ROTATION, OB CHANGE OP CROPS. 121 



half an inch in diameter at the base, and tapering away to 

 a point as the tops reach three or four feet in height. 

 When grown singly, sida retusa is a stocky, branching 

 plant; when in masses, it is straight, handsome, single 

 stem, and a literal mass of fibre. Quantities of this fibre 

 have been manufactured in much the same manner as flax 

 fibre in Ireland, and the yield estimated to be fully up to 

 one-and-a-half ton per acre. The fibre is valued in 

 England at from 30 to 40 per ton. When young and 

 tender, sida has qualities for feed purposes, but it is tough 

 on the teeth. 



BANANA FIBRES. Manilla is got from banana musa 

 textilis. This variety grows freely on the seaboard and 

 on the banks of the rivers and creeks in the coast country. 

 On an average a full-grown plant is found to produce 5 Ibs. 

 of clean fibre, and in their own country the best exertions 

 of an experienced workman ^Indian or Chinese) produce 

 about 1 2 Ibs. of fibre per day. Their wages are necessarily 

 very low less than would keep a white man in beef and 

 flour. We fear, therefore, that until machinery is brought 

 to their aid, Australians will have to leave Manilla fibre 

 culture to those who work for 5d. per day and think it 

 good wages. It is not agreeable to give up the matter in 

 this way ; but business is business ; if it won't pay, our 

 people can have nothing to do with it. 



PINE-APPLE FIBRE. Fibre is obtained from the leaves 

 of the pine-apple, and is amongst the finest ; and pine-apple 

 cultivation being capable of extension to any extent, the 

 production of the fibre is a question that depends upon the 

 introduction of machinery. 



RAMIE, Chinese-Cloth Plant. Better things are 

 expected from this, as the fibre has a value with 

 comparative little labor on the part of the grower. The 

 plant has l>een grown for years in public and private 

 gardens. It is healthy, grows freely from cuttings planted 

 during the spring season, in rows two feet apart. 



Extracting Fibres. Various methods of separating the 

 fibres of flax, hemp, &rc., from the glutinous matter with 

 which they are surrounded, have l>een adopted in various 

 countries. In Ireland, Belgium, Holland, and in France 



