The Red Cloud chief., 1912-02-22

than that the good people there are very fond
oft. The misnamed sweet" potato has no
right whatever to the title. That pleasant vege.
table belongs to the morning-glory family.
botanically being known as lpomoea batatas.
thus again betraying n fictitious relationship
to the other family. because the batata is n
native term for the real potato as well.
Again. It Is unjustly suspected that this sweet
potato is the vegetable actually brought by
Drake and Hawkins into England. where II
masqueraded for some years as the genuine
South American food OF contemporary ru.
NOR. IT must be understood, however, that
the sweet potato is likewise n native OF Amer.
lea, but its original home was probably the
West Indies and Central America. At any
rate, It grows In the tropics and subtropics
and finds It's climatic limitations at about the
temperature and altitude at which the Irish
potato begins to thrive. The yam Is another
appellation OF the sweet potato, although
that. too. Is an error. for the yams--diosco-
reae-belong to n group Of climbing plants.
number OF varieties are found throughout
the tropics and subtropics. and they are cul.
fivated In both the East and the West Indies
Other roots and tubers may resemble the DO.
tato and the tomato IA related to It, but they
must not be confounded with the far better
known vegetable. which alone is entitled TO the
name The commercial and domestic classic.
cation 10 stronger. however, than the scientific,
and therefore no attempt should be made to
separate them In the popular mind
The common. or white, or Irish potato is I'm.
doubtedly American all through. Its prehis.
toric and aboriginal habitat was the western
slopes OF the southern continent. from the
neighborhood Of Quito in Ecuador, or as some
claim even from that of Bogota In Colombia to
the central region OF Chile.
Botanically. the potato Is a solanum, one of
the most diversified plants of the vegetable
kingdom. Something like 1000 varieties have
ben described, but, assuming that several OF
these are not substantially accurate. there re-
main at least 500 which are well known. 1t Is
remarkable that only about 40 varieties have
plnnate leaves and produce tubers on the roots
beneath the ground, and that these special
varieties are chiefly Of American origin All
these tuberous, p!nnateeaved kinds of the
solanum are nearly related and very probably
have common origin. This first habitat of
the potato has been laid by some students quite
as much for the sake of poetic harmony as for
historic exactiude. in Central America near
the home OF the primitive maize, but in all
fairness South America deserves and will hold
the honor
The edible potato. from which all the Euro
pean and American variations have been de-
veloped. was undoubtedly cultivated by even
the Inhabitants OF the west coast of South
America who occupied the land before the ar.
rival OF the Incas When the Spanish conquer.
ers arrived there. they found one great source
OF food supply In this native vegetable In
Peru, however, II was not a coast product, for
the climate there semed unfavorable. and
what happened to grow on the lower levels
were small insignificant and watery The
best kind OF potato grew at an altitude Of about
1000 feet. back OF Lima: It was small. round
with thin skin. and was yellowish inside
tpapa amaril!a). In southern Peru. not far
from Mollendo, but among the foggy regions
(June to September). up among the rocky hills
the potato has been found Wild.
Passing farther along the coast into Chile.
where the climate Is quite temperate and con.
sequent.y is suitable. even near the coast, for
such vegetables. there 10 found that ether form