INDIAN CORN.



Do YOU see what the man in this picture is doing? He is cutting corn. You see he has cut all he can well carry, and is taking it to the bunch, or "stock" as the farmers call it. Boys, do you not think it is fine sport to cut corn? Perhaps you would like to know the history of corn. It was not known in olden times. In the Bible when it speaks of corn, it means wheat, barley, or any other kind of grain. The first that was known of corn was after Columbus discovered America, where he found it cultivated by the Indians. 

On account of this, it was called Indian corn.

It is supposed that corn first came from Paraguay, where it grows wild. It is different, however, from the corn we raise, as each kernel is enveloped in a small husk, and then the whole ear is covered with still another husk like ours. But after it is cultivated a few years, the husk around each kernel disappears; Some years ago, we had three kernels of this corn sent to us from California. We planted them, and raised several ears of very fine corn, only each kernel had a little separate husk. 

The next year we planted some from one of these ears, and only a few kernels on each   had husks. I presume if we had planted them a few years more that they would have entirely disappeared.




J. E. WHITE.