Mr. John Hamilton to Royal Gardens, Kew. 

 Copy. 12 Gt. Tower Street, London, E.C., 31st July, 1889. 



Dear Sir, 



I now return the two copies of Reports on the Jamaica bark, the perusal of which has much 

 interested me. I am expecting some improvements in the value of Cinchona later in the year. Those 

 who have good bark should not, in my opinion, be in too much of a hurry to realize. The Market now 

 is suffering more from a plethora of quinine than a redundancy of bark. 



After this season ending 30th September, I am told the exports from Ceylon will not again exceed 

 8 million lbs. and the fall will come gradually from that point according to supply and demand requirements.' 



That there can arise any large increase in the value of bark during the next 18 months there are 

 at present no grounds for supposing. 



Thanking you again for your courtesy. 



I am, &c, 



(Signed) John Hamilton. 



D. Morris, Esq., M.A., F.L.S. 



The correspondence given above refers to Officinalis Bark, but Suceirubra, Druggists' Bark, appear* 

 to have a brighter future. A sample was sent to Kew from the Government Cinchona Plantation, and 

 iihe following communication was received in reply : — 

 JSxtract. 



Messrs. Burgoyne, Burbridges 8f Co. to Royal Gardens, Kew. 



12 Coleman St., London, E.C , 24th July, 1889. 

 " In reply to your esteemed favour of the 13th inst., the Cinchona Suceirubra Bark [from Botani- 

 cal Department, Jamaica] would fetch about 8d. to 9d. lb. if sent on the market in the same condition 

 as the sample received ; but if it were not so much broken it would realize from Is. to Is. 2d." 



(The whole of the bark of one tree was sent to Kew, and Mr. Morris notes that it was a broken 

 piece thatwas sent to Messrs. Burgoyne.) 



SISAL HEMP. 



Sisal Hemp is extracted in Yucatan from several plants, but the true plant (Agave rigida) is one 

 nearly allied to the Koratoe (Agave Morrisii), a native of Jamaica. 



The true Sisal Hemp plant exists under several varieties, but the one which is most largely cultivated 

 is of a greyish-green colour with thorny spines on the edges of the leaves (Agave rigida, var. elongata). 

 The Department, with the aid of the Government and the British Consul at Progresso, was able to 

 secure one dozen plants of this variety from Yucatan, but it has proved quite impossible to obtain any 

 more, as the planters there wish to preserve the monopoly. There are now about 100 plants at Hope 

 Gardens, and they are being propagated as fast as possible. 



Another variety (Agave rigida, var. Sisalana) was very freely distributed in the Bahamas by His 

 Excellency Sir Henry Blake when he was Governor in that Colony. The inhabitants now see 

 the great importance of this industry, and the Government has been induced to forbid the export of 

 any plants for three years. This variety is of a dark green colour, and has no spines on the edges of the 

 leaves. The absence of spines on the edges saves trouble and expense in harvesting. There are a few of 

 these plants in the Hope Gardens. It has been ascertained that this variety grows in the Caicos 

 Islands, and His Excellency Sir H. A. Blake has directed that arrangements shall be made for the im- 

 portation of as many as can be obtained. It is expected that these plants will arrive next February. 



There is another plant which also yields a large quantity of the Sisal Hemp exported from Yucatan, 

 namely, Silk Grass (Furcroea cubensis.) There is already a large quantity of this plant in Jamaica, and 

 there ought to be no difficulty in planting out a large area. However, it only yields from 2 to 3 per 

 cent, of fibre, whereas the true Sisal Hemp plant yields 4 per cent. Another species (Furcroea gigantea) 

 is the Mauritius Hemp of commerce. 



Mr. D. J. Stoddart wrote a pamphlet in the year 1886, on the cultivatian of Sisal Hemp, which was 

 printed at the Government Printing Establishment but is now out of print. Mr. G. Preston was sent as 

 a Special Commissioner to Yucatan by the Government of the Bahamas to enqu're into the working of 

 the Fibre Industry, and his Report was published during the present year. 



Notes have been drawn up from these Reports for the benefit of those who have not the means of 

 consulting them : — • . 



Soil. — Any dry, poor land will suit Sisal Hemp, but rocky, gravelly soil is the best for the pro- 

 duction of the finest fibre. Moist land is not suitable, nor rich land, like old Sugar Estates, for though 

 the leaves grow weil and fast, the fibre is poor and small in quantity. Shade is prejudicial, even to the 

 young plants. 



rianting. — Young plants are the best for planting out, and they should not exceed two feet in 

 height. If the plants have to be carried a long distance, the roots should not be trimmed, but when 

 they are planted out, the roots should be cut off down to the trunk, and the dry leaves pulled off. The 

 plants are put out in straight rows : the distance between the rows being 12 feet, and between the 

 plants 6 feet in the rows. There will then be about 600 plants to the acre. Roads, running perpen- 

 dicular to the rows, may be formed at intervals of 10 chains. It is necessary to keep the plants at. 

 this distance apart, for if they are too close, the leaves may be damaged in high winds, resulting nx 



