'Vol. V. No. 100. 



THE AGR[CULTURAL NEWS. 



G.3 



WEST INDIAN PRODUCTS. 



Drugs and Spices in the London Market. 



The following report on the London drug and spice 

 market for the month of December 190.5, has been 

 received from Mr. J. R. Jackson, A.L.S. : — 



Signs of tlie approach of Christmas and the attendant 

 holidays begin to show themselves at a much earlier date at 

 the present time than they did of old. Almost before 

 November is out, preparations for the festive season are 

 -apparent, and even in Mincing Lane its effects begin to be 

 felt by a decreasing trade activity at the beginning of 

 December, further declining as tlie month advances. 



The turmoil of a general election, which is on the eve of 

 taking place at the time of writing, has also had the effect of 

 ■diverting men's minds from business to politics, so that tlie 

 results of the December markets have been of a quiet, if not, 

 .«, dull character. 



The princii>al items of interest in West Indian products 

 :are as follows : — 



GINGER. 



In this article there has been but little business doing in 

 •tiny kind, and especially in Jamaica. At the auction on 

 December 6, only 23 barrels of Jamaica were offered, all of 

 •which were bought in at 46s. for middling. About 700 

 imckages of Cochin and Calicut were catalogued, but only 100 

 were disposed of at steady rates, including bright, plump, 

 washed Cochin at 23s. 6rf., and some private deals in fair 

 washed Cochin at 21s. On the 13th., only 1 barrel of Jamaica 

 was offered and disposed of at 31s. for ordinary small. No 

 ginger of anj' description was offered on either of the two 

 ■concluding sales on the 20th., and 27th. 



KUTMEGS, MACE AND PIMENTO. 



Of nutmegs, at the first sale on the 6th., out of some 290 

 packages of West Indian offered, 258 met with purchasers ; 

 the smaller sizes being at a slight advance and the larger at 

 a slight decrease on previous prices. A week later, the sales 

 were unimportant and no alteration took place at the con- 

 ■cluding sales. !Mace was in small demand, and was sold at 

 ordinary rates throughout the month. Pimento, at the first 

 sale on the 6th., was sold at 2§(Z. to '2hd. per lb., and at 

 ■succeeding auctions no change occurred. 



ARROWROOT. 



At the beginning of the month it was stated that there 

 was every possibility of this article becoming dearer, that 

 the stock of good manufacturing St. Vincent in London was 

 small, and that the arrivals in any quantity were not 

 expected till February or Itarch. At the sale on the 6th., 

 out of 132 barrels of St. Vincent offered, about one-half was 

 sold at 2gd per lb. In the week following, the price had 

 altered to 2rf., and on the 20th., 160 barrels of St. Vincent 

 were offered and bought in at 21(1. per K). 



•S.^ESAPAEILLA. 



This article continues to be scarce, and at the drug 

 sale on December 14 it was reported that there were no 

 Lima or Jamaica on the spot, the nominal price for the 

 former being quoted at Is. 7d., and for the latter Is. 9(/. On 

 the 21st., an arrival of 21 bales of Vera Cruz was announced, 

 the spot price being 5|rf. to 6d.; Is. 10(7. being quoted for 

 ^rey Jamaica, and Is. to 1«. 3d. for native red. 



LIME JUICE, OIL OF LIME, KOLA, AND TAMARINDS. 



The only other West Indian products brought forward 

 during the month were: at the first sale, 22 puncheons of low, 



brown, raw West Indian lime juice, which sold without 

 reserve at 4c/. per gallon ; 9(/. being asked for fair pale 

 Antigua. For 6 cases of distilled West Indian oil of lime 

 Is. id. per lb. was paid, and for good. Is. od. For kola 3ld. 

 per lb. was paid for good bright Ceylon, and 3j(/. for 

 Grenada. Tamarinds of good quality were reported scarce. 

 Fine new Barbados in bond realized 18s. per cwt. Three 

 barrels of fair St. Kitt's .sold without reserve at 9.<!. duty 

 paid, while 48 casks of common black East Indian were 

 bought in at 7s. 



CHILLIES. 



In connexion with the possible future cultivation of 

 chillies in the West Indies, the following note on the Africau 

 trade in these fruits may be of interest. The exports from 

 Uganda (which are said to be made chiefly from Busoga) are 

 very largely on the increase, their value having risen from 

 £54 in 1903 to £4,383 in 1904. This rapidily increasing 

 business has been the means of inducing the people to take 

 up the cultivation of the plant which grows wild in the 

 country. At a recent auction for bright j-ellowish Nyasaland, 

 30s. 6(i. per cwt. was paid, and 31s. to 32s. for fine red 

 East Coast African; some red and yellow partly perished 

 Mombasa realizing 24s. 6(/., while a few fine red Mombasa, 

 capsicums were disposed of at 50s. per cwt. 



JAMAICA RUM. 



In a previous number of the Agricultural News 

 (Vol. Ill, p. 428), it was noted that the Government of 

 Jamaica had appointed Mr. J. C. Nolan as its special Com- 

 missioner to undertake the prosecution of offences under the 

 Merchandise ilarks Act, so far as such Act applied to 

 Jamaica rum. 



The London Daily Telegraph, for January 12, 1906, 

 under the heading ' London Police Courts,' gives an account 

 of a case tried at the Guildhall, in which a prosecution was 

 instituted by Mr. Nolan against a dealer in wines and spirits, 

 for selling a gallon of sjjirit, not Jamaica rum, to which 

 a false trade description, viz., ' Jamaica Rum,' was applied, 

 contrary to the Jlerchandise Marks Act, 1887. 



The prosecution pointed out that the excellent reputation 

 of .Tamaica rum, and the great demand for it, furnished an 

 incentive to supply an inferior spirit which was neither distilled 

 in Jamaica, nor made from the products i:>f the sugar-cane. 



It was not suggested that in this case deliberate fraud 

 was intended, but rather that there was gross carelessness 

 on somebody's part. 



This was the first prosecution, and it was hoped that the 

 trade w-ould recognize the determination of the Jamaica 

 Government to put a stop to the sale of the spurious spirit, 

 and be careful to supply nothing but pure Jamaica when 

 it was asked for. It was stated that the competition between 

 the 'silent spirit' and .lamaica rum has been so keen in the 

 five years past, that the number of distilleries in Jamaica has 

 decreased from 150 to 108. 



The defendant, who carried i>n an extensive busines.% 

 gave a)i undertaking to be more cautious than ever in 

 future. 



The Alderman, Sir Joseph Savnury, said it certainly was 

 a most important case, particularly to the colony from which 

 Jamaica rum was exported. It had been urged in mitigation 

 that the defendant carried on a large trade. His view was 

 that large traders were able to do the most mischief, and 

 should take proportionate care. But, as they had heard, this 

 was the first case of the kind, and in the hope that others 

 would take waining by it, he imposed a fine of 5s. and 

 £18 8s. costs. 



