We continue to be perplexed by the status of tomatoes. Even the authorities at the University of Illinois can't decide what to call them. In an article written not long ago they at one point say, "Tomatoes are the most popular garden vegetable in America..." Then only a few lines later they state, "...the quality of the fruit picked in the garden when fully ripe far surpasses anything available in the market..."
This controversy and confusion was even a matter of legal debate by the highest court in our land. In 1887, U.S. tariff laws imposed a 10% duty on vegetables, but none on fruit. A tomato importer named John Nix sued the tax collector for the Port of New York, Edward L. Hedden, arguing that tomatoes, since they were really fruits, should be exempt from the tax in the case Nix v. Hedden 149 U.S. 304 (1893).
The botanical claim was not in dispute; tomatoes, as the seed-bearing ripened ovary of a flower, are indeed fruits. Yet in a triumph of ordinary language over scholarly, the Supreme Court ruled in 1893 that the tomato was a vegetable and therefore subject to the tariff. In his decision, Justice Gray wrote,
"Botanically speaking, tomatoes are fruits of a vine, just as cucumbers, squashes, beans and peas. But in the common language of the people...all these are vegetables...which, whether eaten cooked or raw, are...usually served at dinner in, with or after the soup, fish or meats which constitute the principal part of the repast, and not, like fruits generally, as dessert."
So once again I will reiterate my mantra:
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting them in a fruit salad.
No comments:
Post a Comment