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CHAPTER II 

 CEREALS 



Ceres was the Roman name of the Greek goddess, Demeter 

 (Mother- Earth). After her daughter Persephone was carried 

 off by the god of the Lower World, Demeter left Olympus, 

 the abode of the gods, and dwelt on earth among men, con- 

 ferring blessings when she was kindly treated, but punishing 

 severely those who neglected her. As of all the products of 

 agriculture edible grains are the most important, she came to 

 be more especially regarded as their protector, and they are 

 hence called cereals. The most important cereals are wheat, 

 barley, oats, rye, maize, rice, and millet. 



CORN (A.-S. Corn). ' Except a corn of wheat fall into tho 

 ground and die, it abideth alone.' St. John xii. 2. 



The word corn properly means any hard edible seed, but 

 its use is generally restricted to the seeds of cereals . In England 

 we use the word to mean wheat, in Scotland oats are referred 

 to as corn, and in the United States maize. Americans say, 

 f It is a good year for wheat and rye, but bad for corn.' 



WHEAT (A.-S. hwoete, white). ' But the wheat and the rye 

 were not smitten for they were not grown up.* Exodus ix. 32 

 (1491 B.C.). 



This quotation from the book of Exodus refers to the plague 

 of hail which smote ' throughout all the land of Egypt all that 

 was in the field '. From time immemorial wheat has been 

 a staple crop in Egypt, and to-day it still holds its own, 

 especially in Upper Egypt, though even in the Delta more than 

 one-third of the land is under wheat. 



Cultivated wheat is a plant of the genus Triticum belonging 

 to the order Gramineae (Grasses). It grows to about three feet 

 high, sending up from its root several erect and hollow stems. 

 -Each of its few leaves consists of a long sheath, wrapped closely 

 round its stem, and a long blade which narrows gradually to a 

 sharp point. At the end of each stem is a spike or ear of grain. 



