COMMERCIAL NOTES AND SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION. 55 
by the new United States Customs Tariff last September had become operative 
with the new season. Rarely have expectations based upon a reduction in customs 
duties been more cruelly disappointed than in the case at issue. The great drought 
which prevailed here until far into December prevented the lemons from maturing 
at the proper time, and from being suitable for shipment as boxed fruit. Hence, 
quantities of fruit, which in ordinary circumstances would have been sent abroad 
boxed, remained on the trees, exposed to all the attacks of the various diseases 
to which the lemon-tree is subject, and became unfit for shipment. What little 
fruit was sent out boxed was not of absolutely sound quality and, in spite of the 
reduction in the tariff, failed to find a ready market in America on account of its 
defective quality. More and more the conviction gained ground that the major portion 
of the lemons for which a sale abroad in the green state had been anticipated, must 
remain in the country, to be turned into lemon oil or citrate of lime. Add to this 
that for some time the report was current that certain big speculators in Sicily 
would find themselves unable to take up the large parcels of oil for delivery they had 
booked, and it will be understood that the market fell a prey to an evergrowing want 
of confidence, accompanied by increased willingness to sell. A race to realize set in, 
not only on the part of the manufacturers, but also on that of many exporters, who, 
by always making cheap offers abroad and thus discounting afresh the possibility of 
further reductions in price, did their best to create a panic which was not warranted 
by the actual state of affairs, and thereby helped to depress the article far below its 
intrinsic value. Thus it happened that oil of lemon first gradually and slowly receded, 
in the months of October, November and December 1913, from 24-4 to 22 -#, and 
then, in the course of January and February, tumbled down to 17 -%. Naturally such 
a depreciation could not pass without inflicting serious losses upon the local manu- 
_facturers. Now, of course, the important question arose whether it was not possible 
to put a stop to this drop in prices, which appeared to be bottomless. Since then 
negotiations have been on foot among the manufacturers with the object of withholding 
a portion of the oil from the market for the present, by warehousing it and advancing 
money on it. The first attempts which were made in this direction have had the im- 
mediate effect of arresting the downward movement in oil of lemon, and of bringing 
about an improvement in prices. Local speculators, who had left the article to take 
care of itself during the slump, now believed that the moment had arrived to secure 
contro! of it again at the much lower prices now ruling; many exporters, who apparently 
had calculated upon still lower prices, turned their thoughts to the covering of some 
portion of their bear sales. The manufacturer drew fresh courage in the expectation 
of better times ahead, and the panic disappeared, giving place to a more hopeful feeling. 
In view of the fact that owing to the large number of manufacturers the negotiations 
would be attended with some difficulties, which it would be impossible to remove there ~ 
and then, incurable price-cutters have during the last few days resumed their old tricks 
of discdunting the downward movement and spoiling the market. This, unfortunately, 
will result in creating a false impression abroad of the position which exists here. 
There is no doubt that the negotiations which are in progress among the manufacturers 
will in the end lead to a tangible result, and that the market-position of oil of lemon 
will undergo an improvement within a short time. The exaggerated rumours of the 
abundance of the present season’s output of oil, which are being bruited about by 
various interested parties, have probably only a slight foundation in truth. It is true, 
however, that the output of manufactured oil this year will exceed that of the previous 
season by from 25 to 35 p.c., but this surplus will scarcely have any practical weight, 
