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THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



June 21, 1902. 



WEST INDIAN FRUIT. 



BANANAS FROM BARBADOS. 



Recently the Koyiil ]\Iail Ce!ii})aiiy invited the 

 assistance of the Inii)eiial Departnu'nt of AgiicnUuie 

 to test a new ' fruit carrier ' projjosed to be used to 

 convey bananas from the West Indie.'^, slung in a kind 

 of hammock, so as to give the fruit plenty of air while 

 at the same time jirevent it from being bruised in 

 transit. The inventor had had consiilerabie ex])erience 

 of the Canary banana trade and was anxious to devise 

 a plan whereby West Imlian fr\iit could arrive in 

 England in as fresh a condition as the Canary fruit. 



In the first instance twcj bunches of bananas were 

 obtained by Mr. J. R. Bovell in Barbados. These were 

 of the Chinese or dwarf vaiiety generally cultivated in 

 the island on account of its low stature, anil its being 

 less liable to be injured l)y wind. The fruit was green, 

 but full, and cut the day before it was shi])ped. 



(3ne bunch wa.s packed hammock-fashion in the 

 new carrier as suggested by the inventor. The other, 

 as a supj)!emcntary experiment, was ])acked, at the 

 instance of the C<immissi<)ner, in acconlance with the 

 method adopted in the C'anaries. 'J'he latter bunch 

 was first of all wra])ped in a sheet of cotton wool, cov- 

 ■•■red with several folds of newspaper and afterwards 

 firmly packed in a light wooden crate with wood-wool. 

 ])rv grass or hay would have answered e<[ually well. 

 Jn this Condition air was excluded from the fruit but 

 the cotton wool was inteiideil to absorb moisture and 

 keejj it sweet ; while the p.icking of ])Mper and wood- 

 wool within the wooden crate prevented all possibility 

 ■of injur}- in transit. 



The Re]jort on the fruit alli'r its arriv.d in Kng- 

 land has since been kindly connuunicated by ('oui- 

 mandi'r Owen. It is as follows: — 



The two liuncliL-s of lianauas wliicli I saw at j'our ottico 

 tills aftcinoon, just in from thu West IdcIIcs, were in excel 

 lent condition. Fi-oni tlicir fre.shno.>ss and good green colour 

 they might have merely i-oine from the Canaries. The 

 bunch packed in 'Canary fashion' had a particularly fine and 

 clean ai>pearance, hut I fear the packing will be found rather 

 too hot as a general rule. Owing to a mistake in the way of 

 jilacing the hunch in the new carrier, this one was slightly 

 less good, lint what particularly ini[iresse(l me was the fact 

 that i)0th liunohes are not of the usual West Indian kind of 

 lianana (tlie (Iros ^(ichel), but are the Cliinese or Cavendish 

 banana, wliicli is tlie vaiiety imported so largely from the 



Canaries. If the Cavendish banana proves on trial to carry 

 better than the other, an impetus in the West Indian fruit 

 trade should follow, because this is the kind which is 

 preferred in the iMiglish market. 



It is possible that further trials will be made with 

 the new carrier, but special interest attaches to this 

 report as it has b-en shown that the Chinese banana, 

 so 7nuch liked in England, if jiacke 1 in a crate, will 

 carry as well from the West Indies as from the Canary 

 islands. Further, that it may b • p xssible for Birbados 

 and some of the other islaiids that are a thousand miles 

 nearer England than Jamaiwi to grow an aj»preciable 

 (piantity of the Chinese banana and start a ti-ade with 

 England. 



It is proposed to make further trial shij)ments of 

 this banana in crates in order not only to thonnighly 

 test the mvrket for this pai-ticular variety, but also to 

 arrive at a conip.irative estimate' of the profits likely t» 

 arise after jMymeni of all expenses. 



EXPLOSION ON 'PARA.' 



Ji().\UD OK TItADK IN<Jl'IUV. 



The serious explosion that ti>ok placi^ <»n board 

 R.M.S. 'Para' when at sea between Jamaica and B.iibi- 

 do.s, on November, 21 la.st, excited a goo<l deal of inter- 

 est at the tiuu-. Three lives w<-re lost, including th.it 

 of the invt'Utor, and five other persons injund. Jn 

 addition, the ship sustained seiii>us injury whenby the 

 whole of the fittings on all four deeks were wrecked, 

 incluiling the saloon and mail rooms. 



According to the report id' an Incpiiry held by the 

 Boai-d of Trade on Fid)ruary, (i, last, and recently 

 jniblished, the explosion ociairied in coiniexion with an 

 apparatus for preserving fresh t.rojtical fruit installed 

 by Lawton's Patents,' Limited. The fruit (2,000 

 bunches of bananas from .lamaifti) was enclosed in an 

 air-tight chamber su])plit'd with a gaseous mixture 

 previously sterili.se<l Ijy ])assing over red-hot coke, jniri- 

 fied and a'fterwards coi/.ed by passing through a refrigera- 

 tor. The latter w.is fitted by the Liude K.diigera tor Com- 

 pany. It is stated that 'this had nothing to do with 

 the" exjdosion. -The active ))rinciple of the g;useous 

 mixture supplied to the chamber was carbonic i.xidti 

 (CO). It is well known that ' this is .an intlanuu.ablo 



