THE POTATO 65 



high; and those who were fortunate enough to 

 have large and sound crops — as many of the 

 f arijiers in Scotland were — reaped a golden har- 

 vest in each of these years. The methods and 

 agencies by which it (the boom) was worked were 

 those so well known and so frequently resorted to 

 by the Bulls and the Bears of the Stock Exchange. 

 In the centre of the boom were two new varieties, 

 which were declared to be immense croppers and 

 practically immune against the disease. During 

 the winter of 1902-1903 prices for one of these va- 

 rieties were forced up to an unprecedented level. 

 But at the end of the following season, when the dis- 

 ease was again very prevalent and prices for sound 

 tubers were abnormally high, a perfect frenzy for 

 new varieties seemed to seize upon growers. Day 

 by day and week by week the reading public were 

 informed that some prominent grower or other had 

 bought a tuber of one of these new varieties at 

 $100, $250, or $500, and as these reports increased 

 the delirium of buyers increased. Some of these 

 reported purchases of tubers at more than their 

 weight in gold were undoubtedly genuine; and in a 

 lawsuit regarding the non-delivery of a stone (14 

 pounds) of one of these new varieties in the spring of 

 1904 evidence was led to show that three pounds of 

 that precious stone had been sold before hand at 

 $800 per pound ! The public appetite for new vari- 

 eties seemed to be insatiable at the time, and scores 

 of new varieties — most of which were old friends 

 with new names — were rushed upon the mar- 

 ket and eagerly snapped up at fabulous prices by 

 growers. 



"Even at the termination of the planting season 

 of 1904 the delirium had not subsided. The boom- 

 ers had still another arrow in their quiver, and 



