing. And it is more than likely
i hat the ceaseless activity of his Celtic
moth()r ,taught' C'5rrllS' the viilue' 'of each
moment of time.
'Failure after Fifteen Years.
E\"e~ sin~el;e ",;as_ a,: child o~ s'even' it was
his father's, illul:iition to in"ez:!'t a reaper.
~YRUS HALL 'McCORMICK,
He ma'de.one. 'and- triecl ·lhnt11eJl~rvest
: Inventor.' of the Reaper.
of-I8lE;; but it proved ~ fa.ilure. It was a.
,CYI'US H. McConniek the inventor of· fal1t<)'stic macbin!" , , p)lsbed -from behil]d by
t.he reaping machine',' ,:,-as bOI'1l in the two 11ors('8, . ltwas l~ighly ingenious" bllt
eventful year 1809. It ,vas,the birth ye'ar it ",mild l)Ot cnt'tbecorn,- and,y~s 'hn.uled
of Da,i-win 'and T~mnys-on,'of Men'c1elssohn, oft' the field, to becom~ one ofth~iok~s of
Gladseone aridlji~ccibl. He was born on the countryside,,· :Hultby the:iests 'of his
\VaJnut' Grove Farril, ,amidst 'the moun- neighbours, he loc:kecl' the.doori,,,,' of ' the
-bins 'o(,\Tirginia, orie, ln1richec1: iyj'il'cs trom WOrkshop a,nd toiled awa,y afnighk,Early
the sea. ,- He came of that 'virile stock that in' the" sllmmer of 1831 be had so' improved
ha,s 'pw\recl to 'be' the mo.in strength of the hi~ reaper that -he, 'ga,ve . it'ano't[ler tria,l.
Hepllblic, that gaveVlashingtou' 39 'cif his Again it failed.'Trne,'the'machine cut
Gel1erals,'three out offour memhers of hi; the corn fairly well; ]:illt it fillngiton.the
Cabinet, and three Ollt of the t1ve Jlldg-es ground in a tangled heap. Sa.tisfied that
of ,the Supreme COlld-tFie Scots who th~l'e was ,sometbing radically wrong,
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42
THE SUN If AGRICULTURAL JOURN,1L OF S.A.
Hobert "McCormick g,1ve np the reaper
a.fter having workerl ,at it 'for ovo}' 15
years.
An Epoch-Making Moment.
, At this point Cyrus took up ,the ta,sk
\vhich his fa.ther had reluctantly ab,111doned. He showed his genius from the
very start by adopting a new principle of
opm'n,tion. Fjrst of all, he invented 1,he
divide,r to separate the COt'n to be cut from
the coi'n left standiilg. ' N cxt came the
reciprocating blade. and the fingers. the
'revolving reel', platform, and side-draught.
and, ,!n.stJy, the big driving wheel. One
day late in the month of July, in t.he StllPmer of 1831, Cyrus, Pllt 'a,horse between
t.he shaf~s. of hL3 reaper. '~7ith no spectators save his father and mother, hi!?
brothers alld sisters, he drove down to a
patch of. yellow grain. To that little
family circle it lllllSt have .been a moment
of intense excitement. Click, click, click
-the white blade shot to and fro. 'What
a shout of joy,! The wheat is cut and fall"
~lpon the platform in a golden" shimmering swathe!
The Constable at the Door.
Thus at the early age of 22 Cyrus had
invt;.nted the first practical reaper that the
worlel had seen. And now began his nine
years' struggle with adversity, from which
he emerged in 'triumph to become the
greatest manufacturer of. harvesting
machines that America has produced. Tn
order to obtain' funds with which to manu,factnre rea pel's he startled to farm. But
he s09n fmmd that it was impossible to
mise sufficient capital by' this means.
