636 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [March i, 1888. 
rounds the temporary homestead, which will shortly 
he replaced by a substantial residence : here a variety 
of imported dowers are flourishing luxuriantly ; a 
nursery of date palms, blue gums, and other imported 
trees are thriving well; and pumpkins, water mel- 
ons and tomatoes of enormous size and excellent 
quality grow almost spontaneously. A piece of ground 
at the rear of the housestead is being prepared for 
an extensive plantation of pure apples, of which 
comparatively few have hitherto been grown ; and 
beyond the fence enclosing this, extends another 100 
acres of grass, reed and bush land, on which are 
depasturing a herd of cattle. A short distance from 
the residence of the proprietor, houses have been 
erected for the preserving and canning of fruit, 
which industry has been actively commenced, and 
the product is already beginning to attract the at- 
tention of Australian buyers. 
The houses for the laborers, hospital, &c, are con- 
venient to the homestead, and it speaks well for 
the treatment of the laborers, of whom some 30 are 
employed, to find that the hospital has been hitherto 
untenanted, not one case of sickness having occurred 
on the estate. The proprietors speak hopefully of the 
prospects of the preserving industry, some of their 
goods forwarded to the Indian and Colonial Exhibi- 
tion having attracted very favourable notice. 
The only other firm which has as yet entered 
into competition with Messrs. Armstrong & Co. 
in fruit preserving is the firm of Anslow & 
M'Dougal on the Rewa, and they have also erected 
commodious works on their extensive plantation and 
are taking steps to place their excellent preserves 
en the Australian and home markets. Both these 
firms will be able to do this at a price at which 
our tropical fruits will compete successfully with those 
of more temperate climes. 
Neither the pine apple nor the banana of com- 
merce are indigenous to Fiji, but both have been 
long acclimatised. Prior to the introduction of the 
Chinese banana, as it is called, the only variety of 
this fruit in the islands of the Pacific was the plan- 
tain, which is much larger and coarser than the im- 
ported variety. The soil and climate of the group 
appear to be exceptionally suited for the production 
of both of these delicious fruits, as is abundantly 
proved by the avidity with which those sent ience 
are sought for in the colonies in preference to those 
grown in Queensland; the pine apples grown there, 
though of a large variety, being quite insipid in 
comparison, and possessing none of the luscious and 
exquisite flavour of their Fijian congeners : nor are 
the bananas of Queensland found to compare favour- 
ably with those of Fiji in point of excellence and 
flavour. There are at present three large 6teamers 
running monthly between Fiji and Sydney, and thf se 
convey each month an average of some 35,000 bun- 
ches of bananas, besides a large quantity of pines 
to the Sydney markets, while about 5000 bunches 
of bananas are shipped monthly by the Melbourne 
steamer, and about 3000 bunches to Auckland, New 
Zealand, whence they are transhipped to the southern 
ports. These figures will serve to show to what 
large proportions this industry has already grown. 
The bananas are at present purchased from the 
growers by the shippers at Is. 6d. per bunch, but 
it seems probable that through the brisk competition 
now existing amongst growers, this price will soon 
be reduced unless sustained by the operations of the 
preservers, as (he colonial markets are not capable 
of much further extension. Pines are purchased at 
about 2s. 6d. per dozen, and packed in boxes for 
shipment. The freight paid on bananas is generally 
about Is. per bunch, and hitherto the principal ship- 
pers have found their business fairly profitable al- 
though their returns fluctuate greatly, for during the 
Hummer season, severe losses are sometimes sustained 
by the fruit becoming over-ripe in transit. So much 
is this the case that on some occasions the fruit has 
had to be dug out and thrown away on arrival at 
Sydney. 
On the departure of one of the inter-colonial 
Steamers, the scene caused by the presence in the 
harbor of the innumerable small craft arriving with 
fruit, is not only a busy, but an attractive and interact- 
ing one, presenting all the excitement of a regatta. 
The banana boats, as they are termed, are generally 
large, open or half-decke 1 boats, similar to those 
used by the watermen of Sandridge. They carry a 
large spread of canvas, sail well, and are handled 
very expertly by their native or half-caste crews. 
Immediately on the steamer dropping her anchor in 
Suva, after her arrival from Lavuka en route to Syd- 
ney, she is surrounded by some 40 or 50 of this 
mosquito fleet, amongst which will be found small 
steamers, the property of the large shippers, towing 
punts laden with fruit. A great struggle, in which 
fisticuffs are sometimes resorted to, ensues for a good 
position opposite the^gangway, for the impartial rule 
"first come, first served" is invariably adhered to. 
The fruit is taken in from each side, and at both 
main and fore hatches. Stages are rigged on which 
to pass the fruit from the boats to the deck, and 
"taking in" commences. As each bunch is handed 
from the boats, it receives on the stalk a dab of 
point, the colour denoting the ownership. The owner 
or his representative is seated above, on the bul- 
warks, and keeps tally, rejecting all bunches which 
do not come up to the standard. An officer of the 
steamer opposite him, checks the owner's tally, while 
one of the crew receives the fruit on deck and passes 
it on down the hold, keeping up the monotonous 
cry of one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, 
nine, ten, tally ! continuously. The holds of the 
steamers are especially fitted up with stanchions 
supporting gratings on • which the fruit is carefully 
stowed away, and when the whole of each shipmeut 
is received, the tallies are compired, and the ship- 
per hurries ashore to get his bill of lading or ship- 
ping receipt signed. On several recent occasions, the 
fruit offered has been in excess of the stowage capa- 
city of the steamer, and this has led to frequent 
disputes among the shippers, who have even come 
to blows in the course of the contention, to get 
their fruit shipped. Such instances are, however, 
rare. 
After the departure of the steamer, a settlement 
is effected between the growers and the shippers 
who have purchased their fruit, and the money 
thus paid is soon put into circulation amongst the 
stores in town, making a considerable increase on 
their takings over the general daily average. 
Besides the bananas and pine apples, coconuts 
in the shell are another considerable item of export, 
and the delicious Indian mango and custard apple 
being now thoroughly acclimatised, will, doubtless, 
with the paw-paw or mammy apple, soon be shipped 
in quantity to the Australian marktts, both in a 
fresh and preserved state. It is to the fruit preserving 
business, however, that growers look to find in various 
parts of the world yet untouched a market for their 
produce. — Melbourne Leader. 
PBOCEEDINGS OF THE AGKICULTUEAL AND 
HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF INDIA 
for January 1888. 
Box-wood and its Substitutes. — About 30 years ago the 
Society, in view of the diminishing supply of Euro- 
pean Box-wood, offered its gold medal, and the sum 
of R500 "to the discoverer of any wood indigenous 
in India, and procurable in sufficient quantity, which 
shall serve as an efficient substitute for Turkish box, 
especially for wood engraving." Several kinds of 
wood from various parts of India, the produce of 
other trees, were submitted for competition for this 
prize. It was eventually awarded to Capt. W. G. Hay 
for 10 logs of Box-wood from the Punjab, it being 
considered, on the authority of Mr. TVhitly, wood en- 
graver to the School of Industrial Arts, Calcutta, 
equal to that procured from the Levant. In con- 
sideration of the valuable information on a kindred 
subject, communicated by Mr. Geo. Jephson, and for 
the trouble and expense to which he was put by a 
second reference from the Society, a premium of 
R500 was also awarded to that gentleman. (Jour- 
