570 



apt to die prematurely if carelessly cut. The fibre is prepared by a 

 machine capable of defibrating 20,000 leaves an hour, with the labour 

 of three men. A thousand leaves gives 50 to 55 pounds of fibre, that 

 is 2i to 3 tons an acre. The fibre is valued at about £29 per ton, 

 and as in Mexico the expenses are light, a good profit is obtained. 

 At present the plants in the Singapore Gardens nre small, but seem 

 to make a steady growth, and it seems likely to do as well as Sisal, 

 or Mauritius hemp here. 



The above notes are taken from Mr. R. H. Millward's Mexican 

 fibre Agaves known as Zapupe. (Trans. Acad. Science, St. Louis, 

 1909). 



RUBBER NOTES. 



Peat Formation. 



Through the kindness of the Collector of Land 

 Revenue, Lower Perak, we have received a report of 

 some peat soil taken from a spot between Chankat Tong 

 and Sabak in Perak examined by the Government 

 Analyst in 1906. Unfortunately no complete analysis 

 is given. The Analyst (Mr. Burgess) merely says : 



Coarse mineral matter on laevigation . . none. 

 Total mineral matter in the dry sample . 7 — 6. 



The report shows how very poor in mineral consti- 

 tuents this soil is. — ED. 



THE BLACK HEVEA FUNGUS. 



We recently published (Bulletin VIII, 310) some 

 account of a pestilential black fungus attacking the 

 shoots of rubber trees in Johore and Selangor. Speci- 

 mens were sent to the Director of the Royal Gardens 

 Kew, who submitted them to Mr. Massee, the 



