Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1918-01-18

AHVEOllN1 FGHN
| prepared by the United States Depart
ment Of Agriculture)
Corn heads the list of crops com
monty grown in this country in food
value per acre Of production. A 30
buShel crop Of this cereal produces
nearly $50 pounds of protein, or flesh
building material, and more than D.
100000 units Of energy. Wherever the
conditions are favorable for extending
the acreage Of this crop it is evident
that considerable addition can be
made to the supply Of human food
by doing SO. Millers should give spe-
cial attention to the preparation Of
cornmeal Of good quality, and house
wives should use increased quantities
Of this nutritious and palatable prod
net us Il substitute for other bread
cereals. 1t Is more practicable to In
crease the use Of cOrnmeal in this
| country than it is abroad, for our peo-
pie are familiar with corn as a food,
while most European peoples are not.
We know how to prepare appetizing
dishes from it, while they do not.
The Sweet Potato.-Sweet potatoes
stand second In energy production,
but are low In protein produced per
acre. The sweet potato Is n southern
crop. easily produced, but unfOrtu-
lately a large percentage Of the crop
Is not properly stored and as Il con
sequence large quantities of potatoes
are lost every year. However, by
building storage houses and handling
the potatoes as recommended in Farm
ers' Bulletin No. 54S, the loss can be
largely prevented. Growers who have
good storage houses keep sweet pota-
toes throughout the winter for home
use or for market. Our southern
states should grow an abundance Of
this crop, the consumption of which
may be made to reduce the demand
for bread cereals. Where facilities
for canning sweet potatoes are avail
| able n portion of the crop preserved in
this manner may be made available
to parts of the country where the tenn
pcrature drops so low as to make
! the shipping Of fresh sweet potatoes
n precarlous undertaking, and the sea
son of their use thus may be extended
throughout the year. Sweet potatoes
also may be dried successfully, and
recent experiments show that mea'
made of dried sweet potatoes may be
used with wheat flour In making
bread.
The Irish Potato.-The third croI
on the list Is the common Irish, OF
white, potato. This crop can bt
grown in all parts Of the country. 1t,
Importance does not need emphasis
here. During the continuance of thu
present emergency special effor
should be made to produce all the po
tatoes that are needed.
Rye.-Ryc stands next to corn II
the list of cereal grains, being slight.
more nutritious than wheat, but breaC
made from rye flour is not so accepta
Bile TO the American palate as breac
made from wheat -four, 1t is only OF
sandy lands, which are better adapt
ed to rye than wheat, and in other sit
uationS where rye is known to be
safer crop than wheat, that rye shoul,
have the preference over wheat as
farm crop intended for human food.
Wheat. - Wheat stands secon
amongst the b~read-making cereals 1
food produced per acre. Its wide eli
matte adaptability and the high degre
of p%alatability of its products make
pre-eminently the bread crop Of tn
world. In sections to which this GRO
is adapted it should be given prec,
dence over all other crops except cor
and potatoes Except on lands bette
I adapted to rye than to wheat), remen
4 herring, of course, the necessity {
c maintaining n well-halanced agricu
ture.
Rice.-Rice stands very close I
wheat in food produced per acre. II
probable that under present cond
tions a market could be found for
greatly increased output of rice.
! considerable saving of valuable foe
, could be made by marketing rice u
pol. The unpublished is much MOI
Z palatable than the polished grain,
{ the unpublished rice were general
: available, the American people prob
l blv would consume considerably lar
; or quantities of this valuable cere,
=; than Mt present.
The Soy 6ean.-Soy beans lead a
other crops In the production of dige
; tihle protein, exceeding corn in III
:. respect Ivy almost exactly 100 per cen
This crop deserves more attention
: this country than It has yet receive
Tc,are is 10 reasonable possibility
= over-planting It. Soy-bean meal, Il