REPORTS ON CORN. 



In the struggle to live the early settlers of Massachusetts Bay 

 found Indian corn, here produced by Indians, to be a most subtan- 

 tial article of food to sustain animal life, and to this day it is exten- 

 sively used for the same purpose throughout the length and breadth 

 of our land. Therefore it is profitable to study its production both 

 in the different kinds of corn now in use and different manner of pro- 

 ducing and harvesting now practiced by farmers in this vicinity. 



First, the kind of corn now gaining the attention of farmers is 

 western dent corn. Your committee in their examination found some 

 fields of this corn that produced very abundant crops, and with favor- 

 ing circumstances the grain was of good quality for that kind, but 

 the fodder was long, coarse, and heavy to handle, and did not appear 

 so good for feeding as some of the smaller varieties. To investigate 

 this subject further I have collected some specimens of this large corn 

 with the fodder attached, together with several specimens of smaller 

 kinds, in the same condition, and left it at the Massachusetts Exper- 

 iment Station, and in due time shall expect a report of the percentage 

 of digestible and nutritive value of each in comparison. 



It is found by practical observation that some of the fine, thick 

 grasses grown on top dressed land are better for making butter and beef 

 than coarser varieties grown on similar land. Therefore I argue that 

 the smaller kinds of corn grown thickly may contain a larger percen- 

 tage of digestible and nutritive value, and are much easier handled 

 than the larger and coarser kinds. 



Secondly, the method of producing the corn crop is worthy of our 

 consideration. 



The producer should try to be master of the circumstances in which 

 he is surrounded, he should have his plans laid and worked out that 

 will produce a hundred bushels of corn on two acres or less, rather 

 than four acres or more ; he should have his land plowed some weeks, 



