The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-06-09
THE Lind Or THE FlM0Ug c0RHG0B PIP.

Away out in Washington County,
Mo-. is the land OF the corneob pipe
The little solace- bringer that sells
| for i've cents here is not made u
your common. everyday cob that car
De grown anywhere and eyerywhers;
he Is an aristocrat ana is descended
from generations of pipely nobility
You who whiH your weed IN this
most fragrant form. LOOK AZ your corn
cob pipe and study il.
Compare it with the cohs that are
grown near Philadelphia and see what
vast difference is there.
Your pipe. IL it is q good one. IS
made OF q cob that is closely grained
! and fully developed and matured in
every part
That is the heritage OF the blue
blooded cob that grows in Washing
ton County, No
There are peculiar conditions OF
soil and atmosphere which tend 10
produce certain weEl-defned results
in animal and vegetable growth and
development.
The Kentucky blue grass region,
just about the area, by the way,
which is included in the cob pipe
region OF Missouri, has produced
horses OF superior speed. mettle and
bottom for carnations.
The expert can tell in the same
State whether the corn which pro
duced the article before him was
grown in the Green River. the Elk
horn or the Kentucky River section
- 81 ~ a.
distiller converted il into = liquid
suitable for q gentleman's before
breakfast toddy.
II is well known to dealers in corn
that in certain sections where large
quantities of the grain are grown
there is a liability of early frost COM
ing before the grain and cob are
hardened and the natural process Of
ripening is completed. This makes
soft corr" which may be good. OF
even better, for feeding purposes. hut
the cobs would not make desirable
pipes.
The cob for pipes as made by the
factories must be hard and close
grained. For the production of such
cobs the corn grown on them Is OF
secondary Importance in this connec-
ton; it is evident that there must be
certainty of such climatic conditions
as win insure the thorough ripening
of the plant in all it's parts. There
must not be too much rain nor
drought must not shrivel it.
An agricultural chemist viii not De
necessary to tell that added to all
these favorable conditions for a hard,
firm cob the peculiar adaptability OF
the soil for the perfect development
of this product will be important
Having all of these things long be-
fore the first corncob pipe was thought
of. as Washington County had. it Is
evident that in region so blessed
there would be grown a cob that
would make a good pipe. In fact,
the eobs grown there would be uni
formly the best to be found anywhere
This was the condition which the
genius who started the first "Mis-
souri, meerschaum" factory found.
The gold was there in the ground;
he merely had the keenness Of sight
necessary to distinguish it from the
ordinary pebbles.
After he started his factory and
began to sell his pipes faster than
he could increase his capacity for
making them the farmers began to
Gull their seed for the ears which
and thus the pipe cob was developed
still further until new variety was
produced.
Working with this natural advan-
tage and the improved variety which
the experience of the farmers had
developed, the pipe factories of Wash
ington County held the lead over all
the world which they had obtained
in the start
Efforts have been made to duplicate
the Washington County pipe by trans
planting the seed to other sections.
but these have not been entirely sat
isfactory. and the above brief sketch
OF the reasons for the superiority
OF the original Washington County
pipe and its successors will readily
explain this partial failure.
The experimental tests in other sec
tons have left out the local condi-
ticns of soil and temperature Of Wash
ington County and the generations Of
development of the pipe cob. and
training Of the farmers in growing II
before the factory came. II Is true
the farmers did not know in all those
years that they were developing a
variety of corn for cob pipes, but
they were. and the inevitable result
was no less certain because they
knew not what they did.
The value Of the cob product Of
the peculiar variety which goes into
the pipes soon became an important
matter to the farmers The corn.
carefully sheIled from the cobs so as
not 70 injure the latter. was Just as
valuable for feeding purposes as IL
the cobs were thrown to one side as
waste material.
Il brought the farmer az much or
more on the market, aud then he had
the added profit from his cobs. Good
prices made careful handling. and
the average farmer gets for disable
cobs from Is 10 % cents for those
from which 3 bushel OF corn has been
sheiled- This adds almost 100 per
cent 10 the money-making value Of
the corn crop
The farmers of the section have
become richer BY reason Of this add
ed value. which IS largely added pro
at. although the fine quality OF their