TROPICAL PRODUCTS IN COMMERCE 31 



It is unlikely, however, that any large proportion of these 

 fruits will ever assume the importance now held by apples, 

 pears, and peaches as well as by citrus, bananas, and pineap- 

 ples for the reason that few persons care for tropical fruits 

 as a regular daily diet. Many of them have a peculiar delicacy 

 which seems very agreeable, but one is often astonished to find 

 that he does not care for another fruit of the same sort for 

 several days. Although the praises of the mangosteen, for 

 example, have been sung by many travelers, the majority of 

 dwellers in the temperate climate would prefer the apple 

 to the mangosteen as a regular part of the daily fare. 

 Many of the less common tropical fruits are insipid or gen- 

 erally lacking in flavor, so that a mere taste is all that one 

 cares for. As oddities, such fruits may always find a small 

 sale, but as commercial fresh fruits, the Tropics appear to 

 offer at present only citrus, bananas, pineapples, mangos, 

 avocados, and possibly papaya, passion fruit, and custard 

 apple. 



The commercial future of tropical agricultural products 

 other than fruits rests, however, on a somewhat different basis. 

 The world's demand for oils, fibers, rubber, gums, tanning ma- 

 terials, beverages, coconuts, and sugar is thoroughly estab- 

 lished and is increasing every day. In 1914, the United States 

 imported tropical agricultural products to the value of $600,- 

 000,000, the total imports of all sorts for the same year being 

 $1,789,000,000. Some idea of the importance of tropical agri- 

 cultural production may be gained from the following figures, 

 showing exports from certain tropical countries in 1914: 

 India, $500,000,000; Ceylon, $49,000,000; Indo-China, $52,- 

 000,000; Brazil, $343,000,000; Gold Coast, $9,900,000; Dutch 

 East Indies, $436,000,000; Jamaica, $13,500,000; Ivory Coast, 

 $3,500,000; Cuba, $164,800,000; Philippine Islands, $51,000,- 

 000; Hawaii, $41,500,000; Porto Rico, $43,000,000; and Egypt, 

 $158,300,000. 



The amount of tropical products imported by the United 



