484 



THE POTATO 



plowed an eleven-inch furrow, eighteen inches deep 

 and turned it well. The moldboard was twenty- 

 six inches deep, with a strong steel beam and a pair 

 of ordinary wagon wheels for a front truck to regu- 

 late the width and depth of the furrow. It re- 

 quired ten heavy horses to handle it with the turf 

 and manure that was plowed under. A farmer 

 can imagine what a nest or bed this aerated, fer- 

 tilized soil would make for the root system of the 

 potato or any other vegetable crop. It also makes 

 a fine storehouse for moisture and heat. 



On one farm the crop of potatoes from ten acres 

 sold for $10,450. Of course, this was a very ex- 

 treme case, for the potatoes sold for eight cents 

 a pound, or $180 a ton. The man farming this 

 land said it would readily rent for $250 an acre on 

 nineteen-year leasehold. The man who gave me 

 this information is a leading representative tenant 

 farmer. He told me that he made annually 180 

 barrels of apple cider and consumed it all on the 

 farm. When he saw me drawing a long breath he 

 led me to the storage cellar and I saw the tanks. 

 He said there was no other beverage used on the 

 farm for his family or help, and I saw great pitch- 

 ers and mugs of it in the fields where he had 

 thirty men at work. 



A great deal of labor is imported from France 

 during potato harvest, the total annual outlay for 

 this item being $75,000 to $90,000. 



The following very interesting account of the 

 Channel Islands potato industry is from "Pic- 

 torial Practical Potato Growing," by Walter P. 

 Wright and Edward J. Castle* 



"The Channel Islands, as being British ter- 

 ritory, and supplying us with our first early 



