75 



and printing purposes generally. It is quite equal to any prepared 

 from Esparto grass or rags, and has the merit of receiving a very 

 clear impression from the printer. Owing to the freight upon the 

 raw material being charged upon the space occupied and not on the 

 weight, the expense of carriage is so high as to bu almost prohibitive. 

 One ton of Zizania straw occupies about 6 tons of space, so that 

 commercially regarded Zizania in a raw state is too bulky for 

 importation with a view to profit. 



To get over this difiiculty a company was started in Canada (1874) 

 for the purpose of reducing the material to '' half -stuff " in which 

 state it can be exported to England at a profit to both the company 

 and the manufacturer. The company has obtained the concession 

 of the whole of the province of Ontario, the only one in which 

 the plant grows to any great extent. One hundred thousand 

 (100,000) tons of the material are assured annually, and it is said, 

 as the plant is a natural production, and the cutting is to be 

 effected by a machine that will improve rather than injure the 

 growth, that there is little chance of there being any diminution 

 in the quantity procurable. 



The density of a Zizania grove is so great that the natives 

 frequently fly to it as a place of shelter in times of peril, but 

 sometimes the growth is so thick that the canoes cannot penetrate 

 it. 



From the foregoing description it will be seen that the plant is of 

 more than ordinary value as a subject for acclimatisation in 

 Tasmania. It is one that if fairly introduced would continue to 

 perpetuate itself, as being a water plant it would not be liable to 

 be destroyed by browsing animals. From the fact, too, of the 

 harvest being of such short duration, a considerable portion of the 

 seed would naturally fall into the water and escape being destroyed 

 by water fowl, and thus its perpetuation would be assured. But 

 during the first stages of acclimatisation care should be taken to 

 sow the seed in situations not subject to the visitation of water 

 fowl nor liable to the browsing of animals, as in such situations 

 the chances of success would, of course, be greater if both seed and 

 plants remained for some time unmolested. 



In a colony like Tasmania, so destitute of natural grain 

 producing plants, the introduction of the Zizania would probably be 

 of great future benefit, for not only would it tend to materially 

 increase the amount of natural game, but would also produce an 

 abundance of wholesome, nutritious food, which would be of great 

 assistance to parties exploring in the interior of the colony ; as at 

 certain seasons they would be able to stow the grain for future use. 



In missionary and other expeditions in Canada the Zizania 

 frequently forms the principal support of the whole party, and it 

 is spoken of by all who have partaken of it as being not only 

 very nutritious but as being highly agreeable to the taste. 



The plant is regarded as being very hardy, being subject to 

 great vicissitudes of climate in its native country, so much so that 



