Fibres. 



lb 



[January, 1909. 



and Sann is consequently considered 

 to be less remunerative than some other 

 crops. The imports of San u -hemp fibre 

 into the Punjab in 1906-07 were 15,382 

 maunds and in 1907-08 20,984 maunds, 

 almost entirely from the United Pro- 

 vinces. The exports amounted to only 

 4,078 maunds in 1906-07 and 2,584 maunds 

 in 1907-08. 



The returns of the United Provinces 

 show an area in 190(5-07 of 133,000 acres of 

 hemp, which include both Hibiacus 

 cannabiniiH and Sann-hemp : and in 

 1907-08 of 158,000 acres. Practically the 

 whole of this area is devoted to Sann- 

 hemp, which is grown for fibre and 

 almost universally also as a border crop 

 with kharif crops. Part of the produce 

 is worked up by cultivators into ropes 

 for home use ; but the export is consider- 

 able. The trade returns of the United 

 Provinces for 1906-07 show practically no 

 imports of hemp, but exports aggregating 

 400,000 maunds valued at 22 lakhs of 

 rupees and in 1907-08 of 409,800 maunds, 

 valued at Rs. 26,15,000; most of this is 

 Sann-hemp. There is a steady trade 

 with Calcutta and a very fluctuating 

 trade with Bombay. The crop is a well 

 recognized feature of the local agri- 

 culture, and the trade in fibre is an 

 organized one. The area generally 

 responds to the prices offered. 



The crop does well in the Tavoy 

 District of Tenasserim, where it is grown 

 there after paddy. The estimated area 

 is about 4C0 acresin Lower Burma, when 

 the fibre is used for fishing nets. It is 

 very doubtful whether there will be any 

 great development of Sann in Burma 

 unless the Department of Agriculture 

 succeeds in introducing it for green 

 manuring. 



Coconut Fibre —The coconut palm is 

 grown in all the Coast districts of India, 

 but to the largest extent, in the southern 

 portion of the Bombay Presidency and 

 in Madras. In the Malabar Coast dis- 

 tricts, the coir industry is a very large 

 one, amounting to many lakhs of rupees 

 per annum. Although this palm takes 

 time to mature, its cultivation is popular, 

 because it supplies food as well as fibre 

 for many years after it has reached the 

 fruiting stage. In Bengal it is plentiful 

 in the lower Gangetic basin ; but it 

 exists practically only in garden culti- 

 vation ; there are no large plantations. 

 The coconut palm is grown on a large 

 scale in Bakarganj and Noakhali in 

 Eastern Bengal and Assam, but the fibre 

 is never extracted. There seems no 

 reason why this industry might not be 

 introduced with profit into the Province. 



Little, if any, attention has in the past 

 been devoted to the fibre of the coco- 



nut in Burma, except in the jails. Even 

 for food purposes cocouuts have to be 

 imported largely. The cultivation of 

 the palm for fruit and fibre has been 

 taken up in Akyab by one European. If 

 he succeeds, his experience may attract 

 attention to this crop. There is a coir 

 factory in Rangoon, and the collecting 

 of coir for it would seem deserving of 

 encouragement. The want of sufficient 

 cooly labour in Moulmein and other 

 centres makes it impossible to start 

 coir factories in them. The total area 

 under this crop was returned as 13,590 

 acres in 1906-07, and 13,070 acres in 1907-08. 



Plantain Fibre. — There are possibili- 

 ties of a useful industry in plantain 

 fibre. In many parts of India the plan- 

 tain is common in every garden ; and 

 in Bengal, Assam, the Bombay and 

 Malabar Coasts, the Delta tracts of 

 Madras and in parts of Burma, whole 

 groves of plantains are quite common. 

 The fibre of the plant which produces 

 good fruit in India is usually, however, 

 far inferior to that of lUusa textilis — 

 also a plantain — which is the source 

 of Manilla Hemp. Moreover, the amount 

 of fibre obtainable from a plantain 

 in India is very small. Experiments 

 have shown that the fibre can be ex- 

 tracted by a simple hand machine; but 

 in view of the low market price obtain- 

 able — as a rule, not much more than half 

 that of Manilla Hemp — it remains to 

 be proved that a plantain fibre industry 

 in India is a commercial possibility. 

 The fibre is of little use for the manu- 

 facture of cordage as its strength is 

 below the standard usually demanded for 

 rope-making. There are about 124,000 

 acres under plantains in Burma, but 

 nothing is done with the fibre. The 

 crop might give paying results for fibre 

 after producing fruit. 



Sida. — Species of Sida are quite com- 

 mon jungle plants in most parts of 

 India ; but in order to attain the length 

 necessary for a fibre plant the eiop must 

 be grown on well-drained land, either 

 in a moist climate or under irrigation. 

 Experiments under these conditions 

 have given promising results. It is, 

 however, necessary to overcome certain 

 difficulties before recommending the crop 

 for general cultivation. 



Agave and Rhea. — For the purpose of 

 this note, Agave and Rhea may be taken 

 together. The conditions of soil and 

 climate suitable for these crops are now 

 fairly definitely known. It used to be 

 thought that Agave would grow and 

 thrive on any soil and under any con- 

 ditions of climate. It has, indeed, been 

 stated that the poorer the laud, the better 

 Agave will thrive ; but experience indi- 







