Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1883-07-05

"A '1hOhA 44AolOh1 OF W HEAT
The varieties of wheat are almost
numberless, and their characters vary
widely under the influence of cult
vation and climate. There are said
to be $50 distinct varieties in the
museum of Cornell University. On
the slopes OF the mountains Of Mexico
and Xaipa the luxuriance of vegeta-
tion is such that wheat does not form
ears. In Japan, it is said, the wheat
has been so developed by the Japan
ese farmers that no matter how much
manure is used the straw will not
grow larger, though the length of the
ears increases. The height is rarely
more than two feet and often not
more than % inches. Through Sc
lection winter wheat has been chang
ed to summer wheat in three years,
and summer wheat converted in the
same time to winter wheat. In gen.
eral wheat is the most esteemed of
the cereal productions, but in Abys-
synia, according to Parkyns, the -four
of the "teff' or "dogussa," scarcely
palatable to Europeans, is preferred
by the natives to any other grain.
Isis was supposed to have intro
duced wheat into Egypt, Demeter into
Greece, and the Emperor Chin Wong
into China, about 5000 b. C. In Eu-
rope it was cultivated before the pc
riod of its history, as samples have
been recovered from the lacustrine
dwellings Of Switzerland. In Eng
land it was probably not cultivated
by the ancient Britons, but the An
glo-Saxons when Bede wrote, early
in the 8th century, sowed their wheat
in the Spring. and in the days Of
Queen Elizabeth its cultivation was
but partial. Indeed, wheat was an
article of comparative luxury till
nearly the l7th century. In India
wheat seems not to be native, but in
troduced, for its Sanscrit name slgni-
fies flood of the barbarian :" yet three
varieties are mentioned in the Bha-
vaprakasa, one of which large grain
ed, is said to have come from the
West, and another a small-grained,
or beardless wheat, is said to have
been indigenous to Middle India.
The first wheat raised in the New
World was sown by the Spaniards on
the island Of Isabella, in January,
1894, and on March 30th the ears
were gathered. The foundation of
the wheat harvest Of Mexico is said
to have been three or four grains
carefully cultivated in 1880 by a
slave of Cortez. The first crop of
Quito was raised by a Franciscan
monk in front of the convent. Gar
cilasso de la Vega affirms that in Peru,
up to l547, wheaton bread had not
been sold at Cusco. Wheat was first
sown by Gosnold on Cuttyhunk, one
of the Elizabeth islands in Buzzard s
Bay, off Massachusetts,, in 1902, when
he first explored the coast. In 1904,
on the island of st. Croix, near Calais,
Me-, the Sieur de Monts had some
wheat sown, which fourished finely.
In 1911 the first wheat appears 10
have been sown in Virginia. 1926
samples Of wheat grown in the Dutch
colony at New Netherlands were
shown in Holland. 1t is probable
that wheat was sown in the Plymouth
colony prior TO 1929 though we find
no record Of it, and in l629 wheat
was ordered from England to be used
rs seed. In l7lS wheat was intro
duced into the Valley Of the Miszis-
sippi by the Western Company" In
1899 it was among the cultivated
crops Of the Pimos Indians Of the Gila
River, New Mexieo.-MsILeT's NatlO1-
al Maga=inc.