MAURITIUS HEMP 181 



hemp ; the strands are usually somewhat finer than 

 those of the latter fibre. 



MAURITIUS HEMP 



The Mauritius hemp plant, Purer cea gigantea, is 

 a member of the same natural order as the agaves, viz. 

 Amaryllidaceae, and has a similar habit. It has thick, 

 fleshy leaves and produces an inflorescence or " pole/' 

 which reaches a height of 20 to 30 feet and bears 

 numerous bulbils, the life of the plant is usually 

 about seven to ten years, and leaves can therefore be 

 cut for about four or five years before the plant 

 " poles " and afterwards withers and dies. 



Furcrcea gigantea occurs widely in tropical America, 

 and has been introduced into Mauritius, St. Helena, 

 India, Ceylon, Algeria, Natal, Nyasaland, the East 

 Africa Protectorate, Uganda, Rhodesia, the West 

 Indies, Australia, and other countries. 



The fibre is produced in commercial quantities 

 chiefly in the island of Mauritius, although there is 

 no doubt that it could be readily grown in many other 

 countries. 



The plant is known in Mauritius as " aloes " and 

 is said to have been first introduced into the island 

 from South America about the year 1790 as an 

 ornamental garden plant. In 1837 it had established 

 itself in several parts of the island, and, although 

 receiving no attention, it gradually spread over waste 

 lands and abandoned sugar estates, until in 1872 

 the plants were so abundant as to suggest their 

 utilisation for the extraction of fibre. An industry 

 was started about the year 1875, and has continued up 

 to the present time. 



Until recently, little, if any, systematic cultivation 

 was practised in Mauritius, but during the last ten years 

 plantations have been established, and it has been 

 found that better results can be obtained in this way 

 than by depending on the wild plants. The plant is 

 found more or less in all parts of the island, and 

 especially on the uncultivated coast lands. It re- 

 produces itself by means of the bulbils, which fall 



