SEPTEirnER I, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



215 



the meilivim ot uuy professional seed collector or com- 

 missioned ageui, and as solely a business transaction; though 

 not here at all, meaning to imply that those by whom I 

 notice it stated to have thus been procureil at all doubt 

 the merit of the supplies, that they have thus received : 

 however, it is a point opcu to discussion, and it will be 

 interesting to receive further evidence of how far I am 

 right or wi'ong in my opinion. It is true there are now 

 in Bolivia large plantations of trees of llie best varieties, 

 of a sufficient age to yield seed ; but it unfortunately is 

 etpially true that the Bolivians are still jealous of the 

 monopoly ; and that tlie adjoining forests teem with allied 

 but worthless Irinds. This brings nic to another point it 

 vvoulil be interesting to have some more light thrown on ! 

 I am under the impression that in another and fuller 

 report of the same meeting "Zamba Morada" and " Naran- 

 jada" are characterised as varieties of calisaya; and I notice 

 that Mr. Owen (T. vi. Jidyp. 35) thus represents them :— 

 "There are I believe several sorts of calisaya distinguished 

 in Bolivia, by the red or yellow ift the leaves and midrili, 

 or by the green of the leaf, such as Morada, Zamba Morada, 

 Roja, Naranjada, and Calisaya Verde." Maridiam iu his 

 work " Peruvian Bark" writes thus : — "Morada Naranjada, 

 (Cinchona Ovate, var. a vu/i/(iris AVedd.) Zamba Morada, 

 (the B. rufiuervis variety of C. Ovata), the bark of the 

 B. rufinervis variety is habitually used to adulterate the 

 calisaya which it very closely resembles, aud is called 

 Zamba Morada by the Cascarilleros." Of course these 

 remarks refer to Ovata, a quite district and virtu- 

 ally worthless kind. Though the incident is a curious 

 one, there are both "Zamba Marada," aud "Naranjada" 

 C(rftsu?/« ! and '• Zamba Morada " and " Navaujada " Uratas 

 — this is evidently conclusively shewn by the fact, chron- 

 icled in the same number ot the Tropical Ai/zicidturist, 

 that the Indian Government have purchased several ounces 

 of "Calisaja Zamba Morada, clean seed." To doubt it, un- 

 less the J/m/jns Jfiiii is responsible for having mistakeidy 

 inserted the word "Calisaya," is to question the professional 

 understanding ot tbe learned heads of the Indian cinchona 

 departments, which forbid ns. Should though by any chance 

 a mi.sprint for " Ovata " have been made it would be very 

 interesting to know what object tlie Indian Government 

 c:in have "had iu procmiug it ; unless for stock plants for 

 grafting f and, if so, for the purity of the better kinds alreaily 

 established there, it is surely to be hoped that these Ovatas 

 wjll be reduced before blossoming? 



■\\'ith regard to Calisaya Verde, Markham gives the fol- 

 lowing;— " Gironda and Martinez told me, that there were 

 three kinds of Calisaya trees: ii.imely Calisaya Jiiia, Murada 

 and / \rdc. They added, that the latter was a very large tree 

 mthout any red colour in the veins of the leaves." Now, 

 coupled with, I think, the fact, that all other Calisaj'as 

 leeognized as ///•t'*:»-/(fv/>(^ varieties invariably support their 

 discription by a marked absence of color iu the leaf, it is 

 ditticuit to reconcile the above account of Calisaya Verf/e 

 with plants of the sort recently introduced ; which accord- 

 ing to Mr. Owen, and a writer from Dinibula ;— and in fact 

 I can endoise what is said from the appearance of plants 

 I have myself seeit, raised from seed purchased as Cali,sai;a 

 Verde, — have come up of quite a variety of different types 

 both as to shape and size of leaf and color, )■(■(/, yreen and 

 yellow iiitermiiit/lid leith pvrple. It certainly jiuzzled me, 

 bow specimens of LedAjcriitna cam e to be found amongst 

 Calisaja Moradas; but that there mu.st be some .slight mis- 

 take has apparently been already ably shewn by Dr. Trimen. 

 What though 1 still less can understand, is why it shoukl 

 be desired to associate the latter (Calisaya Morada) or Ca I i- 

 sar/a I'erde, with, and as it were draw credit to either from, 

 Ledi/eriana'. Considering that, not only is Calisaya Mo'ada 

 regarded in Bolivia as by far the richest bark, and altogether 

 must valuable variety, but that, as pointed out by Mr. 

