Question

What were the advantages and disadvantages of the use of mechanical harvesting machines in the USA?

Answer 1

Hint: The coming of new technology removed the problem of manual labour, and also increased the supply. The poor farmers of the USA became more vulnerable, it also led to the Great Agrarian Depression.

Complete answer: The following are the advantages of the use of mechanical harvesting machines in the United States of America:-

1. The 1$9^{th}$ century United States saw a dramatic expansion in the production level and this became possible by the coming of new technology. A new variety of ploughs came into existence as old ploughs of the coastal areas of the country were ineffective. The farmers in the Great Plains were using tractors and disk ploughs by the end of the century.
2. Cyrus McCormick in 1831 invented the first mechanical reaper which removed the problem of manual labour as, before the 1830s, hundreds of men and women could be seen during the harvest season.

The following are the disadvantages of the use of mechanical harvesting machines in the United States of America:-

1. Machines brought distress for the farmers. Many poor farmers bought these machines to increase the production of wheat and borrowed money. Many of them were not able to pay back their debts.
2. The new technology and mechanisation reduced the requirement of labour. During this period, the production increased drastically, this caused overflow of grains and huge quantities of grains turned into animal feed. This resulted in the emergence of the Great Agrarian Depression of the 1930s.

Note: The new machines helped the big farmers of the Great Plains as the demand for wheat was low and the prices were high. With the coming of new technology, the big farmers were able to clear large tracts, break up the soil, remove the grass and prepare the land for cultivation.