ESSAYS ON WHEAT.* THM author, who is Professor of Botany
at the University of Manitoba, begins with a history of wheat-growing in that
• Buoys on Wheat. By A. H. B. Buller. D.Sc. Loudon : Macmillan and Oa. [14e. nat.]
province, and gives a full and interesting account of the present condition of wheat-cultivation in Western Canada, describing the whole process from the breaking up of virgin prairie land to the actual disposal and delivery of the finished product—the grain.
The middle and greater portion of the book is taken up with a consideration of the discovery, origin and introduction of some new kinds of wheat, which have proved a great financial success, not only in Canada but also over considerable tracts of the 1Jnited States. The first of these—the Marquis Wheat—is the only one of the three that has had an extended trial, lasting indeed over ten years. It played an important part during the war in helping to meet the deficiency in food, a part rendered possible by its great cropping power and its capacity for growing well on newly cultivated land. Dr. Baer has a very interesting story to tell of the discovery of this plant by Dr. Charles Saunders, the Cerealist for the Dominion of Canada. The importance of this wheat is due principally to the fact that, in addition to giving a better yield than the commoner Canadian wheats, such as Red Fife, and having as good a quality, i.e., producing a flour capable of forming a good loaf of bread, it ripens a few days sooner than most varieties, and so escapes early frost and disease, and is also less liable to be damaged by the sudden thunderstorms common in the district.
The general methods of plant improvement are described next, with especial reference to those employed by Dr. Saunders. A short account is also given of some of the more important new types of other cereals and peas originated by him. The author draws attention to the monetary value of such discoveries and calculates that $15,000,000 per annum " is a very conservative estimate of the increased wealth Marquis is bringing into Canada." He points the obvious moral :—
" In the story of the discovery of Marquis Wheat, governing bodies everywhere may find a striking illustration of the wisdom of giving adequate financial and moral support to investigations directed toward the welfare of the State. The starvation of scientific research is truly the worst economy of which a states- man can be guilty."
The last essay in the book is concerned with the fascinating story of the discovery by Aaronsohn, on Mount Hermon, of the Wild Wheat of Palestine, the form from which it is thought all other wheats have originated. The plant itself seems to have only a scientific interest, but there are hopes of raising from it varieties capable of growing on arid ground where ordinary wheats cannot be cultivated.
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