Rocky Ford enterprise., 1909-10-29

N9 stage Of savagery. and without In
wv dian corn the explorers from Eu'
rope would certainly have been un'
able. in the conditions under which they were
forced to land upon the western shores. TO
HefYect n permanent settlement on the Ameri
Rcan continent.
Maize was the only Notwithstanding food
which the Indians could supply to those who
attempted to make home in New England;
1t sustained the adventures who traversed the
valleys OF the James, OF the st. Johns and OF
the mississippi: II provided the Spaniards in
Mexico with nourishment during the reckless
march from Vera Cruz to the plateau OF Mex
leo. and this same maize was found by Pizar-
ro's small army OF conquerors when the sub
jugated the innumerable hosts OF the 1ncas
OF Peru.
Yet up to the time Of the landing Of Co
lumbus in America maize was absolutely un-
known to the Inhabitants OF the old world.
The few kernels of the new food bought to
Queen Isabella by Columbus were classed gen.
orally rs grains cereals. The Norsemen.
who landed near Cape Cod in 1902 A. d.. found
a grain previously unknown to them and this
they called "corn." attempting to identify 1t
with wheat and other grains to which they
were already accustomed The English Puri-
tans also were astonished on landing to find
a new corn; but as they had at home grouped
all grains under the name they therefore ap-
piled to 1t the same term definitely distin-
gushing 1t from the others by the specific
phrase of Indian corn.
Indian corn Is really maize: in English
speaking countries outside of the United
States 1t Is called maize and in all Spanish
countries "mais" Is the word employed: in
Portuguese "milho." and French again mails
indicate its origin Maize is altogether an
American word. coming directly from the
'Nprimitive Arawak. the most widely dissent
mated Indian stock in South America. 1t orig
ated in the south with the Guanas. on the
J s.Eeadwaters Of the river Paraguay. and en-
braced tribes on the highlands of Bolivia, ex-
tending finally to the Goajiros peninsula. the
most northern land Of the continent. They
were the first, therefore, to welcome Column
bus to the Bahamas. Cuba and Haiti. Though
the Arawaks were practically In state OF
savagery they cultivated maize. The Arawak
word for maize is "marisi." and this they had
handed over to the Caribs who inhabited many
of the West Indian islands. 1t was one of the
first words Columbus heard, and through him
1t became general in Europe. In Guiana and
further south on the Atlantic coast of South
America "manioc" took the place Of maize
food.
North American Indians had other express
sons for their grain. The grain itself had
come to them partly through the Caribs, but
chiefly through the tribes Of northern Mexico.
which shows that there were two channels of
communication even in pre-Coumbian times.
to the land the north Atlantic. These
North American Indians seem not to have
used the word maize; 1t had been lost in
crossing the Gulf of Mexico. and whatever
term was employed by them is now only a
philoogic curiosity. Neither does the ancient
word OF the Aztecs. of the Mayas, the Chib-
chas or the Incas correspond to maize. that
1t seems certain that maize confined to
that extensive inhabiting regions far to
the east and south of the original home Of
Indian corn.
The spot from which this purely American
grain spread. even before its discovery by
Europeans. to the extreme confines of the
western hemisphere. has been accurately To-
Gated. History, philoogy, ethnology well
- tradition have all beep factors in this result
[ lefnte claims have been advanced by Asia