Mr. Buckland, a Somersetshire gentleman, sent in
1662 a letter to the Royal Society, recommending the planting of
potatoes in all parts of the kingdom, _to prevent famine_, for which he
received the thanks of that learned body; and Evelyn, the well-known
author of "The Sylva," was requested to mention the proposal at the end
of that work.
The potato was first brought into this country about three centuries
ago. Tradition and, to some extent, history attributes its introduction
to Sir Walter Raleigh. Whether this was actually the case or not, there
seems to be no doubt about his having cultivated it on that estate in
Munster which was bestowed upon him by his royal mistress, after the
overthrow of the Desmonds.[1] Some confusion has arisen about the period
at which the potato of Virginia, as I shall for the present call the
potato, was brought to our shores, from the fact that another root, the
_batatas_, or sweet potato, came into these islands, and was used as a
delicacy before the potato of Virginia was known; and what adds to the
confusion is, that the name potato, applied to the Virginian root, is
derived from _batatas_, it not bearing in Virginia any name in the least
resembling the word potato.
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