August i, 1884,] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



123 



A FLURRY IN QUININE. 



The very low price at which quinine has been sold since 

 the breaking up of the combination or syndicate has pre- 

 vented any important speculative movement, and this article 

 began to be looked upon as one which, though for years 

 one of the favorite speculative articles in the drug line, 

 would henceforth be stable in value and only be affected 

 by the cost of raw material. The failure of the bark synd- 

 icate to control the markets of the world helped much to 

 lead to this more satisfactory condition of the market, 

 notwithstanding that the combination of the manufacturers 

 of quinine was formed since the attempted bark corner 

 failed. It appears, however, that the speculative mania 

 fur quinine was only slumbering, and that it required but 

 a slight stimulus to cause it to break out again in full 

 force. About a week ago some 15,000 bales of bark were 

 offered for sale on tin- Continent, which were readily dis- 

 posed of at prices showing a material gain over those pre- 

 viously realized. This was somewhat unexpected, ami as 

 the chances for an advance in quinine appeared favorable 

 to some of the old-time operators, they have started a 

 speculative boom, which in itself has tended to strengthen 

 the market, irrespective of the influence of a higher market 

 abroad for bark. Since this movement set in upwards of 

 75,000 ounces have been disposed of, mostly of later arrivals, 

 and the prices paid show that the operators have full con- 

 fidence in the future. 



It is unnecessary to enumerate all the influences that 

 are lifiely to have a beariug on the future value of quinine 

 in this in: Uet, but it must be apparent to the careful 

 observer that Hie chances for investments in a speculative 

 way proving pr stable are not more encouraging than were 

 those made during previous speculative movements. The 

 production of quinine has largely iucreased during the past 

 few years, while the consumption has increased but slightly 

 in this country, and in some other parts of the world 

 shows a falling-off ; and consequently the supplies of for- 

 eign and the offerings in this market have been very large, 

 notwithstanding the low prices that have prevailed of late. 

 The supply of quinine on hand in this and the European 

 markets is very large, and unless an increase in the de- 

 maud is developed by reason of an unhealthy season, the 

 probabilities are that a reaction will set in and the specul- 

 ators will " got left," as they have several times in the 

 past when they allowed their judgment to be influenced by 

 any temporary excitement in the market. 



The arguments of those who profess to believe in a 

 higher range of values for the ensuing summer months, 

 are principally based on the fact that the price of quinine 

 has been unusually low for some time, and that a reaction 

 must follow, especially as the market for bark is tending 

 upward. But is the market for bark tending upward? 

 True, the sales already cited show an appreciation of values, 

 but there is no indication of a further advance, and there 

 is no reason why the price of bark should be higher dur- 

 ing the summer than at present. It is well known that 

 the supply of bark in the hands of European manufact- 

 urers is ample, and the stock in London, although largely 

 of indifferent quality, is large. There certainly need be 

 no apprehension of a decrease in the production, as the 

 reports from nearly all the producing districts agree that 

 the amount available will show an increase from year to 

 year. It has also been asserted that with the present cost 

 of bark quinine cannot be manufactured and sold at a 

 profit at the prices lately ruling in this market, and that 

 an advance must therefore follow as a natural sequence. 

 This argument always causes a smile on the part of those 

 who have heard this same remark when the price of quinine 

 was twice as much as at present. Do these sanguine 

 operators know just what is the cost of the manufacture 

 of sulphate of quinine ? AV"e have heard no sound reason 

 why the price of quinine should be expected to advance 

 duriug the coming months, and we are therefore disposed 

 to look upon the present flurry as being only a repetition 

 of some of the speculative movements of the past few 

 years. — Independent Journal-. 



THAT HUSBAND OF MINE 

 Is three times the man he was before he began using 

 ""Wells' Health Renewer." Druggists. B. S. Madon & Co., 

 Bombay, General Agents. 



FURTHER NOTE ON WARAS. 



BY W. T. THI8ELTON DYEB, M.A., C,M.O., F.lt.S. 



