135 
_ The length of leaves cut for fibre should not be less than 3 feet; their 
edge of the cart road, and are (oe by drays, carrying 1,500 leaves 
S 
to a load, to the works. Cutters, pei ny and machinists are paid so 
much ee 1,000 leaves. 
nts. 
After the 5 ot planis. passed through the machine it is placed on a 
drying stand fully exposed to the sun and thoroughly dried. If it is 
desired to bleach the fibre to a high degree of whiteness it is left out all 
night and during the next day mat carefully turned. The fibre is made 
up into bales by means of a screw or hydraulic press, care being taken 
to keep the fibre straight and pr davon n ‘rin nges 
Each plant when matured yields 30 to 35 leaves per annum, and the 
return of oe is at ~ — of 1,000 to 1,200 pounds per acre, or about 
half a ton per acre per The net return = a fibre plantation in 
Yucatan » estimated at Baen 4l. and 5/. per 
Plants ived at Kew from Yucatan marked « Sisal He emp” 
TOW miie in the Succulent House No. 5, and lately an eapo 
was made to test the quality of the fibre yielded by them. 
bre was extracted by Mr. W. E. Death’s fibre machine, and the 
following r s was pp re diag it from Messrs. Ide and Christie, 
fibre b “ros ie f Mark Lan 
“We are in receipt of the jjáreol containing a leaf of — rigida and 
“sample of hemp made from leaves grown in the gardens. ese are 
“most interesting to us, and we have much iai in reporting 
“ 27l. per ton in London. You will see from the statistics given in 
“ enclosed circular that this material is an im pra one and is exten- 
“ sively used both in England and America.. It enters into competition 
“ with Taik Hemp and was regarded as an sfraliaraat of the latter in 
“rope ; but as its price is now nearly as high as that of Manila the 
i a E e not the same inducements to mix the hemps. 
XLIII.—FIBRE INDUSTRY AT THE BAHAMAS. 
[K. B., 1889, pp. 57-61.] 
At the request of the Secretary of State for the Colonies, the geen 
correspondence is poen in the Kew Bulletin, epa a fibre 
industry at the Bahamas, in which the Governor, 
takes a asap personal itore: A supplementary ois. is added, giving 
