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CHAPTER XI. 



Agricultural Products — Copra — Coir fibre — 

 Cotton — Sugar — Tobacco — Cocoa — Coffee — 

 Vanilla — Tea — Cinchona Bark — Rice. 



The present agricultural exports of Fiji are copra, 

 sugar, cotton, maize, tobacco, some arrowroot, and 

 now, perhaps, a little coffee. 



Copra, the dried kernel of the cocoa-nut, was ex- 

 ported to the value of £45,908 in 1876 ; £79,403 in 

 1877 ; and £122,194 in 1878. The value of coir fibre 

 produced from the husk of the cocoa-nut was for these 

 years, £2,953, £2,660, and £3,133, respectively. There 

 was also exported during these years cocoa-nut oil to 

 the value of £808 in the first, £941 in the second, and 

 £150 in the third. The value of cocoa-nuts exported 

 in 1876, was £318 ; in 1877, £461 ; in £570 for 1878. 



The cocoa-nut is extensively grown in the group 

 both by settlers and natives. Young plantations of it 

 are yearly coming into bearing, and new ones are annu- 

 ally being formed. There is yet room for these plan- 

 tations being extensively enlarged, and that without 

 encroaching on the area which more important pro- 

 ducts will require. There is now comparatively little 

 cocoa-nut oil made in Fiji. This is principally 

 owing to the high prices which have lately ruled in 

 Europe for copra. An extensive establishment for ex- 

 tracting oil exists at Savu-savu, but the expense of 

 collecting the nuts in small parcels was so great, that 

 the enterprise had to be abandoned. The Pounce or 



