THE ALUMNI JOURNAL. 



57 



to-day. This change has been wrought 

 by cultivation, and the cultivated bark 

 has now all but put a stop to the collec- 

 tion of the wild article, the latter with 

 rare exception, not being able to com- 

 mand a price suflScient to cover expense 

 of collection and shipment. But at the 

 time when the price declined heavily un- 

 der the influence of great shipments of 

 cultivated barks, enormous stocks of the 

 wild barks were still held in the com- 

 mercial centres, particularly in London. 

 Their holders instead of forcing them 

 upon the market, even at the heavy loss 

 which would have been involved, were 

 short-sighted enough to look for better 

 days and a later recovery in prices, and 

 so held on. But this opportunity never 

 came; the price sank lower and lower, 

 until at the present time only a few cents 

 a pound can be obtained for these barks, 

 many of which cost a dollar or even 

 more, and even at this nominal figure 

 they can only be gradually marketed, a 

 few dozen bales at each bark sale. The 

 total stock of such barks now held must 

 be somewhere in the neighborhood of 

 1.500 tons, and includes the Cuprea, 

 Pitaya, soft Colombian and Cartliagena; 

 the hard Colombian or Maracaibo, in 

 spite of its almost worthless character, is 

 so fortunate as to present a handsome 

 appearance, that it still commands a 

 moderate and steady sale. Not only 

 have the original stocks of this variety 

 been entirely' exhausted, but large col- 

 lections are occasionally made and easily 

 marketed. All of these varieties, with 

 various others which represent what may 

 be called the modern barks are here on 

 exhibition, and all of them were taken 

 from samples actually placed on sale 

 during the past summer. 



I cannot close my remarks without 

 making a brief reference to the Meacham 

 Drug Farms, the visiting of which had 

 been a dream of anticipation with me for 

 many years. Although I was able to 

 devote but a single day to my observa- 

 tions there, yet I saw a great deal which 

 interested me deeply. The formation is 

 chalky, which the cultivators claim is an 



important element of success in the culti- 

 vation of still-drugs. This view seems 

 to conform fairly well with the well- 

 known principle that arid conditions fa- 

 vor the development of volatile oils. The 

 section which I visited about Wallington is 

 almost entirely devoted to the peppermint 

 cultivation. Formerly it was a famous 

 spot for the cultivation and distillation 

 of lavender, but a blight which made its 

 appearance some years ago has rendered 

 the successful cultivation of this crop 

 almost impossible, so that I saw but a 

 single field of anj^ considerable extent. 

 This field, however, seemed at the time 

 of my visit to be in a most flourishing 

 condition — it was in full bloom and cut- 

 ting was in progress. A sample which 

 I brought with me is here exhibited. 

 Small fields of thyme and chamomile 

 were also observed ; but, as I stated, the 

 cultivation ot peppermint was almost the 

 exclusive interest. The soil in which the 

 latter is cultivated is not at all wet. 

 Peppermint is propagated entirely by 

 cuttings which are planted in beds some 

 four or five feet broad with furrows be- 

 tween. The bed is occupied completely 

 by the peppermint, no order whatever 

 being observed in the disposition of the 

 plants. This also was in process of cut- 

 ting at the time of ray visit in early Au- 

 gust. The sample taken which is here 

 exhibited is less than half the ordinary 

 length and robustness, owing to the ex- 

 treme drouth. 



The cultivators of the plant do not them- 

 selves do the distilling, which is a sepa- 

 rate industry. In some cases the owners 

 of the stills purchase the crop from the 

 farmers and distil it in their own interest, 

 but ordinarih^ the crop is brought to them 

 by the owner, and distilled for a toll or a 

 fee, and the product returned to them 

 after di.stillation bv the owner of the still. 

 The native distillers, at the time of my 

 visit, were in quite a state of excitement 

 and indignation over the fact that certain 

 Frenchmen representing a syndicate had 

 appeared in the drug region and threat- 

 ened, by purchasing the standing crops, 

 to deprive the former of their industry. 



