THE COCONUT BELT 35 



Europeans having acquired large areas from the 

 natives from time to time." 



At the present moment there is throughout 

 Ceylon, as in Malabar, a great scarcity of land suit- 

 able for successful coconut- growing, and there is no 

 doubt that the value of such properties must 

 appreciate accordingly. 



WEST AFRICA 



Owing to the fact that the coconut palm is 

 indigenous to the West Coast of Africa, the industry 

 of coconut-planting is one that is now commanding 

 special attention as offering vast possibilities for 

 profitable exploitation. Private planters, com- 

 panies, and investors are now realising that there 

 are fortunes to be made by the systematic and 

 scientific cultivation of this highly-profitable pro- 

 duct. Not long ago the Agricultural Department 

 of the Gold Coast Government reported that the 

 natives were making extensive plantations of 

 coconuts, and that in a number of cases the trees 

 were receiving very careful attention. Around the 

 villages adjacent to the sea coast, and in many 

 others several miles inland, coconuts flourish and 

 yield excellent crops. Greater interest is also being 

 displayed in the preparation of copra, which yields 

 15 per cent, more oil than the oil palm grown on the 

 coast. So far the coconut has not been exploited 

 in West Africa to an extent commensurate with its 



