VARIATION IN THE CANE AND CANE VARIETIES 39 



fertilized. The most prolific parents have been Lahaina, White Mexican, 

 D 116, D 117, D 1135, and a variety called locally Yellow Bamboo. No 

 inheritance of the colour of the parent was noted by Eckart. So far only 

 two canes of Eckart's breeding have become prominent H IOQ, a descendant 

 of Lahaina, and H 146. The former is a yellow upright cane of the Otaheite 

 type, of early maturity and high sugar content. 



SEEDLING CANES IN JAVA. 



Very soon after the recognition of the fertility of the cane, and stimulated 

 by the appearance of the sereh disease in Java, extensive breeding experi- 

 ments were made in Java. The earlier work, dating from the early 'nineties, 

 seems to have been mainly carried out by Kobus and Wakker at the Oost 

 Java Proefstation, and by Bouricius and Moquette at the Kelegan estate. 

 After an hiatus new work appears to have been undertaken by individuals 

 and interested firms. The Java seedlings appear classified under the letters 

 P.OJ. (Proefstation, Oost Java), B (Bouricius), E.K. (E. Karthaus), 

 S.W. (Sempal Wadak), D.I. (Demak Idjo), and Fabri, the name of a mill. 



The earlier breeding work at the Oost Java Station was conducted 

 with the Indian cane Chunnee (one of the Ukh class) as male parent, and with 

 the Black Cheribon and Striped Preanger as female parent. This selection 

 was made with the object of establishing as a hybrid a cane with the sereh- 

 resistant qualities of Chunnee and desirable cultural properties of the female 

 parent. The many canes thus produced mainly show the following features : 

 i. Narrow leaves ; 2. Long, thin joints ; 3. Hard rind ; 4. A modified central 

 fistula ; 5. Sereh resistance. These characters are to be attributed to in- 

 heritance from the male parent. 



Bouricius made his crossings mainly with the Red Fiji or Canne Morte 

 as father, and the Cheribon cane as mother. The E.K. series results from 

 crossing with the Black Borneo or Bandjermassim Hitam as mother and 

 Red Fiji as father. The S.W. series results from the Batjan cane as father 

 and the Cheribon cane as mother. 



Of all the numerous canes bred in Java, two stand out pre-eminent. 

 P.O.J. 100 and B 247, and for a number of years about 90% of the Java crop 

 has come from these canes. Of the other earlier seedlings P.O.J. 33, P.O.J. 36, 

 P.O.J. 213, P.O.J. 228, 36 M(oquette) and 66 B have been grown. Of the 

 later ones E.K. 2 seems to be under most extensive cultivation. The Black 

 Cheribon in 1917 was reported as covering 8 per cent, of the acreage in 

 Java, and in that year as many as 56 varieties, mostly in very small quan- 

 tities, were reported as being under cultivation. A number of Java seedlings, 

 especially the earlier ones of Chunnee blood, have travelled to other districts, 

 and in doing so have repeated the earlier confusions of misplaced labels, etc. ; 

 and to this confusion the writer has contributed by misdescribing P.O.J. 36 

 in the earlier issue of this book, whereby it became confounded with P.O.J. 234. 

 In addition, in Porto Rico, P.O.J. 36 has mutated itself to P.O.J. 56, and in 

 Argentina P.O.J. 228 in parts has become known as P.O.J. 139. 



Short descriptions of these canes based on those of Jeswiet and of Fawcett 

 are given with the view of preventing future confusion. For those canes 

 yet confined to Java see Jeswiet in the Java Ar chief for the years 1916 and 

 1917. 



The colours mentioned below refer to the mature cane, and the male 

 parent is given first. 



