Edible Products. 



228 



[September, 1908. 



beginning of the dry season, spread uni- 

 formly over the soil to the thickness of 

 about an inch, and a thin layer of earth 

 sprinkled over it. The mulch may con- 

 sist of manure fresh or half decomposed, 

 of grass, which should be cut up if too 

 long, of fresh or dry leaves and twigs. 

 Plantain leaves are specially useful, cut 

 up to facilitate decomposition. 



In young plantations where weeds 

 invade the free soil, these should be cut 

 down and strewn round the bases of the 

 trees, thus forming a simple kind of 

 mulch. 



A note in the "Journal of the Society 

 of Agriculture for Jamaica " for Decem- 

 ber, 1907, confirms the valuable results 

 of mulching in the case of Bananas, 

 Cacao, Coffee and Coconuts. 



CACAO IN THE UNITED STATES. 



Its Popularity Outstripping that of 

 Tea and Coffee. 



According to the New Orleans Press, 

 the growing popularity of cacao and its 

 products among the people of the United 

 States, to which reference has been 

 made from time to time in recent years, 

 is illustrated by some figures prepared 

 by the Bureau of Statistics of the De- 

 partment of Commerce and Labour, 

 which show the relative growth in tea, 

 coffee, and cacao importations during 

 recent years. Cocao imports have grown 

 from 18,000,000 lb. in 1890 to 92,000,000 J b. 

 1907 ; coffee imports from 499,000,000 lb. 

 in 1890 to 987,000,0(0 lb. 1907, and tea 

 imports from 81,000,000 lb. in 1890 to 

 86,000,000 lb. in 1907. The cacao impor- 

 tations have quintupled during the 

 period under consideration, while those 

 of coffee were scarcely doubling and 

 those of tea making practically no in- 

 crease. In value the importation of 

 cacao have grown from §2,333, 333A 

 in 1890 to $13,250,000 in 1907, while those 

 of coffee are practically unchanged, 

 being $78,250,000 "in 1890 to $78,333,333^ in 

 1907 ; and those of tea have but a slight 

 increase, being $12,333,333;}- in 1890, and 

 slightly less than 511,000,000 in 1907. 



Another interesting fact with refer- 

 ence to this more rapid growth in the 

 import of cacao is that it has occur- 

 red in the face of a greater advance 

 in price of that article than has occurred 

 in either tea or coffee. The average 

 Value per pound of the crude cacao 

 imported in 1890 was 12 7 cents and in 

 1907 14 '5 cents ; that of .tea, 15 cents in 

 1890 and 16'1 cents in 1907 ; while that 

 of coffee shows a marked fall, having 

 been in 1890 16 cents and in 1907 7-9 

 cents. 



The growing taste for cacao among 

 the American people puts them into 

 closer touch with the people of the 

 West India Islands, and suggests possi- 

 blities for their own tropical islands, all 

 of which are capable of' producing this 

 article. Of the 92,000,000 lb. of cacao 

 imported in the last fiscal year, 

 39,000,000 lb. came from the West Indies 

 20,000,000 lb. from Brazil, 15,000,000 from 

 other South American countries, and 

 16,000,00 lb. from European countries, 

 but doubtless originating in their tropi- 

 cal colonies. 



Meanwhile, in England, according to 

 the papers, it has been decided by our 

 Government that, owing to the high 

 price of ingredients of Navy cacao, coffee 

 and tea will be served to sailors of the 

 British Navy as an additional ration in 

 lieu thereof. We know the price of 

 cacao has risen very much, but have not 

 heard what the ingredients are that the 

 Navy puts into its cacao, so cannot 

 express an opinion on them. Probably 

 this is only a faulty statement on the 

 part of the Journal. The fact of dis- 

 pensing with cacao, if true, shows a 

 most short-sighted policy on the part 

 of the Admiralty, as during the winter 

 months especially, there is nothing so 

 suitable for a sailor's beverage or so 

 sustaining as a food cacao. — Tropical 

 Life, Vol. IV., No. 2. Feb. 1908. 



THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF 

 THE COCONUT. 



We have been meaning for several 

 months to call the attention of those of 

 our readers interested in coconut culture 

 to the valuable articles, illustrated with 

 diagrams and photographs, that appear- 

 ed at the bee-inning of last year in the 

 Philippine Journal of Science ; but not 

 having the numbers by us at the time, 

 we had to write out for a complete file. 

 These having been supplied by the 

 courtesy of Dr. Freer, Director of the 

 Bureau of Science, we are now able to 

 do so, and though late in pointing out 

 the chief points of interest they contain, 

 we feel that it is far better to do so now 

 than not at all. 



Under the charge and direction of 

 Dr. Paul C. Freer, investigations on the 

 subject of the coconut plam (Cocos 

 nucifera) have been carried on in the 

 laboratories attached to the Bureau 

 since the middle of 1904, and the results 

 published in their Journal, which is 

 issued approximately ten times a year. 

 In the January (1906) number, Mr. Edwin 

 Copeland contributed the results on the 

 investigations into "The Water Relations 



