45 



measures were adopted to open up a trade in this 

 fibre. The difficulty of separating the fibre and bark 

 from the stem had always stood in the way, manual 

 labour having been found too laborious to make the 

 cultivation on a large scale pay. In 1869 Govern- 

 ment resolved to overcome the difficulty, and two 

 prizes were offered for the best and second best 

 machine for manufacturing Rheea fibre at 15 a ton, 

 which should fetch in the market a price averaging 

 50 per ton. Owing, perhaps, to the cost and risk 

 attending the transport of machinery to India, or 

 for other reasons, only one person ventured to 

 compete. His machine was not altogether a 

 success ; but in consideration of its being a bond fide 

 attempt he was awarded 1,500. Since then, more 

 progress seems to have been made, although I gather 

 from the following extract, taken from the Overland 

 Mail of June last, that the trade in this fibre is not 

 so brisk as it should be : " It does not seem," says 

 the writer, " that the progress in Rheea cultivation in 

 India, though very rapidly increasing, keeps pace with 

 the demand. The value has more than doubled in 

 the course of a year, and we learn from brokers who 

 are on the look-out for shipments that there is no- 

 thing to be gained by making much of Rheea in their 

 circulars, as there are no supplies at present 

 available." 



13. The ill success which has hitherto attended 

 paralyzing effect our efforts to utilize the fibre-producing 



of the failure of 



efforts hitherto pi ants o f India has doubtless had a 

 paralyzing influence, and fostered the belief that 



