CHAPTER I 



INTRODUCTORY 



AMONG the world's crops wheat is pre-eminent both in regard to its 

 antiquity and its importance as a food of mankind. 



In prehistoric times it was cultivated throughout Europe, and was 

 one of the most valuable cereals of ancient Persia, Greece, and Egypt. 



Although rice is the principal food of a large proportion of the human 

 race, a greater amount of wheat is grown, and this, in the form of bread, 

 constitutes the chief food of the most highly civilised races. 



In Russia and parts of Northern and Central Europe rye is the staple 

 food, as it was until comparatively recent times in Great Britain and 

 Western Europe generally ; but with improvements in the standard of 

 living, wheat is substituted for rye in the diet of the people, and its cultiva- 

 tion and consumption are being continually extended. 



On account of the peculiar physical and chemical qualities of the 

 gluten of its grain, wheat makes more palatable and better bread than 

 any other cereal. 



Its cultivation is simple, and its adaptability to varying soils and 

 climatic conditions superior to that of any other plant. 



Originating from two or three wild species, through hybridisation, 

 mutation, and the effects of selection and cultivation, the races of wheat 

 have become as complex in constitution as the human race, and among 

 the almost endless number of varieties and forms which exist, wheats are 

 to be found suitable to the needs of agriculturists in all parts of the world. 



Wheat is grown in every country in Europe and Asia, with the exception 

 of Siam, and large areas are devoted to it in Australia and New Zealand. 



In Africa it is an important crop in Abyssinia, the Union of South 

 Africa, and along the Mediterranean coast from Egypt to Morocco. 

 Within the Tropics it is also grown in British East Africa and Nigeria. 



In the Western Hemisphere the vast wheat-fields of Canada and the 

 United States are well known, and it is grown in Mexico and most of the 

 Central American Republics. It is also cultivated in nearly all the countries 

 of South America. 



