^1 



YOL. III. 



SPEIiS'GFIELD, JULY, 1858. 



NO. 7. 



BRACELET, 



RAISKD KY JAMES N. HHOWN, 

 BKRLIN, ILL. 



Bracelkt is a roan; wa.s cal- 

 ved June 2G, 18o2; got by Van- 

 dal, (2,005.) 1st dam, Miss 

 Bowers, Ity Accident, (191;) 2d 

 daui. Beauty, by Acoomnioda^ 

 tion, (2.907;) od dam. Poll, by 

 a son of Tccumseh, (5.409;) 

 5th dam, by Teciiiiiseli, (5.400.) 



]3racklkt won tlie firnt jjrize 

 at the State Fair at Springfield, 

 for two year old heifer, in 2854, 

 and at Chicairo, for three year 

 old, in 1855, and at the Sanga- 

 mon and ^iorgan County Fairs 

 .she won the iirst prize in 1855. 



«.»^^w? 





It 



valuable grain is 



Maize, or Indian Corn. 

 is said that the native country of this 

 not determined. It was 

 found in cultivation among the Indians on 

 the first discovery of America. It vras un- 

 known to the ancient Greek and Roman 

 wi'iters, and it is not mentioned by the ear- 

 lier travelers in Persia, China, India and 

 other parts of Asia, and Africa, and who 

 were minute in describing the productions 

 of the countries they visited. The clram 

 that it came originally from India or the 

 Western coast of Africa, is not well sustained. 

 There is corn now found in Africa, but the 

 probabilities are in favor of the seed having 

 been furnished from this continent. Re- 

 cently it has been noticed in a wild state. 

 In the Rejwrt of one of the Railroad Ex- 

 ploring Expeditions across this continent^ it 

 is stated that the Maize or Indian corn was 

 thus found. It was a pexfect 43orn, but each 

 kernel was inclosed in a husk. We have 

 seen this variety. It was said to have been 

 brought originally from the Rocky Moun- 

 tain region. Cultivation often materially 

 changes the appearance of a plant, seed or 

 root. Our apples, plums, cherries, peaches, 

 and other fruits were originated from wild 

 fruits; our potatoes, from a hard, unpalatable 



tvber-, of the size of a hickory nut; our cab- 

 bage from a plant of four leaves; our beauti- 

 ful roses and other double flowers, from 

 flowers having but a single row of petals. 

 There is no reason to suppo.se that our pre- 

 sent numerous varieties of Indian corn could 

 not be produced by high cultivation from 

 the wild corn of the Rocky Mountains. 



We give below a history of tlu' uisci.Tcr^'- 

 and cultivation of corn in etui^. tunes in 

 Virginia. It was an important article of 

 food to the natives, and subsequently to the 

 occupiers of their soil. The pilgrims found 

 this corn among the Indians on tlieir arrival 

 at Plymouth. In passing about the countrjf, 

 they discovered where it was cached in the 

 earth for safe keeping, and many times they 

 would have suffered for food but for supplies 

 of corn. In the article below, we give the 

 history of its i:ulture in Virginia. \Ve have 

 ransacked the books we have at hand in 

 vain to find something of its cultivation In 

 early days in New England. All we know 

 is, that eeed was obtained from the natives, — 

 that the natives taught the whites how to 

 grow the corn, and that it has been regarilod 

 as a most important crop from that daj' to 

 the present. 



It is a peculiarity of this grain that it will 



produce varieties that A'HII acco3umutUil« 

 ; themselves to any latitude from the eijuator 



to 55° North or South on this continent. 

 ' It jn'oduces, with high cultivaticm, as nit^uy 

 ; bushels cf grain to tlie aere in Vermont r.s it 

 ' docs in Viruinia It fuvnislics a chea^i, 

 : dcsira])le and nnrriiiotis food; and. no grain is 

 I .so Valuable for all purposes of feeding upon 

 ' the i:\vm. A lo.^s of the crop would be felt 



an :i ;_i-eat di'sa'^tor, tlic cfiects oi which vould 

 : not passavray for years. 



• IXDIAN CORN-^ITS EARLY IU5:T0aY IN 



I ■ ■ . r?;^ viiiGiK-r.'.. " _ - 



In the year 1G<'^9, Capt. Smith, ifi reprisal 

 for injuries* done by the In(''ian3, ^'t-ook two 

 savages prisonei's, called Kiini'Styni Tussore, 

 the two most exact villaius in all the coun- 

 try." Not long after this the supplies of 

 English grain being fouud much damaged by 

 mould and rats, '•'thir; did drive us all to our 

 wit's end, for there was iiotiiing in the coun- 

 try but what n^.ture sifTurded. lentil this 

 time Kemps and Tu^'^or; were fettered pris- 

 oners and did double task, ^avA taught us how 

 to orcir.' aid plaiit car ftrhl: ; who now, for 

 want of victual, we set at lil'crty, but so well 

 they liked o'ar companies that they did not 



