CINNAMON. 



497 



on wicker work shelves, and exposed to the sun. When sufficiently 

 dry it is made up into bundles of about 30 lbs. weight each; previous 

 to preparing for shipment, they are subjected to the process of 

 assortment. 



The bark of large shoots or thick branches of trees produces coarse 

 cinnamon. Occasionally the external pellicle of this kind is scraped 

 off, which thins the cinnamon and improves its colour. It is, however, 

 even then thicker and of a darker colour than that of good quality, 

 while it is of a very inferior flavour, and is disagreeably pungent. 

 This sort is always rejected by the Inspectors as unfit to be exported 

 to Europe. The bark of very young and succulent shoots is likewise 

 of an inferior quality, and is of no commercial value. It is very thin, 

 and of a light straw colour, having little flavour, and that evanescent. 

 Shoots exposed during growth to the direct rays of the sun, have their 

 bark more acrid and spicy than the bark of those which grow under a 

 shade. A marshy soil rarely produces good cinnamon, its texture 

 under the circumstances being cross-grained and spongy, while it 

 possesses but little aroma. It is hardly possible to discover the 

 cause which produces the varieties in the quality of the bark, since 

 shoots from the same tree are found to yield cinnamon of very different 

 qualities. 



The best Ceylon cinnamon is thin, smooth, and of a light yellow 

 colour ; it admits of a considerable degree of pressure, and bends before 

 it breaks, the fracture is thin and splintry ; it has an agreeable warm 

 aromatic flavour, with a slight degree of sweetness. When masticated 

 the pieces become soft, and seem to melt in the mouth. 



From cinnamon which has been rejected for shipment, an essential 

 oil is usually extracted. The best oil of cinnamon sinks in water, but 

 when inferior, it is of smaller specific gravity. A very large quantity 

 of bark is required for obtaining only a small portion of oil: it is 

 reckoned that 80 lbs. of newly-prepared cinnamon yield about 6^ oz. 

 of heavy oil, and 2 J oz. of light oil. 



The total exports of cinnamon from Ceylon have been as follows : 



Year. 



Quantity. 



Value. 



Year. 



Quantity. 



Value. 





lbs. 



£ 





lbs. 



£ 



1850 



644,857 



64,487 



1863 



734,038 



36,702 



1851 



508,491 



50,849 



1864 



776,675 



38,833 



1852 



427,667 



42,767 



1865 



850,973 



42,549 



1853 



956,280 

 784,284 



51,040 



1866 



890,484 

 1,017,750 



44,524 



1854 



45,184 



1867 



50,888 



1855 



730,600 



36,089 



1868 



2,056,509 



102,825 



1856 



877,547 



45,370 



1869 



2,685,395 



134,270 



1857 



887,959 



52,574 



1870 



2,071,679 



103,584 



1858 



750,744 



37,537 



1871 



1,359,327 



67,966 



1859 



879,361 



43,972 



1872 



1,267,953 



64,748 



1860 



675,156 



33,758 



1873 



1,160,754 



58,038 

 53,077 



1861 



845,218 



42,261 



1874 



1,132,191 



1862 



875,475 



43,776 



1875 



1,407,010 



70,352 



There was long an export duty on cinnamon in Ceylon; this 

 was first imposed in 1832 on the abolition of the Government 



2 K 



