﻿20 
  

  

  FORAGE 
  NUTS 
  AND 
  THE 
  CHESTNUT 
  AND 
  WALNUT 
  IN 
  

  

  EUROPE 
  

  

  J. 
  Russell 
  Smith, 
  Virginlv 
  

  

  Tlie 
  great 
  task 
  of 
  American 
  agriculture 
  is 
  to 
  feed 
  our 
  beasts. 
  

   Approximately 
  nine 
  tentlis 
  of 
  tlie 
  proceeds 
  of 
  American 
  agriculture 
  

   goes 
  to 
  Hourisli 
  tlie 
  quadruped, 
  and 
  man 
  eats 
  the 
  remaining 
  one 
  

   tenth 
  ; 
  therefore, 
  if 
  we 
  want 
  to 
  get 
  clear 
  of 
  the 
  possibility 
  of 
  a 
  crop 
  

   being 
  overproduced, 
  let 
  us 
  grow 
  something 
  the 
  beast 
  can 
  eat. 
  To 
  

   say 
  that 
  we 
  will 
  never 
  overproduce 
  food 
  crops 
  for 
  man 
  is 
  ridiculous. 
  

   It 
  is 
  quite 
  possible, 
  for 
  instance, 
  that 
  we 
  may 
  produce 
  too 
  many 
  

   Persian 
  walnuts 
  for 
  man 
  's 
  food, 
  but 
  the 
  tree 
  that 
  will 
  produce 
  nuts 
  

   to 
  feed 
  the 
  beasts 
  is 
  on 
  a 
  firm 
  basis. 
  Pigs 
  are 
  going 
  up 
  and 
  they 
  

   are 
  going 
  to 
  stay 
  up. 
  If 
  we 
  can 
  get 
  something 
  that 
  will 
  suit 
  Brother 
  

   Pig 
  we 
  are 
  on 
  a 
  perfectly 
  safe 
  basis, 
  and 
  tluit 
  is 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  the 
  

   chestnut 
  industry 
  in 
  Europe. 
  In 
  large 
  sections 
  of 
  France, 
  from 
  

   Switzerland 
  to 
  the 
  Atlantic, 
  there 
  are 
  thousands 
  of 
  acres 
  of 
  chest- 
  

   nut 
  trees 
  — 
  a 
  great 
  forage 
  crop. 
  In 
  a 
  few 
  districts 
  is 
  looks 
  like 
  a 
  

   forested 
  country, 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  heavy 
  chestnut 
  tree 
  groves. 
  The 
  

   tenant 
  who 
  takes 
  a 
  farm 
  has 
  certain 
  restrictions 
  placed 
  upon 
  him 
  

   in 
  the 
  removal 
  and 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  crop. 
  He 
  is 
  not 
  allowed 
  to 
  remove 
  

   the 
  chestnuts 
  in 
  France. 
  The 
  tenant 
  wlio 
  takes 
  the 
  farm, 
  signs 
  a 
  

   contract 
  that 
  he 
  will 
  not 
  sell 
  the 
  chestnuts 
  but 
  will 
  feed 
  them 
  to 
  the 
  

   pigs 
  so 
  the 
  soil 
  may 
  not 
  be 
  exliausted. 
  They 
  gather 
  them 
  carefully 
  

   and 
  use 
  them 
  in 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  ways. 
  They 
  make 
  the 
  main 
  bread 
  

   supply 
  of 
  the 
  people. 
  I 
  have 
  eaten 
  chestnut 
  cake. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  bad. 
  

   They 
  treat 
  it 
  exactly 
  as 
  we 
  do 
  corn 
  cake. 
  When 
  they 
  can 
  afford 
  

   something 
  better, 
  they 
  do 
  so. 
  

  

  At 
  harvest 
  time 
  the 
  chestnuts 
  are 
  put 
  in 
  drying 
  houses, 
  a 
  fire 
  is 
  

   built 
  under 
  them 
  and 
  after 
  they 
  are 
  thoroughly 
  dried 
  they 
  will 
  keep 
  

   indefinitely. 
  We 
  find 
  them 
  on 
  the 
  market 
  as 
  dried 
  chestnuts; 
  and 
  

   I 
  have 
  seen 
  people 
  eating 
  them 
  raw 
  in 
  June 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  after. 
  

   Chestnut 
  meal 
  is 
  a 
  standard 
  article 
  of 
  consumption 
  and 
  the 
  price 
  

   is 
  regulated 
  b}' 
  the 
  price 
  of 
  cornmeal. 
  

  

  1 
  have 
  seen 
  considerable 
  areas 
  planted 
  out 
  regularly 
  in 
  rows 
  of 
  

   young 
  trees, 
  and 
  alongside 
  of 
  that 
  older 
  ones. 
  They 
  plant 
  on 
  per- 
  

   fectly 
  fine, 
  level 
  ground 
  hundreds 
  of 
  acres 
  of 
  chestnut 
  groves 
  and 
  

   we 
  find 
  these 
  groves 
  anywhere 
  from 
  twenty-five 
  to 
  one 
  hundred 
  

   years 
  old. 
  They 
  are 
  very 
  valuable 
  property 
  for 
  the 
  reason 
  that 
  

   when 
  old 
  there 
  are 
  many 
  cords 
  of 
  wood 
  to 
  the 
  acre, 
  and 
  chestnut 
  

   wood 
  is 
  valuable. 
  

  

  