Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1884-12-16
THE POTATO.


THE POTATO.
Washington rturns say that the Po-
iA,o yield Of the United States is isO.-
600 600 bushels The acreage being p
lii.ii7. which makes the average about
90 bushsl. per acre. We are situated
IN a potato locality. Our coil Is very
generally adapted to their cultivation
Our railroads sgoId ample facilities for
their transportation and they are sl~sl'
marketable ., sone P'iee. A. they are
a crop ,ha, will no, keep, Ike the grains
from year 10 year, they mus, be disposed
Of nearly a. soon a. harvested. This fact.
,ogeihu Nth their tendency 10 be In
iaf,d by frost. makes the sale q them
imperative. Still they form the great
staple crop Of the State and hslP Ia a
grea, measure 70 feed iis people and it,
animals
They have quAli'ie. ,ha, make them
very valuable ior winter feeding. H.
side their ac'ual nuiiiiise value. Which
., quite lo~ ~t,n compared With The
grains. they have a medicinal quality
that makes them great help. IN stock
feeding. BY their laxative and. cooling
nature they help Overcome the tendency
% heating ~ the unnatural condition
caussd by much lr,ding Of grain. Stock
I feeder. are coming to mofe fully reAliie
the ,alus q ,uccslsnt food for winter
use. and .. a general PufPose crop io'
che msjouiy u farmer. there u n 'r'P'
considering the cost q raising, ,hA, hll.
the bill 30 well a. doe. the potato.
Their cultivation has reached immense
pfoportious Ia Maine. alone. by The
la, census. ,hs yield q 1850 ~as -
o9q. 6g5 bushels Tia, q 1881. shigh
"a. ,sry d..a.,rous for al TO, crops,
80. only 3.3t9.2ts bushels. bat Ca &C
count q The scarcity The pf.ces ruled
Lish.-9o9 cent. per bishsl IA Deem
BE- ard higher q. consumption exhausted
hssupply Then IN 1858 the crop reached
|,ie ,noruoa, amount u 10000. 600
bs,lsl.. While DO Afoo.'ook County.
a.sne. ihe Yield vas oonsidstable over
to mlIlion tush,l. Add the acreage
Gradually increases.
Considering The adaplabiliiy q 'hs 20
,aio forall use, ard nsaily al lands u
ma, De- u interest % sse Who're q fret
sies aud trace 10 course from The small
amount Of fe~ garden patches 70 IT,
present immense proportions. Tie hA-
,uro 81 the po'aio 8. very peculiar IL -
,sf, unfortunate 10 its family relations
-bsing cl .sly related 10 'bv nigh,'hsde.
q plant which possesses .ifong narcotic
properties. whose leaves ate very inJafi'
ou. Il eaten BY stock. tu, which lo.s
their narcotic piopefiis. BY bo'hrs. This
sane property j. found in The shoots q
che potato. Bai fc~ planis are mof'
~id,ly d.ags,d than this There ~,
many dia,rsr, yaiisiio. also. kno~n IN
Der the name, u woody nishishade -
btersscsi. deadly niett'hade % bella.
donna. anl erehaniefs nigh,shade or
eucea these plants A., all u the genus
.olanum. and are distributed over The
Whole void Oai q these dihrien,
plan's there arc bat two which are ever
u,ed a. food. The esg plAn, aud the Po-
,aio. The sgg.PlAn, i native Of the
Ia, lnd.ss. bat gfow. ia warm countries
generally. The frui, resembles an sss
IN SHAPE. ,Aying IN sifs from ihA, Of a
hens esg 10 iha, u as~sn' sgs. in co.,
CT generally White. yellow OF violet.
The poison IN al thee planis i knosn
a. .o.aine. ,arying 10 quantity Ia The
d,fiefen, .Pseis., bu, being present IN al.
The Potato j. native Of the noun
tainog, district. u tropical and sub
irop,csl America. from Cuili 10 Mexico.
Ga sccouni Of IT, present condition.
bsirg In nearly al parts Of the world. II
b, extremely dith,alt 10 trace It, origin.
some traveller. having even doubted II !,
ever existed IN a truly Wild state. Hum
boldt ~as one q those who doab,ed rs
gro~iug in Mild STATE. Bat inVss,i.
cations by scientific travellers have, late
| ~. di.pelled ,hi. idea and traced 81
Multitude between the potato a. !, grows
under cultivation and when in Wild
state. EseeP, ,hA, the iaber' are small
er in the Wild there !. no diasrenee, a.
they are psri,s, and reproduce in the
same manner. ba, i, !. extremely difficult,
To improve upon i, a. /, i, to establish a
new variety Of potato BY srosins the
seed.
The potato has been grown in America
and hs ,uber used IS food from tim,s
long before il. discovery by Europeans.
Like maize. which grew frs, in a Wild
state in America. the potato has proved
one Of the CREATES, blessings 10 man. and
rank. fr, 10 IL. actual consumption
among al cultivated crops. Besides the
mechanical uses made Of H.
IL was frs, esuid TO Europe by the
Spsnisrds from the vicinity Of Quito. 10
the beginning Of the sixteenth century,
and sprrsd from Spain into the Neither
lands. Burgundy and Italy. bu, was only