VoE. XVII. No. 419. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS, 



Vj9 



It must be very satisfactory to the members of the 

 various committees to iind that their visits and advice have 

 met with cordial appreciation by the people in general, who 

 have been thereby stimulated in the increased production of 

 food. 



MANUFACTURE OF PAPER FROM 

 MEGASS. 



In the Agricultural News, December 15, 1916, attention 

 was drawn to a new process for destroying weeds in cane fields 

 by the use of paper mulches, and it was noted that the 

 erection of an auxiliary paper mill was being contemplated 

 by the Directors of the Olaa Sugar Company for the purpose 

 of making the paper needed. The Louisiana Planter, for 

 April 6, 1918, says that the manager of the Olaa plantation, 

 in his annual report to the stockholders, states that: — 



'Following a careful investigation into the practicability of 

 making a suitable mulching paper from bagasse as the raw 

 material, it was decided in December last that a small 

 auxiliary paper plant be erected alongside of the sugar 

 factory to turn out approximately 16 tons of asphalt-saturated 

 paper per day. 



'It has been demonstrated that about 50 per cent, of 

 the labour ordinarily required in the care taking of our cane 

 fields can be saved by the employment of suitable paper 

 mulches in accordance with the practice which has been 

 ■developed under Olaa conditions, and that a materially 

 increased yield can be obtained at the same time. 



'The product of the auxiliary mill will, therefore, be 

 •used primarily to meet the agricultural needs of the 

 plantation, and only a comparatively small surplus output 

 will be placed on the general market where it should find 

 A ready sale in the forms in which its manufacture will be 

 Adapted for the trade. In addition to the manufacture of 

 mulching paper for which the plant is primarily intended, it 

 will be equipped and devised so as to permit the production 

 ■of roofing and sheathing felts, tissue and wrapping paper, and 

 card and box boards. About one-tenth only of the present 

 supply of bagasse will be utilized in paper manufacture, the 

 balance of it being used as formerly, as fuel in the furnaces.' 



It is hoped to have this auxiliary plant in operation by 

 the beginning of 1919. The estimated cost of the plant is 

 $185,000. 



WEST INDIAN PRODUCTS. 



DRUGS AND SPICES ON THE LONDON 

 MARKET. 

 Mr. J. R. Jackson, A.L.S., has forwarded the fol- 

 lowing report on the London drug and spice markets 

 for the month of March 191.S: — 



The conditions of business in Mincing Lane during the 

 month of March exhibited but little or no change since 

 our report of February. The continued reduction of 

 imports of natural products, owing to the still prevailing 

 submarine menace, has had the effect of more enquiries being 

 made for synthetic products, whi. h might re.sult in lowering 

 the prices of the betttr^kuown products of nature. Purchasers 

 coniinue to show a dtsire to buy only those articles that are 

 absolutely necessary to meet their present requirements, and 



these only in limited quantities. The following are tha 

 chief details. 



<JI\GEE. 



At auction on the 14th. of the month ginger was ia 

 good demand at advanced rates. Washed, rough Cochin 

 was held at from 72j". 6r/. to 75.f. for fair to good; 10s. waa 

 asked for rough Calicut, and the same price for Sierra Leone. 

 A week later ginger was again in good supply, some 879 

 packages being offered and sold, rough washed Cochia 

 fetching 90i\ per cwt., fair to good brown. Calicut SOj^. to 

 85.V. 6(/, and limed Japan 75^. It was stated at this auctioa 

 that some sales of Jamaica had been effected at 97j". ^d- to 

 IOOj-. for common to good lemon, and llO^r. to 11.5.^. for 

 medium to good. Similar prices prevailed quite to the 

 end of the month. 



.SARSAPARILLA. 



There has been but little or no business done in thia 

 drug throughout the month. The only offerings made were 

 on the 14th., when 19 bales of grey Jamaica were offered, 

 and sold at from 4j^. to 4j-. 1^'. for fair quality. 



MACE, NUTMEGS, PIMENTO, ARROWROOT, KOLA, CAXELLA 

 ALBA, ANXATTO .SEED, LIME OIL, CITRIC ACID. 



At auction on the 21st. of the month mace was 

 represented by 78 packages, «:iich were disposed of at from 

 \d. to 2(/. per Db. advance of previous rates. Nutmegs wera. 

 also well represented by 237 packages of West Indian, whick 

 were also disposed of at similar rates. In the middle of thei 

 month it was reported that a good amount of business had. 

 been done in Pimento at from ^\d. to 'b\d. per D)., which, 

 had slightly increased towards the end of the month. 



At the beginning of the month good manufactur- 

 ing St. Vincent arrowroot was quoted at lOii/. to 

 \\d. per ft)., but later 1j-. to \s- \\d. was asked and 

 at the end of the month Ij. \\,d. was the price quoted. 

 It was reported in tlie middle of the month that kola 

 was becoming scarce. At auction on the 14th. 17 bags 

 were offered, and the whole disposed of at an advance on 

 p)evious rates of about 3 farthings per ft). The consign- 

 ment brought forward consistec' .f West Indian halves, vary- 

 ing from small to medium, and slightly mouldy: 10|(/. per ft>. 

 was the price paid. Cannella alba bark was represented at 

 auction on the 14th of the month by 10 packages, none of 

 which was disposed of. Annatto seed was also in abundant 

 supply on the 14th. of the month, with 90 packages. These 

 also failed to find buyers. West Indian distilled oil of 

 lime was sold in the middle of the month at Is. &d. to 7,f. 9cZ. 

 per ft>. and hand pressed at 21i-. Citric acid has been quoted 

 during the month at from .3.f. \ld. to 3.v. id. per ft). 



British Production of Black Pepper.— Although 

 the Dutch East Indies are by far the most important pepper- 

 producing locality of the world, Tlie Times Trade Supple- 

 moit, April 1918, points out that the Malabar coast of 

 Southern India produces a considerable portion of the article 

 impoited into the United Kingdom. In Sarawak pepper is 

 the chief crop of the country, and it is also an important, 

 article of production in the Malay Peninsula. Pepper was 

 formerly grown in Zanzibar, but its cultivation there has beea 

 abandoned The cultivation of pepper h^s not been carried 

 on in the West Indies or South America: it has been succesj- 

 fuliy tried in Trinidad, but never planted on a large scale. 

 In .Jamaica also it has been tried but did not flourish. 