Near-by was a large deposit of iron ore,
and he forthwith resolved to build a furnace and make iron. He persuaded his
father and the school-teacher to become
his partners. For several years the furnace
did fairly well.' when, suddenly, the pric(~
of iron fell. The McCormicks were bankrnpt. Cyrus'gave up the farm. and stllck
grimly to hi" i·eaper .. One day the village
Mar., 1924.
constable rode up to th'e fann door with a
summons Jor a debt' of 19 dollars, bllt he
\Va,s so impressed with the industry of the
l\{eCormicks that he had not the heart' to
serve the notice. It was the darkest.liour
before the dawn.
The Home Farm a Factory.
The sl1me year (1840) it stranger rode
in from the north and drew rein in' fi"ont
of the little log workshop. He was a
rough-looking man with the homely name
o[ Abraham Smith, but to Cyrus he carile
as an augel of light. He had come
with 50 dollars in his pocket to Imy a
reaper-t.he .tirst that was ever sol(1.A
short time rater two other farmer.s came
on the same ~rrand, a.nd that summer
t.hree reaping machines ,vere working in
the ,wheat fields of America. In 1842
McCormick sold seven machines, and in
1844 ,fifty. The home farm' haa now',
become a ,busy' ·factory.
Threeye.a.r::- later a' friend s'aid to him':
" Cyrus, why do'n't you go \·Vest with
your rcapel', where the land is level and
iabour cheap? ' ~
It Wl1S the call of the 'Vest.
The Call of the
West.
He. travellecl over the 'boundless prairies,
and was quick to see that this great landocean was the natural home of the reaper.
Straightway he transfelTed his factory.to
Chicago~then, in 1847, a forlorn little
town of less than 10,000 souls. His btlsiness flourished. In the great fire of 1871
his factory, which was then turning" ont
10,000 harvesters a year. was totally
destroyed. At the word of his wife he
·rebuilt it ane,,' with a'mazing rapiility.
And so we find that the tiny workshop
~11 t.he backwoods of Virginia has become
the lVlcCormick City in the heart of
Chicago. In the sixty-five. years of its
Efe this manufactory has proclnced over
li,OOO,OOO harvesting ma<.;hilles. and is
110\\' pOllring. them Ol~t at the ra.te of over
7,000 per week. The' l\'fcCorJllick Coril-
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Mar" 1924,
THE SUN
AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL OF S.A.
&;
'Bale
your
,43
,Teff
Bale for yourself-Bale for' your neighbours
Make an extra profit
but
use
the
'I~C
best pres,s-use
:S:.A.."V
one
of
the
PR.ESSES
Baled hay or fodder brings higher marl,et prices; it occupies one'fifth the
space that; 160se liay does; it is quickly, and easily handled, and it remains
in' condition longer than staci,ec1' hay. F,or neat, uniform, bales,nncl the
. biggest' to?nnge'per hour, ~t th'e lowest possible c.ost, use an ': International"
l~ress, '. T~ere are the One~Horse, Two-Horse and Power Presses-;1lnd, we
will ila(ll~' send' you a quotation, together with full particulnrs of their
c;,pacities,
ltemember, the" International 'J puts profit' into hay b~ling,
.•~.. . G. NORTH & SON,
Head Office
Genuine 'M cCormick
Repairs
,fit closer
wear better
,last longer
Durban
, Importers of the Genuine
"McCormick" Harvesting Machinery
and Spare Parts
:Branches in aU the 'Provinces
of the Union'
-".!' •
•
Ltd
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I,
4.4
THE SUN &;'.4GRlCULTURAL JOURNAL OF S.A.
p2.ny is now Imown as the lnternatiomtl
Har~ester Com pany, and his, eldest SOil,'
Cyrus H. McCormick, is the President,
The a11nl1a.1 output is 75,000,000 dollars.
It,was the reaper that enabled the United
states dnrina the fonr years of the civil
Mar" 1924.
the mail or the woman who gathered up
the blind les ot cut corn and bound them
tightly together with a ~visp of straw into
the sheaf.'
Withington the Watchmaker.
