164 AMERICAN AGRICULTURE. 



stroys that vitality, which impels it to absorb dampness when- 

 ever exposed to it, as a preliminary aid to germination ; thus 

 carrying out that great law of reproduction, impressed by 

 Deity 011 every organic structure, whether animal or vege- 

 table, " whose seed is in itself." By the operation of kiln- 

 drying, it becomes mere matter divested of vitality, and 

 may then be carried into all climates with impunity. 



Corn for Soiling. Corn has recently been much culti- 

 vated for fodder, and for this purpose, the soil must be in high 

 condition and well pulverized. It may be sown broadcast 

 and harrowed in, at the rate of three or four bushels per acre. 

 But a much better method is, to sow thickly in drills, and 

 stir the ground with a light plow or cultivator. The sowing 

 may be done early or late, though the first is most success- 

 ful. It should be cut before the frosts touch it, and dried 

 previous to housing. Several tons of excellent forage have 

 been raised in this way, from a single acre. In a report to 

 the Pedee Agricultural Society of South- Carolina, it is as- 

 serted, that 138,816 Ibs. of green corn stalks have been cut 

 from one, acre in a season, weighing when dry, 27,297 Ibs. 



The Uses of Corn in this country are numerous. It is 

 largely fed to fattening and working animals, but must be 

 cautiously given to the latter, and especially in hot weather. 

 It is extensively manufactured into high wines and whiskey, 

 the consumption of which as a beverage, evinces a sad per- 

 version of one of the best gifts of nature. . It is converted 

 into oil, molasses and sugar to a very limited extent ; and is 

 variously and largely applied to domestic uses. While green 

 it is boiled or roasted in the ear ; or it is cut from the cob 

 and cooked with the garden or kidney bean, which forms the 

 Indian succotash. When ripe, it is hulled in a weak ley, 

 then boiled and known as hulled corn, a most convenient 

 and acceptable dish in the frontier settlements, remote from 

 mills ; or it is parched over a hot fire, affording a delicious 

 lunch, and a convenient provision for hunters, as popped 

 corn. Hominy or samp is a favorite dish, and consists 

 of corn coarsely ground and boiled in water ; and hasty pud- 

 ding differs from this, only in being made of fine meal. The 

 meal may be compounded with milk and eggs into jonny- 

 cakes, puddings, griddles and other delicacies, universally 

 esteemed for the table ; and when scalded and mixed with 

 the flour of wheat or rye, it imparts additional sweetness to 

 bread, while it scarcely diminishes its proportionate nutritive 

 properties. 



