PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 345 



Club. He made uumerous interesting experiments last season with 

 large and small tubers, with eyes, w^ith cut and uncut seed, with 

 peelings, and vr'ith peeled jDOtatoes. 



The conclusion to which all the speakers arrived is that potatoes 

 of a medium size, if fully manured, wall yield the most and the 

 best potatoes. 



Origin of Potatoes. 



Mr. Thomas Cavanagh, of Brooklyn, read the following essay on 

 the oj-igin of the Irish potatoe : 



" The botanical name of the potatoe is solannm tuberosum, of 

 Linnffius. The potatoe is a perrenial plant, found growing in a 

 ■wild state in South America. Humboldt thought it was doubtful 

 if it was indigenous there, as tubers of the wild potatoe, planted 

 by the side of the cultivated variety, differed very little from it. 

 Sir Joseph Banks thought it was first brought into Europe from 

 the mountainous parts of South America, in the neighborhood of 

 Quito, w'here they were called papas. They w^ere introduced into 

 Spain in the early part of the sixteenth century. From Spain they 

 were brought into Italy, where they were called tartufi, from the 

 truffle or underground mushroom. The potatoe was received by 

 Chisius, at Vienna in 1598, trom the governor of Mous, in Hainault, 

 who procured the roots from the Pope's Legate, under the name 

 of tartufi ; it was then in use in Italy. In Germany it received 

 the name of hartoffel, and soon spread rapidly through that country. 

 The potatoe found its way to England by a different route, being 

 brought from Virginia by Sir Walter Raleigh, who went there iu 

 1584. Thomas Ileriot, in a report of the country, describes a 

 plant called openauk, having roots as large as a walnut, iu clusters, 

 and says they are a good food, either boiled or roasted. Gerarde 

 in his Herl)al, published in 1597, gives an illustration of the pota- 

 toe under the name of the Potatoe of Virginia, which name it 

 retained for some time, in order to distinguish it from the convol- 

 vulus batatas, or sweet potatoe. Sir Jos. Banks says the sweet 

 potatoe was used in England long before the introduction of the 

 American potatoe. They were candied and sold as confectionery. 

 The potatoe was known in Ireland sometime before its introduction 

 into England. Sir Walter having a large estate in that country, 

 it became in course of time an article of general consumption in 

 Ireland, and for many years Ireland was known for its fine pota- 

 toes. We suppose it was for this reason they obtained the name 

 of Irish potatoes. Gerarde thought them .a great delicacy. The 



