The Potatoe Plague. 101 



tubers unwholesome, and that, in proportion to its intensity 

 -and the length of time the tubers are exposed to its influence. 



The stems, and in fact all parts of the potatoe plant above 

 ground, are more or less poisonous. Tubers are occasionally 

 formed along the stem, but they are, as we all know, green 

 and bad. This is entirely owing to their exposure to light ; 

 for had the stems been-laid in the earth, so as to have covered 

 such stem-tubers from the commencement of their growth, 

 they would have been just as good as tubers of the under- 

 ground formation. Potatoes, even in their dirty state, as 

 taken up, will be considerably altered in color, both exter- 

 nally and internally, and proportion ably impaired in quality, 

 by a few days' exposure to light, in clear weather, although 

 they may not be exposed to the sun's direct rays ; but the 

 effect must be greater when the surface is washed and de- 

 prived of the partial shade afforded by the particles of soil. 



The time was when potatoes were in many instances 

 spread out in the sun, in order to dry them before storing in 

 the earth.. No practice could be worse, for the reasons above 

 stated ; and, moreover, the object in view, that of rendering 

 them ultimately drier and better in quality, was not attained. 

 On the contrary, although deprived of a portion of their mois- , 

 ture in the first instance, yet this only left room for the 

 absorption of moisture contaminated with gasses, generated in 

 the place where they were stored. 



From this I would have it inferred that potatoes should 

 never be cleansed or washed before they are stored ; they 

 should be dried with the dirt remaining upon them, as they 

 were taken from the ground, but with the least possible ex- 

 posure to light. 'Potatoes for seed may remain so until it is 

 time to plant them ; those intended for cooking may be taken 

 out and dried several days before they are wanted for use. A 

 writer in the Revue Horticole, a French agricultural publi- 

 cation, is aware of this fact. He says : In unfavorable 

 9* 



