RED RIVER VALLEY KERNELS

Oslo, Minnesota

This is a continuation of my column in the last issue of the
Album where I was writing about getting this hand powered threshing
machine in Northern Norway. Mr. Gulbrandsen said they could thresh
up to 20 sacks or 40 bushels of grain a day, the threshing would be
done in winter, with the bundles under cover and then the weather
would not be too warm for the hard work of cranking the machine. In
Norway they did not shock their grain like we used to do here,
because of poor drying conditions and high water level in the
ground. The way they dried the bundles was done by setting 5 or 6
foot poles in the ground and thread the bundles on flat side on the
pole till the pile reached to top of pole. After the bundles dried
out they were then hauled into buildings. They are now using
combines for harvesting in many places in Norway where the fields
are big enough. The grain has to be straight combined and run thru
dryer, as swathed grain would not dry out on the ground.

This machine only threshes the grain out of the heads. It does
not separate the grain out from the straw. It’s then separated
by shaking the grain and chaff out of the straw by use of a fork.
The grain and chaff is then run thru a fanning mill for
cleaning.

This machine had not been used for about 20 years before 1958 as
they now have more modern machines on the small farms. They have
mostly stationary threshers run by electric motor. This machine has
some Norwegian print on it and translated it means Prize awarded in
all European countries received up until 1879-249 first prizes.

We had the machine shipped by boat from Sorreisa to Oslo,
Norway, a distance of over one thousand miles. It was then
transferred on board S. S. Stavangerfjord and shipped as baggage
and this was the same ship we came on too. It was shipped by rail
from New York to Oslo, Minn.

While on this trip driving to northern Norway we crossed five
fjords by way of car ferries.