EASTWARD HO! 77 



sands of tons of vegetable butter under the names of nuco- 

 line, palmine, vegetaline, et id genus omne, that are now being 

 turned out, and yet withal the supply being in no way equal 

 to meet the demand, the cultivation of the coco-nut will be 

 remimerative for many a year, as is evidenced by the pres- 

 ent anxiety of large dealers to purchase forward crops. It 

 should be also remembered that the use of these coco-nut 

 butters is very little known ; when it is generally advertised 

 the demand will go up by leaps and bounds. For cooking 

 purposes in particular, most persons would use a vegetable 

 oil, in preference to an animal oil. We all agreed that the 

 coco-nut was the plant beyond all others that for years had 

 been allowed to grow only by the grace of God and its own 

 sweet will, man having done little or nothing to aid it. L. E. 

 B, waxed quite enthusiastic over improvements and the 

 result of his experiments. When he first took over the 

 plantation, poor and neglected, 60% of the crop consisted of 

 culls (undersized nuts). This he had now reduced to 40%, 

 and he would not rest until he had got that 40% to 10%. He 

 did not believe that, taken all round, in Trinidad the palm 

 averaged 60 nuts per annimi, when with intelligent cultiva- 

 tion, it should yield 120. He believed in green dressing, 

 leguminous manures and spraying, none of which had been 

 attempted, and he was an ardent advocate for the importa- 

 tion of plants of well-known commercial value, particularly 

 from South and Central American countries, even though the 

 cost was high. As to the sinful waste, annually, in the shape 

 of milHons of husks lying rotting around, he was thankful 

 to say he would shortly be able to put a stop to that, as his 

 enterprising proprietor was going to give him a steel digester 

 and high pressure pump, by the aid of which he hoped to 

 reduce the hitherto neglected husks to cellulose, which 

 would be baled in sheets, and sent to the paper manufac- 

 turers to turn into a first class strong wrapping paper. 



By this time we had reached the Nariva ferry, and as the 

 sun was getting low, retraced the two miles to the bungalow, 

 where we found a most original and tastefully cooked dinner 

 awaiting us ; it was so unique that I here subjoin the menu, 

 our host stipulating that as he was neither Crab nor Creole, 



