592 THE farmers' handbook. 



Whilst a large number of producers grade and bale their millet in a manner 

 that compares favourably with the imported article, it is to be regretted that 

 a certain section pays very little attention to these details. The chief faults 

 mav be divided into two classes — 1st, those the result of ignorance and 

 carelessness ; and, 2nd, those which are brought about by unscrupulous 

 individuals with the sole object of obtaining an unfair and undue advantage 

 over the manufacturer. Those of the former class may be summarised as 

 follows : — 



1. The millet is not graded. All classes are packed indiscriminately 



in a bale. 



2. The seed is not removed, or only partially so. 



3. Broken, bent, or coarse brush is mixed with the good. 



4. The cut is not uniform. .Some are cut close to the brush ; others have 



10 or 12 inches of stalk. 



5. The colour is not uniform. 



6. Bales badly packed and pressed. Many are irregular in size and 



shape, and not bound with a sufficient number of wires to stand 

 ordinary handling. 



7. Brush destroyed by being packed before it is properly dried, causing 



it to develop moulds of various descriptions. 



8. Absence of distinguishing numbers or marks signifying the quality 



and weight. 



A few of the faults of the second class may be mentioned :— 



1. The use of heavy billets of timber in bales. 



2. Watering the interior of bales when packing with millet that has 



been properly dried. 



3. Placing in the bales bundles of stems and leaves, useless brush, 



bagging, scrap-iron, sweepings of floors, quantities of unripe 

 seed, &c. 



4. Dressing the outside of bales with prime hurl and the middle with 



inferior material with the seed left on. 



The following information may enable beginners in broom millet-growing 

 to avoid some common mistakes, and to neglect none of the important 

 operations which are essential to success. 



What Broom Millet is. 



Broom millet is a non-saccharine variety of sorghum. It is an annual, 

 somewhat similar in appearance to maize while young ; but it has thinner 

 stems and narrower leaves, and, instead of having male and female 

 flowers on separate parts of the plant, they are both found together in the 

 brush at the top. The flowers are of two kinds — perfect and imperfect. 



