The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-04
CORN AND WHEAT FLOUR
MIXTURE THAT IS FINDING FAVOR
AMONG MANY PEOPLE.
Exhibit by MiIlers at Decatur, ILL.,,
That Attracted Much AttentiOn-The
Proposed Revenue Tax.
snecial 70 the 1ndiananolis Iournal.

Special to the indianapolis Journal.
DECATUR, ILL.,. Feb. 3.-A thousand bis
cult an hour were made. given away and
eaten to-day at the farmers institute, be-
sides bread, waffles, pies and mullins, al
most without limit Ali were made of the
blended corn and wheat flour that certain
interests are saying should be taxed out of
existence. Every biscuit and every loaf of
bread was as light and delicate as the prize
article at a cooking school, and all were
pronounced by the crowd the equal of any
ali-wheat biscuit or bread they had eaten.
Many declared that the taste and flavor
were better. The blending of the flour and
the making of the bread and the biscuit
was done in the presence of the crowd.
Those in charge of the work stood by and
showed the people that with the blended
article better and cheaper foods could be
made than with ail-wheat flour. The DEM
onstration was made by two of the largest
makers of corn flour in the country, both
well-known Decatur enterprises, who gave
this joint exhibit for the purpose of show
ing the people what the blended -four is and
what it's advantages are Though business
rivals they were working together to let
the people know the possibilities in the new
-four.
ground up in the DecatW mills. The total
capacity of the mills Of this city is 1900
bushels day, and they are running full all
the time Taking the average yield of corn
as fifty bushels to the acre, this is a utiliza-
ton every day of the product of $50 acres.
In a year our mills use up a large part of
the corn produced in central Illinois. Part
of the corn used by these mills is made into
tbeN fnnr. my i11S
eral notice, although it has Deen made in a
small way for twenty or thirty years. This
corn -four is sold all over the world. Every
week several cars of it leave Decatur for
Europe. A large part of the product of one
of the mills here is exported. The rest of it
is sold principally in the South, where it is
mixed with wheat flour and sold for just
what it is, a blended flour that is cheaper
than the all-wheat -four None of it is
mixed in this city with wheat flour.
Although corn flour has been made for
many years, it has been made profitably
and successfully only the last four years. In
that time new machinery mas been perfect
ed SO that it can be made economically.
This has made it possible to use millions
OF bushels of corn for human food that
otherwise would not have been used that
way. Corn -four has no resemblance what
ever to corn meal. 1t looks like the finest
wheat flour. 1t is made from the best white
corn, after the corn has the germ and hull
removed, been thoroughly cleaned, kiln
dried and then made into what is known in
the trade as ordinary white hominy From
hominy to flour the treatment is about the
same as In grinding wheat. but II takes sew
eral times much power TO grind corn
than 1t does wheat. In its granular nature
the corn resembles the spring wheat flour.
Corn flour keeps sweet longer than amy
other ground cereal. 1t has not been known
to mold.
Corn -four can be used alone i'll pancakes,
but in all other ways 1t must be mixed with
wheat flour. At the farmers institute the
per cent. of corn flour to the total amount
of flour used was for biscuit and pie crust
2j for bread 10 to 20, and for waffies 80 To
So Containing no gluten, the corn flour re-
quires less shortening, and for that reason
less lard or butter can be used in pie crust
and cake. In the pie crust made at the in
stitute half as much shortening was used
as would have been necessary IL all-Wheat
flour had been used, yet the crust was as
short and tiaky as the most experienced
pastry cooks desire. Bread made with 70
per cent. of corn flour is Sweeter ana has u
more nutty flavor than all-wneat bread 1t
is not darker, as some have claimed but Is,
on the contrary, more likely to be whittier.
IT is fully as nutritious as all-wheat rour.
Blended flour has been tried in one OF the
biggest cracker factories in the country,
ana has been found to make as good crack
ers as the al-wheat flour, and at much
less cost.
Economy is the great argument In favor
of corn -four. This lessening OF the cost OF
bread will make use for enormous quanti-
ties Of corn, and that Will be of advantage
TO the farmers of this great corn belt, VINO
have had hard times for four years solely
because the price Of their great staple
product has been so low. The use of corn
and wheat flour together reduces the price
of flour to the consumer 30 cents in retail
way. when 20 per cent. of corn flour Is
blended with the wheat -four, on every hum
dred pounds of -four used. This is without
deteriorating the quality in the least but
rather improving ii in many instances. As
a rule ten pounds of corn flour are sold for
10 cents while il takes 80 cents to get ten
pounds of wheat -four
The total consumption of flour in this
country is said to be barrel year to ev-
cry inhabitant Seventy million barrels a.
year are therefore required. If 20 per cent.
of the flour used was corn flour one-fifth of
the total would be corn -four. or about H.
GJ0.O00 barrels. This would cost So a barrel
instead Of So a barrel If all the -four was
made OF wheat. and would mean a saving
to the customer Of So a barrel on every one
Of the 100000 barrels, or about $42 900. 900
Six pounds of corn when milled only pro-
duces one pound OF corn flour. III 1900. go
barrels of the -four used in the country