Man a Creator 6i 



No less remarkable is the variety of types 

 of corn that civiUzed man has produced to suit 

 his needs. If corn is raised for the purpose of 

 manufacturing cornstarch, a variety that has 

 a high percentage of starch is sown; if it is to be 

 fed to beef cattle, it must be a sort that is rich 

 in protein; if hogs are to be fattened, the oil 

 content must needs be large; if it is to be used 

 as a table vegetable, it must possess a large 

 percentage of sugar. No sooner is a new use 

 discovered for corn than the breeder develops a 

 variety to suit it. Then, too, the yield per acre 

 has been enormously increased, in part by 

 better methods of cultivation, but in part also 

 by improving the type of corn plant. The ideal 

 plant is one with a strong, well-buttressed 

 stalk, with two large ears, that wiU stand up 

 even in heavy winds; it must possess broad yet 

 firm leaves, for the manufacture of the materials 

 that go into the grain occurs in the leaf. The 

 ears should be long and thick without too large 

 a cob, the latter weU covered even over the tip 

 and butt with straight rows of long even kernels 

 that fit together without waste spaces (Fig. 5). 



