VbL. VIII. No. 197. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



3G3 



THE SPICES OF THE TROPICS. 



The followincf abstracts are taken from a paper 

 which appeared in the Tropical Aciricvltarlst for 

 September, 1909 :— 



From remote ages the spices of the tropics havp attracted 

 traders from distant lands, and formed a lure for adventurous 

 explorers. Jlorc especially can this be said of the spices of 

 Southern Asia, as the cinnamon of Ceylon; nutmegs and 

 cloves of the Moluccas: cardamoms, ginger and pepper of 

 Southern India. Some of the ancient cities of Europe are 

 aaid to have been indebted for a large .share of their wealth 

 to the trade in tropical spices during the time of the Romans. 

 Cinnamon, which has long made the name of Ceylon famous, 

 was from the earliest times perhaps the most coveted of all 

 spices. It is mentioned in the Song of Solomon and in the 

 Book of Proverbs ; the Arabians supplied it to the f J reeks 

 and liomans, but jealousy shrouded in mystery the sources of 

 its origin and the manner of obtaining it. It is supposed 

 that the spice, being first brought from Ceylon to the Western 

 coast of India, was carried to Arabia and Egypt by African 

 and Arabian traders, linally reaching Europe after a journey 

 of very many months. Cinnamon was, for a long period, 

 a State monopoly in Ceylon, and its cultivation was not 

 declared free until 183.'^. At one time, it is said, cinnamon 

 was sold for £8 per lb., pepper at 10s. per lb., while other 

 spices commanded similar fabulous prices. As recently as 

 1880, cardamoms were sold for over 9s. per lb. In 182G, the 

 !Eiglish import duty alone on pepper was 2». 6(Z. per lb., on 

 nutmegs and mace 3.s. Qd. per tt). each, on 'cloves 5s. Ihd., 

 ivhile vanilla was taxed to the e.vtent of nearly 17s. per lb. 



For a long period, the uncultivated or wild trees of the 

 forests furnished the world's supply of spices, which were 

 consetpiently confined to the natural habitats of the plants. 

 Subsequent!}-, the spread and cultivation of spice-producing 

 plants was, for a long time, retarded by the system of Stite 

 monopoly estalilished by the Dutch in the principal spice- 

 producing countries. So severe, for instance, was the Dutch 

 censorship in regard to cinnamon in Ceylon that an infringe- 

 ment was, it is said, punishable even by death. The history 

 of cloves, nutmegs and pepper at the hands of the Dutch in 

 the ;Malay Archipelago might be told in similar language, the 

 plants being either deliberately destroyed, or their cultivation 

 enforced, to suit the circumstances. An amusing story, told 

 in this connexion, is that the Home Dutch Government once 

 despatched orders to their Colonial ( lovernor requesting him 

 to reduce the number of nutmeg trees but to increase the 

 cultivation of mace trees, being of course ignorant of the fact 

 that both spices were produced frou; the same tree. But this 

 is an error which is not uncommon even nowadays. Sir 

 Hugh Clitibrd informs us how the clove tree became extinct 

 in the islands of Tidor and Ternate by being deliberately 

 destroyed by the Dutch, in their endeavour to secure their 

 monopoly of the spice by confining the tree to Andjoyna. 

 Notwithstanding the severe restrictions of the Dutch, however, 

 the escape of the precious spice plants to other countries 

 gradually took place, both by smug.:;ling and by the agency 

 of migrating birds. Of the latter, the p'inciiial culprit was 

 a kind of pigeon, which extracted the nutmeg from its pulpy 

 covering, digested the mace, and voided the seed uninjured. 

 The French succeeded, in 1770, in introducing the clove tree 

 into Mauritius and Reunion, from whence it soon reached 

 Zanzibar, etc. A striking result of this is that the world's 

 greatest supply of cloves now conies from the.se islands, and 

 not from the native home of tlie tree, the Moluccas. Similarly, 

 Jamaica obtained ginger from India, and has long practically 

 commanded the supply of that product ; and the same may 



be said of Reunion and tlie Seychelles in regard to the 

 production of vanilla, whose native home is South America. 

 Now, with the free interchange of plants from one country 

 to another, followed by systematic methods of cultivation, 

 the sujiply of spices has increased many fold; prices have 

 been reduced so as to bring the articles within the reacli of 

 all communities, while the consumption and demand have 

 enhanced in proportion. 



Spices form one of the most important classes of vege- 

 table pioducts. Not only do they contain valuable medicinal 

 properties, but their presence renders agreeable articles of 

 food which are otherwise unpalatable. When used judiciously 

 in cooking, they aid the digestion by their effect in increasing 

 the secretion of the gastric fluids; to the confectioner they are 

 particularly essential, and are largely u.sed for his purpo.se, 

 more especially on the Continent of Europe; while in the 

 preparation of superior beverages, they are also important. 

 In medicine, certain spices, especially ginger, cardamoms, and 

 cloves, hold a very important place, and doctors also find 

 them indispensable in disgui.sing nauseoiis decoctions. The 

 antiseptic properties of spices, especially cloves, due toi their 

 volatile oils, is well known, and for preservative purposes both 

 in dome.^tic and scientiKc uses, they are often un'siirpassed. 

 The appropriateness of spices to sacred uses has long been 

 recognized, as they were always a favourite ingredient for 

 burning in incense, while in certain social customs of oriental 

 countries spices are to this day used as an emblem of happi- 

 ness. It is recorded, I believe, that spices were u.sed in the 

 funeral piles of the Egyptian Kings and that the extravagant 

 Nero burnt, at the obsequies of his wife, ' a quantity of 

 cinnanion and cassia exceeding in amount the whole importa- 

 tion into Rome for one year'. Finally, not the least virtue of 

 certain spices is their effect in sweetening the breath of 

 ]iersons who are addicted to masticating habits popularly 

 known as betel-chewing. For this purpo.se, cardamoms especi- 

 ally are e.stoemed in India and Ceylon, star-anise in China, 

 while the di.sguising effect of cloves is well known in other 

 climes. Certain authorities consider that the presence of 

 spices has a beneficial effect on climate, their volatile oils 

 acting as a preventive against mosquitos and other germ- 

 carrying insects. 



WILD IPECACUANHA AND STOCK. 



Information as to the possible poisonous effect of 

 wild ipecacuanha { Asi-lcji>ias cuncssaricit) on cattle has 

 already been given in the A<jricidturai jVews (Vol. 

 VIII, pp, 222 and 261), and a request has been made 

 for information in regard to the matter. In response 

 to this, J\Ir. E. J. F. Campbell, Superintendent of the 

 Botanic Station, Belize, British Honduras, has supplied 

 the following facts : — 



About two years ago, one of the large landowners in 

 I'ritish Honduras lost, quite suddenly, several animals (mules 

 and horses) that he had in a pasture where there was a large 

 amount of wild ipecacuanha growing. At the time of the 

 occtu'rence, a post mortem examination was made by the 

 Colonial Surgeon in the district, and this weed was found in 

 the animal's stomach. Mr. Campbell further states that 

 specimens taken from the examined animal were identified 

 by lum as Asdepias oimssavica, and that he is therefore 

 certain that this plant is a poisonous weed, and ought to be 

 killed out of stock pa.^turos. He also says that the cater- 

 pillar of Archippns (see Aijriniltural Nen's, Vol. VIII, 

 p. j(51) uses it as a f("xl plant in Honduras. 



