A MIRACLE IN WHEAT.

Otago Witness, Issue 2849, 21 October 1908, Page 78

A MIRACLE IN WHEAT.

| NEW -KiCHES FOR THE FARMER. ' Wlbsm the United States paid 80 millions for the Territory of Alaska, dt was to the fua* tihe purchasers looked for a return on the investment. Wlien gold he\<qan to jour in from, thai great country, the investment "was pronounced good. But not in (gold alone was Alaska <k,3iiined to l'e-jiay those 'earlr statesmen for their real esiato speculation. Years after the jeldow metal was tliscwroretJ. titans came tui aged farmer to thatf far nontuWand , and took back to the Starties the basis for wealth to his country iby the- .side of wihich the cold from the Mils and icy riverbeds should pale into insignificance. It was in 1903 that Abraham Adams, a native of Kentucky, who had gone with the "star of Umpire"' to the great West to faa-m it. v&s taken with a desire to try his fortunes in Alaska. Leaving his ranch in norhern Idaho, he rrcJde a trip to the land of promise and of .gold, but nothing came of 'his attempts at discovery. Turning his attention then to explorini', he drifted along itlie coast of extern Alaska, where the Japan current flows near the shore, and makes of the land from coast to 'mountain eternal spring. AJamy miles he exploded, dnvestigatint? the ,pos'?bih!ties of that country for future farming aaid grazing, preparing himself for a j-epoit to the farmers of -his community. He found many beautiful biys, splendid , beac-h«>. swcop* of 'timber, ur.A meadows ! h'-avy with juicy "ra'tves. Here aaid there we-re traces of. cold, but not of promkm? quantity, str.d' t-iien he channel uj)on a surprising discovery. Lodged in ' a nook ur.dsr protootinr,' fork, eht.H^red from the wind.«, was a little familiar patch. Interested ait once, he inv«fiti«it*d. a.nd found that here a patch of «iwa' was far from any living hiuii^n that cu'ild have planted it. On

