584 AGRICULTURE. 



quantity of starch is at its maximum in the winter. In the 

 spring, vegetation becomes active, and the buds begin to grow 

 at the expense of the starch contained in the tuber. Hence, at 

 this season, potatoes are less mealy, and, in consequence, less 

 esteemed for eating. The tissue of the potato consists of a 

 mass of cells, and in these the starch is stored up in the form of 

 grains, of the ordinary shape, and these congregate principally 

 in a zone near the skin, and are less abundant toward the cen- 

 tre ; the remaining space, in and between the cells, is occupied 

 by a thin albuminous liquor, constituting three-fourths of the 

 total weight of the tubers. All the nitrogenous matter is dis- 

 solved in the juice, and consists almost entirely of albumen, 

 with a very small quantity of asparagin and free acids. The 

 substance of which the. cells consist is essentially different from 

 that found in other plants. It possesses the property of swell- 

 ing in water into a translucent jelly, and of being transformed 

 into sugar and gum by the actions of acids, and consequently 

 occupies a position intermediate between starch and woody fibre. 

 Potatoes are readily frozen at a few degrees below freezing-point, 

 and when again thawed are soft and sodden, and allow the 

 greater part of the juice to flow out in fact, the cells are burst 

 by the ice formed within them, the organic structure is destroyed 

 and vitality lost, while decay speedily succeeds. 



Cotton. Cotton is an indigenous product of all inter-tropical 

 regions. It consists of the down, or fine cellular hair, attached 

 to the seeds of plants belonging to the genus Gossypium, natu- 

 ral order, Malvacece the plants which supply the raw mate- 

 rial for one of our greatest industries, and for the clothing of 

 all nations. Some authorities enumerate ten different species, 

 divided into two classes, those of the old and new worlds, known 

 as the Indian or Oriental, the American or Occidental. While 

 the difference is not great, it is sufficiently pronounced to admit 

 of no mistake. The seed of the eastern plant is never black 

 or naked, and the curvature at the base of the leaf lobes is 

 compounded of two opposite curves, and not purely heart-shaped, 

 as in the case of the western plant. 



Sea Island cotton is a distinct variety, and is grown almost 

 exclusively upon the islands and a portion of the mainland of 

 Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida, the saline ingredients of 



