April i, 1887.] THE TROPICAL AGRICaLTURIST. 



^it 



cellulo , &c. 42-20; water, 12-41; totil, 10000. No 

 grape .^^ sugar was preseut. He adds : — " It will b,^ 

 impossible to make ordinary or cane sugar from a sub- 

 stance yielding the above results. The sugar coatained 

 in the mhowa can only be util'sed for brewing or dis- 

 tilling purposes. The flowers, 1 may add, are all male 

 flowers." 



Yet another authority writes thu3: — "When dried, 

 mhowa flowers rather resemble inferior figs. When fresh 

 they have a sweet taste, but by no mems agteeab'e 

 odour. The fruit succeeds the blossom. It is about the 

 size of a very small appie, and the kernels ciutainoil, 

 which is of an inferior colour, and rancid ti^te, but is 

 very generally used by the po )rt)r natives for lighting 

 purposes, as well as for cooking ; and it is aNo applied 

 externally a? a remedy for wounds, sores, and cutaneous 

 diseases generally." 



Lastly, I may mention that I know, from my own 

 experience, that the leaves anl fljwers, mis^^d with 

 bamboo leaves chopped straw, dry grass, dry stems 

 of maize or sorghum, nomitter hov dry, or oM, or 

 musty, forms a capital food for l>ul!o2k5 or sto.-k 

 generally, aud in seasons of scarcity, the tree will 

 withstand long continued droughts ; it should be 

 experimented up m, aud attempts should be made to 

 introduce its acclimatistation here. And this leads me 

 to my et cetera. 



Your London correspondent went too far when he 

 spoke of " five mhowa trees yielding the same amount 

 of sugar a.s an acre of sugar-cane." Nevertheless, the 

 mhowa is a very useful tree. The leaves and flowers 

 make an excellent fodder, as has ju<t been stated ; 

 the tree itself is strikingly ornamental; it will grow 

 in poor soil, and withstmd loug droughts and extreme 

 heat. It is but a type of hundreds of other trees fit 

 for "industrial culture in extra tropical countries,'' as 

 Baron von Mueller terms it. — Planter aiuL Farmer. 



DESICCATKD COCONUT. 



It used to excite our juvenile wonder when we 

 were informed as to the mauy uses to which the palm 

 was applied by Oriental nations. That one .single 

 tree should in ifca various parts have so many virtues, 

 and be capable of so many applications was almost, 

 incredible. But years have passed away since then, 

 and such wonders have ceased to astonish. Were it 

 not so the modern uses of the coconut would 

 make us open our eyps. At one time a coconut 

 was a coconut and nothing more. When its milk 

 had been extracted, and its suow-wbite kernel eaten, 

 there was an end of it, e.wept as, occasionally the 

 shell was transformed into a child's toy or a drinking 

 cup. But now these simple uses are almost too rude 

 and elementary to be mentioned at all. This v-rsittile 

 fruit performs for us so many services, and has. by 

 the ingenuity of modern civilisation, been turned to 

 such varied account, that very few, even amongst 

 intelligent and educated people, would like to be 

 compelled on the instant to pass an examination on 

 the uses of the coconut. One of the fuims in which 

 it is most pleasantly utilised is that manufactured 

 by Messrs. Linton, Hubbard and Co., 18 and 19, Red 

 Lion-square, London, W. C, whose" Desiccated Coco- 

 nut'' (" Noix de Coco" Bratid) is so largely used in 

 manufacturing and culinary purposes. The Coconut 

 Biscuits, which are so delicious, and have come into 

 such great popularity within recent years, are made 

 of this delicate and palatable preparation ; all wcll- 

 known biscuit firms use large quantities of Linton's 

 Desiccated Coconut. It is also largelv employed by 

 chocolate manufacturers, and by confectioners geu«rally 

 in the production of those charming sweetmeats 

 which have displaced to so great an extent the old- 

 fashioued lozenges and sugar-plums that used to be 

 the delight of our children. Bayond these uses, how- 

 ever, it is worth the notice of householders, refresh- 

 ment contractors, and botel-keepers, as supplj-ing the 

 material for a great variety of dainty di.shes which 

 cannot fail to be acceptable to the most fastidious 

 tastes and stomachs. By its aid, for example, we can 

 have a delicious Coconut Tart, or the most elaborate 

 Coconut Meringue Tart ; or it may take the form of a 



nutritious pudding, or custard, such as would tempt 

 the appetite of the most delicate invalid and do much 

 to supply the nourishment which such a pir.son 

 requires. Indeed the ease with which the " Noix de 

 Coco" is digested, combined wich the large amount 

 of nourishment, renders it peculiarly useful in hospitals 

 and for sick cookery every vh ere. Again, it may i. ike 

 the form of a tasty aud attractive-looking cake, or it 

 may become a speciality of the dessert-table. Woat, 

 for instance, do our readers think of this li'tler cip ? 

