186 
VALUE OF THE AGRICULTURIST TO A SOUTHERN FARMER, ETC* 
covering the tubercles is brownish grey, and 
slightly cracked in a longitudinal direction. In the 
inside, they are of a pure white color, and when 
cut or broken, a white milky sap oozes out, espe¬ 
cially from a quantity of very small vascular bun¬ 
dles disposed in a circle at the circumference, and 
which principally consist of irregularly-dotted ves¬ 
sels. The sap is quickly condensed, and becomes 
thick, glutinous, and sticky, like glue. The mass 
of the tuber is fleshy, firm, and resisting, and is 
composed of irregular cellular tissue, full of grains 
of starch. The latter are of unequal size ; the larg¬ 
est are of the same shape and size as the grains of 
potato starch. The tubers, when raw, are svreet, 
and not at all bitter nor sharp. They resemble both 
in substance and in taste raw chestnuts. When 
steamed and cut, the tubers of the apios are very 
like those of the potato; they are floury, particu¬ 
larly when completely ripe and not too old, for the 
tubers may be kept in the earth for several years 
without being destroyed. Their taste is sweet and 
agreeable, very like that of the potato, but rather 
sweeter, and with a little of the savor of artichokes, 
and is by no means unpleasant. 
Mr. Richard has cultivated several of the plants 
himself, and amongst them was one that grew for 
four years in a very poor soil; it was left almost 
entirely to itself, without watering. On pulling it 
up, he obtained more than 100 tubers of different 
sizes, being equivalent to more than a decalitre 
(ten quarts). He thinks it quite certain that the 
same plant placed in a good light soil, well work¬ 
ed and properly manured, which its long roots 
could penetrate with ease, would give, in one year, 
more tubers, and those better filled and of a larger 
size. 
All that can be said of these roots is, that in 
their present state, which is very little removed 
from that in which they are placed by nature, they 
appear to approach the most to the potato, both in 
chemical composition and in taste. The following 
analyses have been furnished by M. Payen:— 
Potato. 
Apios tuberosa. 
Dry substances, 
25.6 
42.4 
Water, - 
74.4 
57.6 
100.0 
100.0 
— 
— 
Azotised matter, 
1.7 
4.5 
Fatty matter, 
Starch, dextrine, su¬ 
0.1 
0.8 
gar, and similar 
substances, pectic 
acid, pectine, &c. - 
21.2 
- 33.55 
Cellulose, (including 
the skin,) 
1.5 
1.3 
Mineral substances, 
1.1 
2.25 
Water, - 
74.4 
- 57.6 
•- 
— 
100.0 
100.00 
Thus we see that, compared with potatoes, the 
tubers of the apios contain more than double the 
quantity of azotised matter, eight times as much 
fatty substance, and altogether more than one and 
a half times as much solid matter (organic and 
vegetable). The quantity of saccharine and other 
soluble matters is at least three times greater in the 
tubers of the apios, than in those of the potato. 
The cultivation of this plant may be attended 
with some difficulty in consequence of its manner 
of growth. Its long, slender, twining stems, and its 
equally long running roots, are unfavorable to its 
being cultivated on a larger scale. The plan I 
would propose, if its cultivation on a large scale 
should be attempted, would be, to plant the apios 
in lines alternating with rows of early maize. The 
stems of the latter plants, which grow much more 
quickly than those of the apios, would serve as 
props, around which the long, weak branches of 
the latter would twine. Both, if cut before autumn, 
would make very good food for cattle. Another 
plan, which has been tried with success by M. de 
Thury, would be that pursued in many hop 
grounds, namely, to plant in tufts, for each of 
which a certain number of small poles are placed 
to keep up the straggling branches. 
One of the great advantages afforded by the cul¬ 
ture of this plant is, the possibility of getting the 
tubers without pulling up the principal stock, from 
which the roots, with their tubers, annually spring. 
THE EFFECTS OF BRIGHT COLORS ON ANIMALS. 
It is probably known to every person familiar to 
country life, but not to all others who may possibly 
have occasion to use the information, that the sight 
of a red garment will provoke a bull to an at¬ 
tack, and sometimes almost to madness. Frequent 
injury has resulted from an ignorance of this fact, 
and occasionally death has been the result. Other 
bright colors, strongly contrasted, produces the 
same effect upon a bull, though in a less intense 
degree. But a bright red or scarlet seems to excite 
all the ire of the bovine race; and you have but to 
shake a flaming jacket at them to provoke the high¬ 
est state of rage. The same effect is produced on 
a cock turkey; and a flock of them can as speedily 
be put to gobbling a declaration of war, as a bevy 
of pot-house politicians on a fourth of July. 
Some of the martial nerves , we suppose, must be 
strongly affected by the glare of these exciting co¬ 
lors. It has been suggested, and we think with a 
good deal of reason, that, if the scarlet facings, 
sashes, as well as the radiant epaulets and plumes, 
together with the martial strains of the trumpet, 
drum, and fife, were wanting in the military parade, 
we should have little of war in these modern days 
of civilization. 
VALUE OF THE AGRICULTURIST TO A SOUTHERN 
FARMER. 
We are accustomed here to follow the old beaten 
track of our ancestors, in the disposition of every¬ 
thing pertaining to the farm. Experience, it is 
true, has driven us to make some improvement in 
some things, but how trifling this must be when 
compared with what we might do. All of your 
suggestions about the arrangement of buildings for 
convenience and comfort—your directions for ar¬ 
ranging for keeping stock, for improving lands, and 
the disposal of manure, are invaluable to us. There 
are but very few, if any, of our farmers, who ever 
saw any guano; nor do they know its value. I 
shall for the future endeavor to get my friends into 
the way of reading upon these subjects, and pro¬ 
cure a goodly list of subscribers for you. 
Daniel S. Robertson. 
Cassita, Ala., April 1 3th, 1849. 
