The following passage is from page 4 of the book The Great Irish Famine by Una Murray: In the early 1800s, potatoes were Ireland’s most important crop. They were nutritious and cheap and simple to grow. Irish peasants each ate an average of 10 potatoes a day. They also fed their farm animals potatoes so the animals could then provide milk, eggs, and meat. These rural farmers were entirely dependent on potatoes and entirely unprepared when, in 1845, a new form of plant disease spread across Ireland, destroying their beloved crop. The result was the Great Irish Famine, a time of widespread starvation, disease, and emigration.
When farmers dug up their potatoes in 1845, they expected to find a great harvest. Instead, they discovered rotting potatoes, unfit for consumption. No one knew how to combat the potato blight. The situation grew worse over the next couple of years, and the Great Irish Famine lasted until 1852. Its effects, however, are still apparent today.
Without the potato, Irish farmers, their families, and their animals went hungry. Chickens, cows, and other animals starved to death, so the people lost milk, eggs, and meat as well. With their main source of income gone, the Irish had to live in poor conditions, where diseases spread unchecked. Ireland lost 25% of its population during the famine. Over one million people died of starvation and disease. Over one million more left Ireland to live elsewhere. Since then, Ireland has never reached its former population of 8 million.
5
According to MLA guidelines, which of these quotes the passage correctly?
A.
Murray reports, "Irish farmers and animals went hungry without the potato" (4).
B.
Murray writes, "[Potatoes] were nutritious and cheap and simple to grow" (4).
C.
Murray states, "[Irish peasants] each ate an average of 10 potatoes a day" (4).
D.
Murray says, "One-fourth of Ireland's population was lost during the famine" (4).