Vol. IX. No. 222. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



343 



The factors which affect the situation from the side of 

 supply and demand, with special reference to the position of 

 the Lancashire cotton industry, have been investigated by 

 ^r. J. A. Todd, Lecturer on Political Economy, Khedivial 

 School of Law, Cairo. He states that 'the falling yield of 

 recent years has raised the price to a figure which threatens 

 the special market of Egj'ptian cotton with serious American 

 competition. . . For the middle-class fabrics which form a large 

 part of the trade the manufacturers are being compelled by 

 the high price of Egyptian to substitute American whenever pos- 

 sible. . . . Spinners are beginning to devise machinery to adapt 

 American cotton to the products for which Egyptian cotton 

 has always been used. ... If by any chance the quality of the 

 Egyptian crop deteriorates as feriously as the quantity has 

 done, nothing will save the Egyptian from a fall in price to 

 something little above that of the American. Egypt can 

 never reach America in quantity, so that this price means to 

 Egypt the ruin of her staple industry.' (Ej-trait de I'Egypte 

 ConteitqMirtine, Tome I, pages 277-80.) 



THE WEST INDIES AND THE CANADIAN 

 EXHIBITIONS, 1910. 



Most of the information in the following article, which 

 presents an account of the recent Canadian Exhibitions, in 

 their special relation to the West Indies, has been supplied by 

 Mr. W. X. .Sands, the representative of the Imperial Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture at those exhibitions. 



THE TouoNTo EXHimTio.N. The National Exhibition at 

 Toronto was open from August 29 to September 10, and was 

 attended by 800,000 persons. The West Indian court was 

 placed in the large agricultural hall in the exhibition grounds, 

 where it occupied the whole of one wing, covering a space of 

 2,400 feet. It is a matter of interest that the rent of this 

 space, which was granted free, would have been about £.500, 

 had it been obtained on the terms given to ordinary, 

 commercial exhibitors. The exhibits from the islands and 

 British Guiana were placed on a structure built on turned 

 wooden columns, surmounted by a plain cornice, and painted 

 white and green. The stands for the exhibits, which were 

 of different shapes and sizes, suited to the uses for which 

 they were required, were painted white, and draped with 

 green burlap. The exhibits were arranged on these in 

 tiers, as far as possible. Loans of live plants to provide 

 decorative material were made, to a great extent, by the 

 Exhibition Authorities, and the rest of this was provided by 

 some of the colonies, more especially Jamaica. It is not 

 likely that any great future increase in the amount of such 

 material provided by the colonies will be possible, on account 

 of the high cost of its carriage to Canada. 



Jamaica sent the largest exhibit; this occupied about 

 one-third of the court. The main exhibits consisted of 

 economic plants in flower and fruit; jippi-jappa hats in all 

 stages of manufacture, with specimens of the straw from 

 which they are made, and an example of the growing plant 

 (Ij'arludooira jcDiiaicensis) which provides this; cigars and 

 tobacco; sugars, molasses and rum; cacao; coffee; fruit.s, includ- 

 ing bananas; spices; curios, including seed work and lace 

 bark; and a large number of photographic views of the island. 



The exhibits from Barbados included chiefly sugars, 

 molasses and rum; cotton and cotton-seed oil; manjak; yams 

 and sweet potatos; and photographic views of the island and 

 of its main industries. 



From Antigua there were sent sugars and molasses: 

 cotton and cotton-seed; lime juice; seed work and other exhib- 

 its of less importance. Unfortunately, many of the exhibits 

 from this islantl were spoiled while in transit, owing to the 

 breakage of packages in the cases. 



The island of Montserrat sent chiefly limes, including 

 samples for distribution; lime juice; otto of limes and distilled 

 lime oil; preserves; cotton Imt and seed-cotton; and lemon 

 grass oil. 



The exhibits from St. Kitts-Xevis and the Virgin Islands 

 intended for the Toronto Exhibition did not reach their 

 destination on account of the fact that they were not 

 labelled adequate!}-. They were therefore sent to the Domin- 

 ion Exhibition at St. John. 



Accounts of the exhibits from Trinidad, St. Vincent and 

 the Virgin Islands, and from St. Lucia, appeared on pages 

 291 and 318, respectively, of the current volume of t]iB Agri- 

 cultural News, to which reference is made. 



Chief among the material sent from British Guiana were 

 sugars, molasses, molascuit and rum; rices; citrus fruits; cacao; 

 coffee; green-heart logs and specimen blocks of other timbers 

 such as mahogany, mora, purple heart; balata; confectionery; 

 and a large map of the colony. 



THE ST. JOHN EXHIBITION. The attendance at the 

 Dominion Exhibition at St. .John was 124,000, and it was 

 open from September .5 to 1-5. The AVest Indian court at 

 this exhibition occupied a space of 900 square feet on the 

 upper floor of the main exhibition building. Its arrangement 

 was somewhat similar to that of the one in Toronto, but it was 

 not so elaborate and there was much less decorative material. 



Barbados, Antigua, Jlontserrat, St. Lucia, St. Vincent 

 and British Guiana sent what were practically duplicate 

 .sets of the exhibits that were forwarded by them to Toronto. 

 There were, in addition, an exhibit from Dominica, and those 

 from St. Kilts-Xevis and the Virgin Islands which did not 

 arrive at Toronto, as has been explained already. 



The Dominica exhibits included chiefly limes, lime juice, 

 otto of limes and distilled oil of lime; other citrus fruits; 

 mangos; cacao; coffee; spices; starches; and Carib baskets. 



The material sent from St. Kitts-Xevis was composed 

 mainly of sugar, molasses and rum; preserves: pickles; and 

 cotton seed meal and cotton cakes. 



Dealing with the exhibitions generally, it may be said 

 that great interest was evinced at Toronto in the e.xhibits 

 from the West Indies, which were considered to form one of 

 the most instructive features of the exhibition, .so that the 

 court was thronged continually. The various handbooks 

 that were distributed, including The West Indies in Canad'i, 

 I'-llO, published by the Inqierial Department of Agriculture, 

 filled a very useful purpose. On the whole, the e.xhibition 

 was eminently successful: while that at St. John, although it 

 was on a smaller scale, was of considerable interest. 



A communication from Messrs. Pickford and Black, to 

 the Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture, shows that the 

 following awards were obtained at the Toronto Exhibition by 

 the ^Vest Indies; — 



BAEB.^Dos. Gold Medal and Diploma, Permanent Exhibi- 

 tion Committee. Diplomas, Mount Gay Plantation, Local 

 Department of Agriculture and Mr. C. Y. Simpson. 



AXTii;u.\. Gold Medal and Diploma, Permanent E.xhibi- 

 tion Committee. Diplomas, .\ntigua Cotton Company, Messrs. 

 G. W. Bennett, Bryson A Co., Mac. Donalds it Co., and the 

 Antigua Sugar Factory. 



MONTSERRAT. Gold Medal and Diploma, Permanent 

 Exhibition Committee. Diploma, Montserrat Preserving 

 Company. 



ST. LUCIA. Gold Medal and Diploma, Permanent Exhibi- 

 tion Committee. Diploma, St. Lucia Agricultural Society. 



ST. VINCENT. Gold Medal and Diploma, Permanent 

 Exhibition Committee. Diplomas, Messrs. C. J. Simmons, 

 11. Hay ward, P. F. Huggins, C. A. Hadley, Mc.Monald Bros., 

 and J. H. Hazell, Son ifc Co. 



