136 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. % 



race which now people the earth. The seed of all grasses are 

 nutritious ; the smallest are only fit for the sustenance of birds 

 and insects. Those which are denominated corn, are those 

 which are specially cultivated for their albuminous matters for 

 the use of man. The latte/, I do not propose to speak of un- 

 der this head ; the former, or the grasses, which cover the 

 earth with green, and whose herbage forms the nutriment of 

 cattle, compose the family upon which I propose to treat. 



The diversity in kind is worthy of notice. Each one has its 

 place. The meadow has its special occupants which usually 

 belong to the noble kinds. The marsh and bog are covered 

 with those which are coarse and unnutritious ; and the dry 

 hill-side, with the tough and wiry ones which serve merely 

 the protection of the surface. The hill-side, however, has a 

 better class of occupants ; and where the surface is moist the 

 most nutritious grow luxuriantly, and supply the herds and 

 flocks with the most nutritious food. 



It is in the temperate latitudes that the best grasses find 

 their home, and the husbandman the best reward in their 

 cultivation. It is in the region of the best grasses that man 

 obtains the richest food ; milk, butter, cheese, beef, pork and 

 mutton are supplied at the least expense, where these are the 

 material productions of the soil. Life is sustained at the least 

 expense where the better grasses grow spontaneously. Some 

 of them, however, must be sown and cultivated, and like the 

 cereals be raised by the skill of the farmer. The poorest 

 grasses frequently crowd out the better. Lands which be- 

 come poor, support only the poorer kinds, and if the farmer 

 seeks his best interest, he will displace the latter by good til- 

 lage and the use of fertilizers. 



The direct objects which are sought to be obtained by the 

 cultivation of grasses, are the production of beef, milk and 

 butter ; a greater variety of food, better in kind, and more 

 abundant in quantity. 



The indirect benefits of the grasses, in addition to the sup- 

 ply of food for cattle, are for furnishing a source of fertilizers 

 for the cereals, and preserving the soil in a good condition. 

 If cattle are left to roam at will through the ranges of forest 