 Owen, Markham himself saw a specimen that at about a 

 year old, was seven feet bigh, and six and-a-half inches 

 round the trunk,' — a gr'owth no Ledr/eriana has, or ever 

 will be known to equal, — I personally .should prefer clainr- 

 ing for it a quite distinct individuality. As the finest riii- 

 chuiia kiioien, Cttlisai/a 1'iide, may be better adapted to the 

 very low elevations, and of even finer growth, but the bark 

 though good is according to all accounts, much inferior; 

 and such a growth as Markham from personal observation 

 de.si; .bcs is surely good enough to sati.sty any one. He 

 speaks of Calisaya Morada as being just of a shade darker 



green in the leaf than calisaya fina, with crimson veins 

 and in one locality, the leaves are said to become quite a 

 bright purple all over the imderside. Apart from the fact 

 that I am told, it comes from ' oiiD of the best plantations,' 

 the plants from my seed both iu growth and otherwise wouhl 

 seem so far to arswer well to the di.scription given. And 

 that they are really highly thought of by good authorities, 

 I must suppose, not only from the expression of his opi- 

 nion, but that the largest holder (whose right to be regarded 

 us a good judge of cinchona I think no one here woidd at- 

 tempt to question) has already secured in advance on my 

 own terms— terms I am quite satisfied with — possibly .ill 

 that will next come to hand. Equally favorable accounts 

 has reached me, too, from India, the jilants having been 

 sold individually at a price which on a moderately large 

 scale would at once amount to a small fortune ; one I fancy 

 a good few men at the present time would be glad to 

 retire on. At least, speaking for myself ; though entertaiu- 

 ing an entirely hopeful new of the island's future — for 

 I quite belive what Mr. Tytler was right in sayhig " U was 



t tot yet 9 a. m. here!" I don't sec how this can be doubted, 

 vith the immense new field for enterprise now offering, 

 under the most favorable circumstances conceivable regard- 

 ing new products — if even you limit these to cinchona, 

 cocoa and tea ? This is to say nothing against coffee ; but 

 it would be out of place meanwhile to predict a further 

 development of the resources of the country from it, how- 

 e\er fully it may in tbe future add its quota, in view of 

 the entu-e cessation of extensions as regards I fear both 

 varieties; and in spite of the encouraging results apparently 

 still to be obtained by judicious cultivation. As regards 

 Liberian coffee, spealdng from a case under my notice, tiiero 

 cannot be a doubt about it, both as to quantity and quality ; 

 and this at but a light additional outlay. 0. E. 



P. S.— Since writing the above I have been shown a 

 letter received from a seed merchant at home, in which he 

 offer two kinds of Calisaya ; one said to yield 8 per cent 

 Hulph. Quinine, and the other more : names not given, but 

 they are stated to be from the s imc esteite in Bolivia that 

 Ledyeriana came fro,»l So that after all the species as first 

 introduced by liCdger is the scion of cultivated trees, ob- 

 tained by him from a known estate. This throws a new 

 light on the recent controver.sy. Dr. Trimen, after this, will 

 no doubt fain heave a saddening sigh over the faded 

 beauties of the banks of the " IMamore " — though Mr. Moens' 

 indignant denial needs no conjecture ! But what in the 

 balance are their opinion.^ — though we here choose to value 

 them — with those of our great scientific experts at home? 

 I speak of men in the position of Messrs. Howard and 

 Holmes, unless it be on the oft jiroved circumstance in 

 connection with other branches of natural scicnc(\ that 

 " closet proft ssors " (though a vast amount of \alnabie in- 

 formation must 1)0 of course accredited to them) have, 

 times out of the mmiber,been shown to be absolutely wrong 

 in their conclusions by '' field naturalists," be it as it may 

 or may not be less scientific, but who, and as keen ob- 

 servers, have had the opportunity of studying ther subject, 

 in full life and development, in its native, or accepted home. 

 One feels constrained to speak with bated breath; hut 

 may it not be just possible, that this as a fart may find 

 support, as with other ologies — also regarding cinchona ? 

 When speaking of " closet profes.sors " I simply mean home 

 authorities who, though — as no one can gsinsay theireiithnsi- 

 asm — doubtless eagerly enough longing for it, have not tho 

 oiiportunity of sturlying from life save in a " hot-houso " or 

 "menagerie"! I don't mean to say if you sent them a 

 leperesed coffee leaf whole trees and patches are occasionally 

 to be met covered with, they would class it as "variegated 

 laurel"; but I do think it proliable from all I have read 

 lately, and before on cinchona, they would be as likely as not 

 to seize on it as new aud interesting .species. For instance, 

 1 see noticed in several papers, as another kind of Caiis.'iya 

 Morada, " C. Morada J'cli'ta.^^ I feel sure that in Bolivia 

 not more than one kind of " Calisaya Morada '' is recognised 

 by planters there, or a distinction made on slight variations 

 in babit and leaf that may occm- — .any more than in the 

 case of Ledgerianaamong.st practical men here, in India, or 

 Java — Calisaya Morada I Calisaya Morada ! — Ledgeriaua T 

 Ledgeriana ! . C. E. 



[This lengthy, somewhat obscure, and at the end wild, 

 letter is really an advertisement, to the effect that although 

 seed merchants pretend to be able to obtain cinchoiui seed 



