January i, 1884.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



5" 



"We say, thf n, aud we cannot repeat too often or too eara- 

 estly, that the planters must not play into the hands of their 

 enemies hy providing them with the means to crush them. 

 Anew hark crop is just commencing. The speculator manu- 

 facturing part of the syndicate has not yet got rid of its 

 stock of Quinine, costing high prices, and consequently there 

 is no profit made yet, but let it be the planter's care that 

 they do not provide them the sinews of war by selling 1S84 

 crop at too low rates. 



You will say, " "What are they to do ? " For obvious rea- 

 sons we will not enter, in a public letter, into au enumer- 

 ation of the steps to be taken by which even the smallest 

 planters may be delivered oat of their enemies* hands, and at 

 the same time assist in promoting an antidote to the action 

 of the syndicate ; but we have gono very thoroughly into the 

 matter with Mr. 'Felix J. Broun, of Abercairney, hini.self a 

 planter, who is proceeding to Ceylon, and who will explain the 

 position more fully to all those who are anxious to pre- 

 serve the cinchona cultivation as a source of profit to Cey- 

 lon, aud we hope some scheme may be adopted which will 

 be found workable. 



"We may say that we shall be happy to act in concert 

 with other houses who may be disposed to protect the 

 real interest of the estates they have charge of. 



Do not let any sophistry deceive you. Look at China 

 with its luuidreils of millions of people, with its rice 

 fields teeming with the germs of disease — look at India, 

 with hundreds of thousands of its natives dying needlessly, 

 when cheap Quinine would mean life to them. Look at the 

 interior of Africa ! Look at South America ! Look at the 

 United States, where every westward bound immigrant to 

 swampy virgin soils means a consumer of Quiuine. Look 

 at all the various islands in tropical climate.s — all the in- 

 habitants of such places require Quiuine, * and it is for the 

 manufacturer to see that they get it ; and once introduced, 

 and we say it advisedly, both figuratively and literally these 

 people would rather go without their shirts than without 

 their Quinine, to say nothing of the hundreds of 

 thousands of poor in our cities, who get advice, including 

 medicine for Gd or Is ; how can they get expensive 

 alkaloids like Quinine and the other alkaloids contained in 

 bark. Reduce the price to a figure which would repay 

 the cost of cultivation, shipping, manufacturing, and dis- 

 tributing, and you could then stiU sell at a price which 

 would permit all and every oL these classes and nations to 

 become purchasers, and yet people are found who talk 

 about over-production ! 



Do not accept the present state of things. Do not allow 

 any class of men to stand between you and your market. 

 Do not suffer any class of men to step in and eay as this 

 syndicate practically says to you : 



"You have produced too much bark, you must con- 

 sequently take low prices ; b".t you sh.all not reap in the 

 increased consumption of bark — which low prices of Quinine 

 would cause — the benefit of the low price of bark you are 

 forced to accept ; tor we will prevent that by keeping up 

 the price of Quinine." 



We say that is the practical language of the action of the 

 syndicate, but do not for a moment imagine that all or even a 

 majority in numbers of the members are in sympathy with 

 the action of the syndicate. There are many men among 

 them, we may say most of them, who would see with un- 

 feigned pleasure the breaking-up of this unholy alliance. 



You have no united foe to contend with, and if you are 

 united it must break up, and break up to the benefit of the 

 planters, to the benefit of the consumers, to the benefit of 

 millions who will become consumers, and lastly to the benefit 

 ot every member of the syndicate, for this movement is ruin- 

 ing their own trade. It paralyses every distributer of Quin- 

 ine who is not so foolish as to buy atTs (id Quinine which 

 by the caprice of the same people wlio put it at that 

 price, might any day be reduced to 5s, and stil yield a hand- 

 some manufacturers' profit. There is no iuduceraout to the 

 dirtributer to push the article; it is not likely he is going to 

 work hard, to .send out his travellers at great expense, on the 

 chance of getting, in out-of-tlie-way places, Is an ounce profit 

 when the caprice of the manufacturer may at any time sub- 

 ject him to 3s an ounce loss. 



