The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1916-01-15
KEEPING SWEET POTATOES.
tIiy H Il cRuMpD

At the meeting OF the town fnHneil
Tuesday night Mr. GuLlbeau Of the
University Estent K "A Department stat
ed that the problem Of keeping sweet
potatoes had been solved by the dry.
kiln plan, He did net have time 10 NJ
lnto details and explain this plan In
full Since this meeting have heard
several enquiries regarding the plan
and many have said that the Idea
would be of great service to this par.
ish II II proved that II Is practicable
to cure sweet potatoes aud keep them
until the price Ii right instead Of hay'
Ing to dump them on the market re-
CARELESS of the price. remembered
reading some article on the subject tn
the Farm aud Ranch which gave de-
tails OF the kiln.drying plan, Here is
an extract from an article by Mr. A D.
Powers
About 90 years ago farmer named
Marshall found himself the possessof
OF red sandy hill near Russeilyilie,
Kentucky, and very little else The
tobacco situation In Kentucky waa
about Hike the cotton situation In Texas
now, 1t was hard enough TO raise, and
harder still TO sell IL for profit
Every tobacco grover In that ceun.
try IL compelled to have g tobacco barn
for The purpose Of curing his tobacco
before be- can market IT. The tobacco
Is hung OH sticks about four feet long
aud the atieka are placed on ffames
80 the air can circulate through The
tobacco and dry it out. or cure 1t, 1t
has 20 40 through sweat before IL
can BIZ piled OF priced. or II will not
keep. II will heat and rot and be- a loss,
THE price OF tobafcp got 80 low
that farmer could nos raise Ii and
live. especially on poor sandy land like
Mr.. Marshall had Some of the farm,
ers "tired" their tobacco 30 make II
cure faster, and get II TO market soon
er, The firing consists Of building log
Are ON The dirt floor OF the barn and
keeping I, going day aud night. The
warm, dry air rlses atneag the over
hanging tobacco, takes up the mois.
ture and passes on out through yenti'
iatora In the roof
"Mr. Marshall raised tobacco year
after year until II got so h. couldn't
make another crop; then b. locked for
something else. Then be tried sweet
petatees, bnt they rotted on bis hands
II he aidn, self them as fast az he dug
them, One season he had to pile lot
Of sweet potatoes la his tobacco barn
ON account of vet weather II looked
like they would rnt even under shelter,
the air was SO damp Then the thought
came to him. Why no, Are" thenY
That thought made him rich
"lje built log fire on the floor OF
the BAN and dried out his potatoes.
He found that the potatoes would not
only keep the usual time, but they
would keep almost indefinitely, after
they had been fired All that was
necessary was 20 keep the barn closed
mp TO keep OF, the damp air MIR. Mar
shall fired his potatoes every year
after thai. lie buill q new barn ard
pat hoi.aar furnace Ia the basement
and he kept the Are going In the fur.
mace day ard night He had sweet
potatoes for sale every month In the
year, He shipped them In car loads
and got as high as two dollars q bushal
He always had seed potatoes 10 plant
and To sell and he became known NJ
the sweet potato king,
There are aow is or 90 Of those big
curing plants In Mr. Marshalls neigh
borhood aud they have saved that
poor. sandy, hllly country