II 8 MEXICO - MISCELLANEOUS 



In 1907 it rose to 19,445,564 kgs., valued at 6,581,767 pesos. Nearly all the 

 tabacco produced is manufactured in the country, and of the small quant- 

 ity exported, the greater part goes to Hamburg. The tobacco factory, 

 " Kl Buen Tono ", seems to be one of the best in the world, fitted up, as it 

 is, in the most modern style. ]More than 500 machines are daily manufac- 

 turing there from 4 to 5 millions of cigarettes of different qualities 



Maguey. — Among plants used in manufactures must be mentioned the 

 magueys (aloes) producing, according to their varieties, liquor or fibre. From 

 the maguey manso is extracted pulque, an alcohoHc drink largely consumed 

 by the people, giving a return annually of about 10,000,000 pesos; from 

 another variety of maguey is extracted mezcal, a kind of brandy, the annual 

 return from which is about 4,000,000 pesos. Among the many fibres pro- 

 duced b}'- the mexican aloes, must be mentioned especiall}^ henequen which 

 has transformed the peninsula of Yucatan, once a desert, into one of the 

 most prosperous of the State. In 1907, this fibre yielded 23,831,234 pesos. 

 We shall mention, finally, ixtle, the fibre extracted from the aloes which 

 produce pulque, mezcal etc. 



India rubber and Chicle. — The cultivation of india rubber is growing in 

 importance because of its industrial utilit}" and the favourable conditions 

 for its cultivation. Hitherto india-rubber has been extracted by primitive 

 methods from the plant in its wild state, but for the future it will be obtained 

 from special plantations now exporting from three to four milHon tons 

 a year. 



The cultivation of chide must not be forgotten ; it is a gum used as an 

 article of food, grown, more especially, in the States of Campeachy, Veracruz 

 and Quintana Roo, which produce more than two million kgs. 



Fruit. — Fruits are cultivated in infinite variety. Some among them, 

 natives of the country, such as nianeys, mangoes, the chirinwlla and the 

 gnava serve for home consumption. Apples, pears, quinces, figs etc., are also 

 cultivated, but are generally inferior to similar fruits produced in Europe. 

 Certain fruits are grown on a very large scale for exportation, especially 

 oranges of which 5,000 may be produced by one tree in certain regions, and 

 bananas, which require very little care. The making of preserves, which 

 would open new markets for fruit in Europe, has received little attention. 



3. Forest wealth. — In the great forests along the coast and on the 

 slopes of the sierras there are more than 300 varieties of trees, among 

 which the most highly valued for cabinet making and for dyeing are 

 cedar, ebony, sandal wood, rosewood, iron wood, mulberry, logwood etc.; 

 on the higher plateaux are pines, ash and chestnut trees. 



We have no exact statistics of the area of forest land ; but it is 

 calculated that, though the area, fit for sylviculture is 100,000,000 hectares, 

 the wooded regions cover only 30,000,000 of hectares. 



4. Livestock. — The conditions of a country which has about 50,000,000 

 hectares of pasture land, and which has a very mild climate are very 

 favourable for livestock improvement, especially in the colder regions. 

 Although leather and hides and goats' skins are exported to the value of 



