Cheraw gazette and Pee Dee farmer. [volume] (Cheraw S.C.) 1838-1839, 1839-10-18
Importance Of selecting Seed.
Liberty, Bedford Co. Va. !
August 22,elS39. {


Liberty, Bedford Co. Va. !
august 22,llS39.
To JUDGE BUEL, Editor of "The Cultiva-
tor"
SIR-lt has been said that he who ena.
bles US to rear two blades of grass where
form"rly we raised bu, one, is benefactor
to mankind. He then who teaches his
fellow men 10 rear TWO ears Of corn where
formerly they raised but one, is no less a
benefactor of his species. Several gentle
men in our country apparently claim pa
tcrnty Of ,he idea Of selecting seed corn
from the most prolific stalks. And many pur-
chase at high prices small parcels of seed
corn thus selecl ed. called after Mr.. Baden,
whose name i, has assumed from his distr.
buting it, and from its singular yiele, &c.
1t matters not to the cultivalor who rears it,
what name it bears, or who first conceived
the IDEA, so he is benefited by it. Nor
should its true parent care, so he can enjoy
the high qualification Of having promoted
tho in crest of his fellow m"n. Phe id a
t-wus first suggested to me 10 the year Of
1900, when small boy, occasionally at.
tending to my fathers stock of animals,
from the peculiar frui,fulness Of single
one of them and all her progeny Of both
sexes, which particularly noticed for sev.
eral years; and in 1915, when | became
acultivator of the soil, my first object was
good seed Of every crop | wished 10 raise.
And collecting the success Of my expert.
mens in raising stock from the offspring OF
The above animal, commenced the expert.
ment on the vegetable creation, by select.
Ling my seed corn (the most important crop
n our cUumry, y ia tho fall Of 1915. exciu-
sivsly from stalks having two good
ears on them, cutting the sta ks off at the
ground, and hanging them IN high dry
place secure from rats, &c. until planting
season; then shelliug off little from the
small end Of each ear aud planting the
balance of the ear; and being fully satisfied
of the increased product, disclosed it to my
neighbors, al Of whom, who saw my corn
in the field, or who tried my seed with their
own, were fully convinced of its beneficial
results, and by grees it has spread owe,
the country generally. In the fall of 1921
as means Of diffusing the information as
above acquired as extensively as could,
wrote 10 Mr.. Skinner, ofthat most inynlau-
BILE periodical, II he American Farmer" oi
Baltimore, land which paper | am pleased
to hear Mr.. Skinner has recommended pub.
fishing in tha: city Those having that pa
per of above date can retcr 10 my letter.
Soon after which. sent 10 several gentle.
men. ut their request, supplies Of seed
corn near Baltimore, Richmond, Charles.
ton, &c. all Of whom were fully sat.
isfied on the first trial Of is peculiar
and uncommon product. Some years
afterwards it was said by some tina,
the crops from the seed collected as above
was later, and of course more subject TO in
jury from early fross. &c. To obvia,e
which. | selected my seen from the double
treble and quadrupIe ears that we're mos
forward, and soonest matured and rlpe.--
This was done without any sort Of trouble
as follows: When my tands were cut
ting the tops off the corn in September, fol
winter forage. &c. directed the tops lc
be left Of those stalks onty which had the
most forward and fine Of the double, treble
and quadruple ears, which was percepetibl'
to every eye by the dead silks, or by the
shuck whitening and drying first, &c. by
this mode At gathering time one may kno"
at distance all tn selected seed corn ane
by this process, in few years, my corr
was decidedly earlier and more forward
than any of The same kind, the seed o
which had not been selected from the mos
forward, as was acknowledged by all who
planted of my seed thus selected. lwoule
therefore, respectfully suggest, through tn
medium of your very valuable and widely
circulating paper, "The Culsivator." to al
corn planters (as we'll as Of vegetables gen
rrralIy) of any kind Of corn they choose Il
cultivate, not to reject the idea becaus
their ancestors have not pursued it from
, time immemorial; and after few year.