I don’t even know if seed would have been available back then year round, and for something like that “lifetime supply” would be what you used and handed out during planting season.
But seed isn’t cheap, I don’t think someone would have made up that story if they knew how unbelievable it was. There’s no way he could just grab a 20 pound bag of seed every month. That’s close to $100 today for just grass, not even crops.
And even if it was pre-tractor and done with a horse/donkey…
Most farmers would be getting them so close to perfectly straight this would have been impossible to judge.
I mean, it was a reward for plowing a straight row at a fair. That seems like a fitting and generous reward imo. And still makes the dude a good neighbor.
You sorely overestimate how easy it is to get a trained animal to walk in a perfectly straight line. They do not get magical perfect-line-walking powers just because they are animals.
They need to be pulled and pushed down to stay at the right depth.
If you’re just pushing it’s going to nosedive.
But like, there’s no really a reason to ever try, you’d just use a hoe. That’s literally the entire reason we have hoes. It’s just a pulled plow is way faster.
And then everyone clapped…
I don’t even know if seed would have been available back then year round, and for something like that “lifetime supply” would be what you used and handed out during planting season.
But seed isn’t cheap, I don’t think someone would have made up that story if they knew how unbelievable it was. There’s no way he could just grab a 20 pound bag of seed every month. That’s close to $100 today for just grass, not even crops.
And even if it was pre-tractor and done with a horse/donkey…
Most farmers would be getting them so close to perfectly straight this would have been impossible to judge.
He didn’t say 20 pounds. He said 20 bags. Could have been any size.
I’m imagining those sachets that you get seeds in these days… 20 of them with 3g of grass seed in each.
I mean, it was a reward for plowing a straight row at a fair. That seems like a fitting and generous reward imo. And still makes the dude a good neighbor.
You sorely overestimate how easy it is to get a trained animal to walk in a perfectly straight line. They do not get magical perfect-line-walking powers just because they are animals.
Or a rock, or something else to knock it off track.
Also straight row might have been the final challenge and done without a horse, so hand done much harder.
…
How do you plow without a horse?
Like, there’s the old joke about hooking your wife up to the plow, but someone/something needs to pull the plow.
If not than you just use a hoe
Can’t turn a hoe into a housewife…
Yeah, but if you ask her nice she might help you plow
I think it’s also possible to push the old style plows. It just really, really sucks
Not really.
They need to be pulled and pushed down to stay at the right depth.
If you’re just pushing it’s going to nosedive.
But like, there’s no really a reason to ever try, you’d just use a hoe. That’s literally the entire reason we have hoes. It’s just a pulled plow is way faster.
Ah yes.
Nothing ever happens.