200 
The plant you refer to as having been received from the Bombay 
Government in 1890 is of the long-leaved varie ty; the one I send now 
is a variegated form of the short-leaved variety, it is a very ornamental 
plan 
I will be glad to send you a large ge if you can make use of 
them, and can give a small plant of the Sisal Hemp in exchange; such 
plants thrive in this climate. I have lately received two very small 
offsets of a plant said to be Sisal Hemp, but I am doubtful of their 
identification. 
wo varieties of ana vivipara are grown as fences occasionally 
field crops. ma expe eriments in growing the long-leaved variety 
as a field crop some vie ago, but found that at the then price of the 
fibre it would be very unprofitable to grow this crop where Sunn 
(Crotalaria juncea) or Ambadee (Hibiscus cannabinus) would thrive. 
much interested in ge statement that Agave vivipara is the 
That na not kno 
mb mp I pre 
London market name. I baa not learned it, as the Kew Bulletin does 
not reach me, except the part that gives the list of seeds available for 
distribution. 
Yours, &c. 
The Dir (Signed} G. MARSHALL WOODROW. 
Royal a Kew. 
LXII—MANILA ALOE FIBRE. 
(Agave vivipara, L.) 
ES B., 1893, pp. Se 
regularly met with in commerce, although the price realised for it was 
always much below that paid for various sorts of Manila hemp. 
ROYAL GARDENS, KEW, to FOREIGN OFFICE. 
Royal goe se ie 
SIR, October 8, 1890. 
: I AM desired by Mr. Thiselton-Dyer to inform you gor a sample 
of “ Manila Aloe Fibre” has recently been presented to the Museums 
1 
2. The plant yielding this fibre does not appear to be known in this 
country. It is evidently quite distinct from Musa textilis, yielding 
ordinary Manila hemp. Proba abiy it 2 a species of Agave, allied to 
that peldine the Sisal hemp of ¢ 
3 er to determine the ba eal, Mr. Thiselton-Dyer would 
be glad it the Secretary of State would approve of a reference being made 
on the subject to Her Majesty’s Consul at Manila, with a request that one 
