Part 4

~The Margined Blister-Beetle~, (_Lytta marginata_, Fabr.)--This species (Fig. 9) maybe at once recognized by its general black color, and the ash-gray edging to its wing-cases. It usually feeds on certain wild plants, but does not object to a diet of potato-leaves. Though found over a large extent of country, it seldom appears in numbers large enough to damage the potato crop materially. Like other blister-beetles, it goes under ground to pass into the pupa state, and attacks the potato only when it is in the perfect or winged state.

~The Three-Lined Leaf-Beetle~, (_Lema trilineata_, Olivier.) The larva of the three-lined leaf-beetle may be distinguished from all other insects which prey upon the potato by its habit of covering itself with its own excrement. In Figure 10, _a_, this larva is shown in profile, both full and half grown, covered with the soft, greenish excrementitious matter which from time to time it discharges. Figure 10, _c_, gives a somewhat magnified view of the pupa, and Figure 10, _b_, shows the last few joints of the abdomen of the larva, magnified and viewed from above. The vent of the larva, as will be seen from this last figure, is situated on the upper surface of the last joint, so that its excrement naturally falls upon its back, and by successive discharges is crowded forward toward its head, till the whole upper surface is covered with it. There are several other larva, feeding upon other plants, which wear cloaks of this strange material.

Many authors suppose that the object of the larva in all these cases is to protect itself from the heat of the sun. In all probability the real aim of nature in the case of all these larvæ is to defend them from the attacks of birds and of cannibal and parasitic insects.

There are two broods of this insect every year. The first brood of larvæ may be found on the potato-vine toward the latter end of June, and the second in August.

The first brood stays under ground about a fortnight before it emerges in the perfect beetle state, and the second brood stays under ground all winter, and only emerges at the beginning of the following June.

The perfect beetle (Fig. 11) is of a pale yellow color, with three black stripes on its back, and bears a strong resemblance to the cucumber-bug, (_Diabrotica vittata_, Fabr. Fig. 12.)

From this last species, however, it may be distinguished by its somewhat larger size, and by the remarkable pinching-in of the thorax, so as to make quite a lady-like waist there, or what naturalists call a "constriction." The female, after coupling, lays her yellow eggs (Fig. 10,_d_) on the under surface of the leaves of the potato plant. The larvæ hatching, when full grown descend into the ground, where they transform to pupæ (Fig. 10, _c_) within a small oval chamber, from which in time the perfect beetle emerges.

This insect in certain seasons is a great pest in the Eastern and Middle States, but has never yet occurred in the Mississippi Valley in such numbers as to be materially injurious.

~The Cucumber Flea Beetle~, (_Haltica cucumeris_, Harris.) This nimble minute beetle (Fig. 13) belongs to the flea-beetles, (_Haltica_ family,) the same sub-group of the leaf-beetles (_Phytophaga_) to which also appertains the notorious steel-blue flea-beetle (_Haltica chalybea_, Illiger) that is such a pest to the vineyardist. Like all the rest of the flea-beetles, it has its hind thighs greatly enlarged, which enables it to jump with much agility. It is not peculiar to the potato, but infests a great variety of plants, including the cucumber, from which it derives its name. It eats minute round holes in the leaf of the plant it infests, but does not always penetrate entirely through it.

The larva feeds internally upon the substance of the leaf, and goes under ground to assume the pupa state. It passes through all its stages in about a month, and there are two or three broods of them in the course of the same season. This is emphatically the greatest insect pest that the potato-grower has to contend with in Pennsylvania. It abounds throughout most of the Northern, Middle, and Western States. Large fields of potatoes can any summer be seen in the Middle States much injured by this minute insect, every leaf apparently completely riddled with minute round holes, and the stalks and leaves appearing yellow and seared. Plaster frequently and bountifully applied is sure to prevent the attacks of this insect, or to disperse it after it has commenced operations.

