A kind of brandy was formerly distilled from potatoes; but this has been forbidden by the legislature. Starch may be made from potatoes, by the simple process of scraping them in water, and well washing the pulp: the starch settles to the bottom of the vessel, in a heavy and closely connected sediment. This starch is of use for the same purposes as starch prepared from wheat: it is also valuable as a size; which, unlike the size produced from animal substances, does not easily putrefy, and has no disagreeable smell. Bakers in Germany, by the addition of calcined oyster shells and burnt hartshorn, convert the pulp of potatoes into yeast. The stalks or haulm of potatoes are capable of being made into paper. They are also of considerable utility as manure. The apples, or seed-vessels, may be usefully employed as a pickle: and, if properly prepared, they are said to be even more palatable than cucumbers.
There are numerous varieties of the potatoe. Of these the most remarkable are the different kinds of kidney potatoes, the Aylesbury white, and Altringham early white, which are chiefly grown for the table; the ox noble, Irish purple, and red potatoes, which are adapted for fodder.
This valuable root was originally imported from America, about the beginning of the seventeenth century. The inhabitants of Ireland assert that it was first introduced into that country, by the accidental wreck, upon their coast, of a vessel which was laden with potatoes and freighted for England.
The usual mode of planting potatoes is by cutting the roots into pieces, reserving one eye or bud to each division, and setting these in the earth. They will succeed in any tolerable soil; but they flourish most luxuriantly in light sandy loams. The proper time for digging them up is during dry weather in autumn, when the leaves and stems begin to decay. When cultivated on a small scale, they are usually dug with a three pronged fork; but when raised in fields, where this process would be too tedious, they are turned up by a plough.
68. CAPSICUMS are South American and Indian plants easily known by their hollow pods, of shining red or yellow colour, which contain many small, flat, and kidney-shaped seeds.
The principal species are, Heart or Bell pepper (Capsicum grossum), Guinea pepper (Capsicum annuum, Fig. 12), and Bird pepper (Capsicum baccatum).
All the species of capsicum possess the same general qualities. In hot climates, but particularly in the East and West Indies, and some parts of Spanish America, the fruit of these plants is much used for culinary purposes. It is eaten in large quantities, both with animal and vegetable food; and is mixed, in greater or less proportion, with almost all kinds of sauces.
Cayenne pepper is made from the fruit of different species of capsicum. This fruit, when ripe, is gathered, dried in the sun, and then pounded; and the powder is mixed with a certain portion of salt, and kept, for use, in closely stopped bottles. Of late years Cayenne pepper has been introduced into most of the countries of Europe; and it is now very generally used as a poignant ingredient in soups and highly seasoned dishes. Its taste is extremely acrid, and it leaves a durable sensation of heat on the palate, which is best removed by butter or oil. When taken in small quantity, cayenne pepper is a grateful stimulant; and, in medicine it is used, both externally and internally, to promote the action of the bodily organs when languid or torpid; and it is said to be found efficacious in many gouty and paralytic cases.
69. The GUINEA PEPPER, or ANNUAL CAPSICUM (Fig. 12), is a slender herbaceous plant, with smooth leaves, white flowers, single flower stalks, and smooth, shining fruit of oblong shape, and usually of red and yellow colour.
This plant is a native both of the East and West Indies, and is considered the most hardy of the whole tribe of capsicum. In many parts of the South of Europe, its fruit is eaten green by the peasants at their breakfasts, and is preferred by them to onions or garlic. The fruit of all the species may be rendered useful in domestic economy, either as a pickle, or as cayenne pepper. For the latter, it may be dried before a fire, and ground to powder in a common pepper-mill.