This is not a question limited to today's aspect of it. If 

 we are to submit to talk of over-production today, what shall 

 we be told a few years hence 1 



* Kussia ought to have been specially meutroued, — Ed. 



"When all the immense planting of 1879, 18S0, 1881, 1882 

 produce their bark. 



MTien Java will send its millions of lb. of rich bark. 



"When South America shall send its fine cultivated Call-, 

 sayt;, growing on its native soil, aud showing already results 

 which promise wonders for the near future ; and 



When all the wild forests in South America, strengthened 

 by their years of rest during the low prices, again send fine 

 barks at small prices. 



If vou are going to sit down quietly now, what will you do 

 then? 



Why there must be at least one hundred millions of 

 people in the world who require, aud are able to pay for 

 one hundred million ounces of Quinine, annually if only the- 

 Quiuine be brought under their notice. Let the manu- 

 facturers get one tithe ot these buyers, and where will be 

 the talk of over-production ! We say nothing about the 

 consumption of the lower alkaloids contained in the bark, 

 for which lower alkaloids the manufacturers at present do 

 not pay you ; our case being already so overwhelmingly 

 strong, .and as we have already gone to such a length that 

 we fear you may not be able to find space for this letter, 

 but the subject is so important and so absorbing, that it is 

 difiicult to know when to stop ; we will therefore recapit- 

 ulate. 



Sell no bark to any member of the syndicate without yoiu: 

 interest being protected by someone who knows all the 

 bearings of the market and the requirements of the buyers, 

 and who will see that they are forced to pay a fair value. 



Consult with Jlr. Felix J. Broun, who has been able to 

 collect on the spot a very fall opinion, from varied inform- 

 ation, as to the proper course to be pursued. 



When agreed on the course to be pursued, act together 

 with the knowledge that you have the sympathies ot all the 

 consumers, ot all the London trade, and of the greater 

 number of the manufacturers themselves. 



Trusting that, notwithstanding the length, you will find 

 space for publishing this letter, we are, dear sir, yours 

 faithfully, Fraxocis. le Mair & Eiveks Hicks. 



DOMINICA AND ITS RESOURCES. 



We have received from the Kew Gardens author- 

 ities a vei-y interesting report by Dr. Alford Nicholls 

 on the rich-soiled, well-watered and heavily. tini 

 bered Layon Flats in Dominica, the largest of the 

 Leeward Islands. The island is of volcanic origin, 

 and some of its mountains rise to 5,000 feet. The 

 island is only 300 square miles in extent, and the 

 Layon and Sara Flats in the interior of the island, 

 which form the subject of the report are only 40 square 

 miles, which is greater, howevfr than the whole area 

 of the island of Nevis Dominica was once a scene of 

 prosperous cultivation ; but first the Maroon War (waged 

 by escaped negroes), then the effects of emancipation, 

 and, finally, the destruction of the coft'ee trees by an in- 

 sect blight (Cemeostoma coffedhm ) brought the island down 

 to depths of depression. The blight still affects the 

 Araliian coifee, but, according to Dr. Nicholls, the 

 Liberian species i-esists its attacks. Cacao (so Dr. 

 Nicliolls spells it) flourishes even when neglected, and 

 Dr. Nicholls mentions a red pottery clay eminently 

 suitable for "claying" the beans, liut is the clay. 

 ing process necessary ? Were a road or a tramway 

 run through the rich central flats. Dr. Nicholls states 

 there would be a mine of wealth in the fine tim- 

 bers alone, a number of which he notices including 

 the bullet-tree (Bumelia rclHsa) the trunk of which 

 sometimes attains a diameter of 7 feet, whicli means 

 21 in circumference ! Also the green-hc.ai-t (Ned- 

 audra rodicel) which is placed first class in Lloyd's 

 list of timbers for shipbuilding. Also 



Cacorier or Mo^ia dasycai-^M. — This large tree is common 

 in the forest, and its wood is most useful for house- 

 building, and for any other purpose for which timber is 

 employed. It is called in other West Indi.in countries the 

 head or necklace tree, on account ot its seeds being used for 

 personal adornment. These seeds are very hanl aud 



