1920.] THE TBINIDAD CANE FARMING INDUSTRY. 7 



I recommend these matters to your careful consideration, as it is just 

 as necessary for the farmer as for the large estate to make economies in 

 labour to secure greater eificiency at a reduced cost. A friendly critic 

 •writing in the Louisiana Planter for November 22nd, 1919 (which well- 

 known paper has recently I may mention recommended our cane prize 

 competitions as worthy of adoption by the Louisiana sugar planter) 

 says : " When we reflect that as a rule two men and two mules can 

 successfully cultivate 20 acres of sugar cane, which would make an 

 average of 10 acres to the single man, and counting on a cane yield in 

 the tropics, as wc should, of at least 17 tons per acre, we should have 

 170 tons of cane per man from these various farmers instead of 13 tons." 

 The average in 1919 in Trinidad on which the paper is commenting was 

 actually 12.87 tons per farmer. After referring to the value of labour 

 saving devices, i.e. ploughs and other agricultural implements the 

 Louisiana Planter concludes " these data would seemingly carry 

 conviction to the minds of those familiar with the sugar industry that 

 Trinidad has now before it immense resources that they have not yet 

 availed of with the labour that they have " 



CONCLUSION. 



I began by showing how important was the cane farming industry, 

 what great results had been achieved from the small beginning in 1884. 

 I conclude by stating that it is capable of far greater development. It 

 is at present in the main an unorganised industiy. The world is calling 

 for sugar. We are calling for labour. By improved organization and 

 better and more efficient methods we can make far better use of 

 the labour we have, and produce more sugar. These are the objects I 

 had in mind, which prompted me to venture to lay some suggestions 

 before you this afternoon. I hope you may find them worthy of 

 consideration and also that some of them can be put into practice with 

 XQutual advantage and profit to both the cane farmer and the factory. 



