230 



Only about 500,000 nuts per annum are produced in Dutch 

 Guiana, and an insignificant number in French Guiana. These are 

 consumed locally. 



Coco-nuts in Venezuela. 



At La Guayra, the annual crop of coco-nuts amounts to about 

 1,000,000. At Barcelona and Comana, however, it is much larger; 

 the latter could easily furnish 5,000,000 nuts a year. The cultiva- 

 tion of coco-nuts receives very little attention in La Guayra, and 

 practically no efforts are made to extend their growth. There is 

 no reason, however, why the present area should not be increased) 

 as the palm thrives wonderfully along the coast, and nearly all of 

 the land within half a mile or a mile of the sea could be furtilized. 



The nuts grown in La Guayra district are mostly absorbed by the 

 local retail trade of the cities of La Guayra and Caracas, a great 

 many being sold to the natives, who drink the milk. The nut is also 

 used for cooking, confectionery, etc. In Cumana, most of the crop 

 is manufactured into oil. This oil is said to be of an excellent quality. 

 A few nuts are occasionally shipped from La Guayra to the United 

 States, but the trade is not profitable. The harbour dues on all 

 kinds of freight is $4 a ton, and planters find that it pays them 

 better to hold the nuts for local consumption. Coco-nuts are never 

 shipped in the husk. 



In La Guayra the price of coco-nuts is from §2.50 to §5 gold per 

 hundred; in Cumana, from $2 to §3. 



The production of coco-nuts in the Puerto Cabello district of 

 Venezuela is limited, as there are but few trees. Very little atten- 

 tion is paid to their cultivation and the supply is decreasing. The 

 soil, however, is excellent for the growth of this palm. 



The nuts are marketed here green for the coco-nut water they 

 contain; ripe, for the meat, from which oil for soap-making and other 

 purposes is extracted, and as copra, for foreign shipment. The 

 green coco-nuts are sold for 1 cent, each , ripe ones at about the 

 same price, and copra for about 2\ cents per pound. 



A NEW INSTRUMENT FOR TAPPING 

 RUBBER TREES. 



The " Teysmannia." and the "Indischen Merkur" give a des- 

 cription of a new instrument for tapping rubber trees, invented by 

 Mr. H. C PRAASTERINK of Toeder in Dutch India. This instru- 

 ment is highly recommended, and has the shape of a hollow stem 

 (iron) of 2.5 centimetres breadth. In the middle of the iron there 

 is an oval opening, and on each side, just above the opening, there 

 is a small tag fixed underneath, on which an earthen vessel can be 

 hung up. The way of using the instrument is very simple. With 

 aid of a wooden hammer it is knocked into the tree in a slanting 

 direction, and if some small pieces of the bark should happen to 

 fall into the instrument, these can be easily removed by blowing 

 them off. The vessel is hung upon the two tags and the latex 



