ON GUTTA GAMBEER. 369 



For the cultivation of this plant a rich red soil is prefer- Culture. 

 red. It gives the most luxuriant crop when the rains are 

 frequent, but does not thrive in grounds that are apt to be 

 flooded. On this account the side of a hill is esteemed bet- 

 ter than any other situation. 



The plants are propagated from seed. In three months 

 after sowing, they appear above the ground ; after this they 

 grow fast, and may be moved to the field when nine inches 

 high. They are there planted at the distance of eight or 

 nine feet, so that one orlong (of eighty yards square) con- 

 tains about seven hundred plants. At the end of one year Crop*, 

 from the time when they are planted in the field, a small 

 crop of the leaves is obtained. A larger is got in eighteen 

 months ; and the third at the end of two years, when the 

 bushes have attained their full growth. They continue in 

 their prime, and admit of being cut' twice a year, during a 

 period of twenty or thirty years, provided care be taken to 

 keep the ground clean and the roots free from weeds. Their 

 tops must be cut so as to prevent them from growing to a 

 greater height than five or six feet. 



From good ground and a garden well kept, ten peculs Produce, 

 (of 133-jlbs. each) of dry gambeer are usually obtained on 

 every orlong twice a year, or twenty peculs per annum. 

 As it is cut every six months, and should then be boiled off, 

 the leaves ought to be of the same age ; but, from a want 

 of means, it often happens, that the year is nearly expired 

 before the cutting is done, which should have been made at 

 the end of six months. In this case the young leaves yield 

 a whiter drug than the old. As to the quantity afforded by 

 each, in proportion to the weight of leaves, I have re- 

 ceived contradictory information, so that I conclude little 

 attention has been paid to this circumstance. 



The price of the drug, at Prince of Wales's Island, va- Price, 

 ries from four to eight Spanish dollars per pecul. The finest 

 and whitest kind is that formed into little round cakes or lo- 

 zenges. It is sold by tale, at three dollars and a half for 

 the laxa (or 10,000), and one laxa weighs about 40 catties. 

 This gives 8£ dollars for a pecul. 



The price of sago at Prince of Wales's Island is generally Adulterated 

 about three dollars per pecul. Hence the manufacturer is * lthsa S°- 



Vol. XXII.— Supplement. 2 B often 



