490 THE POTATO 



chief demand for potatoes remains the ordinary 

 consuming market, which, because of chmatic 

 conditions, looks to a number of foreign countries 

 for considerable quantities of early varieties. 

 There are in this country immense areas of poor 

 agricultural land which yield fairly well when 

 planted with potatoes, and as the crop is valuable 

 for rotation purposes, and the table demand prob- 

 ably greater, relatively, in Germany than in any 

 other country, and the industrial appHcations nu- 

 merous, the succeeding years have seen the yield 

 advance steadily to an average which now exceeds 

 45,000,000 tons. 



"The cultivation of potatoes is indirectly encour- 

 aged by the German Government, which confers 

 special privileges upon farm distilleries consuming 

 the products of the land. Consul-General Thac- 

 kara, in his able report of October 3, 1908, has 

 furnished valuable figures in regard to the pro- 

 duction of potatoes and their uses. In respect to 

 the agricultural distilleries, the Imperial Govern- 

 ment permits them to produce a certain amount of 

 grain or potato alcohol, the amount depending 

 upon the size and the location of the farms and 

 the annual demand for the product, upon the pay- 

 ment of a revenue tax of marks 1.05 (25 cents) in- 

 stead of the usual tax of marks 1.25 (29.75) cents 

 per litre. Alcohol distilled in excess of the quan- 

 tum is subject to the higher rate of tax, and de- 

 natured alcohol is not subject to any tax at all. 

 The slops are used for feeding and the refuse is 

 returned to the land. 



"At the present time over 200 varieties of pota- 

 toes are raised in this country, the most of which 

 are used indifferently for all purposes. Naturally, 

 such varieties as have a small content of water are 



