ALASKA AND STOKER, OR " MIRACLE," WHEATS. 5 
THE NEW SPECIES OF WHEAT. 
Baltimore, October 3, 18J t 0. 
To the Editor of the American Farmer. 
Sir : I think it proper to take the earliest occasion to notice the new species 
of wheat, a drawing of which has just been published in the American Farmer 
and copied into the American and Patriot, accompanied by a letter from Mr. 
Read. I do this for the double purpose of saving money and trouble to all 
concerned. This new species of wheat is, without doubt, the Egyptian wheat 
Triticum compositum, for a drawing and description of which, see Loudon's 
Encyclopedia of Plants. The engraving in Loudon and that in the Farmer 
present the same characters precisely. Besides, I have often seen the Egyptian 
wheat, and the head of the new species which has been exhibited to me is 
identical with the Egyptian. This kind of wheat was introduced into Eng- 
land in 1799, and from that time to the present has made frequent appearances 
in the United States. It has been called successively the Egyptian, Syrian, 
Many-spiked, Seven-headed, Reed, Wild Goose wheat, etc. The name Wild 
Goose was given to it from the fact that a few grains of it were found some 
years ago in the crop of a wild goose that was killed on the shores of Lake 
Champlain. The name Reed wheat was given to it because of its stout stem 
resembling a small reed or cane. It was received by the Philadelphia Society 
for Promoting Agriculture, in 1807, from Gen. Armstrong, then our minister 
at Paris. Judge Peters took charge of a part of it, and grew it five or six 
years. It was at first very productive under his cultivation, a pint of seed 
sown in drills and hoed producing one bushel and a peck of grain. But after 
the first three * or four years, the Judge says it did not thrive sufficient to 
authorize extensive cultivation. At that time it was extensively distributed 
by the above-named society. Judge Buel says he had seen extensive fields 
of it. 
In the Domestic Encyclopedia, published in 1821, it is stated that the 
Egyptian wheat does not yield as much flour as any of the other kinds, and 
that the flour is scarcely superior to that obtained from the finest barley. In 
March, 1838, it was selling in Albany, N. Y., at $5 per bushel. It has several 
times been brought from Santa Fe by travelers and traders. It appears to 
be cultivated in that country, probably owing to its better adaptation to the 
climate than other kinds. That the Osage Indians might have obtained it from 
Santa Fe is no way improbable. How it found its way from Egypt to Santa 
Fe I cannot pretend to guess, unless a wild goose also carried it from the 
former to the latter country, which, on reflection, is scarcely more improbable 
than the fact stated above, that one of these birds carried it to the shores of 
Lake Champlain. 
From all these facts it would appear that if the wheat in question had been 
adapted to our climate, or was susceptible of acclimation, and in other respects 
a good variety, it would have gone into general cultivation long before this 
time, as I take it for granted that an article that had been so extensively 
distributed and so thoroughly experimented upon would have been retained and 
universally cultivated, if it had been found valuable. During the 20 years of 
my agricultural experience it has been presented to my notice at least 20 times. 
Your obedient servant, 
Gideon B. Smith. 
The names Egyptian, Miracle, Mummy, and Wheat 3,000 Years 
Old all are derived from one of the most common untrue stories 
about this variety. The story varies somewhat in detail but in gen- 