 " Place a layer of sliced oranges iu a deep dish, 

 sprinkled over with fine white sugar ; then a layer of 

 Noix de Coco ; alternate orange, sugar and 

 Njix de Coco, until the dish is full, heaping 

 Noix de Coco ou top. " We comjiend the idea to 

 those who may be on the look out for something 

 new aud nice whyrowith to please their guests. 

 Eiten with cream or milk the Notx de Coco form 

 a delicious dessert without any spi^cial preparation, 

 or it can be served iu a variety of ways. We have 

 indicated but vfry few. Any cook who is worth the 

 name will rea lily find by a littlo expe.imeui. mauy 

 fff ctive modes of .ealing with it, aud wilt be glad 

 to have added to her resources a m -tsrial which 

 can be so easily manipulated, and which will yield 

 so much satisfaction at the expense of so little 

 trouble. 



This Desiccated Coconut or Noix de Coco, is pre- 

 pared in various forms for manufacturing purpo-es 

 and sent out in barrels of about 200 lb. each, also in 

 56;b.,28 1b., aud 14 lb. tins. The Noix de Coco for 

 making puddings, tarts, cakes, desserts, ices, &c. ,iR 

 also put ap in very attractive, handsome decorated 

 canisters of 1 lb. ami | lb. each. Again, it is supplied 

 in pnper packages wich attractive lable in cases of 

 24 1 lb. packages or 48 |-lb. packages. 



In closing our notice, we may say that Desiccated 

 Coconut is also manufactured by several firms in 

 New York, but the resultint product lacks the pro- 

 perties of Messrs. Linton, Hubbard and Co.'s prepara- 

 tion ; as the American is badly adulterated with un- 

 wholesome compoimds, and is made principallj' from 

 rotten and stale nuts, which are bought for this 

 purpose at a cheap rate ; whereas the firm we are 

 noticing u.se only the best nuts procurable. Two 

 samples have been examined by us, aud the one of 

 E igli^h manufacture had a crisp snow-whiti appear- 

 ance and pli'asMit odour of coconu*', whi st the 

 American sample was ma dfestly disc )loureil, and as 

 manifestly not sweet. Our railway refreshment mana- 

 gers should certainly take note of Linton's Desic- 

 cated Coconut. We should state tliat this firm are 

 the only manu'^act jrers of this article in the United 

 Kingdom. — Railway Supplies' Journal. 



Successful experiments are said to have been 

 carried on in the Island of Hawaii with tea plants 

 from India and Japan, the latter variety being the 

 better ad^ipled i.o tho soil. A large lea plancaiion is 

 said to be proposed. — M. Mail. 



Laudanum -DRiNKiNfl Extraordixary. — A case of a 

 woman who had for forty years been addicted to 

 laudanum-drinking, and who consumed regularly 

 half a pint of the drug, or ton ounces, daily, was 

 reported to the Solihull Board of Guardians on 

 February 9th as having been admitted to the work- 

 house. The medical ofncer was instructed to con- 

 tinue an allowance of the drug or stop it at his 

 discretion. — themist & Druggint. 



Tea. — In a conversation with an Officer who has 

 been some 12 months in Burmah, we were surprised 

 to find that there are several Tea gardens on tho hill 

 sides between Prome and Toungoo in British 

 Burmah. They are said to have been opened up by 

 Indian Planters, and are now doing very well. Thera 

 is a fair supply of labour at a low cost, and easy 

 means of transport to Rangoon by either river or rail. 

 Notwithstanding things are so unsettled in ]5urmah, 

 maizy Englishmen are arriving in the country ready 

 to open up trade or land. Some, we hear, have already 

 hit upon » " good thing."—" Ceylon Advertiser." 



