CHAPTER XIX 



CORN 



But let the good old crop adorn 



The hills our fathers trod; 

 Still let us for his golden corn 



Send up our thanks to God. 



WHITTIEE. 



188. Our Yearly Crop. Corn is our most valuable crop. 

 Four fifths of our farmers raise it. See Appendix A, 

 Chart III, page 468. The yield in the United States for 

 1912 was 3,124,796,000 bushels. This crop alone enriched 

 the farmers that year to the extent of 81,520,454,000. 

 These figures are overwhelming. Loaded on wagons, a 

 ton to each, the crop would form a procession twenty 

 wagons wide extending around the globe. As many drivers 

 would be needed in the procession as there are inhabitants 

 in the United States. Converted into silver dollars, it 

 would take over four thousand teams, each hauling a ton, 

 to take the crop to the bank. The value would support 

 our public schools for five years. 



189. An American Plant. In the Bible we read how 

 "Joseph's ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt." 

 The Psalmist, too, says : " The valleys are also covered 

 over with corn; They shout for joy, they also sing." 

 But in these quotations the word "corn" is used in its 

 old European sense, referring to any hard grain, like 

 wheat, rye, or barley. Strictly speaking, in the usage of 



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