The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1910-12-17
ADDRESS TO CORN GROWERS
Mr.. Alex Fitzhugh. fredericksburg
sr, Discusses the Great Cereal At
Vicksburg.

Or. Discusses the Great Cereal At
Vicksburg.
At Vicksburg, Miss. few days
ago the Warton County Boys Corn
Club held an exhibition and prizes
were awarded for the best speci-
mems of corn. for best yields. etc.
The Nicksburg Herald devoted
considerable space to the event.
published the list of prizes and al
so printed in full the speech OF Mr..
Alexander Fitzhugh, son Of Mrs. w.
H. Fitzhugh. Of this city. who is
now prominent and successful bus
mess man Of that city.
We reproduce the following from
the Herald:
The presentation of the prizes
followed two very eloquent and
timely addresses delivered by Mr..
w b Griffith and Mr. Alex Fitz-
hugh, both of whom gave splendid
advice. The rooms were stacked
with fine corn stalks and large ia
bles contained the nice. large, white
ears of corn which had been pro
duced by this band of young farm
ers." who stood in a semi-cir-
Gle and listened intently to the
addresses deliverd to them
Harry Yoste presented Alex Fitz-
hugh TO the corn club members
present as one of the leading mer-
chants. who is not corn raiser.
but as one who handles so much OF
the grain that he is duly qualified
TO understand it, and was glad to
talk TO the boys along the lines
which he thought might be of in
terest and benefit to them.
Mr.. Fitzhugh spoke as follows:
Having bought and sold corn
for the last fifteen years. have
found il necessary to make study
of the corn crop; Of the production
each year in various parts OF the
country. Of the changes in the price
from year 10 year. of the various
uses to which the grain is put. in
brief 10 the economic value of the
corn crop to the country, or TO
put IL differently of the amount OF
the total wealth of the country the
corn crop represents.
"A few facts about corn which
| will give you briefly will be Of in
terest The crop OF the United
States has increased from 21OO'-
600 900 bushels in 1900. valued al
S75O.OOO. 600. to 3.1OO.000.0OO bush
els in 1910. valued at 81 500 ,OOO,-
0OO For the last ten years the to-
tai WELD has been about 27.OOO.OOO,
600 bushels, valued at nearly $l2,-
600 100000, or one billion two
hundred million dollars year. Val
ue of the corn crop is greater than
the combined value of the cotton
and wheat crops
Seven States called the surplus
corn States have produced about 40
per cent OF the total crop OF the
country. They are Ohio, Indiana.
Illinois. Iowa, Missouri. Kansas and
Nebraska. Until this year the
Southern States and more parucu-
larly the. cotton raising States'naVe
generally produced reia-
lively small part Of the total, and
much below their own needs. This
year. however, the production III
the cotton States amounts 10
approximately 0O,00O.000 bushels
or over 25 per cent Of the total crop
OF the United States. Mississippi
will raise nearly 6O,0O0,0OO bushels
or an increase of about 2O,OOO'OOO
bushels over last year
Il strongly believe that the in
creased yield is largely due to the
encouraging of corn growing boys
corn clubs. not only in this state
but all through the South.
Il recently attended the North
Carolina State Fair at Raleigh
where | found much the same in
terest in corn production as is no
ted in Mississippi now. met there
farmer. Mr.. J. F. Bats. who has
produced 226 2-3 bushels on one
acre. He has a thirty-acre fleid'
which will average four good ears
to the stalk.
1T will probably interest you
/ to know that the vast corn crop OF
the United States is largely con-
sumed at home. In fact, it is es-
timated that only about twenty per
cent is shipped away from the farms
where 1t is raised.
Now this brings me to the very
point | want to emphasize most
strongly to you and that is that
the great value of corn is on the
farms where 1t is grown. The rel
atively small part that is shipped
away goes to supply those sections
that have not produced enough
for home consumption, to the glu-
cose mills to make syrup and starch
to the distilleries for whiskey, al
cohol and for various other COM
mercial uses which l might men
ton. However the great value Of
the corn crop is to furnish food
for animals that man eats, for hogs
and cattle, and for the animals that
he works, horses and mules. Corn
is the very foundation of the meat
supply of the country. An ear OF
corn is the first stage to the evo-
luton of a pork chop or a porter
house steak.
IAN erroneous idea prevails that
: large part of the corn crop is ex-
ported to foreign countries. On the
, contrary for the last ten years the
amount exported was only about
four per cent of the entire produc-
tion, and last year less than two
| per cent. Corn is exported, how
ever, very largely in the shape OF
meat. For the last ten years the
value of the hog products exported
was over one billion dollars, and
the value of beef, mutton and dairy
products, such as butter and cheese
probably over five hundred million.
"It is an interesting fact thai
in the surplus corn States, corr
is rarely used as a food for man
and 1t is very difficult to get
good piece of corn bread. The
great use of corn in the West Is
. to fatten and finish hogs and cattle
One bushel OF corn should feed
hog one week and produce ten lbs
of meat. Now corn is worth less
than fifty cents a bushel on the
farm in the West and live hogs are
worth about cents per pound
therefore, by feeding his corn tC
hogs. the farmer gets so cents pei
bushel for it. Your corn is wortf
now about sc cents per bushel or
the farm, one bushel will produce
, 10 pounds of hog meat or cost OF
81 khndn