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The National Geographic Magazine 



injured and weakened, but rarely kills. 

 Three or more larvse in the same plant 

 will surely destroy it, but that number 

 is of very rare occurrence." 



The life of the plant can be greatly 

 prolonged. I have seen fields old at 10 

 years, and others vigorous and hearty 

 at 19 years. The plants should be 

 originally healthy scions, the leaves 

 must be cut at just the right time, and 

 the long pole must be nipped off before 

 it has become more than a mere pro- 

 tuberance. Once the pole has grown, 

 the plant ages rapidly. 



VALUE OF HENEQUEN 



The export of henequen is making 

 Yucatan one of the richest states of Mex- 

 ico. In 1902 the state sent out nearly 



six hundred thousand bales, or ninety 

 thousand tons, worth $14,000,000. Most 

 of it went to the United States, where 

 it is used for sacking, cordage, and 

 binders' twine. 



There will be a falling off in the sup- 

 ply for the season of 1903. The causes 

 of this diminishing output, despite the 

 high prices that prevail, will be the de- 

 creasing acreage of new fields. La- 

 borers are scarce, and the great ma- 

 jority of planters dislike to stop clean- 

 ing fiber long enough to plant new 

 fields or replant old ones. * 



* For the illustrations that accompany this 

 article the National Geographic Magazine 

 is indebted to Hon. Frederic Emory, Chief of 

 the Bureau of Foreign Commerce, State De- 

 partment. 



A REPORT OF THE ERUPTION OF THE 

 SOUFRIERE OF ST VINCENT, 1812 



From the Evening News of June 30, 1812 * 



THE Soufriere mountain, the 

 most northerly of the loft} 7 

 chain running through the 

 center of this island, and the highest of 

 the whole, as computed by the most 

 accurate survey that has yet been taken, 

 had for some time past indicated much 

 disquietude ; and from the extraordi- 

 nary frequency and violence of earth- 

 quakes, which are calculated to have 

 exceeded 200 within the last year, por- 

 tended some great movement or erup- 

 tion. The apprehension, however, was 

 not so immediate as to restrain curios- 

 ity, or to prevent frequent visits to the 

 crater, which of late had been more 

 numerous than at any former period, 



even up to Sunday last, the 26th of 

 April, when some gentlemen ascended 

 it, and remained there for some time. 

 Nothing unusual was then remarked, 

 or any external difference observed , ex- 

 cept rather a stronger emission of smoke 

 from the interstices of the conical hill 

 at the bottom of the crater. To those 

 who have not visited this romantic and 

 wonderful spot, a slight description, as 

 it lately stood, is previously necessary 

 and indispensable to form any concep- 

 tion of it and to the better understand- 

 ing the account which follows, for no 

 one living can expect to see it again in 

 the perfection and beauty in which it 

 was on Sunday, the 26th instant. About 



*This account has been copied from the reprint of the original article as published in "An 

 Account of the Eruptions of the Saint Vincent Soufriere," by P. Foster Huggins. The account 

 is of the highest interest and value as showing the exact parallelism between the eruptions of 

 1812 and 1902. The "lava" streams mentioned here were mud flows. Mr Huggins' pamphlet 

 was printed at the Times printing office, Kingstown, St Vincent, July, 1902. — E. O. Hovey. 





