A Rice StTBSTlTDTE. 
5 
«s boo mnsh mohltire, or too ricb soil, or 
ovef-feitilJzatiuo tend to an over-prodnc- 
tion of Btattr. 
Tapioca Grown as a Foodstuff 
Tftpioca can be made as importaiils io the 
tropics, Rj corn »nH p^tatoeB in milder olimea. 
lb ia & vegeUble food par excdHence, well- 
4nown io AmerioA, m^ny ceotnries aso 
wherp it cftOg!i»;v the ftttt-iuioa o£ tbe early 
Fortagaeae navtgacori who imported it into 
the Black CoDtirieot in ths XV ceotDrj. It 
is A plant of reserve, providiHjiE a sore crop 
agAiDSt famine io all hot oouutries where 
rice h«9 periodicnl fnilares. la Indo-China 
tspioca is grawii eoncnrrenUy rice to 
prevision of an trnforeseeu shortage of footit 
^toff-) thoagb iho latter crop formB the 
aannl diet of the naitiv>f>, In oonatries 
where locaata pay regn'ar and ntifrelcome 
visits, or wher© mcnkeyaj rata, etc,, abonud, 
'tapioca ia the only plant left intact and 
reapetJtjed by these pe*t« in spite of bbe facte 
^ that th^-y play grtfat havoc with every other 
vegetable to ita propinquity. 
From an iadnatria] staod point, taptooa it 
Ibe plant of the fa tore ; its uade aeems cap- 
able of large exiensioo aud mtght; before 
long transform some of oor local indoa- 
trbs fleeing that it i« no»- in moh. a great 
demand m Europe a? well a^ ia America, 
'Its role aa a foodsloff is indeed a very 
exteoaive one. Used as a fe^etable, by 
most ludian trtoea in America^ by the 
tiabives of Africa and Asia it plays, exactly 
the same alimentary pait with thvm aa 
bread and potatoes do in Enrope. Its 
methods of preparation are varioQ9 but it 
>h9s one slight drawback which it to rrqaire 
■tbe accom pan i meat of siaoeaaDd hot condi- 
