San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1883-02-22
Value Of the Sweet Potato as u Food.
Producing Crop.

SlOls
We see in some Of our exchanges
that Mr.. II. G. White, State Chemist
OF Georgia, has analysed the sweet
potato, and found it to contain about
half as much nutrition as Indian com,
two bushels of potatoes equaling one
bushel Of corn for fat-producing pur-
poses. We have seen 40 official state
ment of the analysis, but if this is
correct it places the sweet potato, in
nutritious qualities, very high in
comparison with other root crops.
Land capable Of producing twenty
bushels Of corn per acr will make
of potatoes from 100 to 1875 bushels,
which would give two or three times
the value of food.
We have always been of the opin-
ion that the great value Of the sweet
potato crop in the southern states WAS
not duly appreciated and sufficiently
utilized. Root crops are always most
ly more prolific than grain crops.
They exhaust land less, and give more
in return for labor and for manure.
Of course they are not as nutritious,
pound for pound, as grain, but in the
great increase of material they yield
more nutrition to a given quantity OF
land than any of the cereals. Irish
potatoes, turnips, beets, carrots, both
in Europe and III our northern states,
are all Justly priced as the most valu-
able farm crops. The sweet potato
is superior to them all as food for
man and beast. It may be used for
all the purposes to which the others
are applied, and for many others be-
sides. In the first state, just out Of
the ground, it makes an excellent
substitute for arrowroot by grating
the pulp into water and allowing the
starchy matter to subside.
As vegetable it is fayorite on
every table, cooked in a great variety
of ways. AS a desert it makes bet
ter pudding. OF pie than pumpkin.
It is good foodfor stock of all kinds
horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. We
know an old planter once who always
raised an abundance Of corn and
other provisions for his stock, but
who was an enthusiast over the sweet
potato crop, estimatingit on the basis
of the yield returned from the labor
bestowed, as gilmore value than any
other food-producing crop. -,
Our best southern varieties viii
probably soon become very import
ant article of export to the northern
states, The farmers in Georgia are
complaining this year that with an
immense crop oftheir favorite yellow
yam" raised in expectation of ship
ment. there is no demand in the
northern market for this variety, the
northern people preferring the dry,
tasteless Jersey yam" to their sweet,
er and more delicate Georgia yam.
The Jersey potato, like our "brim'
stone" and "leather-coats," are dry
and mealy, with very little sweet
ness. and hence are preferred for the
table TO be eaten with meats like the
Irish potsto. If our Georgia friends
could only show them how the yam
should be cooked, this fancy would
probably give way. The sweet potato
like unripe fruits, nuts, and otheI
Ifarinaceous products which contain
much stlrchy matter, becomes veEy
sweet on being kept for aiew months
a larger portion Of The starch beng
GRADUALLY converted into sugar. a
well-seasoned yam" baked slowly,
as It should be, is really more fruit
tban a vegetable. The time will
come \. hen saey viii be prepared IN
tbis way, and By being put up II
sealed cans viii become an import
ant article Of trade to the MOTH al