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[Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>]

> A barn desigened for hay storage will have a block and tackle to  
> raise the
> bales to where they can be swung into the loft easily.

Our big Wisconsin barn had the system wherein loose hay is grabbed  
with large tongs, pulled up to a track by horse power, thence down  
the track to preferred position, when a rope is jerked and the hay  
falls. My job was to then spread the hay into position in such a  
manner that it could later be most easily pulled loose and sent down  
into the feeding area. Nasty, dusty, itchy work. Not sure if my lungs  
are yet cleared. I preferred working for our neighbor. He had one of  
those new-fangled baling machines.