82 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



allied to starch and is variously subdivided as cellulose, woody- 

 fibre, and lignin. These cell-walls cannot be wholly separated 

 from the nutritive substances which they contain. In moderate 

 quantities cellulose may aid the process of digestion by giving 

 the necessary bulk for the stomach to work upon, and thus afford 

 a wholesome stimulus to intestinal contraction. The denser forms 

 of woody fibre cannot be digested, and moreover hinder the pro- 

 cess in other substances associated with it. 



Plants growing rapidly with plenty of water and sunshine 

 usually have less of this woody fibre, and it is the aim of the 

 gardener to eliminate it as far as possible. The cook tries by 

 higher temperatiire to soften this substance, and if boiling water 

 could be raised to a point above 212° Fahr. it would be desirable. 



By improved methods of cultivation the agriculturist has 

 removed the acid flavors of the natural vegetables and has 

 reduced the proportion of woody fibre, but he undoes much of 

 his work by careless methods of delivery to the consumer. 



Between the farmer and the marketman certain trade customs 

 have groAvn up which are calculated to foster ignorance on the 

 part of the consumer and against which the protests of intelligent 

 housewives avail little. A large part of the vegetables displayed 

 in our markets are overgrown, wilted, or carelessly prepared. 

 Those which suffer most from this treatment are radishes, 

 cucumbers, green peas, beans, corn, and summer squashes. 



The public must be educated to appreciate quality rather than 

 size ; to recognize the facts that wilted southern vegetables never 

 equal '' natives " in flavor, and that gain in size usually means a 

 corresponding loss of flavor. 



Why should we have to lose the sweet nutty root of the celery 

 because it is pierced with a nail ? Why need asparagus waste its 

 strength in producing several inches of stalk which must be 

 thrown away ? Why should not summer squashes and cucumbers 

 be sold by weight as well as winter squashes ? 



The arithmetic of the market gardener is mysterious to the 

 housekeeper — sometimes onions are sold by the pound; some- 

 times by the quart. Bunches may be three or four or eight or any 

 number that suits the dealer's fancy. Marketmen say that 

 women are becoming, more interested in all these things, and a 

 simplification of methods of sale would increase this interest. 



The public is not wholly to blame for its ignorance in these 



