CULTURE AND PREPARATION OF JUTE. 245 
Sept.,—B.), it is cut. The plants are three to twelve feet high, 
and the circumference of the stalk is about one inch. As the 
seed is not ripe when ‘the plants are cut, some of them are left, 
to allow the seeds to come to maturity. 
After the plants are cut down close to the roots, their tops 
are clipped off, and fifty to a hundred are tied together; ten to 
fifteen of these bundles are laid in a shallow tank or reservoir 
of water, like rafts, over which a quantity of turf and clods of 
earth are laid to make them sink under the surface of the water ; 
it is allowed to remain:there for eight or ten days, during 
which the cultivator daily visits it, in order to see that it is 
properly laid, and the trunks are not unduly rotted. When 
the bark separates, and the stalk and fibres become soft, the 
weight upon the raft is removed, and the stalks are unbundled. 
The dresser descends into the water knee-deep, and takes up 
five to eight sticks at a time.. He breaks off two feet of them 
at the bottom ; the bark, which is become soft like thread, is 
held in both hands, and the stalks are ‘taken off. The fibres 
thus separated (and by mere washing are brought to the state 
of separated fibres,—-B.), are dressed, and exposed to the sun, 
by hanging the bundles of fibres over bamboos to dry; they 
are afterwards partially cleaned, and finally made up into 
bundles of from one to two maunds for the market. 
After the Pat has been removed, the fields of which the soil 
and elevation are suitable grow a winter crop of tobacco or 
‘mustard seed. ~ The produce is differently stated to be from 
400 lb. to 700 1b. peracre. The harvest price, according to Dr. 
Buchanan, was, in his time, ‘about 12} annas per 1001b. Mr. 
Henley informs the Author that “Jute used to be sold some 
years ago for R.1 8 for the bazar maund; but the demand 
in this country had had the effect of raising the price of Jute 
to double its old Indian value. At present, any fine, long, 
silky Jute is eagerly bought up at Rs.2 8; still for inferior 
Jute I should say, dealing face to face with the village dulals, 
the price would not exceed R.1 8 per bazar maund.” 
The culture of Jute has of late years been greatly improved 
in many places, as may be seen in much of that sent to 
market, and of which we have an instance in the sample of 
Jute presented for report by Mr. P. Carter of Bhojepore 
Factory to the Agri-Horticultural Society. This having been 
