General Notes 607 



in this book the following notes, especially 

 as a good deal of space has been devoted of 

 late to the subject. We will begin by saying 

 that we have just received a forty-paged 

 brochure on " The Kapok Industry," 1 from 

 the Department of Agriculture, Manila, Philip- 

 pine Isles. Mr. Saleeby, Chief of the Fibre 

 Division, and author of the book, claims that 

 the natural conditions in those islands are on 

 the whole entirely favourable for the cultiva- 

 tion of this crop, and with the increased 

 demand for the floss for upholstery and life- 

 saving appliances remunerative prices are 

 looked for. The climatic conditions which 

 directly affect the growth of kapok, and the 

 development of its fruit and floss, are three, 

 viz., the degree of temperature (the tree re- 

 quires a warm climate), the amount of rainfall 

 (the tree does not require a- large amount, nor 

 an even distribution of rainfall), and the 

 absence of strong winds (which injure the 

 long, heavy, horizontal branches). 



The seeds yield about 20 per cent, of oil, 

 and the cake can be used with advantage as 

 cattle feed and as a fertilizer. The weight of 

 the seed is, roughly speaking, double that of 

 the floss, and on the basis of rates ruling at 



1 " The Kapok Industry," by Murad M. Saleeby, 

 being Bulletin No. 26, issued by the Bureau of Agri- 

 culture, Manila, Philippine Isles, with many illustrations 

 showing how to plant, divergencies in size of fruits, &c. 

 No price mentioned. Postage would cost i^d. 



