Vol. XVII. No. 417. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEW&. 



115 



The story of the cotton boll- weevil is too well known 

 to need repetition, and that of the pink boll-worm seems 

 likely to achieve an equal notoriety. The warning, 

 however, against possible careless introduction of them 

 in chance importations of cotton seed or cotton waste 

 is worth repeating. 



From these instances it would appear that thf 

 agriculturist can never be sure that his crop is . safe 

 from ravages of epidemics, whether caused by insects, 

 fungi, bacteria, or the still unknown and therefore most 

 insidious infections such as that which produces the 

 'sereh" disease. The only plan is that of care and 

 watchfulness — care in the cultivation of the crop, and 

 watchfulness against the introduction of pests or 

 infected plants. When such epidemic diseases as 

 citrus canker and the new cane disease of Porto Hico, 

 and such a pest as the pink boll -worm exist, conipara- 

 ti\ely speaking, in the immediate neighbourhood of 

 these islands, the authorities are well advised to main- 

 tain the strictest plant quarantine. 



The greatest difficulty in these matters lies in the 

 impossibility, in the present state of knowledge, of 

 prediction. No man can say, for example, whether, if 

 citrus canker become established in these islands, it 

 would ruin the lime industry or prove to be compara- 

 tively harmless. And, conversely, it has been demon- 

 strated again and again that a disease or pest, so 

 obscure in its native country as to be unknown, may 

 in a new environment give rise to an epidemic of the 

 worst type. 



A NEW FOOD MAMMAL. 



The shortage of meat, and llie high price of fodder have 

 caused a writer in the Journal cf Ihredity, August 1917, to 

 call attention to an animal the meat of which is delicious; 

 which eats food which has hitherto not been utilized; does 

 not occupy land suitable for cultivation; and is easily tamed. 

 This is the manatee of Southern Florida, scientifically named 

 Trichechus latirostris. There are two other species of mana- 

 tee known, besides that which inhabits Florida, namely 

 T. iiuiiigiiis which frequents the Atlantic shore from Mexico 

 as far as the "JOth parallel of latitude south, and T. sciu-ga- 

 knsis which lives along the shore- ot Africa and in the 

 Indian Ocean. All three species are very similar. 



The manatee, popularly called the sea cow, is a docile, 

 easily domesticated animal, resembling a long bodied seal in 

 appearance. The animal attains a maximum length of 15 to 

 lt< feet, and old bulls weigh as miuh as .1 or i,'ton. These 

 animals breed in small lagoons, and |irodiice one or two calves 

 at a birth, the family commonly mnsiating of four — the adult 

 pair, one half-grown, and the young calf which is generally 

 born in the autumn. 



The animal is perfectly inoffensive, and unable even to 

 lesist attack. Its survival in the .struggle for existence .>eern^ 



to be due to the fact that it stays in shallow water, where it 

 is safe from enemies like sharks, and, being unable to go on 

 land, it escapes falling a prey to land carnivora. 



According to Dr. Alexander Graham Bell, these huge 

 inoffensive creatures fairly .swarmed in the rivers, bays, and 

 lagoons of Florida when it was first discovered. They grazed 

 upon the sea-weeds and water plants just as the herds of 

 buffalo grazed i <n the [irairies of the west. The flesh of the 

 manatee was much prized, and its hide and oil were both 

 valuable. It was .so easily caught that, with the increase of 

 the white population, it was threatened with extinction. 

 A protected herd still exists in the Miami River in Florida. 

 With suitable protection this herd would again increase, and 

 be made into an important food supply for Florida and the 

 world. 



There is no reason to doubt that herds could be easily 

 kept in confinement as private property in the lagoons 

 of Florida, or in other suitable places in tropical or subtropical 

 regions. It is to be remarked that in May 1907, a Bill was 

 passed by the Florida Legislature imposing a tine of .SoOO 

 for the killing of a manatee. 



The dugong, the only other genus of the order Sirenia, 

 besides the manatee, is an animal which is practically iden- 

 tical with the manatee excei>t in a few minor anatomical 

 differences; it inhabits almost the whole troi>ical region of 

 the Old World, The dugong is considered by the Malays as 

 royal food, and their chiefs are entitled to all that are taken. 



Unlike many unfamiliar meats the flesh of the manatee 

 is universally liked by everyone who has tasted it. It is 

 often compared to veal cutlets, although some have likened 

 it to lean pork or tender beei, and all agree in praising 

 Its whiteness, delicacy, and flavour. When salted it is like 

 e.itcellent bacon, and keeps well. The buccaneers of the 

 18th century were accustomed to replenish their supplies 

 by a raid on the manatees; they held the flesh in high esteem. 

 They also used the skin's for their most strenuous work, 

 including thole straps for their oars. 



The thick layer of blubber which surrounds the entire 

 body of the manatee furnishes an oil which is also of much 

 value. It is said to be odourless and practically tasteless, 

 and old writers remark that it never becomes rancid. 



Because of the unusual density, shape, and size of the 

 bones of the manatee they might be used as a substitute for 

 ivory. Th/y take a high polish without cracking, and have 

 no central cavity. For this purpose, practically the entire 

 skeleton would be available. 



With the present high price of meat, the economic 

 worth of an animal weighing perhaps A-tnn with 85 per cent, 

 of the weight available as saleable meat, is easily seen. 



The natural food of the manatee is Cymodocca mana- 

 toj-nm or manatee grass. It grows in the rivers of Florida 

 in enormous quantitie.> with stems often 4 feet long, lying 

 dormant in winter, but in summer almost filling the river. 

 Its value as forage seems to be very high on analysis, being 

 almost that of cowpea hay. Such a plant might receive 

 further investigation regarding the possibility of extended 

 cultivation. 



The writer concludes that the manatee can probably be 

 easily and profitably reared in the warm shallow waters of 

 the Southern States which are now unproductive. A manatee 

 will apparently furnish as much meat as an ox; they will 

 possibly increase as rapidly as cattle, can be more easily cared 

 for, and m«y involve less expense. Manatee breeding as a 

 commercial enterprise in the lakes and rivers where the 

 climate is warm enough looks like a profitable and feasible, 

 undertaking. 



