Vol. XVII. No. 417. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS: 



127 



place ' if using the mean of the entire area. The employment 

 of every alternate row as a control plot was not sufficient 

 to offset the variability due to soil heterogeneity. 



'(8) Computations made on the yield of orange, walnut, 

 and apple trees, for several consecutive years, showed little 

 annual fluctuation in their variability. One or two crops 

 may not show greater variability tlian the average of six or 

 seven crops.' 



WEST INDIAN PRODUCTS. 



DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOUTHERN 

 PHILIPPINES. 



The outlying territories of the I'nited States comprise 

 some rich and fertile lands, such as the Philippines, Hawaii, 

 and Porto Kico, the devolopment uf whose resources the 

 Americans have undertaken with remarkable energy. 

 Conspicuous progress has been made in the Southern Philip- 

 pines (department of Mindanao-Sulu) during the last few 

 years, according to an American Consular report,, and 

 a noteworthy development of this rich, virgin country may 

 be expected. The chief fields for investment are in the 

 production of hemp, coco-nut.s, lumber, cattle, and now 

 rubber, which has hitherto been neglected because, says the 

 report, a scientific investigator decided some years ago — 

 erroneously, it has since been proved — that the region was 

 ■not suited to thit crop. When it was decided scientifically 

 vthat rubber could not profitably be grown in Mindanao, 



* large American rubber company established its plantation 

 in the Datch Etst Indies instead. - A smaller enterprise, 

 however, persisted, and its suc:;es3 has revealed the entirely 

 erroneous character of the scientist's fijidings. The company 

 now has 7"2,0<I0 Para rubber trees gnwing on the island of 

 Basilan, of which 22,000 have come into bearing. A leiding 

 rubber e.xpert has now stated that he is favourably impressed 

 with the rubber-growing possibilities of the region. 



SEW USES KOR MANILA HE.MP. Though rubber is one of 

 the most promising plantation products of Mindanao, the 

 leading and best paying commodity at the present time is 

 Manila hemp, growers of which are realizing prices four or 

 five times those which they obtained and found profitable 

 a few years ago. The finest grades ot Davao hemp command 

 the equivalent of £175 a ton. Such hiah values are attributed 

 to war demands, reduction in the output of sisal in Yucatan 

 and German East Africa, and new uses for the finer grades 

 of hemp in the manufacture of textile fabrics. The Japanese 

 have been the foremost in developini" new uses for Manila 

 I hemp in textile manufacture, and .Japan is the leading market 



• for the finer Philippine grades. .\s the best of these are 

 produced in Mindanao, Japanese enterprise has interested 

 itself especially in that region. Japanese buyers are said to 

 be offering contracts for hemp deliveries over long periods of 

 years. 



COCO-NUTS. The position ot hemp as the leading and 

 most profitable product for the time being is due mainly to 

 war conditions, and it is felt that the coco-nut will probably 

 in due course take a leading and permanent place in the 

 agricultural development of Mindanao. Two large copra 

 crushing plants are now in operation in the Philippines; the 

 greater part of the copra, however, is shipped as such, 

 though the exports of oil are rapidly increasing. Before the 

 war Marseilles was the chief destination of the copra, but 

 San Francisco is now of greater ipiportance. .Substantial 

 and rapid development of coco-nut planting is expected in 

 Mindanao, whilst many thousan 1- <>f palms will come into 

 bearing during the next few years. (The Chuiii»r of Omi 

 tmrct Jourhal, February 191S.) 



DRUGS AND 



SPICES ON 

 MARKET. 



THE LONDON 



Mr. J. R. Jackson, A.L.S., has t'orwarded the fol- 

 lowing report on the London drug and spice markets 

 tor the month of February 191'S: — 



The condition of the produce markets for the month of 

 February shows little or no change from that which prevailed 

 throughout January, and indeed throughout the whole 

 twelve months of the previous year, due to the continued 

 shortage of iijiports from lack of tonnage, and the dangers of 

 loss on the high seas. With prices ruling high for most 

 products, the tendencies of buyers is to limit their purchases 

 only to such quintities as will meet their own immediate 

 requirements. 



ARROWROOT, TAMARINDS, AND SARSAI'AEILI.A. 



Of products that have commanded higher rates during 

 the month may be mentioned arrowroot, tamarinds, and grey 

 Jamaica sarsaparilla. Of the former there was a good supply 

 at auction on the 1-lth of the month, when good manufactur- 

 ing St. Vincent met with a ready sale at i'\d. to 9(/. per. ib. 

 A week later some 22 barrels were offered and bought in at 

 the former figure, and at the clise of the month sales were 

 effected at 9'/. to 9A(/. per B). At the beginning of the month 

 tamarinds were reported to be scarce, 65.v. to 70.s. per cwt. 

 being paid for good Barbados. At the end of the month 

 the price had advanced to 77.\'. 6(/., duty paid. The offerings 

 of sarsaparilla on the 14th of the month were as follows: 

 grey Jamaica 36 bales and Honduras (i. Of the former, 

 l-t bales were disposed of fetching 4j-. par ft). None of the 

 Honduras was sold, 3.f. 6(/. per lb. being asked for it. 



>;ISOER, I.IMK .lUICE, ASXATIO, KOLA, CITRIC ACID, 

 AND CASSIA FISTULA. 



At the last spice auction in the month, namely on 

 February 28, the quotations for Cochin and Calicut ginger 

 were from 65y. to 70j., and for .Japanese 55.1., at which prices 

 a good amount of business was done. At the first auction on 

 February 7 lime Juice was in good supply at from 3.v. 3,/. to 

 3.f. 6i/. per gallon for p.-ime, and 3j. for g(jod. At the 

 auction on the 21st of the month it was still in good supply, 

 new crop raw Jamaica being obtainable at the above figures. 

 Annatto seed was represented at auction on the 1-ith of the 

 month by SO packages, but no sales were effected. Ivola was 

 also well represented at the same sale by 189 packages, and 144 

 were disposed of at the following rates: good bright -Java 

 halves at %\d. per ft)., good bright Dominica 8.'.</.; some 95 

 packages of African, consisting of damaged and pirtly mouldy, 

 realized from "id. to 71(/., and good fair quarters, slightly 

 mouldy, \y^\d. Citric acid has been firm throughout the 

 month at 3,f. '2d. per ft). Quite at the end of the month 

 good sound Cassia Fistula pods from .Java were quoted at 

 90.f. per cwt. 



California marsh vegetation, particularly the tule plant 

 {.SiirpHS /(!tus//-/s), •ontains potash which may be somewhat 

 easily obtained by drying and burning. The ash may bo used 

 directly, or high gratle potash s.ilts may be extracted by 

 simple, inexpensive methods. Potash recovery from tule 

 may be of considerabie local importance as a source of potash 

 at times such as the present. {Bulletin., \o. 28S, Berkeley 

 College of .^.gricult'T'' Experiment Station, California.) 