By an odd coincidence no sooner was my note on this 

 very curious substance printed in the pages of this Journal, 

 by the obliging courtesy of the Editor, than I received a 

 further most interesting communication on the subject 

 from Major F. M. Hunter, Assistant Resident at Aden. It 

 contained a Memorandum giving the complete history of 

 the collection of the drug with a further specimen in fruit 

 of the plant producing it, the pods bearing the epidermal 

 glands still undetached. There can be now no sort of doubt 

 that the '< waras" plant is really that described by Mr. J. 

 G. Baker, F.R.S., in the ' Flora of Tropical Africa,' as 

 Fi< m uiuia rhgdocarpa. 



But my colleague, Professor Oliver, F.lt.S., whose kind- 

 ness is only equalled by his sagacity, has made the curious 

 discovery that a Flemingia apparently confined to South 

 India, F. Grahamiana, W. and A., is not specifically dis- 

 tinguishable from F. rhodocarpa ; the pods are in fact 

 clothed with the same peculiar epidermal glands so char- 

 acteristic of that species. The " waras " plant is there- 

 fore really to be found in India after all. 



In creating a new species for the " waras " plant, Mr. 

 J. G. Baker pardonably neglected the comparison of the 

 material he was working upon with specimens of the species 

 occurring in so remote and botanically widely severed an 

 area as the southern part of the Indian peninsula. 



I trust that room may be found for Major Hunter's 

 memorandum, which I append in its entirety. 



Notes on " Waras " collected at Harrar in February and 

 March, 1864. 



" In the neighbourhood of the city ' waras ' is not now 

 raised from seed sown artificially, and it is left to nature 

 to propagate the shrub in the surrounding terraced gardens. 

 The plant springs up, among jowari, coffee, etc. in bushes 

 scattered about at intervals ot several yards more or less. 

 When sown, as among the Gallas, it is planted before the 

 rains in March. If the soil be fairly good a bush bears 

 in about a year. After the berries [pods] have been plucked 

 the shrub is cut down to within six inches of the ground. 

 It springs up again after rain and bears a second time in 

 about six months, and this process is repeated every second 

 year until the tree dies. Rain destroys the berry [pod] 

 for commercial purposes, it is therefore only gathered in 

 the dry season ending about the middle of March. The 

 bush grows to a maximum height of six feet and it branches 

 close to the ground. The growth is open and the foliage 

 sparse. Each owner has a few acres of land. 



" In the middle of February, 1884, the following pro- 

 cesses were observed : — 



" The leaves [? fruiting shoots] of some plants were 

 plucked and allowed to dry in the suu for three or four 

 days. (The picking is not done carefully and a consider- 

 able quantity of the surrounding twigs, etc., is mixed with 

 the berries [pods]. The collected mass was placed on a 

 skin heaped up to about six or eight inches high and was 

 tapped gently with a short stick about half an inch thick. 

 After some time the pods were denuded of their outer 

 covering of red powder which fell through the mass on to 

 the skin. The upper portion of the heap was then cleared 

 away and the residual reddish green powder was placed 

 in a flat woven grass dish with a sloping rim of about an 

 inch high. This receptacle was agitated gent'.y and oc- 

 casionally tapped with the fingers, the result being the sub- 

 sidence of the red powder and the rising to the surface 

 of the chaffy refuse, which latter was carefully worked 

 aside to the edge of the dish and then removed by hand. 

 This winnowing was continued until little remained but 

 red powder. (No great pains are even taken to eliminate 

 all foreign matter.) A rotl was sold in 1884 tor about 13 

 i,iastres=l rupee 10 as. nearly. 



" 'AVaras ' is sent to Arabia, chiefly to Yemen and Hadhra- 

 maut, where it is used as a dye, a cosmetic and a specific 

 against cold. In order to use it, a small portion of the 

 powder is placed in one palm and moistened with water, 

 the hands are then rubbed. smartly together, producing a 

 lather of a bright gamboge colour, which is applied as 

 require'! "' — Pharmaet utical JowrnaZ, 



