Thirded Bread

In order to persuade the French of the virtues of American maize, Benjamin Franklin wrote his friend Cadet de Vaux in 1785, “The Flour of Mayz, mix’d with that of Wheat, makes excellent Bread, sweeter, and more agreeable than that of Wheat alone.” Franklin’s missive to France was really aimed at the English who, like Mrs. Frances Trollope, found every kind of cornbread or corncake “all bad.” A mixed meal, on the other hand, pleased even fas