24 THE CHINESE SUGAR-CANE. 



itude had no unfavorable effect ; and he con- 

 siders the seeds and the sugar as two products 

 to be conjointly obtained. On the other hand, 

 Mr. Wray says the Zoulous-CafFers are in the 

 habit of pulling off the panicles of the plant the 

 moment they appear, in order to augment the 

 quantity of saccharine matter in the stalks. This 

 question may be of some importance in our South- 

 ern States, should this plant supersede in any 

 manner the sugar-cane. Having considered some 

 of the probabilities of this product in an eco- 

 nomical point of view, it remains only for me to 

 recommend it to the attention of others who may 

 have opportunities to cultivate it, and the means 

 and talent to prove or refute, by direct experi- 

 ments, its worth." 



How far this new cane will stand the northern 

 winters, yet remains to be proved. But it will 

 be seen that it is not so important that this cane 

 should stand the winters, for it can be grown 

 readily from seed, without fear of deterioration, 

 as in case of the old cane grown from cuttings, 

 which produces less and less every year, showing 

 most clearly that it cannot be depended upon for 

 years to come. In fact, so apparent has this 

 become, that fields that formerly produced 3000 

 to 4000 pounds of sugar to the acre now only pro- 



