Edible Product*. 158 



poouac or coconut meal, which is locally consumed: arrack or coconut toddy, 

 about which the less said the better, owing to its pernicious effects ; but why no use 

 has been made of the husk to produce fibre, which is shipped from Ceylon under five 

 heads, it is hard to say- The necessary machinery is simple, as is also that for 

 converting the fibre into yarn, rope and mats.— W. Greig, in Colonial Reports 

 {West Indies) No 36 : 1906. 



Cultivation and Curing of Tobacco. II. 



The Curing House. 



A tobacco curing house should be constructed in such a way as will enable 

 the operator to shut out very dry and very damp air, when either of the two 

 extremes occurs, as it is most essential when tobacco is drying that the atmosphere 

 be at all times warm and dry but not of a parching dryness. The non-conducting 

 thatched roof, and shutters constructed as in drawing No. 2, with the assistance of 

 the door as a means of ventilation, will ensure this. Each 'room' should be 14 feet 

 long, with a space of 3 feet between to enable the workmen to move the bars of 

 tobacco from one ' barradera' to the other, and for ventilation. The posts should be 

 so arranged that each room of tobacco is supported by four of the stoutest, the latter 

 being about 3 feet in the ground. These should be of good durable wood and not less 

 than 8 inches in diameter at the top ; the two smaller posts support the shutters and, 

 to some extent, the roof. The posts that form the central passage (fig. 1) may be 

 3 inches to 4 inches in diameter, perfectly straight and smooth. 



A Tobacco Curing House. (Fig. l.) 



A house of three rooms of the dimensions shown should be capable of drying 

 a crop of two acres of tobacco. Having decided how many rooms will be required, the 

 first operation in the building is to line off, peg, and dig the holes for the posts ; 

 when this has been properly started, the barraderas and frames should be made and 



