1905.] DISCUSSION. 199 



The proportion of this in East Hartford is one pound of 

 Paris green to two quarts of molasses and one hundred pounds 

 of coarse middlings; not bran, but coarse middlings. They 

 do not wet the middlings enough to be sticky, but so that they 

 will mix easily, and mix a little loose, so it will lie up a little 

 and be loose; not too thick. One hundred pounds of mid- 

 dlings to one pound of Paris green, and about two quarts of 

 molasses. 



Prof, Britton. Mr. Chairman, we have all been very 

 much interested in the paper given by Mr. Shamel, and we all 

 know that the Department of Agriculture has been doing some 

 wonderful work in plant breeding. It seems to me while we 

 have him here we ought to ask him a lot of questions. This 

 is a very interesting subject, and it seems to me that the farm- 

 ers might do a good deal of selection in their own field crops 

 and improve the yield of crops in this way. 



Now, I would like to ask Mr. Shamel what the prospects 

 are for improving our general crops in this way, our farm 

 crops. 



Mr. Shamel. Mr. President, I am not entirely familiar 

 with the crops that are grown in Connecticut outside of the 

 tobacco crop and the corn crop, that is, to any considerable 

 extent. I feel, however, from the results of the investigations 

 and experiments which have been carried on by the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture that there is no question but that the 

 yield and quality can be improved by the selection of desirable 

 seed. In the case of the department we are conducting some 

 practical lines in breeding improvements that ought to have 

 a strong influence in promoting the quality of many crops and 

 horticulture in general. 



Some very interesting experiments have been carried on. 

 For instance, the sweet orange is being crossed with undesir- 

 able types of the old wild orange. Some of the trees, which 

 are grown from the seed, produced in that way, have produced 

 a desirable crop of oranges, and a type of orange tree which 



