224 
There may be some value for Hawaiian shippers of fresh pine- 
apples in the following advice to growers in Natal, which is con- 
tained in a report on the export of citrus and other fruits from 
that country : 
'‘Pineapples . — The best packing material has been found to be 
corn husks, which should above all things be dry. The fruit was 
shipped from the Cape in boxes of three sizes, the outside meas- 
urements of the middle one being 28jTxl3j/^x5ci inches; there 
were three boxes in each bundle, and the top one only was lidded. 
It is suggested that, for the Cayenne pineapple, the box known as 
the Azores half case, which is 22 inches square and 9 inches deep, 
should be used. The box recommended for the Queen pine is 
one which will take ten and twelve fruits, according to size, allow- 
ing for sufficient packing. For pines of a good class, the boxes 
should be shipped singly and not bundled together in threes, two 
of which are not provided with lids, as this gives the fruit a ‘cheap’ 
appearance. During carriage at sea, ventilation appears to be bet- 
ter than cold storage.” 
Experiments are being made in cotton growing in Jamaica. At 
a recent meeting of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, the governor 
of the colony, referring to a statement by a member, Mr. Watson, 
that he had made a success of it for three years running, said he 
thought that Mr. Watson had advised the society not to encourage 
the small men to grow cotton. Mr. Watson admitted it was so, 
but explained that what he had said was “that they should wait 
until the bigger men made a*success of growing cotton, then the 
small men would be more ready to follow.” Pretty shrewd advice 
and it might be of benefit elsewhere than in Jamaica. 
Has anyone in Hawaii ever heard of woolless sheep? At the 
meeting of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, mentioned in another 
paragraph, the secretary said he had made further inquiry as to 
when a troopship would be leaving West Africa for Jamaica, so 
that they might import some wooHess sheep, etc. 
Owing to the pressure of work in the Public Lands office, in 
connection with the opening of lands for homesteading to take 
place on and after October 19 as publicly advertised, the record of 
land transactions for the past two or three months has not been 
prepared for publication. The homestead opening is the greatest 
event in land administration in the Hawaiian Islands since the 
great land division in 1847, when feudal tenure gave way to 
private title to land. All the homestead lands that have been sur- 
veyed will be awarded, so far as applied for at the stated times, by 
lot to the applicants. 
