The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-12-18
CORN CROP NOT
 OF BEST QUALITY
Rx HOLLAND

New York, December 17.-(Special. )-Al- though the government at Washington reports officially that as much corn was harvested in the fall of this year as will l fill 3,159, 600 busheI baskets and that l the money value of this crop is some what in excess of $4,000,000,000, never theless, some not very satisfactory re- ports come from several of the most inn portant corn producing states which re- | fer to the forecast for the harvest of | corn next autumn. Richard H. Edmonds of Baltimore who is esteemed as one Of the most highly qualified grain experts, some weeks ago called attention to the fact that, although the corn harvested this year makes new record, and, al- though the money value of the corn will
 be approximately equal to the aggregate subscriptions to the two liberty loans. nevertheless much of the corn was not
 of good quality and some of 1t was so
 poor that 1t must be used for fodder. ] This statement is confirmed by re-
 ports which were received in New York today from some of the corn growing states. There is probably to be most acute situation in the spring due to the
 poor quality of seed corn. In fact. the situation is so desperate that experts Ihave been summoned who have been oc- IcupIed for a month in Investigating the corn situation. They now report that | the quantity of good seed corn is so small as to justify serious apprehension respecting the harvest Of next fall. This lis due to the fact that no small part of the recent corn harvest Is so soft that it will be impossible for it to germinate. The corn which Is harvested in Iowa, | oolro a r- 1 able for seed purposes In the corn pro- ducing states of the northwest the sup ply of seed, which when planted should germinate, is the smallest in years. 1 Those who deal in seed corn have al | most none on hand and have been l greatly distressed for three or four
 weeks because they are unable to secure
 in any quantity sound corn of the kind that will germinate well.
 A QUESTION OF ECONOMY
 The experts reported yesterday that lin their opinion there is only one so- Iution of this important problem pos- sble. That is a solution which the | farmers themselves in the corn pro- ducing states of the north and north west must in the interest of true econ omy adopt They are advised by the experts immediately to begin sorting l over all the corn they have on hand (of II done that to throw out the ears which are excellent and then dry them and test them so that it can be learned whether the seed will germinate.
 If the area affected by this unfortunate
 condition was small then little or no heed need be paid to it. But 1t is a very large area. It contributed possibly 50 per cent of the corn harvest this year. Today the outlook unless the danger can be met and overcome is that there may be large reduction in the acreage of corn which otherwise would be planted in the spring; The United States will be in need next year of corn even more than is the case this year.
 TRUCK AND TRANSFORMATIONS
 When that procession of auto trucks rolls on through the country between Detroit loaded with munitions of war (which are to be placed at the service
 of our government for ourselves and our