49 2 MAIZE 



CHAP, for the convenience of farmers and merchants, and that a 

 XI 



charge be made for storing and holding the grain, to cover 



cost of such services ; regulations to be made to prevent grain 



from being held in such storehouses for speculative purposes. 



Owing to danger of increase of moisture and of injury 

 by weevil and grain, in the damper atmosphere of the coast, 

 the Bloemfontein Conference recognized that such stores, ware- 

 houses or elevators should be erected at inland centres, at 

 high altitudes (5,000 feet or over), preferably within about an 

 engine run from the coast. It was stated that at low alti- 

 tudes like Ladysmith (3,284 feet), maize could not be stored 

 safely after the end of October on account of weevil. 



At such centres, maize could be stored until sufficient 

 quantities of one grade were accumulated to furnish a cargo of 

 that grade, which could be run down to the wharf by special 

 fast freight. 



At some railway stations the Co-operative Societies have 

 already erected warehouses for storing the grain of their 

 members. 



The South African Railway Administration leases land for 

 the erection of stores for storage, but not for trading purposes. 



In default of adequate storage, some farmers stack their 

 grain under tarpaulins. This method is expensive and waste- 

 ful, for a certain amount of grain is damaged by leakage of 

 water. 



462. Yield of Grain from a Given Measure of Ears. — At the 

 Government Experiment Farm, Potchefstroom, it has been 

 found that a cubic yard of average husked ears will produce 

 three muids (600 lbs.) of grain. In the United States it is 

 found that 2 cubic feet of sound, dry maize on the cob will 

 make a bushel (56 lbs.) of shelled grain. 



To get at the quantity of shelled grain in a hock, crib, or 

 barn of cobs, measure the length, breadth, and height of the 

 crib. Multiply the length by the breadth, and the product by 

 the height. Then divide the product by 2 ; this gives the 

 number of bushels in the crib. For example, if the crib or barn 

 is 20 feet long, 10 feet broad, and 8 feet high, and this is 

 packed with husked maize: an area 20 by 10 by 8, equals 

 1,600 cubic feet ; divide by 2, and we get 800, the number of 

 bushels of shelled grain in the barn. 



