"cracking quality
commercial," and the figure representing the proportion of kernel which
dropped out after cracking was called "cracking quality absolute," and
awarded the 5 points formerly awarded to plumpness.

In the case of the hazel which generally has a cracking quality both
absolute and commercial of 100% the item "freedom from fibre" was
substituted for "cracking quality absolute." The hazel seems to be the
only nut where this characteristic must be considered.

It is too bad that while practically all characteristics are determined
with exactness to a single point and could be even more precisely
determined, that the item quality and flavor of kernel to which 20
points are justly awarded has to be determined in so crude a manner as
it is at present. It is true that formerly all characteristics were
determined in equally crude manner and we should be glad that all others
can be determined with precision but still having one quality not
precisely determined, to a certain extent prevents exact determination
of the others having the value it otherwise would. We can make only
about five graduations in quality which would be differences of five
points except at the top of the scale where it is 2 and an error in one
gradation would make a difference of 5 points generally. When it is seen
how close some of the nuts run, particularly the hickories, where the
differences in total points awarded are generally only 1 point, with
several of the same score, this crudeness of determination of one of the
most important characteristics is the more regrettable.

The results of the 1919 contest on nuts of the various species are as
noted below:

HICKORIES--128 ENTRIES

The results of the tests on the prize winning hickories are shown in the
table on page 151.

What is said of the difficulty of identification as to species is
particularly applicable to the hickory where it is known that many of
the fine nuts that we have are hybrids. While no nut is noted as a
hybrid unless it has been so proven by evidence which it is believed is
beyond question, there is considerable question as to whether a number
of the nuts noted as shagbarks are really pure shagbarks. It will take
more observation and study than it has as yet been possible to give them
to determine this point. It is to be noted, however, that the more study
we put on the hickories notable for the excellence of the nuts they
bear, the more we find that give suggest