~The Colorado Potato-Bug~, (_Doryphora_ 10--_lineata_, Say.)--This insect, which, according to Dr. Walsh, has in the North-West alone damaged the potato crop to the amount of one million seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, came originally from the Rocky Mountains, where it was found forty-five years ago, feeding on a wild species of potato peculiar to that region, (_Solanum rostratum_, Dunal.) When civilization marched up the Rocky Mountains, and potatoes began to be grown in that region, this highly improved pest acquired the habit of feeding upon the cultivated potato. It went from potato-patch to potato-patch, moving east-ward at the rate of about sixty miles a year, and is now firmly established over all the country extending from Indiana to its old feeding-grounds in the Rocky Mountains. In about twelve years it will have reached the Atlantic coast.

There is another very closely allied species, known as the Bogus Colorado potato-bug, (_coryphora juncta_, Germor,) which has existed throughout a great part of the United States from time immemorial. This latter insect, however, feeds almost exclusively on the horse-nettle, (_Solanum carolinense_, Linn.,) and is never known to injure the potato. Both insects are figured, so that one need not be mistaken for the other.

Figure 14, _b_, _b_, _b_, gives a view of the larva of the true Colorado potato-bug, in various positions and stages of its existence. Figure 15, _b_, _b_, of that of the bogus Colorado potato-bug. It will be seen at once that the head of the former is black, and the first joint behind the head is pale and edged with black behind only; that there is a double row of black spots along the side of the body; and that the legs are black. In the other larva, (Fig. 15, _b_,) on the contrary, the head is of a pale color, the first joint behind the head is tinged with dusk and edged all round with black; there is but a single row of spots along the side of the body, and the legs are pale.

Figure 14, _d_, _d_, exhibits the true Colorado potato-bug; Figure 15, the bogus Colorado potato-bug; each of its natural size. Figure 14, _e_, shows the _left_ wing-case enlarged, and Figure 15, _e_, an enlarged leg of the latter. On a close inspection, it will be perceived that in the former (Fig. 14, _e_) the boundary of each dark stripe on the wing-cases toward the middle is studded with confused and irregular punctures, partly inside and partly outside the edge of the dark stripe; that it is the third and fourth dark stripes, counting from the outside, that are united behind, and that both the knees and feet are black.

In Figure 15, _d_, on the contrary, it is the second and third stripes--not the third and fourth--counting from the outside, that are united behind, and the leg is entirely pale, except a black spot on the middle of the front of the thigh. The eggs (Fig. 14, _a_, _a_, and Fig. 15, _d_, _d_) are yellow, and are always laid on the under side of the leaf in patches of from twenty to thirty; those of the bogus are of a lighter color. Each female of the true Colorado potato-bug lays, according to Dr. Schirmer, about seven hundred eggs. In about six days the eggs hatch into larvæ, which feed on the foliage of the potato plant about seventeen days; they then descend to the ground, where they change into pupæ at the surface of the earth. The perfect beetle appears about ten to fourteen days after the pupa is formed, begins to pair in about seven days, and on the fourteenth day begins to deposit her eggs. There are three broods of this insect every year. Neither geese, ducks, turkeys, nor barn-yard fowl will touch the larva of the Colorado potato-bug when it is offered to them, and there are numerous authentic cases on record where persons who have scalded to death quantities of these larvæ, and inhaled the fumes of their bodies, have been taken seriously ill, and even been confined to their beds for many days in consequence. It is also reported to have produced poisonous effects on several persons who handled them incautiously with naked hands. Various plans have been tried to destroy this persistent enemy of the potato plant. Powdered hellebore is said to have been used with effect as a means of destroying the pest. It should be dusted on and under the foliage when the plant is wet with dew. Hellebore, however, is a dangerous remedy on account of its poisonous qualities. A mixture of one part salt, ten parts soap, and twenty parts water, applied to every part of the plants with a syringe, is quite effectual. Several cannibal and one parasitic insect are known to prey upon the larva of the Colorado potato-bug, and the eggs in vast numbers are eaten by several species of lady-birds and their larva.

GENERAL REMARKS ON INSECTS.

