THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 



557 



by means of ditches on one side of the large field, from 

 which trenches are dug in the desired directions. By 

 damming up the trenches leading to the plots which do 

 not require water, plots that do are thoroughly mois- 

 tured by means of the flow of water in the trenches 

 passing through the clay subsoil which underlies the 

 surface soil a foot below. The trenches are allowed to 

 fill with water until on a level with the surface, when 

 the flow is stopped. 



This prairie garden is divided into plots of different 

 lengths, but each about 20 feet wide, having a trench on 

 either side and at the ends for the purposeof irrigating. 

 The whole system is as perfect as can be, and while 

 nothing more nor less than the well-known plan of irri- 

 gating, its advantage is the utilization of the clay sub- 

 soil as a conductor of water. One familiar with the cost 

 of tile used for irrigating purposes can easily imagine 

 the saving by the process here described. Mr. Hast- 

 ings is a firm believer in the possibilities of rice culture 

 by his natural process of irrigation, and is rapidly turn- 



ing his fields into rice. As fast as the vegetables are 

 taken off the ground, rice is sown, and by the irrigation 

 process makes a good growth. When there on May i, I 

 saw several small plots of about an acre each which 

 looked full as well as that sown in the rice sections of 

 South Carolina. 



On this nearly flat prairie farm, which had been cov- 

 ered for years until August, iSgo, with pine trees, are 

 grown nearly all the vegetables that can be profitably 

 marketed. The one possible drawback to the system so 

 far as I could see was the extreme wetness of the soil 

 when it rained. Unlike most people in the southern 

 states, Mr. Hastings prefers the dry weather to even an 

 occasional rain. 



I venture the prediction that in less that five years, 

 the sections of Florida similar to Mr. Hastings' farm 

 will be covered with prairie farms which will approach 

 in money making capacity the now famous orange groves 

 of the state. 



Geo. R. Knapp, 



THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 



T A meeting of the Massachusetts 

 Horticultural Society, Colonel Wil- 

 son gave an interesting account 

 of a trip to the Bahama Islands. 

 These, which lie off the southeastern 

 Coast of Florida, 1,050 miles from New York, 

 must no be confounded with the Bermuda 

 Islands, which are situated about 600 miles to 

 the east of Charleston, S. C, and 900 miles from 

 New York. The Bahamas are about 600 in num- 

 ber, though only about 17 are inhabited, a great 

 many being merely small rocky islets. Their popu- 

 lation is abont 40,000, of whom 14,000 live in Nas- 

 sau, the capital, situated on the island of New 

 Providence, and the lively headquarters of block- 

 ade runners during the late civil war. The islands, 

 which have an estimated area of about 3,000 square 

 miles, extend for about 600 miles north-west and 

 south-east, and are very flat, long and narrow, 

 formed of calcareous rock with a light sandy soil, 

 where there is any. Though there are no running 

 streams, there are numerous springs. The tem- 

 perature is very equable, ranging between 70° and 

 82° in winter, when most Americans visit them for 

 the sake of their health, the climate being very 

 salubrious and beneficial to consumptives. The 

 rainfall is equally distributed, and averages about 

 zYz inches per month. The islands are dependen- 

 cies of the British empire, and the government is 

 administered by a governor and an executive council 

 of nine members, with a representative council of 



28 members. Of the population about one-sixth 

 are white, intelligent for the most part, and well 

 educated ; while the negro majority present a great 

 variety in color, intelligence and industry, though 

 generally willing to work for moderate wages. In- 

 deed, the price of casual labor is only 50 cents a 

 day, while permanent labor can be obtained for a 

 much lower figure. 



The principal vegetation on the islands is acacia, which 

 is found in great variety. The royal palm, too, forms a 

 stately tree, while the banyan grows to perfection in the 

 eastern part of the group. The cocoanut thrives as well 

 as in any part of the world, and bears in four years from 

 the seed, and then fruits perennially, a frond extending 

 every month, with a cluster of flowers at the base, 

 which produce from 40 to 60 nuts. The growth con- 

 tinues during the whole year, and at all times the whole 

 gamut from flower to fruit can be seen on the same tree, 

 so that every day the owner can pick fruits which sell for 

 three cents a piece. 



Pine-apples are among the chief exports of the islands, 

 though they are chiefly grown on the island of Elenthesa. 

 The red soil only will produce a profitable crop, hence 

 the area fit for the fruit is limited, and suitable land costs 

 from fSo to lioo per acre. There are over 50 varieties 

 of the pine-apple, but the red or Cuban is preferred for 

 size and quality. The plants, biennial shrubs, are pro- 

 pagated by means of suckers, produced freely by most 

 varieties, or by the crowns, which are less desirable than 

 suckers, not producing fruit so soon. They are planted 

 in August, and some varieties bear fruit 18 months after 

 the suckers have rooted. The season begins in May, and 

 from 800 to 1,500 is the product per acre. Formerly, 



