Vol. I. No. is. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



prepared by the Indians. Jlr. Andre thus describes 

 the preparation of Vdrdque: — 



YariK/ue is the fermented drink made from the ca.ssava, 

 and it is known under ditlerent names all over Guiana. 

 Ordinarily, Yariiqne is i)repared only in snfficient (juantities 

 every three or four days to meet the reiiuirenients of the 

 household. Banana leaves are idaeed on the ground in a 

 corner of the hut, and wyion these leaves the cassava, thoroughly 

 daniiied with water, is sjiread in layers. On each layer 

 a powder of a .sage-green colour is s]irinkled. This ]iowder is 

 called yarai|uer<i, and is prepared from the leaves of a plant 

 of the same name (Trcnui mivr-inllin ). The prepanition of 

 thi.s powder is simple. The leaves having been dried <in the 

 large slab, u.sed for baking cas.sava, an operation which does 

 not take long, are then reduced to powder l)y being rubbed 

 between the hands. This powder is kept in well-stopped 

 gourds, as tliere is a minute red ant which is very fond of it, 

 and will find it out wherever it may be hidden. The ma.ss 

 of damp cas.sava and yariKnth-o is then covered over with 

 banana leaves and allowed to ferment. At the end of two or 

 three days the mas.s becomes slightly .sour. In this state it 

 i.s either eaten or drunk mixed with water and cane-juice. 

 If allowed to ferment for more than three day.s, it becomes 

 intoxicating. Large (piantities of y(ira<iue are consumed 

 during the dances which form part of almost every celebra- 

 tion among the Indians. On these occasions the stuff is 

 prepared on a big scale, generally in dug-outs. 



COMPOSITION OF INDIAN CORN. 



HUSKED VER.SUS UNHUSKED COKN. 



The two followii\g analyses of samples of Indiaii corn, 

 grown in liaibados, have l>een furnisheil by ^Ir. 1!. Radclyffe 

 Hall, Acting Island Professor of Chemistry, Barbados. The 

 first column gives the percentage coni]iosition of the husked 

 corn, whilst the figures in the .second colunni refer to the 

 product obtained by grinding uj) corn and cob together, 

 often spoken of as ' corn and cob meal : — • 



The general result of experiments in various parts of the 

 world goes to show that it is advantageous to crush corn and 

 cob together for feeding j(uri)Oses. It is true that the col) 

 alone has only a comparatively low feeding value. \)v. Heiu-y 

 in Fi'i'tU aiul Feciliii/i page 22, says ' it has been suggested 

 that pure corn meal lies heavy in the animal's stomach, and 

 while in this condition is not .so readily attacked by the juices 

 of digestion. On the other hand, the particles of cob when 

 associated with the meal corn, cause the mass to be loose in 

 the stomach in condition for easy digestion.' 



MINOR INDUSTRIES AT BARBADOS. 



The following extract from the Colonial Rrport 

 on Barl><ido!< for I!)01-02 (No. 368) gives interesting 

 information with regard to the arrowroot industry of 

 the colony. Although cacao, nutmegs and spices are 

 found in the island, the general conditions are adverse 

 to their profitable cultivation on any large scale. 



-KRKOWIiOOT. 



Foremost among the minor industrie.s, apart from the 

 island sea fisheries, and what are known as ' catch cro[)s' 

 on .sugar estates, may be placed the cultivation of arrowroot. 

 This cultivation is almost entirely conrined to the parishes of 

 St. .Joseph and St. Andrew (there being only about 1 acre in 

 St. .John's jiarish), and in the first two (larishes principally 

 on the lands sloping towards the sea. On these land.s, swept 

 as they are by the .sea breezes, it apjiears to be po.ssible to 

 cultivate arrowroot with succe.ss. 



Aliout .'i.'JG acres are under arrowroot cultivation as 

 follows : — 



ParUh. 



St. Andrew's 

 St. Joseph's 

 St. John's 



Acres. 



27.J 



62 



1 



The industry is at present entirely in the hands of the 

 peasants who carrj' on the cultivation in small jilots, the 

 largest being three acres in extent on Cambridge plantation 

 in the parish of St. Andrew. 



It is difficult to arrive at the number of persons who are 

 engaged in the industry because of the smallness of the plots, 

 and because it is carried on by labourers in their spare moments 

 — early in the morning before going to work in the sugar 

 plantations and during the evening after their return. But 

 assuming that each labourer worked four days per week, that 

 is 208 days per aniuun, continuous occupation would be 

 afforded to 162 per.son.s. As a matter of fact, however, as 

 many as 700 jiersons must lie engaged in arrowroot cultiva- 

 tion, most of them as already stated, during their s]iare time. 



The greater part of the arrowroot made in Barbados is 

 sold in the country districts by what are locally known as 

 'starch sellers.' These sellers are either the jiroducers 

 themselves or are pers(jns who buy the arrowroot and retail 

 it. The annual yield is about 2,700 barrels, and the value, 

 at the low price of 9.s. per 100 ft., about £5,000. 



Most of the imported arrowroot comes from St. Vincent 

 and is .sold in Bridgetown. As there is an imiiort duty of 

 2s. 6(/. per 100 It)., to whi<-li must l>e added the cost of freight 

 and the middleman's commission, there is still room for the 

 local expansion of the island product apart from the po.ssi- 

 bility of making it an article of export. Before exportation 

 can take place there must be considerable imi>rovement in 

 mainifacture by the erection of suitable factories provided 

 with modern ai>pliances. 



c.\c.\o. 



There are a few cacao trees here and there, Init judging 

 from their ap[iearance it is unlikely that cacao growing can 

 ever assume any importance in Barbados. Both soil and 

 climate appear to be unsuitable. 



NUTMECS AND SPICES. 



I have seen nutmeg trees growing well in gullies and 

 ravines but there is no sy.stematic cultivation, and it is 

 doubtful whether suitable areas, sufficiently large, could be 

 oljtained to admit of cultivation being conducted on a 

 conuuercial scale. 



