242 



General Notices. 



Result of the comparative Trials of Strengtli, &c., of the following Fibres. 



Weight of equal lengths of 



Riga hemp, 21 or., or 2000,5.^8 lbs. 

 :- Pita, . l-U oz., or 1-007,812 Iba. 



W. HAMILTON. 



Dr. Hamilton, in a previous letter, mentions also the Pi/a dc Tohi. This, 

 he observes, " f^rows in larj^e quantities at Tolu, is probably a species of 

 Ai^ave, and yields a fil)re coarser and browner tiian that of the Pita de 

 (iuataca, and inferior in quality. The value of the fil)re of Pita de Tolu 

 is, in (^artiiajjena, from ten to twelve dollars for 100 lbs. Spanish; that of 

 tlie Pita de (iuataca, more. 



We undeffitand that a plant or two of the Pita de Gnataca arc now 

 prowiui; with Mr. Auikr.son, in the Apothecaries' Botanic Garden, Chelsea; 

 tliey haviuii been received there Iroiu Mr. Lambert. 



Dr. Hamilton, in a letter dated Dec. '^1. 1831, has sent lis the following 

 extract fiom a letter he had lately received from Jamaica, bearini!; date 

 Sept..'}. IS.'J1 : — " The Pita plants, I am happy to inform you, are thriv- 

 inj;. They are too few, however, and still too youni; (they were only in- 

 troduced from Carthajiena last sprini: i)y the packet Kimdous) to afford a 

 supply of the leaves for any experinieuts. There can be no doubt, how- 

 ever, that it admits of being cidtivated in our dry sandy savannahs, which 

 are at present uncultivated and unproductive. Shouhl you observe any 

 further information respecting the improved machine which has been pro- 

 I)osed for the preparation of licmp, I shall feel obliged by yoiu- conumuii- 

 cating it. There is a great number of plants in this country from which a 

 texture of the hemp kind may be obtaiuetl, the trouble of the preparation 



