18 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



January 25, 1908. 



above estate during the years 1903-(i than would cover 

 the cost of the siipar-ane experiments at Barbados 

 since the}' were inaugurate ' in 1884. 



Referring to the situation i.-' regard to seedling 

 canes in the Leeward Islands, Dr. Walts makes the 

 following noteworthy statement : 'If we take the exports 

 of sugar from Antigua and St. Kitt's at appro.xim.itely 

 25,000 tons, worth £200,000, and assume that the 

 industry has benefited to the extent of only 10 per 

 cent, by the introduction of disease-resisting seedlings, 

 this would give the very rough approximation of 

 £20,000 a year as a value of the introduction of new 

 varieties of canes, a sum in excess of that spent in 

 maintaining the Imperial Department of Agriculture 

 in its entirety.' 



Following this, the Impeiial Ciai.missioner passed 

 or. to a review of the West Indian cacao industrj', 

 which comes second in importance to that of sugar, 

 the cacao exports from these colonies for the y n- 

 1905-6 being valued at about £1,500,000. 



Cacao ii^ of ])ritnary importance in Grenada, where 

 it forms practically the sole crop, as well as in Trinidad^ 

 where it is worth double the value of sugar. Duiing 

 the past five years the average value of the cacao exports 

 from Grenada reached £23fi,351 : from Trinidad, tlir 

 average annual value of the cacao shipments duii i^ 

 the same period was £907,083. The exports of car . 

 from Jamaica of late years have shown a steady increa- 

 as the result of efforts made by the Botanical Depart- 

 ment and agricultural instructors in pushing the cultiv . 

 tion. In 1905-6, the shipments were 32,587 cw i 

 having a value of £105,907 ; in tlie fulhjwing yeai- 

 (1906-7) this had advanced to 50,057 cwt., haviiig 

 a value of £190,216. Cacao cultivation is also being 

 extended at St. Lucia and Dominica. 



Sir Daniel referred hrirlly to the manurial exj)eri- 

 ments with cacao conducted by the Department at 

 Grenada, St. Lucia, and Dominica, the experiment plots 

 in some cases being adopted as centres at which Icctui'cs 

 and demonstrations are given to small cultivators in 

 remote districts. This is especially the case in Grenada, 

 in which island also experiments on a larger scale 

 are being conducted on several estates with the help 

 of the Agricultural Department. 



'I'he Imperial Commissioner next gave some particu- 

 lars with regard to the West Indian fruit industry' and 

 pointed o\it that the demand for fresh tropical fruits 

 in the European markets woidd justify greater 

 attention being paid to the production of bananas, citrus 

 liuits, etc. The value of the fruit exports from .lamaica 



in l!>0(i-7 amounted to £964,781. The only other colony 

 from which fruit is shipped in an appreciable quantity is 

 Trinidad. The value of the exports in 1906-7 was 

 £4,682. If suitable shipping facilities were available, 

 Barbados possesses excellent prospects of a valuable 

 banana industry. 



The remarkal)le extension of Sea T-land cotton 

 cullivation in the West Indies d;iring the past few 

 years, and the present piospects of that industry came 

 next for review. For the year 1908, there are 24,000 

 acres of cotton under cultivation in these colonies, as 

 compared with 4,000 acres in 1903, 11,238 acres in 

 1905, and 18,l(i6 acres in 1906. Assuming the average 

 yield of lint at 150 lb. per acre, with an average value 

 of I---. 4(/. ])er lb., Sir Daniel Morris pointed out that 

 the value of the lint and seed from the 20,000 acres now 

 under Sea Islai d cotton cultivation ^\ill not improb- 

 ably reach a value of £250,000. Also that in another 

 five years it would be safe to assume that the 

 total annual value of the cotton industry in the 

 West Indies will be a half a million sterling. Although 

 in islands like St. Vincent, Montserrat, Nevis, and 

 Tortoja, where sugar cultivation has practically disap- 

 peared, cotton is becoming a staple crop. Sir Daniel 

 em[)hasized the fact that in such islands as Barbados, 

 Antigua, St. Kitt's, and Jamaica, where sugar and cotton 

 can with advantage be cultivated on the same land, as 

 otation crops, the position of the cotton must be 

 that of a subsidiary cultivation. 



The lime juice industry and the manufacture of 

 citrate of lime were then dealt with. In Dominica, 

 which exported lime products to the value of £55.174 

 in 1906, the industrj' is of primary importance. It 

 is also valuable in Montserrat and Jamaica, and has 

 recenth' received attention in British Guiana". 



The Imperial Commissioner also gave figures 

 in illustration of the remarkable development of the 

 rice industr}' of British Guiana, and {)articulars in 

 regard to the growing and export of cocoa-nuts in 

 the West Indies, llubbcr cultivation in the West Indies 

 and in British Guiana was referred to, and it was men- 

 tioned that some thirty-three estates in Trinidad and 

 Tobago are engaged in the industry. 



Reference was made to tobacco growing in the 

 West Indies, and in conclusion the Imperial Commis- 

 sioner discu.ssed such topics of agricultural interest as 

 the distribution of economic plants from the Botanic 

 stations, Animal industries. Agriculture Loan Banks, 

 Agricultural Shows, prize-holding schemes, and agri- 

 cultural education. 