The time is not far distant when the American farmer will be obliged to put forth greater efforts to destroy noxious insects than he has hitherto. It is a well-known fact that noxious insects are increasing in a rapid rate throughout every part of our land. The country is becoming so "buggy" that eternal vigilance is the price of every thing produced from the soil.

Close observers calculate that more fruits of various kinds and varieties are annually destroyed or rendered worthless by insects than are gathered and used by man. The cotton-worm, the wheat-midge, the canker-worms, the potato-bugs, are each every year increasing in numbers and destructiveness.

The "curculio" alone destroys millions of dollars' worth of fruit annually.

It is a safe estimate, all things considered, that, if noxious insects of all descriptions could at once be annihilated throughout our country, and mildews of various classes be effectually held in check, the cost of living to our people would, in-a short time, be reduced to one third of its present amount. It is disheartening to see what a vast amount of grains, fruits, and vegetables is annually eaten up by the larvæ, or appropriated by the perfect insects of various classes, merely for the sake of propagating their abominable species. Yet, in view of all the devastation, but feeble effort is made to abate the evil. Birds, many species of which nature seemingly designed on purpose to keep insects in check, are wantonly shot by lazy boys and indolent men, who range the fields and forests, killing all, from the humming-bird to the crow. Legislative enactments made expressly to protect the insectivorous songsters are every day violated with impunity. One man plants an orchard and does all he can to destroy noxious insects; another man near him also has an orchard, but his orchard serves no purpose but to propagate "curculios," "canker-worms," "bark-lice," "tent caterpillars," "codling moths," etc., for his neighbors, and, as a matter of course, the whole neighborhood swarms with noxious insects. If all cultivators would act in concert and with a will, insects might be reduced in numbers very rapidly. Most moths of night-flying insects are attracted to and destroyed by small bonfires kindled in still evenings during the summer months.

Bottles half-filled with sweetened water, hung here and there, will trap countless bugs. Strong soap-suds applied immediately after they hatch is a sure remedy for plant lice. Molasses and water, to which a little arsenic has been added, placed in shallow dishes among the vines, is good medicine for potato-bugs, and all bugs in general. A lighted lamp placed in the centre of a common milk-pan, partly filled with water, the whole elevated a few feet from the ground, will, on a still evening, attract and destroy the wheat-midge and similar insects in great numbers. The calculations of the "curculio" and "codling moth" are brought to naught by turning hogs into the orchard to eat the stung fruit as it falls, and the larva that depastures upon the leaves of the current and gooseberry is destroyed by syringing the plants with a mixture of soap, salt, and water.

VALUE OF THE POTATO AS CATTLE FOOD.

The constituents of the potato are according to different authorities, as follows:

Water 75.2 Casein 1.4 Starch 15.5 Dextrine 0.4 Sugar 3.2 Fat 0.2 Fibre 3.2 Mineral matter 0.9

Or economically: Water 75.2 Flesh-formers 1.4 Fat-formers 18.9 Accessories 3.6 Mineral matter 0.9

Of the high value of potatoes, when used in connection with other food, there is not a shadow of doubt. All experimenters and observers in the economy of food agree in saying that they are of the highest utility; but they must be used with other food whose constituents are different from those of the root.

The analysis shows that potatoes surpass in the fat-producing principles the nutritious or flesh-forming in such proportions that they could not alone sustain the composition of the blood; for an animal fed alone on these tubers would be obliged to consume such quantities to provide the blood with the requisite proportion of albumen that, even if the process of digestion were not discontinued, there would be a superabundance of fat accumulated beyond the power of the oxygen to consume, which would successively absorb from the albuminous substance a part of its vital elements, and thus a check would be caused in the endless change of matter in the tissues in the nutritive and regressive transformations.

Potatoes, then, to be of most value as food for cattle, should be fed in connection with grain, or with other roots in which the flesh-forming element predominates. There seems to be no doubt that the tubers are of most value when cooked, although some authors affirm to the contrary. It seems possible to prove this on philosophical principles; for it is well known that the starch contained in the potato is incapable of affording nourishment until the containing globules are broken, and one of the most efficient means of doing this seems to be by heat.