And now another figure appears upon
this ever-moving stage, a young rrlan by
the name of Charles B. vVithingtolL
Born at Akron, Ohio,- a year 'before
.I' d I'
.McCormick invented hIS reaper, t 11S e 1ca te yonth was trained by his father ,to
\~hen electing Cyrus McCormick a niem- be a watchmaker. At the age of fifteen,
ber, that he had, clone morc for' the cause .in order to eal'll pocl;:et-money, he went
of agricnltme tba,n any other li vi ng man, , into the harvest tield to bind' corn. Be
. The Evolution of the Reaper. ' -" was not robllst, and the hard, stooping
,And now we_ must ~race ~h~ evolt~tlOll_ )abb(ll~' 11l1l1er a hot ,snn would sometimes
.--- ,of .. ~~_e_!..~aper.JI~~~11, Its, ongl.n .on_t}1e. "bring the blood to his head in a hemorrvValnut Grove Farm to the marvell01ls haae. There ""ere times a.fter the day's
machine of to-cby. For aboll~ thlr~y wO~'k was done when he was too wea.ry to
years it remained practically unaltered]l1 walk home, ~nd he would'throw himself
design, save that seats ~ad been ~d~lcd . on the stubble 'to' ~:~st, ' At eighteen he
for the raker and tbe .dnver. It; clJ~ ~o journeyed to. 'tl;e goldfields of California,
more than cut the gr~ll1 ~nd lea,e,lt 1Il dl-iHedto Australia,and in the year 1855
loose bundles on the gronnd.It had' 'arrived h~ck 'in ,Visconsin 'with 3,000
abolished the sickler and cradler:' but (lollnrs il~ his belt. All this money he
there still remained the raker and l?lJ)ckr. beaan to fritter awa.y in trying to invent
l\ ,r. I' o'l1t j't ,not be I)Ossible to do a,,wa,y with
b
,
S 11 1 '
. d
m b,
.
?
a self-rake 1'ea:per,
llC c en y, ll1Splre
them also, and, leave only the driver, by the articles of a rnml editor, \vho
8neh was the fascinating problem which maintained that thc binding of- corn
now confronted the inventor.
'
sholllcl be clone by it machine, vVithingThe 'Cripple and the Iron Man.
i~n dropped his self-ra,ke and: went
111 .the year 1852 a bed-ridden cripple straight to work to make a self-binder.
called J~a:nlln Ath:ins, bought a j\~cCor- He completed his first machine in 1872,
mick reaper,ancl had it, placed ollt"ide hut met with mllch discouragement until,
his winelow. To while aWilY the weary two y:ars later, he came across McCorh~urs he actnally devised an attachment mick.
with two revoiving iron arms,' which
'Invention o-f Self 'Binder.
il,utom~tically raked off the cut 'gram
Their tl ramat(c meeti;lg is best told by
Ifrom the platform to the ground. It was Mr. Herbert N, CassOli,' ill his interesta grotesque contrivance, and "'as nick- jng' ~'olllm'e '~l~t'itled, ,,'Cyrus 'Hall McIlamed by_ the i"armers the iron man. ,Cormick: His J..1ife and ,Vork " "
Nevertheless this invention stimulated
One Hening ill 1874 a t.a.ll man with a. boX
the ma,nufacture of 'self~rake reapers, and under his arm. walked diffidently up the st!lps of
McCormick home in Chicago, and, rang the
soon the American farmer would buy no t.he
hell. He asked to see Mr, M cCol'lnick,' ,and was
other kiml, Thus part of the problem shown into the parlour, where he fonnd Mr.
McCormick sitting, as usnal, in a large and comhad been solv'ed.
The raker' was fortable
ch~ir, "M v' name is Withington," said
abolished. 'Bnt therp st,ill i'emained the the stranger; "I live 'in, .Janesville, Wisconsin.
harder task of supplanting the binder~
('Published by A, C. McCll\r~ & Co" Chicago,)
' b
-,
,
war, not only to feell the armies in the
field, but at the same time to export to
foreign conntries 200,000,000 bushels of
~vheat, And well might the savants of
the 1l';':ench Academy of Science sa. y,
Reproduced by Sabinet Gateway under licence granted by the Publisher (dated 2011.)
Mar., Hn!.
.
