so i ara cia ae ia tas a 
a 
PREFACE. 
THE West Indies possess a large extent of fertile ssis as well as 
ea 
a varied and favoured cli No part of th ’s surface 
ms desti Nature for a happier prosperity That ondition 
is, u MEPPHI; not roM = eir condition is far from flourish- 
little more ‘than two per aed of it ‘is cultivated at all, and only 
seven per cent. of that which admits of cultivation. Yet they 
u 
the temperate countries of the New World possess a ready and 
amek sae aa For at least a hundred years past no effort has 
been ing on the part of the Home Government to supply 
them with plants from all parts of the Wo which would form 
the foundation of cultur® industries. 
To examine the cause of their present distress, Her Majesty the 
Queen was pleased in December 1896 to appoint a Commission of 
Enquiry, composed of men of exceptional ability and experience. 
Questions.” The Commission proceeded to the West Indies in 
January of last year, and issued its report in the following 
autumn. 
To this report the wy a iaagee reprinted in the p volume 
was added as an appen t was drawn up by the Assistant 
Director for the use of the Commission. Dr. Morris's residence 
in the West Indies, his repeated visits to them, and his intimate 
knowledge of their conditions have enabled him to produce an 
account as accurate as it is imparti ial of their natural and economi 
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yy be teadis vor by anyone who will take the trouble 
o read these pag 
At the conclusion of their report, the Commissioners bear 
testimony to the value of this document in the following terms :— 
“ We have had in the course of this report to refer ny lag beep 
by Dr. 
ntage 18 ; adviser ae hav igned t 
qualified, both by general and local knowledge, to assist and 
i m us in regard to botanical and agricultural questions. The 
report which he has prepared bears witness to the closeness of 
his study of these questions, and the assiduity with which he has 
collaborated throughout the course of our inquiry to further the 
purposes of 
f the Commiss' 
