The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1915-03-05

tHS NHlte men ever HedrQ OF tne
plant, highly intelligent Indians
(lncas, they called themselves,) were
cultlYating potatos in the mountain
valleys OF Peru. These Indians had
developed a system of writing, and
had erected great buildings, and had
done many other things of which any
race of people 400 years ago might
have been proud They did not know
anything about gunpowder, however
and when the Spaniards found them
the poor lncas were easily conquered
and the Spaniards took from them
large quantities of gold and other
treasures, and, incidentally, the tu-
bers of the potato.
These potatoes were evidently a
form which had been developed by
the lncas by selection from the wild
type which may be found in the
mountains of Peru, Chile, Mexico and
Southern Colorado to this day. In
the hands of the Spaniard, the potato
found its way to Southern Europe,
and to the first American colony in
Virginia.
One Of the most interesting men
who lived in England 900 years ago
was Sir Walter Raleigh. He was
always looking for something new,
had considerable money, and was a
friend of Queen Elizabeth. At that
time, all the leading nations of the
earth were sailing forth to investigate
the new world which Columbus had
discovered a hundred years before.
Origin Of Irish" Potato.
Sir Walter Raleigh-being placed
as he was-also sailed forth. He
hoped to find gold, but instead found
the potato and tobacco plants. The
potato plant had been introduced into
Virginia short time before, from
Peru, and Sir Walter Raleigh took it
from Virginia to his estate near Cork,
in Ireland. He tried to get the Eng
lish people to like the potato, but
they would have nothing to do with
1t, fearing, because Of its relationship
to the deadly nightshade, that it was
poison.
The Irish peasants, however, recog-
nized its value, and during the large
part of its early history the plant was
cultivated more in Ireland than in
any other country. That is the rea-
son we call 1t the Irish" potato,
when 1t is by right Of origin the Peru
Wan potato or American potato.
During the sixteenth century and
the early part of the seventeenth, the
potato was very little grown outside
of Ireland Gradually, people began
10 see that 1t was possible to grow a
large amount Of food on small
acreage by using the potato, and SO
the peasant people of Ireland, Ger
many, France and Russia grew the
potatoes more and more.
Appearance of "Hlight."
Drawings of the plant made in the
early days indicate that 1t was very
much the same then as 1t is now. The
varieties, however, were much differ
ent. In 1910, a disease appeared
causing blight and rot, which is now
common everywhere, but at that time
the potato plant as commonly culti-
waited had never before been attacked
by 1t.
For several years, potato crops
failed all over Europe. In Ireland,
the trouble was especially serious,
and thousands Of people died from
famine, and thousands Of others came
to the United States to avoid the scant
food supply. Something had to be
done. A variety had to be secured
that could withstand, to some extent
at least, this new disease. New va
rieties were grown from the seed
balls. These new varieties seemed to
do all right for time, and then they
deterioriated and became diseased
1t now seems as though 1t is neces-
sary to start new varieties about every
10 or Is years Many of our good
varieties, however, have lasted for 80
or 40 years.
Burbank's Potato.
A little over 40 years ago. Luther
Burbank, a young man of % years
planted a lot of potato seeds which
he had secured from the seed balls
which look like little green tomatoes
One of these seedlings stood head and
shoulders above the rest, and he
called it the Burbank. 1t soon be
came the leading American potato
and to this day ranks quite high.
Mr.. Carmen, who, a number OF
years ago, was editor of the Rura
New Yorker, farm paper which is
still published in New York, became
much interested in potatoes. He got
his subscribers to send in seed balls