TESTING SEED CORN. 
An “ Ohio Corn Boy” Talks. 
[The following article is written by one of the Ohio 
boys who went in the “corn train” trip to Washington. 
This boy knows about corn, and any man can learn 
something from his article.l 
VALUE OF TESTING.—Will it pay to test seed 
corn? It will pay to test 100 ears to find one single 
bad ear. . You can afford to test your corn even 
though you do not find a single bad ear, to make 
wasted to try to test corn unless every possible 
precaution is taken to avoid mistakes. “Anything 
worth doing at all is worth doing well,” and “Things 
done by halves are never done right” are two maxims 
to be remembered when testing seed corn. 
MAKING A TESTER.—There are several good 
testers upon the market at the present time. A good 
tester can be bought for $2.50 to $10, or a homemade 
tester can be made at a cost of $1 to $3, and will 
do just as good work. My tester holds 180.000 kernels 
“filler." Cut a piece of cloth the size of pan and 
mark out sections or blocks as follows. Divide the 
length into 25 equal parts and the width into 10 
parts. For a pan 42 x 20 inches, sections 1 11-16 x 2 
inches will be about right. The pan will then hold 
250 ears. Number each section, using an indelible 
pencil. 
STARTING THE CORN.—Thoroughly wet filler 
and cloth, then put in the corn by removing 6 kernels 
from different parts of each ear and placing them in 
GREAT EXPECTATIONS; IRRIGATING WITH WATER AND HOPE. Fig. 154. 
sure that there are no bad ears. The satisfaction of 
knowing will pay you for your trouble. It is a 
pleasure to test good corn, and a necessity to test 
poor corn. Corn can be tested for less than 50 cents 
per hundred - ears, for labor only, and this can be 
done at times when you cannot do anything else. 
( 'ne dollar per hundred ears would be a very rea¬ 
sonable price for testing. One person can take six 
kernels from each ear, and can put 1,800 to 2,400 
kernels (300 to 400 ears) in test boxes in 10 hours; 
two men, 3,000 to 4,800 kernels (500 to 800 ears) 
in 10 hours. The efficiency of the tester depends upon 
the ability and accuracy of the operator. It is time 
(1,800 ears) at one time. I made it of special design, 
and it cost me $20 for materials and work, not in¬ 
cluding my own labor. The total cost of materials 
and labor would be close to $30. It will often be 
cheaper to buy a tester than to make one. How¬ 
ever, a cheap tester can be made as follows: Have 
a pan made 42 x 20 x 3 inches (inside measure¬ 
ments) of galvanized metal roofing at a tin shop. 
It will cost about a dollar for material and labor. 
Have a jA-inch hole cut in bottom at middle of one 
side. Tf the edge is rolled or bent down it makes 
a smoother job. Fill pan one-half full of a mixture 
of equal parts sand and sawdust. This is called a 
the same section. Number the ears the same as the 
section in which it is represented. Repeat until all 
the sections have been filled. Then place a piece 
of cloth over corn, which had been thoroughly soaked 
in water. The cloth should be six inches larger each 
way than pan: leave cloth extending over edges of 
pan. Fill up the pan with "filler” of sand and saw¬ 
dust. With a sprinkling can apply enough warm 
water to thoroughly saturate the contents of pan. 
The pan should be set on a wooden tray. Tilt pan 
slightly and allow the water to drain off. Place pan 
in warm place. In 24 hours sprinkle with warm 
water. In 48 to 60 hours the tester will be ready to 
