ON TROPICAL FIBRES. 4^7 



quins," of which, he will observe a small, perennial patch, with their 

 green, fleshy leaves, growing by the side of almost every hut. Or, if iu 

 Mexico, he will receive his passport on paper of surprising toughness 

 and durability, made from the leaves of the "maguey" — the juice of 

 which, supplying there the place of beer, cider, and more potent 

 whiskey, is sold in the shops, under the name of " pulque." Or if, 

 in the East Indies, he desires to send home some souvenir of his travels, 

 he will select from the stock of an itinerant pedlar, a handkerchief of 

 gossamer-like texture, almost as fine and as delicate as that which 

 the spider weaves, made from the fibres of the pineapple plant, 

 the fruit of which he ate for his dessert. If in Manila, he will find 

 ships of all nations filling up their cargoes with bales of excellent 

 fibres, which he will mistake for hemp or flax, but which he will ascer- 

 tain, on inquiry, are extracted from the stalks of the plantain — the 

 forests of which, with their broad leaves, shadow over every path and 

 by-road of the island. 



And if our traveller be well-informed as to the wants of manu- 

 factures and the arts, he will wonder how it is that the acknowledged 

 and increasing deficiency in the world's supply of fibrous materials, has 

 not been filled from the numerous and prolific sources which he sees 

 everywhere around him. He will, perhaps, be induced to inquire why 

 it is that the millions of plantain trees which are cut down throughout 

 tropical America, after having yielded their fruit, are suffered to rot on 

 the ground, instead of being utilised for the excellent fibres with which 

 they are lined. He will ask wdiy the countless agaves, which some- 

 times surround him like forests, and the myriads of wild-pine plants 

 which throng the woods, and invade every abandoned field, are allowed 

 to send out their fibre-stuffed leaves to flourish and decay, while the 

 world clamors for an increased supply of fibrous materials I 



The supply of vegetable fibres from all sources does not meet the 

 present and increasing demands of manufacture, and many of the most 

 important articles of common use, such as paper and fabrics, are steadily 

 advancing in price, from an absolute and growing deficiency of fibrous 

 materials. 



Where is this deficiency to be supplied, is a question which is now 

 frequently and earnestly repeated with every succeeding year, and to 

 which no satisfactory answer- has yet been obtained. It is true that 

 naturalists without exception, have always pointed to the tropics within 

 which are numerous and exhaustless varieties of endogenous plants pro- 

 ducing foliaceous fibres, capable not only of supplying all existing 

 or possible deficiencies, but capable also, of furnishing beautiful, as 

 well as cheap materials, for new and useful manufactures. It is also 

 true, that the production of fibres from tropical plants, has of late years 

 rapidly increased, but not in a ratio equal to the demand for them, 

 owing to the want of simple, cheap, and efficient machinery for extract- 

 ins the fibres. 



