16 BULLETIN 357, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
he wished to get a foothold in Kansas and Iowa as soon as possible. 
He further asked that an expert be sent to see the wheat and advise 
regarding its propagation. 
The following three chief claims were made for this wheat by 
the introducer in his various letters of 1906 and in the years fol- 
lowing : 
(1) That it would outyield any other variety anywhere. 
(2) That it tillered more freely; that is, that it sent up more stems from 
one seed than any other variety of wheat. 
(3) That 20 pounds of seed to the acre was enough to produce maximum 
yields, while other varieties required 8 pecks (120 pounds). 
Fig. 4. — Representative head of Stoner, or Fig. 5. — Representative head of Bearded 
" Miracle," wheat. (About half natural Purple Straw wheat. (About half nat- 
size.) ural size.) 
In the fall of 1907 an agent of the department visited Mr. Stoner's 
farm. The visit occurred after harvest, however, and only the stub- 
ble field and shocks could be seen. The agent reported that this 
wheat had been grown in the field for two seasons, but not many 
definite facts about its value could be obtained. 
The report states that " on one farm the yield was 27.5 bushels 
per acre, which was 3 to 5 bushels more per acre than that of other 
varieties on the same farm." * * * The Miracle wheat was 
sown at the rate of only 3 pecks, however, while the other was sown 
at the rate of 8 pecks per acre. A single test in a single year on 
different fields, with a difference of 5 pecks per acre in the rate 
of seeding, is inconclusive. 
The report states further that when sown in fields at the 3-peck 
rate, from 8 to 15 heads were produced on each plant, while the 
