https://pjmedia.com/rogerkimball/2008/02/17/that_root_youths_and_why_reute_1/feed/PJ Media is a leading news site covering culture, politics, faith, homeland security, and more. Our reporters and columnists provide original, in-depth analysis from a variety of perspectives.en-usWed, 10 Jun 2026 09:15:33 -0400<![CDATA[In &#8220;Portrait of an Age,&#8221; G. M. Young&#8217;s classic overview of early Victorian England, there are a few melancholy pages devoted to the devastating Irish potato famine of the mid 1840s. Young notes in an aside that Sir Robert Peel, the Prime Minister, followed polite opinion in referring to the disappointing tuber as &#8220;That Root&#8221; instead calling it by its common name. &#8220;[I]n all the prayers offered up for our Irish brethern,&#8221; Young observes, &#8220;potatoes were never mentioned.&#8221;]]>Sun, 17 Feb 2008 07:08:41 -0500<![CDATA[Roger Kimball]]>https://pjmedia.com/roger-kimball/2008/02/17/that_root_youths_and_why_reute_1-n114582