The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1911-06-23
EXPERIMENTS WITH THE DRY
WEATHER GRAIN PROMISE AN
OTHER FOOOsTUFF.
STAPLE FOOD IN MANY PARTS
When Wheat and other Cereal
Plants crackle and Blow Away in
the Hot Winds, the ksiatic Crop
Thrives.

Manhattan. kan. June 22.-Kafi'
corn munms for breakfast and kafil
corn cookies Tor supper are nearby
possibilities. The experiments are not
quite finished, but enough has been
developed to give promise Of another
, foodstuT that will prove Of inestima
Bile value especially in southwestern
and western Kansas. 1t is the iude-
ment Of Mrs. Mary Pierce NanIile,
head OF the department of domestic
science in the state agricultural col
lege. and of Miss Blanche ngersolL
the graduating student who made the
experiments, that the work was ON
scale too small to give definite con
clusions as to cookery. But both are
confident there are great possibilities
in kalir corn as a food. They hope,
later, to make more exhaustive eX-
periments.
The importance of determining the
value of kafr corn for food for man
will he understood by everyone hav-
ing knowledge of conditions in
western and southwestern Kansas.
Milo and kafir corn will grow out
there when the remainder of the
crop world has gone to sleep: and
says William Jardine, professor of
agronomy--what YOU can do with
kafir YOU can do with milo. Another
thing that adds to the significance
of the experiments, kafir and milo
are natural rotative crops-with wheat
That is to say, if the wheat fails one
year the farmer could follow with
milo or l,afir. be 80 per cent sure OF
a crop, and in that crop--if expert
ments ,urn out as eXpected-haye a
staple foodstuff.
Is Used in the Orient.
The kafir corn cooking experiments
were instituted at the suggestion of
al ItloH IL bdll' dSIunoHIlSI III
charge of Grain-sorshum investiga-
tionS for the United States depart
ment Of agriculture. Mr.. Carleton
visited the college several months
ago and arranged for the experiments
with quantity of kafir corn meal,
miiled at the North Dakota expert
ment station Mrs. VanZile chose
Miss Ingersoll for the work.
Throughout Africa, India and other
parts of Southern and Easte,n Asia
where the several sorghums are
grown, they are NOT oniy used
as human food, but in many coun-
tries they furnish the chief article
of diet. In some parts Of the United
States meal from grain sorghum.
ground locally, has been used for
batter cakes and similar articles OF
food on farms. 1t is now hoped to
learn how to use the meal and flour
for other items as bread, muffins.
hph Shhhlos Slhlblil bl'ih o. nv
House rolls, johnny cakes or corn
bread. cheap sponge cake, sour milk
ginger bread and vanilla waters.
But katir Never Dies.
In her experiments Miss lngersoll
used the products of kafir, called
white durra flour, blackhull kafir
flour, white durra meal, and back
hull kafir meal. Recipes calling for
wheat flour were used successfully
without any change, except that the
dough required more kafir flour than
it would wheat flour. Now kafir corn
sells, ordinarily, at a cent a pound
1t is now selling for a cent and
half. \ bushel of it weighs only for
ty-eight pounds. A bushel of wheat
weighs sixty pounds Wheat is
worthy eighty to eightytwo cents
bushel-sometimes it goes to a dol
lar. And quite often there are dry
spells in Kansas and the wheat isn't
any too plentiful.
But through all troubles the milo
and kafir families get along very
well. and wave and prosper while
the hot winds curl ur other things.
\ field of kafir or milo sometimes
looks as if it had lost all interest
in life after a long. hot wind. dry
spell. and about the time the farmer
is ready TO quit the business he
wakes mp to find new vigor and vim
in the kafir crop. 1t is mighty hard
10 kill.