35 



I am, therefore, quite content for the present to leave this little 

 pest outside the statistical fold, believing that when in the fulness of 

 time those investigations are made which will lead to a real knowledge 

 of the full life-history of such forms, there will be no difficulty in 

 assigning to its proper place this scab-producing fungus of the banana. 



The Scabby Banana in Cojnmerce. 



Several questions arise in connection with the handling and sale 

 of scabby bananas. Should anything be done to check or prevent 

 the importation of such fruit ? Can anything be done to check the 

 progress of the disease after the bunches are cut and forwarded ? 



I think the answer to both these questions must be negative. The 

 time that elapses between the cutting of the bunches and the con- 

 sumption of the fruit is not more than a few weeks, and the progress 

 of the disease during that time is not very great, and is of such a 

 nature as to be beyond control except in so far as new infection may 

 occur. I know no reason to suppose that such fresh infection does 

 not occur, but there is good reason to believe that if it does occur it 

 does very little harm. The greatest harm done by the disease is on 

 young fruit ; its effect when it attacks partially-grown fruit is not so 

 serious. The progress of the scab is so slow in comparison with that 

 of the growth of the fruit that the latter reaches a marketable size if 

 the attack of the disease is delayed until it is half-grown. 



Nor does a study of the disease lead to the conclusion that the 

 importation of bananas suffering from it is in any way prejudicial to 

 the fruit industry of any regions, except such as may be devoted to 

 the cultivation of the banana itself. Leaving these latter out of con- 

 sideration for the present, we will consider the importation into Sydney 

 and the shipping inland by rail. Here we have the case of a tropical 

 fruit whose diseases are for the most part likely to be of a nature 

 different from those characteristic of the regions into which it is 

 imported, especially when we consider that the fruit itself belongs to 

 an order of plants widely different from those the possibility of whose 

 infection we have in mind. These general considerations are borne out 

 by all the observations set down in the previous pages. I do not know 

 of a single disease of our temperate fruits that bears a sufficiently close 

 resemblance to the banana scab to raise any suspicion that the two- 

 may be identical. 



It is, however, possible to be too optimistic in such matters. There 

 is another disease of bananas that, in spite of these plausible reasonings,, 

 is found to be capable of infecting all sorts of temperate fruit ; I refer 

 to the Gloeosporium or ripe-rot of the banana. (See pp. 79.) 



Nor does it seem probable, so far as our importations are concerned, 

 that any precaution as to the destruction of scabby bananas and their 

 cast-off skins would pay for the trouble. We have on another page 

 pointed out that greater care in respect to decayed fruit would lead to 

 beneficial results in our fruit stores and shops,* and in case the pre- 

 caution is being taken for other reasons, it would be practically nc- 

 additional trouble to include banana-scab in the same measures. 



* Page 23. 



