THE CHANNEL ISLANDS 



97 



have been cut. There is, it seems, no great profit from 

 this branch of the business, but it helps both to keep the 

 staff employed during the winter and to cover current 

 expenses. 



By way of further illustrating the proportions to 

 which cultivation under glass has attained of late 

 years, I append the following particulars respecting 

 the value of the importations into England from the 

 Channel Islands of grapes and tomatoes mostly grown 

 under glass, and mostly coming from Guernsey, which 

 is rapidly being transformed into an island of glass- 

 houses, Jersey occupying herself mainly with new 

 potatoes : 



Of fresh flowers from the Channel Islands, and again 

 mainly from Guernsey, the values for the same series of 

 years were: 1900, 68,743; 1901, 78,495; 1902, 

 100,142 ; 1903, 81,886 ; 1904, 91,613. The total 

 value of the grapes, tomatoes, and fresh flowers sent to 

 England from the Channel Islands in 1904 (indepen- 

 dently of other commodities) thus amounted to over 

 598,000. 



It is estimated that nine-tenths of the population of 

 Guernsey are interested in glass culture, and that the 

 glass-houses on the island would, if they could all be 

 brought together, cover just about one square mile 

 of land. 



