The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-08-12
VERSATILE KING CORN.

Most persons probably imagine that
about the only products of corn are
hominy, meal and whisky. That is
far from being the, ~ruth. The prod
ucts of the corn plant are almost as
numerous and varied as those of the
cotton plant. An exhibit in the Agri-
cultural Department, in Washington,
shows that in case of necessity corn
could be depended upon for food, cloth
ing and strong drink, and number
of articles of virtu and luxury be-
sides. A chemist of the department
has gone so far as TO produce from
corn a substitute for rubber which can
not be told by an inexpert person from
the genuine article. 1t looks like rub
Der from Brazil, feels like it, acts like
it and has all of the characteristic
properties of it. So far the invention
has not been made commercially prac-
ticable:" that is. the process costs too
much to make the corn rubber a COM
petitor of the real rubber. 1t is to be
expected. however. that the time will
come when rubber for tires will be
grown in corn fields.
Another article of especial interest
in the Agricultural Departments ex-
hibit is corn oil. This is likely to come
more or less into competition with cot
ton seed oil of the higher grades. The
corn oil is said to look precisely like
olive oil. to taste like 1t, and to be
good for any use in which olive oil
is employed. Only the most expert
can distinguish corn oil from the high
product has been turned to CONNER
cial account, and already large guam
titles of the oil are sold.
There are some pretty and lustrous,
though not very strong, cloths from
corn fibre shown. There are also hats,
baskets, etc.. made of the fibre. No
great store. however, is set upon the
possibilities of the fibre in this line.
One of its greatest possibilities is in
the line of paper making. A merchant
able quality of paper has been made
from 1t, and experiments with 1t are
being continued. The pith of the corn
stalk, as we have previously noted, is
ing cellulose, for packing the sides of
warships. These are just few of the
products of the corn plant. One of
the officials of the Agricultural De-
partment is authority for the state
ment that, all told, there are not far
from one hundred products to be had
from corn.
1t will interest farmers to know that
the department is conducting investi-
cations and experiments with a view
to largely increasing, If not actually
doubling, the production of corn, with
out any increase in expense of cultiva-
ton or of acreage. 1t is hoped this
can be accomplished by a system of
selection and cross-breeding. The Sc
lection of corn for planting is said to
be most important matter. Probably
999 farmers out of every 1000 make
their selections of ears after the corn
is in the barn. This is said to be
wrong. This selection should be made
in the field. the health, vigor and
strength of the stalk being taken into
account. BY carefully selecting the
seed corn from the stalks in autumn,
considerably increased yield, it is
said, may be secured while by cross
breeding the best jecimens the nitro
gen contents of the corn will be in
creased. The department has now pro-
duced several thousand hybrids. With
in the next year or two 1t hopes to
evolve corn which, with proper Gull
tivation and fertilization. will produce
100 bushels to the acre on land that
now brings forty to fifty bushels.