Boussingault, in speaking of the economy of cooking potatoes, says, "The potato is frequently steamed or boiled first; yet I can say positively that horned cattle do extremely well upon raw potatoes, and at Bechelbrunn our cows never have them otherwise than raw. They are never boiled, save for horses and hogs. The best mode of dealing with them is to steam them; they need never be so thoroughly boiled as when they are to serve for the food of man. The steamed or boiled potatoes are crushed between two rollers, or simply broken with a wooden spade, and mixed with cut hay or straw or chaff, before being served out. It may not be unnecessary to observe that by steaming potatoes lose no weight; hence we conclude that the nutritive equivalent for the boiled is the same as that of the raw tuber.

"Nevertheless, it is possible that the amylaceous principle is rendered more easily assimilable by boiling, and that by this means the tubers actually become more nutritious. Some have proposed to roast potatoes in the oven, and there can be little question that heated in this way they answer admirably for fattening hogs, and even oxen. Done in the oven, potatoes may be brought to a state in which they may perfectly supply the place of corn in feeding horses and other cattle."

The apparent contradiction in the remarks will be observed; but the evident leaning in favor of cooked potatoes shows that Boussingault, although paying some attention to the theory that cooked food is not generally attended with the same benefit to ruminating as to other animals, was evidently almost convinced that those which contained an abundance of starch in their constituents must be rendered more nutritious when exposed to the action of heat.

Potatoes fed in a raw state to stock are laxative in their effects, and are often given to horses as a medicine in cases of "hidebound" with decided benefit. Bots, which have been known to live twenty-four hours immersed in spirits of turpentine, die almost instantly when placed in potato-juice; hence a common practice with horsemen, where bots are suspected, is to first administer milk and molasses to decoy the parasites from the coating of the stomach, and then drench the animal with the expressed juice of potatoes. A decoction made by boiling the parings of potatoes in a small quantity of water is often used as a wash to kill vermin on cattle. Raw potatoes, fed occasionally and in small quantities, are a good tonic for stock of any kind which is kept principally on hay; but all experiments show that when the potato is used for fattening purposes, the tubers should in some way be cooked, that the animal to which they are fed may derive from them the greatest possible amount of nutriment. Repeated experiments demonstrate the fact that horned cattle or hogs lay on as much fat from the consumption of two thirds of a given quantity of potatoes properly cooked as they will by eating the entire quantity in a raw state. In point of nutriment as cattle-food, two pounds of potatoes are considered equivalent to one pound of hay.

HOW TO COOK THE POTATO.

FURNISHED BY

PROF. PIERRE BLOT, OF BROOKLYN.

At the suggestion of a number of friends, I addressed the following note to Professor Blot, which, with his reply, is appended:

PROFESSOR PIERRE BLOT: NEW-YORK, Feb. 15, 1870.

DEAR SIR: In connection with a Prize Essay on the cultivation of the potato, I wish to publish an article on COOKING THE POTATO, to be taken from your _Hand-Book of Practical Cookery_. I write this note to ask whether I can do this with your entire approval. Hoping that such article may aid our American housekeepers to prepare the potato for the table in a more palatable and wholesome manner, I remain yours very truly,

W. T. WYLIE.

BROOKLYN, CENTRAL KITCHEN, Feb. 15, 1870.

REV. W. T. WYLIE:

DEAR SIR: ~You are authorized, with the greatest pleasure.~ P. BLOT.

In accordance with the above authority, the following selections have been made from the book named:

~To Select.~--As a general rule, the smaller the eye the better the potatoes. By cutting off a piece from the larger end, you ascertain if they are sound; they must be white, reddish, bluish, etc., according to the species. If spotted, they are not sound, and therefore very inferior. There are several kinds, and all of them are good when sound or coming from a proper soil. Use the kind you prefer, or those that are better fit for the way they are intended to be served.

