Hill.
Whitman. Whitman's Improved. Webster. Smutty White. Old-Colony Premium.
Stalk six feet or more in height, moderately strong at the ground, but comparatively slender above the ear; foliage not abundant; the ears are produced low on the stalk, often in pairs, are uniformly eight-rowed, well filled at the tips, and, when fully grown, ten or eleven inches in length; cob white, and comparatively small; kernel dusky, transparent-white, large and broad, but not deep.
The Hill Corn is nearly of the season of the Common New-England Eight-rowed, and is unquestionably the most productive of all field varieties. In Plymouth County, Mass., numerous crops have been raised of a hundred and fifteen bushels and upwards to the acre; and, in two instances, the product exceeded a hundred and forty.
This extraordinary yield is in a degree attributable to the small size of the plant, and the relative large size of the ear. The largest crops were obtained by planting three kernels together, in rows three feet asunder, and from fifteen to eighteen inches apart in the rows.
No variety is better adapted for cultivation for farm consumption; but for market, whether in the kernel or in the form of meal, its dull, white color is unattractive, and it commands a less price than the yellow descriptions.
From the most reliable authority, the variety was originated by Mr. Leonard Hill, of East Bridgewater, Plymouth County, Mass.; and was introduced to public notice in 1825-6. Though at present almost universally known as the "Whitman," it appears to have been originally recognized as the "Hill;" and, of the numerous names by which it has since been called, this is unquestionably the only true and legitimate one.
Illinois Yellow.
Western Yellow.
Stalk ten feet or more high; foliage abundant; ears high on the stalk, single or in pairs, twelve to sixteen rowed, eleven to thirteen inches long, broadest at the base, and tapering gradually towards the tip, which is bluntly rounded; kernel bright-yellow, long and narrow, or tooth-formed, paler at the outer end, but not indented; cob white.