heeds and knees >ne pulled aiway the matted straws. Yes, it was certainly wheat thait was just ripening. The'ex,pk>rer ponglit among tihe stems for some lteadls, 'but the wild game bald been before him, «md he iras just aibout to give up when- he discovered. one 'head of wheat almost initaat. A, gigantic head it was! Fu&ly four inches long, with its rough, bearding, and broad -in proportion. Packing the head carefully away, the old man briught it back with him to his ranch ait Juliaetta, Idaho. Not a word | did h« say to his neighbours of his find. Whether it was wild wheat or not he .could nj>t say. Perhaps some wild bird had filled its crop with the grains in on unknown region, where it grew native, and, coming to Alaska, deposited tihe seod jn a fertile spot. And yet it was onJy curiosity that moved Abraham Adams. Hie never dreamed of his find bejng o£> .any valoue except as an experiment for hio I own pleasure. In the fall of ,1904 Mr Adaips planted his head of Alaska wheat .on high and all-too-dry land — the natural soil of .Idaho. It grew rapidly when the spring, opeoied its founts, and in - the, summer he - had 71b of wheat from this one (head. , That waa startling.' He^haixily dared tell a farmer of dt. He examined the kernels. Four times as large as ordinary wheat, and mi colour — instead of the homely brownishgrey of wheat of commeroe — the prettiest cream colour without «■ dark spotc Seven pounds of wheat from, one head, and -the finest-looking wheat mortal :had-ever-eeen! Abraham Adams began to- dream. Having tested the grains- as winter wheat, Mr Adams saved; his 71b to try as 1 spring wheat, and dn 1906 he .planted the whole 71b. Sturdily it grew, and when itwas harvested he weighed in 15451b. His Alaska, find had -broken the world's record for wheat yield! More than 222 bushels to the acre was the ratio of yield, and that without any special petting, or manipulation. With the world's average yield of 12.7 bushels to the acre, and a fair yield for exceptional land of 20 bushels, here was the prospect of a miracle ; a revolution in the wheat industry of the, world. But. still there was something that might daslTevery hope, of a- wheat miracle. Was this Alaska, wheat- of good quality? Would it make good bread? With this, idea- in 'mind- 'the /experimenting farmer carried a small quantity of his wheat to ; Jjie Idaho experimental station at Moscow, He knew he had & wheat) that yielded past any belief. He had something marvellous in* a wheat .that yielded equally as well planted winter or spring. Did he. have a good -wheat?- Tha chemists and experts at the station tested; it and pronounced it a good, quality of hard wheat. Hard wheat! That wa« sufficient. Bui Adams knew he must have patience for another yeaa\ In th 6 fall of 1906 the 15451b were planted in fields -by the 6ide of the.famouq Blue Stem and- Club- wheat grown in thatsection. Watching their comparative growth, Mr Adams picked on the same day green heads of Club wheat and green heads of his Alaska- wheat, the latter so many times larger than the ordinary wheat that the Club wheat seemed hardly started. The farmer waa jubilant. Then Nature took a hand, and hailstorms of the worst kind came, beating down the ordinary wheat until it was not fit to harvest, The farmer, discouraged, went out to -Ms Alaska, wheat-fields, and saw that the sturdy stems had partly with* stood the storms, and. he finally harvested 83,0001b of: seed. Now was the time to make his final test. - He had enough for a test* from winter-grown. Taking this to the experimental (station, he soon; received a- report which made him for the first time ysurjß that he had something worth giving' to the public. The station chemist wroie : — The kernels from the fall-sown wheat were plump and sound, and doubtless will grade No. 1. Judging from the chemical and physical condition of this sample, it will probably'take rank with the best grade of Blue iStem for flour. The sample grown from spring-eown wheat showed by chemical analyeis a somewhat higher protein content (thia being an indication of its- probable strength for bread-making purposes). I am inclined to think that the wheat that you have here is the equal, if not the superior, of our Blue Stem for flourmaking purposes. I should like to make a mill test whenever you can 'send mo a sufficient quantity for that purpcee. These are the facts about the wonderful wheat of which the world will soon Lie talking. Farmers do r not believe it ; -wheat speculators do not believe it. Mr Adams had his fields surveyed, and has absolute proof of the yield from each field. He has tried his wheat in other lands, and in gome places it did better than in. Idaho. Alabamei raised wheat from it with leaves seven -eighths of an inch broad. As a last test, Mr Adams sent single heads of wheat to other parts of the country where he had men he conld truet to plant and ascertain the result. Reports are just coming to him, and he fine's that in other States his Alaska wheat does better than on its home soil. In Alamaba a head was planted December 71, was up January 30, waist-high April 1, with leaves seven -eighths, of an inch, broad, and July 7 was harvested. It showed to be hard wheat of a fine quality, and the one head yielded the 6ame as the first head planted in Idaho. ' Under ordinary soil conditions the new wheat will yield*2oo buehels to the wire ; under extra conditions above that. What will be the outcome? Had all America, had Alaska wheat to seed this year, the American crop alone would have been five billion of bushels. Does that not mean a revolution in the wheat industry? i Will the food of tfce poor become co cheap that there will be no famines? Or will farm property rise in value with the -rapa- <• ity for tho yield? All this is conjecture, but theso things <are certain: — The wheat Alaska has given us will withstand hail, if not too heavy.

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t will withstand frost. t grows hard wheat from fall sowing. It yields up to 222" bushels to the acre. It will grade Tip to No. 1 hard. It will turn the Vast areas in Miasouri id the South and in the far West into ird-wbeat areas. And, last and best of all, it will bring ick wheat-raising to the worn-out farms the East, where with wheat-yields 200 ishels tor the acre farmers can afford to c manures' and chemicals, and make a ofit. If all America. could aeed wifch the new beat it would, at only 50 oente a bushel, [d pearly two and a-lialf billions of dolts to the 'Wealth of the farmers every ar. — Saturday Evening Post.