Potatoes grew wild in Peru, a country of South America, from where they were transplanted to other parts of the American continent, and afterwards to Europe. The honor of introducing this useful vegetable into England is divided between Sir Francis Drake, in 1580, and Sir Walter Raleigh, in 1586, some crediting it to the former, and others to the latter. It is certain they were obtained from Virginia in the time of Raleigh; they were grown only in the gardens of the nobility, and were considered a great delicacy. They now constitute a crucial article of food in most of the countries of Europe and America; in Ireland, they have long furnished nearly four-fifths of the entire food of the people.
Which of these can be most easily inferred from this passage?
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Correct Answer: D
Many of these answer choices are true, but only one is directly supported by the text. You might be tempted to answer that “Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh were merchants,” but we do not know this to be true from the text; we only know that they brought potatoes back to England from the New World. They could have been military men. You might also be tempted to answer “England was the first European nation to arrive in Peru,” but we have no evidence to support this and indeed it is not true (the Spanish being the first). The correct answer is “Potatoes were once a luxury item, but are now widely available in many regions of the world.” This is supported by the author’s statement that “they were grown only in the gardens of the nobility, and were considered a great delicacy. They now constitute a crucial article of food in most of the countries of Europe and America.“ If potatoes are a crucial article of food for most people, than they must be a “widely available."