Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-12-14

mates that the corn crop of the United
States this year will amount to 2,f67,S16,-
900 bushels. At the current prices this
represents value of more than 81, 800, 000.-
OO0-almost two billion dollars. This esti-
mate foreshadows the greatest corn crop
ON record with the sole exception OF the
Jumper crop of 1906. which fell only
little under three billion bushels. 1t is inn
possible for the human brain to conceive
the full significance of such enormous fig
ures. but they TELL even to the dullard,
the fact that corn is king.
The third annual National Corn Show
will be held in Omaha early in December,
and at this exhibition King Corn will
hold court The first annual show was
held in Chicago three years ago. Al
though not a financial success, II was ac-
counted a most interesting exhibition OF
corn and other farm cereals. 1t was
brought to a close by an allegorical pa
geant in which King Corn brought to his
throne Queen Alfalfa. The third ami
versary of the wedding will be celebrated
at Omaha. Chicago decided that the
corn show was too slow; that the people
did not care for "still life" expositions.
Omaha did not accept the verdict, and
by its corn show of last year proved that
cess. State corn shows, with general ex-
position features attached, have proved
to be very successful in many western
cities. Sioux City, Iowa, has the honor
of originating the corn exposition idea
some u or Is years ago.
More than $1,000 ears of corn will be
exhibited at the Omaha show. other
grains also will be shown, but corn is
to rule supreme over all. The prizes TO
be distributed will aggregate $4,000. But
perhaps the greatest public interest will
center in the contest for the largest and
finest ear of corn grown in the country
this year, for which prize of a gold cup
has been offered by certain breakfast
food concern. The wide advertising CIV
en- to this prize cup in the newspapers
and magazines has focused the interest of
the whole country upon this one feature
of the National Corn Show. Every corn
growing state will be represented in the
exhibits, as well as every variety of corn
grown. Including the decorative effects,
ranging from a landscape done in corn
to the latest thing in millinery copied
in maize, the show will boast more than
5000 separate exhibits.
more corn to the acre" is the slogan
of the national corn show. James G.
Blaine once predicted that corn would
become the backbone Of agriculture in the
United States, and the prophecy long
since has been fulfilled. 1t is conceded
that the prospective corn acreage of the
nation is now nearing it's maximum. With
1O1, O,OOO acres devoted to the growing
OF corn in 1908 the total yield was $685.
100000 bushels and the farm value of the
crop was 1876 1000, 900. The acreage was
more than double that Of wheat, and its
value a billion dollars greater. In fact,
the acreage of corn in 1908 was greater
than that of all the rest of the cereal
crops Of the nation taken together; the
yield was a full billion bushels greater
than the aggregate yield of all other
grains and the American farmer receiv-
ed more for his corn crop by nearly half
than he received for all his other grain
crops.
If the farmer can get 1 cent a bushel
more for his corn his profit is increased
$27,OOO,OO0. If he can induce his land to
grow one bushel more to the acre, he has
profited to the extent of nearly $50, 600 600
by the operation. By increasing the yield
per acre of corn vast wealth will be add
ed to the national store, and by enhanc-
ing the quality of the yield the farmer
can multiply his profits.
1t is a distressing fact that the figures
for 1908 show an average yield of corn
amounting to only 1852 bushels to the acre.
This is but little larger than the aver
age yield of all the years since the close
of the civil war. While all the rest of
the world has been making vast strides
I'm productive capacity, the corn farmer
has stood still, increasing his acreage at
a remarkable rate, but giving little atten-
ton to increasing the yield per acre
the very pivotal point in profitable farm
ing The corn exposition will seek to
remedy this It will endeavor to show
the corn farmer that he may double his
crop if he will. II will call his atten-
ton to the eloquent lesson of New Hamp-
shire a state certainly far below the
average in soil fertility, yet with the
highest average of per acre yield in the
United States. Did every corn field in
the United States do as well as the
New Hampshire corn fields in the years
from 1879 to 1908 the annual corn-husking
of the nation would produce one and
fifth billions more bushels than it does
now. In other words, the brains of the
New Hampshire farmer, applied to the
corn fields of the nation, would smite the
rocks of latent wealth and make stream
Of gold amounting to three quarters of a
billion dollars flow therefrom. And even
New Hampshire's average yield per acre