in few words, at the end of his Diccionario Geographico- 

 Historico de las Indias Occidentales 6 America. 



No further mention appears to have been made of this 

 plant in Britain, till the year 1824, when Mr. Shepherd 

 was so fortunate as to bring an individual into flower in 

 the Botanic Garden of Liverpool, from which I published 

 the figure and description given in the Exotic Flora. A 

 few years previously, the late Baron de Shack, of Trinidad, 

 had sent roots to the Glasgow Garden, and to that of the 

 Horticultural Society of London, as well as to Liverpool. 

 At the latter place, I believe, alone, it produced flowers, 

 when it soon perished, as did all the other plants that had 

 been imported : and the expectations of cultivators, that 

 this plant might, with due care, hold a similar rank in this 

 country with the potato, were frustrated. 



In Jamaica, however, my valued friend and correspond- 

 ent, Dr. Bancroft, directed the attention of the public to 

 it, by an interesting memoir, which appeared in the Trans- 

 actions of the Agric. and Hort. Soc. of Jamaica, and which 

 was read before that Society at Kingston, in July, 182a. 

 That gentleman, ever anxious to promote the interests of 

 Science and of humanity, was no sooner made aware of the 

 value of this plant in domestic oeconomy, than, through 

 the medium of Don Francisco Urquinaona, he introduced 

 it to Jamaica. " Despairing/' he says, " of succeeding 

 with the culture of these roots in the heart of the city, 

 (Kingston,) I placed them in charge of a very intelligent 

 planter in St. David's Mountains, Mr. Henry Burger, and 

 under his fostering care the remaining six throve perfectly; 

 so that I was enabled in the following year to send young 

 plants of the Arracacha to the Horticultural Society of 

 London, and to His Majesty's Gardens at Kew, &c. as 

 well as to distribute others to various friends in different 

 parishes, through whose attention this vegetable may now, 

 I trust, be considered as extensively and well established 

 in this island. It is not for me to speak of the value ot 

 the Arracacha as an esculent ; this will be best shown m 

 the course of time. In flavor it appears to me nearly to 

 resemble a mixture of the parsnep with the potato. 1 

 am aware that not a few of those who have tasted it but 

 once, have not liked it; yet I believe that those who 

 have liked it even on the first trial, are quite as numerous. 

 For my own part, I am inclined to think, that the taste 

 for it may rather be deemed an acquired one ; havin n 



found with several persons, that its relish improved upon 



subsequent 



