PREFACE 



THE literature issued on the subject of potatoes 

 during the past three hundred years would form a large 

 library, many works having been published in the 

 United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, 

 and other countries. It is safe to say that no plant has 

 aroused a deeper interest than ' ' the noble tuber. ' ' Its 

 very existence to-day is largely due to the efforts of 

 enthusiasts. Several of the older writers were keen 

 observers and acquainted intimately with the history 

 and character of the potato, and modern authors in- 

 clude the names of men who are eminent in the 

 scientific world. The vast amount of research and 

 demonstration carried out by the experiment stations 

 of this country during the past ten years, and the fact 

 that every station has done something in this line, show 

 the breadth of the subject and furnish material hith- 

 erto unobtainable. The excellent research work now 

 being carried on in Europe, especially in France, Ger- 

 many, etc., and more recently established in Ireland, 

 indicates a demand for more information about this 

 crop. We feel that the ' ' science of agriculture ' ' is 

 a reality ; that, like every past generation, we are on 

 the eve of great discoveries; that something of the 

 laws governing plant nutrition and growth will shortly 

 be revealed, that we may be able to prevent rather than 

 cure the troubles which assail our plants. To be of 



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