The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1915-08-02
ORIGIN OF THE TOMATO
Was In Peru--Was Cultivated Centuries
Before Columbus,

Excepting our scientists, there are
comparatively few people in this coun-
try who ever stop to think Of how many
important products that now minister
to the health, sustenance and pleasures
Of mankind were added to the worlds
supply by the discovery of America. A
! few of these are incidentally mentioned
in an interesting article on "The To-
mato," in the current number of the
Bulletin of the Pan American Union, by
Edward Albes, who writes:
"The greatest febrifuge known to-day
--quinine--came into existence because
the Incas Of Peru had discovered the
medicinal properties of the bark of the
Cinchona tree; the leaves Of the cocoa
plant, a South American product, have
served to alleviate pain the world over
by their essence--cocaine; Indian corn,
or maize, was unknown to the old world
before it was found to be the great
food staple of the Americas; Irish as
well as sweet potatoes had their first
home in the new world; the delicious con-
coction known as chocolate, serving man
as both food and drink, had been known
for centuries by the Incas of Peru and
the Aztecs of Mexico before the Span
iards found it in these countries and in
troduced it into Europe; to bacco whose
rings of aromatic smoke now crcum-
scribe the earth, was added to mans
pleasures by the Indians of America.
Many other products might be enumerat-
ed, but among them all perhaps none
ministers more delightfully."- to the pa
late of the modern epicure than does
the tomato, that lucious, succulent, re-
freshing vegetable fruit which gratifies
the eye with its beauty Of color and
form, stills hunger with its meat, and
assuages thirst with its juice"
The name "tomato" seems to be of
Azetc origin, given as tomatl by some
authorities and as itomate by others,
and still persists in some few OF the old
er Mexican town names, such as Tomat-
Ian, Tomatepec, etc, but the general con-
sensus OF opinion among botanists seems
to be that the plant and its culture for
edible purposes originated in Peru,
whence It spread to other sections of the
Americas. 1t is certain, at any rate, that
it was known and cultivated for its fruit
centuries before the Columbian discov-
cry.
That the cultivated tomato was known
to some OF the European botanists over
$50 years ago is evidenced by the fact
that two large varieties were described
by Matthiolus as early as 1854, but for
many years it was only in southern Eu-
rope that the value of the fruit for use
in soups and as a salad was recognized.
1t was quite generally used in Spain
and Italy during the seventeenth cen
fury, but in England and in northern
Europe generally the plant was grown
only in botanical gardens as a curiosity
and for ornamental purposes. 1t was
seldom eaten, being commonly regarded
as unhealthy and even poisonous. This
belief probably arose because of the close
of the plant to its allied
relative, the nightshade, or belladonna,
and had of course, no foundation in fact.
1t was not until the early part of the
century that the tomato came
into general use as food in northern
Europe and even in the United States.
Since about 1885, however, the use and
cultivation of the vegetable has grown
10 such an extent that it has now be-
.ome one of the most important of our
garden crops.
When a successful process of canning
he fruit was evolved, the tomato indus
Try at once assumed large proportions.
L was found that for all cooking pur-
poses the canned fruit was as good as
hat fresh from the vine, and as re-
ult the tomato has become a staple food |
he year round. and millions of dollars
ire now invested in canning factories