The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1881-10-01
DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF WHEAT

, inatui., realizing the Importance Of the
| STEPS 10 introduce any new varieties
which may be deemed OF value 10 orr
| farmers. Mr. Andrew Glass. one OF the
/ travelin" officials of the department., has
, been dispatched to Canada principally
| for the purpose Of ascertaining whether
any variety of wheat has been discovered
! in Tins country that would he suitable TO
| take the place of the ClawSon or Seneca
wheat. now 50 popular on both sides of
/ the lines. but which, like every new va
! ricty Of wheat, begins in time to deterio-
rate. Viz. Glass has been connected with
the Agricultural Depaltm for twenty
! ty-two years, durin" ten Of which he mas
division of the department. In his first
, visit To Canada he has confined his per
sonal inspection of Canadian agricultural
affairs 10 the ncighborhood Of Toronto,
whore he has every facility at hand for
| the fuliillment Of the object of his mis-.
sion.
y correspondent of the Canada Globe,
with other gentlemen. accompanied Mr..
Glass in, his examination of the Ontario
Agricultural College and Model Farm. and
the whole party expressed themselves
highly pleased with the excellence of the
animals, some of which are expectations
from leading herds in Britain, which 9th
ers, Canadian bred. are tit to compare
with the best animals of their respective
classes on the continent.
The principal object of Mr.. Glass visit
to Canada is to procure good winter seed
wheat. Although the popularity of the
climate of Wisconsin and Minnesota favors
the production of excellent samples of
wheat, says Mr.. Glass, the department
did not look to these States for the varie-
ties Of winter wheat, an only spring wheat
is grown there. Ii new varieties of value
had been discovered in the United States,
he would be almost certain to learn the
fact. owing to the system of correspond
encc carried on by the department with
every county in the Union. The reason
of his effort TO find new wheat is that
every new variety is certain to dcterio-
rate after several years of cultivation.
They had had the Fultz variety and the
Clawson or Seneca, but both of them had
deteriorated. The Clawson is very soft
wheat and not as desirable for flour as
could be wished. Silver Chaff had proved
an excellent variety. but had had its day.
1t is discovered in Ontario, and the GOV
eminent had imported a considerable
quantity of it for seed. From expert
ence the government had concluded that
Ontario was prolific in the production of
new and excellent varieties, and to Can
ada they looked mainly for substitutes
for deteriorating kinds.
Mr.. Glass had not been as successful
as he had hoped to be i'll finding new va
rieties: Canadians grew the same grain
as Americans. He had, however, through
Mr.. Rennie, of Toronto, succeeded in
finding one variety which promised TO
be an excellent substitute for Seneca
wheat. This. the Finlay variety. origi-
mated in Western Ontario county, and
was introduced to limited cultivation in
this province last year. 1t is bald wheat,
with red grain, white chafT, and stiff, but
not heavy, straw. 1t is hard grain and
makes excellent flour, and has also a
heavy yield. \ farmer fifteen miles west
of Toronto had. from two bushels of
wheat sown on a little more than an acre
Of ground, reaped this season no less than
fifty bushels. Very desirable prculiari-
ties of this wheat are that it is not liable
to winter-killng. and besides, ripens ten
days earlier than other varieties. The
price OF this wheat is al present about
$40 per bushe). 1t appears likely to
satisfied with it that he has secured al
ready over two hundred bushels, and
wishes to take with him to Washington
four or five hundred bushels.
There is another Canadian variety
known as the "Democrat 1t is a
bearded wheat, but from what he has
seen of it he does not attach much i'm
portance to it. Mr.. Glass has also been
seeking new variety of winter barley,
but had not succeeded, as winter barley
is not grown in Canada. Of winter rye
he had not seen new kind. but had.
close to Toronto, found a sample brighter
than any American, but not larger in the
grain. OF this he intended to ship a few
hundred bushels to Washington.
1t would be advisable for our farmers
to endeavor to secure some of the seed
which Mr.. Glass will have brought home
with him. Muck is said upon the sub
jsct of increasing the yield of our wheat
crop, while the subject of quality is en-
tirely neglected. AS long as the farmer
can obtain the market price for his wheat,
regardless Of its quality, or as long as
there is discrimination of only Il few
cents on the bushel in favor of what arc
termed better kinds of grades. the COM
mercial demand will have little influence
in securing an increase of quality in the
crop. But everybody likes good bread.
and good bread is impossible without
good wheat Hence. for family USE at
least, every farmer should raise the best
wheat he can obtain.
The controversy with the millcrs on
the quality Of ClawSon wheat has made
the fact more generally known that there
is difference in the bread making quail
ties of wheat. Starch and gluten are the
two principal valuable elements of wheat
and it is the difference in the proportions
of these elements present in the grain
that makes the difference in the quality.
as regarded by millers and brcad-mak-
erS. soft wheat contains much starch
and proportionately smaller quantity of
gluten. and hard wheat. on the contrary,
contains Il larger per cent of gluten and
less starch. Gluten is necessary to good
bread: il is 4 highly nutritious substance,
a liesh-tormer, and by its tenacious quail
ity holds the gas generated i'll the - riS-
ing" process. Wheat having too little
gluten will not make light bread. because
there is not tenacty enough in the dough
to prevent the gas from escaping. There
should he ten per cent of gluten in wheat,
and some kinds have more than that.
DrnirSsnr TnMnShnnI in ono of his