I worked in the county Jail for about a year in '73. One day, they brought in Ernie- noted local drunk and frequent inhabitant of the lock-up. He got 6 months for drunk driving- hadn't had a license for years, but thinking he had found a loophole, drove his Ferguson TO-30 to town. Ended up at the tavern, of course, got loaded and was stopped on his way home. Legal to drive tractor without a license, but drunk driving law prohibited driving any motor vehicle under the influence. His loophole had become a noose.
We were always happy to have Ernie spend a little time with us, as he was the best "Trusty" you could ever have. Swept up around the place, you could send him out for smokes or treats and he would actually come back (and didn't even steal your change), etc. His quarters were never locked, and he had the run of the place. I was on graveyard, so he'd come out and we'd talk farming. I think his life inside (3 hots and a cot, free smokes, etc.) was probably better than when he was out.
Wife and I had just bought a farm, and I made a deal with the neighbors to do the hay- they arranged for cutting and baling, and I got a share. Came home and saw the hayfield had been cut, and also around the house, barn, orchard, etc. Looked great. Wife said this "funny little portly bald man" had come to the door, asked if I was the deputy that worked at the jail, then asked if he could "mow around" the farmstead. When she asked how much he wanted, he said, "No charge, ma'am- your husband was one of the only guys at the jail that treated me like a human being. I'd just like to return the favor."
Where ever you are, Ernie, I hope the lodgings are to your liking.
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Today's Featured Article - Oil Bath Air Filters - by Chris Pratt. Some of us grew up thinking that an air filter was a paper thing that allowed air to pass while trapping dirt particles of a particles of a certain size. What a surprise to open up your first old tractor's air filter case and find a can that appears to be filled with the scrap metal swept from around a machine shop metal lathe. To top that off, you have a cup with oil in it ("why would you want to lubricate your carburetor?"). On closer examination (and some reading in a AC D-14 service manual), I found out that this is a pretty ingenious method of cleaning the air in the tractor's intake tract.
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