VIII 



PEPPERS 301 



their spending much time at the headquarters of the 

 Colony, added to which was the reduction of the tax on 

 pepper from the French colonies in France. Chinese 

 from Cochin - China settled in Cambodia, and even 

 Cambodians commenced planting. At the time of the 

 writing of this report, M. Leclerc says that in four 

 pepper -producing provinces there were thirty -seven 

 villages engaged in this planting, 3,357 planters, 

 and 1,773,561 plants of different ages on the estates. 

 The greater number of the planters were Chinese, but 

 there were nearly as many Cambodians and a few 

 Ma] ays and Annamites. 



The author of this report says that France and its 

 colonies use at most 3,000,000 kilograms of pepper. 

 Cambodia and Cochin-China in very good years can 

 produce about 2,325,000 kilos, 1,800,000 in ordinary 

 years, and 1,500,000 kilos in bad years, so that these 

 colonies could produce a large portion of the pepper 

 required by France. The Cambodian pepper, however, 

 cannot compete with that of Singapore, Tellicherry, 

 and Cochin, which are cheaper and better known on the 

 European markets. He gives the following estimate of 

 cost and returns : one hectare of 2,500 to 2,800 vines 

 in good soil and well manured gives 70 to 100 piculs 

 prepared pepper (20 to 30 vines giving a picul at most). 

 Taking the lowest figure, 70 piculs, and the pepper down 

 to 25 dollars, the return is 1,750 dollars a hectare. 

 The expenses are never more than 1,100 dollars for a 

 Chinaman who does not work himself, or 900 for a 

 working Chinaman, so that the planter gets a very fair 

 return for his labour. 



By 1906 the pepper plantations had so much 

 increased in Cochin-China and Cambodia, according to 

 Mr. Le Roy, that the supply had exceeded the demand 

 in France, and more than half had to be re-exported to 

 other markets, where it had to compete with pepper 

 from other countries often superior in quality and 

 actually cheaper. 



Africa. Little is done now with pepper, though it 



