Pointe Coupee Democrat. [volume] (False River [i.e. New Roads], Parish of Pointe Coupee [La.]) 1858-1862, 1860-04-28
NO. Is.
Tall Corn.

to the perceptlve and digestive faculties
of all civilized humanity. Like all great
truths, it did not gain credit at once.
True, everybody sees it here with his
own eyes, but not so on the other side
Of the water The first accounts of the
productiveness of our Western prairies
were read by the Buckinghamshire farm
ers with about as much respect as the
fish stories Of the sailor Sinbad 1t took
even the highest dignitaries of the land
a long while to get fairly up to level
with the actual fact. Even at this day
there is an ear of corn in the British Mu-
scum which enjoys very distinguished
consideration as curiosity. 1t divides
attention, we do not say equally, but
certainly fractionally, with the Nineveh
Bull and the great Kohinoor It is
perfect marvel to our good cousin John
Bull; and yet it has but very simple
history, and it is not a very extraordi-
nary ear of corn, after ALL It reached
it's present distinction something in this
wise:
In the month of January, 1s47, at
certain dinner party in London, at which
Lord John Russell, Lord Morpetb, and
many other distinguished men were pres
cnt, the conversation turned upon the
Irish famine; and the remark was made
by Lord John that he rejoiced that so
good substitute for the native bread
stuff had been found as Indian corn.
Turning to Mr. Bates, the American part
ner in the house of Barring Brothers, his
Lordship went on to say:
why, Bates, some of the cobs have
twelve or fourteen rows on them"
Mr.. Bates coolly replied:
" Yes, my lord, have seen from twcn-
ty to twenty-four rows on cob"
''That is a rare Yankeeism," was the
pleasant retort of the Premier; and the
whole company shouted in approval.
The burst of merriment over, Mr.. Bates
bought his peace by wager of dinner
for the company all round that he could
produce such an ear ..--
" "Donew exclaimed Lord John; and
the bet was clinched.
The dinner passed off. Mr.. Bates re-
turned home, but not entirely at ease.
He had done a strange thing; for the
first time in his life he had made an en-
gagement he was not absolutely certain
of his ability to fulfil. He had misgiv-
ings that he had rashly pledged the
honor of his country. 1t had been long
since he looked upon an American crib;
and however patiently he winnowed the
cornucopia Of his memory, he found that
the cobs Of his early days had gone
glimmering through the lapse of time,
among the things that were, and were
now SO far offsthat he couldn't count the
rows. He was, as Plautus would say,
redactus ad invitas Yankee parlance,
" hard up" But fortune favors the brave
1t happened that a friend Of ours dropped
in, the next day, at the counting house
of the Barings. Mr.. Bates, with bright
cning face, hailed him, and made known
his difficulty.
"You are SAFE" was the respose; elf
live to get home, you shall have even
a bigger ear than you have promised"
Our friend c. soon returned. and
straightway wrote to Messrs. Rogers &
of Lafayette, Ind, telling the
story, and begging them, for the honor
Of the country, to come to the rescue,
md turn the tables on Lord John, show
ng them what Yankees could do.
In the July following, Mr.. c. re-
'eived, by express from Lafayette,
nicely arranged box, containing six cars
of horse-tooth corn, two of which had
,Wenty-nine rows, two Msrtg-one, and two
'HIErY-rwo. The box was forthwith ad-
lressed to %. Bates, Esq, care of Messrs
Barring Brothers & Co, ship, by Black
Ball Line, care Of the Liverpool House"
It reached its destination, and Lord John
Russell, first Lord of the Treasury, third
son Of the late Duke of Bedford by the
second daughter of George Viscount
rorrington, and lincal descendant Of
1ord William Russell, the martyr of
liberty, Acknowledged The corn.
The dinner was won. Joshua Bates
lid nat perpetrate a Yankeeism," and
he British Museum holds the trophy.
THE SUGAR SupPLY-At the meeting of
IN association recently held in Liver
,ool it was stated from official returns.
hat prior to 1884 the average export of
ugar from Jamaica to England was
ixty-sevcn thousand tons, and now it
ard!y reached thirty thousand tons. in
'uba the exports for the same period
rom Havana and Matanzas only, had
1creased from eighty-two thousand to
wo hundred and forty thousand tons;
nd from Brazil the exports for the same
eriod had augmented from sixty-threc
to one hundred and twenty
1ousand tons IIayti, which formerly
xportcd large quantity, now exports
one, and imports a small quantity for
s own consumption. The supply from
faurtius and the East Indies is slowly