FIBRES SOJ 



young leaves for a vegetable soup, extracted the fibre 

 from the mature leaf to be made into garments and for 

 cordage purposes. From another variety they made a 

 refreshing beer, still in use in Mexico, under the name 

 " pulque," and they also extracted a herbal medicine. 



Plantlets of Agave sisalana, Perrine, were with difficulty 

 obtained in Mexico, and were introduced into Florida by 

 Dr. Perrine in 1839, thence taken to the Bahamas in 1843 

 by Dr. Nesbit, and from there to the Hawaian Islands in 

 1893. Dr. Hindorf imported 1,000 bulbils from Florida 

 into German East Africa this same year. From there sisal 

 was brought into British East Africa fourteen years later. 



The first plantation (in British East Africa) was started 

 in November, 1907, at Punda Milea, forty-five miles from 

 Nairobi, by Mr. C. B. Hausberg, backed by Messrs. 

 Swift, Rutherfoord and Co. 



Bulbils were obtained from German East Africa, and 

 were planted in nurseries while the ground was being 

 prepared for them by top ploughing with a single furrow 

 plough drawn by fourteen oxen. This team could plough 

 half an acre in one day of eight hours. The second plough- 

 ing was done with a three-furrow disc plough with six- 

 teen oxen, which turned over about two acres a day. 

 The ground was planned out with chains, and planted 

 8 by 8 ft. to allow cultivation between the plants. This 

 gives about 650 plants per acre, compared with 900 to 

 i, 800 plants in German East Africa, and the production 

 of fibre is as great from the smaller number of plants. 



The leaves in the upland district are heavier than at the 

 coast. It is found that eleven to twenty leaves, accord- 

 ing to size, give I Ib. of fibre, while at the coast it takes 

 sixteen to thirty-five leaves to produce the same weight 

 of fibre. 



By October, 1911, over 800 acres were planted out, 

 and the machinery was installed and started. The plant 

 consisted of a suction gas engine and accessories for 

 motive power, a New Corona decorticator, a primitive 

 home-made beater in place of brushing machinery, and a 

 Bijoli press for baling. 



The growth of the plants has been so rapid that in 

 many cases almost the whole of the leaves, about 180 in 



