$46 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [February t, 1888. 
serious loss to the manufactures are promised by the 
present situation, unless the manufactures adopted 
some drastic measures. Quinine is lower at present 
than it has ever been before. The prices now rule at 
from 40 to 45 cents per 02. for German, and American 
from 39 to 46 cents per oz. A good idea of the course 
of the market may be obtained from the prices per 02. 
for the last five years which follow : — 
American per Ounce. German per Ounce. 
December 1st. December 1st. 
1883 .. $1-75 to $1-80 1883 .. jgl'60 to 81-80 
1884 .. 0-83 to 0-90 1884 .. 0 75 to 0-85 
1885 .. 0 88 to 0 95 1885 .. 0 82 to 0'92 
1886 . . 0 54 to 0 65 1886 . . 0-52 to 0'54 
1887 .. 0 39 to 0 46 1887 .. 0 40 to 0 45 
The decline which is shown by these figures has 
been due to two causes. The first is the largely 
increased yield of bark, owing to the great develop- 
ment of the Ceylon and Java plantations, which no 
doubt produce much more bark than the cinchona 
trees of South America. Not only has the increase 
•ome from the extension of the plantations, but also 
owing to the fact that the trees when stripped of 
their bark now are swathed in moss and enabled to 
grow new bark, which can be stripped from the 
trees. Thus the productive power of the trees has 
been quadrupled. 
The second reason for this great decline in prices 
has been the strong competition among manufacturers 
both foreign and domestic. 
It is believed by some members of the trade that 
the foreign manufacturers were the first to bring 
forth the idea of a combination, and that they have 
been carefully developing the plan, and that the 
American manufacturers are favourably disposed to- 
wards it. Unless this combination is formed, it is 
probable that the pressure of the great stocks on the 
market will force prices down further. It is claimed 
that quinine can be profitably produced as low as 
twenty-five cents per ounce, but satisfactory figures 
showing this result have not yet been shown. 
Thus, while bark has been bought lately at Amster- 
dam at Is OJd per unit, equal to about 18c. per oz., 
and while the cost of manufacturing in Germany has 
been decreased lately, say from 14 to about 10 c. 
per oz-, making the total cost to manufacture 28§ c. 
per oz-j yet such a price for bark would not pay 
the planter. In fact, nothing less than 2d per oz. 
would afford any margin to the planter and that 
price represents about the average price which manu- 
facturers are paying. This would make the cost 
of the bark 25 c. per oz., and the cost to produce 
35 c. 
There is estimated to be a surplus stock of about 
700,000 oz. of quiuine on the American market, and 
a surplus of 1,600,000 oz. abroad. This would na- 
turally depress prices further. Yet, on the contrary, 
the market is showing a firmer tone, and has ad- 
vanced sharply during the present week, the stronger 
feeling being upon the beljef that the combination 
is being successfully formed. If it is, even higher 
prices may be expected in the near future. 
Quinine. 
To the Editor of the " Financial News." 
Sir, — In your issue of today you print an extract 
from the Boston Commercial Bulletin on the quinine 
market in which it is sought to show that at the 
recent low prices of bark, quinine could be profitably 
manufactured in America at 25 cents or Is Jd per oz. 
As this idea is most misleading, I hope you will 
allow me to put before your readers the facts of the 
case. 
The lowest quoted price for bark in London or 
Amsterdam was l§d the unit., meaning tbat a pound 
of bark containing 1 per cent of quinine could be 
bought for ljd, so that 100 lb of such bark could be 
1. ought for 150 pence. Such 100 lb of bark would 
contain 1 lb of quinine, so that 16 oz. of quinine would 
cost 150d or 9£d per oz. in the bark. Before buying, 
commissions, freight and manufacturing expenses had 
been incurred, to say nothing of a manufacturer's 
profit. According to the Boston Commercial, the cost 
of manufacturing in Germany " has been decreated 
lately, say from 14 to about 10 cents per oz." If you 
add these 10 cents, or 5d., to the cost of the quinine 
in the bark you get the lowest price at which sales 
were attempted, and as a matter of fact ssme manufac- 
turers have been obliged to close tbeir factories, and 
some to buy quinine themselves to sell to their cus- 
tomers, because they thus avoided the manufacturer's 
loss, and got a dealer's profit. 
With regard to the bark portion of the extract, the 
following are facts : — 
At l|d. per unit the calculation for growers was not 
whether it paid to grow bark, but whether, after 
counting all money spent in planting and cultivating 
as so much lost capital, it were possible to get enough 
money for the bark to pay the mere labour for cutting, 
the drying, freight and selling expenses, and judged 
by this low standard it was found not to be worth 
while taking the bark, and cutting was stopped, and 
estimates came home of 9,000,000 for the year ; or even 
less, as pgainst 14,000,000 and 15,000,000 in' the two 
previous years. 
The large speculators who have so cleverly and far- 
sightedly taken up quinine with an evident knowledge 
of the inner workings of the trade so complete and 
accurate that few in the trade are as well informed 
probably know all this and that, at least for some 
months to come, they need not fear large supplies of 
bark. 
Further facts with regard to the quinine market : 
At the recent large Amsterdam bark sale, on the 8th 
instant, a certain large German quinine manufacturing 
concern was the largest buyer. 
Ever since that sale the London representative of 
that firm has been the most persistent bear talker of 
quinine. Other manufacturers have followed on the 
same lines, and we have had the strange spectacle of 
manufacturers discouraging buyers of quinine. 
As soon as a buyer of large quantities of quinine at 2s. 
appeared the said bear talker tackled him, and talked 
the article down, and even invited offers for large 
quantities at Is lid. Within the last day or two buyers 
screwed up their courage to offering Is lid for large 
quantities, and were met with refusals to sell on the 
plea, amongst others, that they were speculators, and 
that manufacturers would only sell to consumers. 
Next Tuesday, 20th inst., some 8,000 packages bark 
will be offered for sale, and when they shall have been 
sold it is difficult to imagine (according to latest Ceylon 
telegraphic advices of small bark shipments) where 
further large supplies of bark will be found — that is 
to say, quantities of bark anything like in proportion 
to recent large sales of quinine. 
With the foregoing facts in their possession, I will 
leave your readers to form their own opinion as to 
why German quinine is not 2s 6d now, and to draw their 
own conclusion as to its probable price after Tuesday's 
auction. — I am, sir, yours, &c, Rivers Hicks. 
5, Savage-gardens, Trinity-square, London, 
December 17th, 1887. 
THE COCA PLANT IN SOUTH AMEEICA AND 
ITS CULTIVATION IN CEYLON. 
January 16th, 1888. 
Dear Sib, — Having visited the coca districts on 
the tablelands of Peru and Bolivia, I take leave to 
endorse what is said by your correspondent in this 
month's number of your Tropical Agriculturit 
especially as regards the profit yielded. In 
Bolivian coca growing yielding nearly 50 per cent 
profit, and the plant raised in Bolivia being far 
superior to the Peruvian one. The coca industry 
is now more confined to the Southern republic, 
so much so that an Austrian naturalist lately 
remarked about South America : " The Chili 
saltpetre comes from Peru and is not 
saltpetre, but nitrate of soda, and the 
Peruvian ' Erythroxylon Koka ' comes from Bolivia." 
To export this valuable tonic, it should be in the 
form of an essence, as coca loses its aroma in 
transit. The South American Indians that I have 
had to supply the dried leaves to in railway camps 
in Peru near the coast, oould hardly be made to 
