The name potato is a corruption of the last part of the Latin name for sweet potatoes, ipomcea batata, but the name by common consent is given to our white potato. White potatoes are a native of America, perhaps of Chile, and were not known in Europe until about 1580. They were introduced into North America about the same time. At first, they did not meet with great favor in Europe, and it was not until there was shortage in a series of staple crops that they sprang into favor. Now they have been adopted in Ireland to such an extent that they form a large part of the food of the people, and for that reason are often called Irish potatoes. POTATOES 33 Potatoes form forty per cent of the total vegetable crop of the world, so that their name of king of vegetables is not undeserved, and they are next in importance among the vegetable products to cereals. When we compare these facts with the report that at the time of our American Revolution a well-to-do family thought itself fortunate if it had at most a barrel of potatoes for its winter supply, and that these were only served on special occasions and for honored guests, we can see how greatly the relative importance of the position of the potato has changed. The potato is a tuber, that is, an underground stem which is thickened and has become a storehouse for future plants. The eyes of the potato are buds from which the new plants will sprout under proper conditions. These new plants use the food material which is stored in the potato, and the tuber itself is thereby gradually rendered unfit for food. CRUDE FATOJfy COMPOSITION OF THE POTATO The average loss of nutrients from boiling is shown by the shading. If a thin slice across a potato is held up to the light, four distinct parts are observable. First comes the grayish brown skin, which corresponds with the bark of an ordinary stem. Underneath this is the cortical layer, which may be 34 FOOD STUDY from a tenth to a fifth of an inch thick, and is often slightly colored. If this layer is exposed to sunlight for some time, it will turn green, showing its relation to the green layer which is found underneath the bark of an ordinary stem. The inner layers are known as the flesh of the potato, and, for our pur- pose, may be considered as one. The potato is made up of a network of cells; | the cell walls being, of course, largely cellulose. The cells are filled with water in which is dis- SECTIONS OF THE POTATO a, skin ; 6, cortical layer ; c, outer medullary layer ; d, inner medullary layer. solved mineral matter, a little sugar, and most of the protein * which is found in the potato. In the cells and surrounded by this water are the starch grains. While a * Protein is the foodstuff containing nitrogen, and is essential for building body tissue which contains nitrogen. POTATOES 35 little fat is also present the amount is so small that it need not be taken into consideration. The potato is largely composed of water, seventy-eight and three-tenths per cent, so over three-quarters of the whole weight is water. Of the eighteen and four-tenths per cent carbohydrate, about sixteen per cent is starch. There is only four-tenths of one per cent of cellulose pres- ent. Although they are small in amount, the two and two- tenths per cent of nitrogenous matter and one per cent of mineral matter are important.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

The name potato is a corruption of the last part of the Latin name for sweet potatoes, ipomcea batata, but the name by common consent is given to our white potato. White potatoes are a native of America, perhaps of Chile, and were not known in Europe until about 1580. They were introduced into North America about the same time. At first, they did not meet with great favor in Europe, and it was not until there was shortage in a series of staple crops that they sprang into favor. Now they have been adopted in Ireland to such an extent that they form a large part of the food of the people, and for that reason are often called Irish potatoes. Potatoes form forty per cent of the total vegetable crop of the world, so that their name of king of vegetables is not undeserved, and they are next in importance among the vegetable products to cereals. When we compare these facts with the report that at the time of our American Revolution a well-to-do family thought itself fortunate if it had at most a barrel of potatoes for its winter supply, and that these were only served on special occasions and for honored guests, we can see how greatly the relative importance of the position of the potato has changed. The potato is a tuber, that is, an underground stem which is thickened and has become a storehouse for future plants. The eyes of the potato are buds from which the new plants will sprout under proper conditions. These new plants use the food material which is stored in the potato, and the tuber itself is thereby gradually rendered unfit for food. CRUDE FAT COMPOSITION OF THE POTATO The average loss of nutrients from boiling is shown by the shading. If a thin slice across a potato is held up to the light, four distinct parts are observable. First comes the grayish brown skin, which corresponds with the bark of an ordinary stem. Underneath this is the cortical layer, which may be from a tenth to a fifth of an inch thick, and is often slightly colored. If this layer is exposed to sunlight for some time, it will turn green, showing its relation to the green layer which is found underneath the bark of an ordinary stem. The inner layers are known as the flesh of the potato, and, for our purpose, may be considered as one. The potato is made up of a network of cells; | the cell walls being, of course, largely cellulose. The cells are filled with water in which is dis- SECTIONS OF THE POTATO a, skin ; 6, cortical layer ; c, outer medullary layer ; d, inner medullary layer. solved mineral matter, a little sugar, and most of the protein * which is found in the potato. In the cells and surrounded by this water are the starch grains. While a * Protein is the foodstuff containing nitrogen, and is essential for building body tissue which contains nitrogen. little fat is also present the amount is so small that it need not be taken into consideration. The potato is largely composed of water, seventy-eight and three-tenths per cent, so over three-quarters of the whole weight is water. Of the eighteen and four-tenths per cent carbohydrate, about sixteen per cent is starch. There is only four-tenths of one per cent of cellulose present. Although they are small in amount, the two and twotenths per cent of nitrogenous matter and one per cent of mineral matter are important.

Food study