, and has peculiar local names. In the
West Indies, where it is chiefly raised for feeding poultry, it is
called Guinea corn. In Egypt it is known as Dhurra, in Hindostan and
Bengal as Joar, and in some districts as Cush.

In Lower Scinde joar is very extensively cultivated, as well as bajree
(_H. spicatus_). It is harvested in December and January; requires a
light soil, and is usually grown in the east, after _Cynosurus
corocanus_.

Guinea corn is extensively cultivated in some parts of Jamaica. I did
not, however, find it thrive on the north side of the island. It is
best planted in the West Indies between September and November, and
ripens in January. It ratoons or yields a second crop, when cut. The
returns are from 30 to 60 bushels an acre, but the crops are
uncertain.

Mr. C. Bravo tried Guinea corn at St. Ann's, Jamaica, as a green crop,
sown broadcast, for fodder, and it answered admirably, the produce
being very considerable. It was weighed, and yielded 14 tons of fodder
per acre, and was found very palatable and nutritious for cattle. It
was grown on a very poor soil, which had, previously to ploughing,
given nothing but marigolds and weeds. The luxuriant growth of the
corn completely kept under the weeds. A great number of the stalks
were measured, and they averaged 10 feet from the root to the top of
the upper leaf. It had been planted 10 weeks, and had, therefore,
grown a foot a month. Mr. Bravo is of opinion, that sown broadcast it
would answer either as a grain crop, as fodder, or ploughed in to
increase the fertility of the soil.

Dr. Phillips, of Barbados, being of opinion that it might be
advantageously employed as human food, requested Dr. Shier, the
analytical chemist, of Demerara, to determine in his laboratory its
richness in protein compounds (the muscle-forming part of vegetable
food) in comparison with Indian corn. He, therefore, caused a sample
of each to be burned for nitrogen, when the following results were
obtained:--

Indian corn. Guinea corn.
Water, per cent. 12.81 13.76
In ordinary state--
Nitrogen, per cent. 1.83 1.18
Protein compounds 11.51 7.42
In dry state--
Nitrogen, per cent. 2.10 1.36
Protein compounds 13.20 8.60

According to these results, the Guinea corn is less rich in nitrogen
or protein compounds than Indian corn, thou