THE FARMER AT HOME. 43 j 



mouth, tliat he threw the ale into his face, and run to alarm the 

 family, crying out that his master was on fire. 



Much of the peculiarity of taste and aroma, and the consequent 

 value of tobacco, depends on the soil, and the preparation or sweating" 

 of the plants after drying. The former should not be too rich, and 

 never highly manured, as the flavor is thereby materially injured, 

 although the product will be increased. Yet it is an exhausting 

 crop, as seen by the large quantity and the analysis of the ash ; and 

 the soil requires a constant renewal of well fermented manures, and 

 particularly the saline ingredients, to prevent exhaustion. The culti- 

 vation of tobacco, from the first settlement of Virginia, has been an 

 object of primary attention in that section of our country ; and for a 

 long time it formed the principal object of export from Virginia and 

 Maryland. It is still largely cultivated there, and has become an 

 object of considerable attention in some of the middle and western 

 States. 



TOMATO. This plant or vegetable, sometimes called love apples 

 belongs to the same genus with the potato, and was first found in 

 South America. The use of it as food is said to have been derived 

 from the Spaniards. It has long been used also by the French and 

 Italians. The date of its introduction into this country is unknown. 

 It is said that the tomato has been used in some parts of Illinois for 

 more than fifty years. Its introduction on our tables, as a culinary 

 vegetable, is of reoent date. Thirty years ago, it was scarcely known 

 but as an ornament to the flower garden, and for pickling. It is now 

 cultivated in all parts of the country, and found either in a cooked or 

 raw state on most tables. In warm climates, it is said that they are 

 more used than in northern, and have a more agreeable taste. It is 

 now used in various parts of the country, in soups and sauces, to 

 which it imparts an agreeable acid flavor ; and is also stewed and 

 dressed in various ways, very much admired, and many people con- 

 sider it a great luxury. 



We often hear it said that a relish for the tomato is an acquired 

 one; scarcely any person at first liking it. It has, indeed, within a 

 few years, come into general use, and is considered a particularly 

 healthy article. A learned medical professor in the West pronounces 

 the tomato a very wholesome food in various ways, and advises the 

 daily use of it. He says that it is very salutary in dyspepsia and in- 

 digestion, and is a good antidote to bilious disorders, to which persons 

 are liable in going from a northern to a warmer climate. He recom- 

 mends it also in diarrhoea, and thinks it preferable to calomel. The 

 tomato is a tender, herbaceous plant, of rank growth, but weak, fetid, 

 and glutinous. The leaves resemble those of the potato, but the flow- 

 ers are yellow, and arranged in large divided branches. The fruit is 

 of a light yellow, and a bright red color, pendulous, and formed like 

 the large squash-shaped pepper. They should be planted near a 



