In compliance with instructions received from Earl Granville, 

 conveyed to me in a despatch from Mr. Philip W. Currie, dated 

 February Lst. fsSl, ! instituted inquiries relating to the production 

 of insect or white wax in this district, and in the province of Anhui 

 generally. 



For some time my inquiries led only to directly negative results, and 

 to show the difficulty I experienced in obtaining information on the 

 subject, I may mention that \ was at the outset assured, not only by 

 the dealers in white Avav in Wuhu, but by the Fastai, the chief local 

 authority here (who was good enough to refer to official publications in 

 0, that no white wax was produced in Anhui, nor in any 

 other province of the empire besides Ssii-chuan. The dealers also 

 scouted the idea that white wax was produced elsewhere, and it seemed 

 that 1 should only be able to report that in this province no production 



While, however, making those inquiries, I obtained the loan of 

 Father RathouiV inonognigh on the insect, and after its persual, as a 

 last resort wrote to Father Seckinger, the head of the Jesuit .Mission 

 at Nganking. and it is from him and. through him that T am indebted for 

 such meagr' ■■'> ns 1 am able to supply: and 1 



wish at once to acknowledge the obligation I am under to him for his 

 kind interest, in the matter. 



The specimens of the wax insect i xamined and described by Father 

 [Jatiiouis, were supplied to him by Father Seckinger from the grounds 

 of the Jesuit Mission at Nganking. Father Seckinger observed the 

 white deposit on tiie branches of a dn e - tree, which 



tion. 'idle insect was umloubtei 



II v- produced spontaneously in this 













• wax' was cultivated m'arvr than the 



iwhouin ih- extreme i 



iorth-we>1 corner of Anhui, about 300 



or 350 miles from Xganking. I h 







e neighbourhood of the district city 







Wuhu. The wax pr lducod is eor 



siimed h.eally.'and the [.reduction is 



comparatively tritiing. Thespecin 



tens forwarded direct to Few ( iardens 







Pochou is the Anhui centre of a 





Thedi-tri.-t throughout which it i 



< produced is very large, and extends 



Pochou and the neighbouring i 

 ." useful result in less than t\ 

 isiderable, and even on the 

 intities produced would be exti 



