The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-17

w. Ingham.

j. w. lngham.
Wheat is the choicest and most popu-
lar breadstuff in the world Its history
dates back to the earliest records. 1t is
mentioned In the Bible, and was raised
and eaten in Egypt 5000 years before the
Christian era. We learn from the pictures
on the ancient monuments that it was
sown broadcast by hand, cut at harvest
with sickes, threshed by the tramping of
cattle, and winnowed, generally, by throw
ing it with a shovel in the air In windy
weather for the chaff to be blown out
Wheat was cultivated by the ancient He
brews in Palestine, who had learned the
art of farming in Egypt during the pc
Rod of their bondage. 1t was also raised
by the ancient Assyrians. The methods of
wheat culture made but little Improvement
from those early times until the latter
part of the eighteenth century, when the
agriculture of Europe began to be practic-
ed with more skill and painstaklng, and
wheat began to supplant rye, barley and
oats as a bread grain. The varieties of
wheat are innumerable. All the varieties
belong to the genus triticum. The differ
ent wheats differ in size. shape and phys
zeal character of the grain. Some have
long kernels, some short; some have thick
bran. and some thin. In color they are
soft and starchy, others hard and flinty.
Some are sown in the fall, others in the
spring. Most of them have only a single
head, but some have branched heads.
They differ in their composition, some con-
tanning a greater proportion of starch, and
others a greater proportion of gluten.
Some are harder than Others and more
suitable for certain localities. 1t Is advis-
able for farmers to try different kinds of
wheat, side by side, under the same con-
dtions, and having found one that does
better than others in their locality stick
to that. The experiment stations have
done some good work in this line and
might continue the practice of well do
ing. The Fultz and Clawson are popular
among farmers In this part Of Pennsyl-
vania, but neither one is a favorite with
our millers, who want a hard wheat with
a large percentage of gluten. 1t is the
-four of such wheat that Is most sought
after by the bakers, because 1t abs9rbs a
good deal of water, raises like puff, and
makes a large quantity of bread from a
small amount of -four.
The tendency of all varieties of wheat
Is to deteriorate, or run out, and the ten
dency in some varieties is greater than
in others. Reason asserts that this need
not be the case, il the same conditions and
the same painstaki that made them su-
perior are kept up AS the stock breeder
can only maintain the excellence of his
herds by breeding from the best, so the
wheat farmer can only maintain the high
quality of his wheat by a careful selection
of the best for seed The best wheat Is
generally raised on small farms by farm
ers who take great pains in cleaning their
seeds. Mr. T. B. Terry, IL is said, even
takes the trouble to hand-pick his seed
after cleaning in good tanning mill.
Wheat requires a good soil for the best
production, but It must not be too rich
naturally or made so by manure, else the
stalks will grow too tall, fall down, and
the kernels shrink. II the soil lacks the
proper proportion of lime, as is frequently
the case with the alluvial soils along the
rivers, the straw is apt TO be tall slender
and weak, and is easily lodged by storm
OF wind or rain, and Will seldom rise