22 AMEEICAN EXPOET CORN ( MAIZE ) IN EUROPE. 



sufficiently low in many cases to enable the corn to carry safely at 

 the naturally increased temperatures encountered en route. 



Thoroughly air-dried corn contains about 12 per cent of moisture. 

 Such corn may be shipped for export at any time under ordmary 

 conditions with little or no danger from heating in transit, and this 

 is practically true also of corn containing up to 14 per cent of mois- 

 ture, provided fermentation has not started in such corn." 



CONDITIONS NECESSARY FOR SHIPPING DAMP CORN. 



The fact that certain lots of corn contain high percentages of mois- 

 ture does not necessarily mean that they will not stand ocean ship- 

 ment safely. The voyage may be short, the air temperature at the 

 time of loading and durmg the voyage may be low, no disturbing 

 mfluence such as heat radiated from the ship's boilers may be en- 

 countered, and the corn kept practically in cold storage. Under such 

 most favorable conditions a high percentage of moisture may often 

 be safely carried in corn. Cargoes of such corn are often landed upon 

 the quays in Europe in a perfectly cool (cold, in fact) condition, 

 which corn upon bemg exposed to warmer atmospheric conditions 

 soon "goes out of condition" and becomes hot and unfit for reship- 

 ment via the waterways of Europe, as is required of much of the grain 

 received abroad. 



THE EFFECT OF HIGH AND LOW MOISTURE CONTENTS. 



When corn goes out of condition, the effect of its relative moisture 

 content immediately becomes evident. Corn with a low moisture 

 content requires a much longer time to reach that stage designated as 

 "hot" or to become discolored or "damaged" by the process of heat- 

 ing than com with a high moisture content, while corn with a high 

 moisture content will heat, become discolored, and lose weight by 

 evaporation quickly, and the processes of deterioration are accelerated 

 with each additional per cent of moisture much more rapidly than 

 the proportionate increase in the moisture content. 



TMien corn of a low moisture content is found m a heating condi- 

 tion, it can ordmarily be restored to its original condition with but a 

 slight amount of handling and ventilating and udthout much, if any, 

 loss in value through discoloration, while corn with a high moisture 

 content, when heating in any considerable bulk, quicldy becomes 

 badly discolored and damaged and is ^nth great difficult}^ and a 

 great amount of handling restored to a cool condition, and then only 

 with more or less damage to its quality and a corresponding loss in 

 value. 



a None of the corn examined in Europe which contained less than 14 per cent of 

 moisture was found in a heating condition, excepting in cases where moisture had 

 been expelled through the heating processes, regardless of its location in the ships. 

 [Cir. .55] 