THE SUN &; AGRiCULTURAL
JOURNAL OF S.A;
,
I have
here
a
model of a machine that
wil1 autOl:natically bind grain." ,Now, it so
happened that McCormick ,had, been kept awake
nearly the whole' of the previous nig-ht by a
stubbol'n business .!J\'obl~m, .He could scarcely hold
his eyelids apart, And when \Vithington was in
the midst of his explanation, with, the-intentness
of a born inventor, Mr, 'McCormick fell fast
asleep.
At, such a reception to his cherished
machine, '\Vithington lost, heart. He w'as a gentle,
sensitive man, easily rebuffed, and so, when
McCormick, aroused form his nap, \Vithington had
departed, and was Oll his way back to Wisconsin.
For a few seconds McCormick ,was ullcertain as to
whether his visitor had been a reality or a dream.
Then he awoke wit.h a start into instant ,action ..
A great opportunity had come to him, and he had
let it slip, He was at this time making ,self-rake
reapers and Marsh harvesters; bnt what he wanted
-what every l'eaper mannfactlll'er wanted in 1874
·-was a self-binder. He at ollce c'alled one of his
trusted workmen. "I want yon to go to J anesville," he said, "Find a man named \Vithington,
and bring him to me by the first train that comes
back to Chicago."
The next day Withington was brought back, and
treated' with the utmost' courtesy.
McCormick
stndied his invention, and found it to be a most
remarkable mechanism. Two steel arms caught
each bundle of grain, whirled a wire tightly aronn'd'
it, fastened the two ends together with a, twist, cut
it loose, and tossed it to ,the ground, This ~elf­
binder was pedect in all its detail-as neat and
effective a machine as could be imagined,
McCormick was de:ighted. At last here was a
machine ,that would abolish the biliciing of grain:
by hand.
Deering Stakes, his Fortune.
For SIX years all went well with the
l'v[cCormick and \-\Tithing-ton, self-binder.
This wonderful wire-twisting machine
was working ev~rywhere withclocln"ork
precision, and W[l,S believed to he the best,
that Immal1 ingenuity could devise. All
,~t once themanufactul'ing w9r1d was
startled with the news that \Villiam
Deering had made ariel Rold three thousand twine self~binders. Deering, by this
dramati·:; move beeame in a flash ]V[cCOl'mick' smost powerful competitor. He
was not .~ farmer's ,son like the latter,
being bred' in the city and trained, in fI
factory. He had been ,a sllccessful mer ..
chant at Maine, then left it to 'enter i~1to
tbe harvester trade. He staked 11is whole
fortune on n~[l:l;;in'g twine binders. He
won, and McCormick was forced to follow
in his, wake. The evolution of the reaper'
tinto tih<;o twine self~biridel' was an epoche
making event in the agricultural world.
'
45
It enormously increased the sales. .In
1880, 60,000 reapers were sold; five years
later the figures had risen' to ,250,000.
Siilce then, with the exception of the new
kilOt~tying device, there has 'been -,no reai
phange in the reaper.
It remains .the
grande~t of aU agricrilturnJ machines, and
one of the most astonishing mechanisms
ever devised by the brain of man.
McCormick died in 1884. In the span
of his own life the rea'per was born and
brollght to perfection. He created it in
a. remote Virginian village, and he lived
to see his catalogue pri:;lted in twenty
la.ngnages, and to know that so long as
the human race cont.inues to. eat, bread
the su n "viII never set' on the empire of
his reaper, for.somewhere, in every,month
n,n all the year, you will find the corn
white unto the harvest.
MR: ROBERT EGNER IS PLEASED.
Mr. Robert Egner, "Kusan,'.'. Gr,eytown, Natal, the w~ll-known. F6eslalld
breeder, writes as follows: -:' Enclosed
postal order fo,r os., subscription ,to your
Journal. I have been a subscriber to the:
Journal for a number of yeam, (]nd found,
l:t by fa.T the most interes,tinq J ounwl in'
SoufJh A i-~ica,. As a fanner I very much
appreciate articles s11ch as " .The Theory
and Practice of Ensilage,' etc."
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