~To Boil.~--Being naturally watery, potatoes should never be cooked by boiling except when wanted very white, as for _croquettes_. When boiled whole, put them of an even size as much as possible, in order to cook them evenly. They are better, more mealy, when steamed or baked; but those who have no steamer must, of course, boil them. Cover them with cold water, set on the fire and boil till done, then pour off all the water, put the pan back on a slow fire for five minutes and well covered; then use the potatoes.

~To Steam.~--Place them above a kettle of boiling water, in a kind of drainer made for that purpose, and adapted to the kettle. The drainer must be covered tight. They cook as fast as by boiling, the degree of heat being the same. When steamed the skin is very easily removed.

~To Prepare.~--If they are to be boiled, or steamed, or baked, it is only necessary to wash them. If wanted peeled, as for frying, etc., then commence by cutting off the germs or eyes; if young and tender, take the skin off with a scrubbing-brush, and drop immediately in cold water to keep them white; if old, scrape the skin off with a knife, for the part immediately under the skin contains more nutriment than the middle, and drop in cold water also. If wanted cut, either in dice, or like carpels of oranges, or any other way, cut them above a bowl of cold water, so that they drop into it; for if kept exposed to the air, they turn reddish and lose their nutritive qualities.

~A l'Allemande.~--Steam, peel, and slice the potatoes. Cut some bread in thin slices, and fry bread and potatoes with a little butter, and turn the whole in a bowl, dust well with sugar, pour a little milk all over, and bake for about fifteen minutes; serve warm.

~A l'Anglaise.~--Steam or boil about a quart of potatoes, and then peel and slice them. Put two ounces of butter in a frying-pan on the fire, and put the potatoes in when melted, toss them for about ten minutes, add salt, pepper, a little grated nutmeg, and serve hot.

~Broiled.~--Steam, peel, and slice the potatoes. Lay the slices on a gridiron, and place it over a rather slow fire; have melted butter, and spread some over the slices of potatoes with a brush; as soon as the under part is broiled, turn each slice over and spread butter over the other side. When done, dish, salt, and serve them hot. A little butter may be added when dished, according to taste.

~Fried.~--To be fried, the potatoes are cut either with a vegetable spoon, in fillets, in slices, with a scalloped knife, or with an ordinary one, or cut in pieces like carpels of oranges, or even in dice. When cut, drain and wipe them dry. This must be done quickly, so as not to allow the potatoes to turn reddish. Have a coarse towel ready, then turn the potatoes into a colander, and immediately turn them in the towel, shake them a little, and quickly drop them in hot fat. When done, turn them into a colander, sprinkle salt on them, and serve hot. Bear in mind that fried potatoes must be eaten as hot as possible. Fry only one size at a time, as it takes three times as long to fry them when cut in pieces as when sliced or cut in fillets.

~To fry them light or swelled.~--When fried, turn into the colander, and have the fat over a brisk fire; leave the potatoes in the colander only about half a minute, then put them back in the very hot fat, stir for about one minute, and put them again in the colander, salt them, and serve hot. If the fat is very hot, when dropped into it for the second time they will certainly swell; there is no other way known to do it. It is as easily done as it is simple. Potatoes cut in fillets and fried are sometimes called _à la Parisienne_; when cut in slices or with a vegetable spoon, they are called _à la française_.

Potatoes cut with a vegetable spoon and fried, make a good as well as a sightly decoration for a dish of meat or of fish. They may be fried in oil also, but it is more expensive than in fat. They may be fried in butter also, but it is still more expensive than oil, and is not better than fat; no matter what kind of fat is used, be it lard, beef suet, or skimmings of sauces and gravy, it can not be tasted.

~Lyonnaise.~--Potatoes _Lyonnaise_ are prepared according to taste, that is, as much onion as liked is used, either in slices or chopped. If you have not any cold potatoes, steam or boil some, let them cool, and peel and slice them. For about a quart of potatoes, put two ounces of butter in a frying-pan on the fire, and when melted put as much onion as you please, either sliced or chopped, into the pan, and fry it till about half done, when add the potatoes and again two ounces of butter; salt, pepper, and stir and toss gently till the potatoes are all fried of a fine, light-brown color. It may require more butter, as no vegetable absorbs more than potatoes.