June i, 1881.] THE TROPICAL 
— probably twice as long — in arriving at maturity ; and 
oa our highest ridges where the Grown Birk is, com- 
pletely, naturalized, it attains maturity in 5 to 7 years, 
whereas, the Red bark, suitable only for lower eleva- 
tions would require from 10 to 12 years. This com- 
parison is made on the supposition that the Red and 
Crown Barks are equally in demand. But as the Red 
bark is not a good quinine-yielding bark, it is not 
bought by the quinine manufacturers but the drug- 
gists. Hence, if there should be a fall in the prices 
of Cinchona Bark, from its more abundant supply, and 
the purposes for which it is used, the Red bark would 
oiifi'er first ; whereas good Crown Bark from its more 
abundant per centage of quinine, and larger demand, 
would always meet with ready sales. Taking the 
actual returns of the Crown Bark as mentioned above, 
aud assuming that they were planted at elevations, 
5,500 to 6,300 feet, and at distances of 6 feet by 0 
feet, or at the rate of 1,210 per acre, an acre of this 
.species would give a gross return of £563. From the 
working expenses of the Government Cinchona Planta- 
tions it may be safely assumed that an acre of 
Cinchona trees could be established, including pur- 
chase of land and all expenses up to the third year, 
for £30, or up to the sixth or seventh year, when 
the bark would probably be ripe, about £40 per acre. 
The cost of barking, curing, shipping and brokerage has 
hitherto averaged about 8d. per pound. This would 
make a total cost of about £100 to grow and put in 
the market 1,815 pounds — the produce of an acre — of 
dry bark realizing £563. As the yield of an excep- 
tional tree, Mr, Nock records the following : — One 
of the largest trees on the plantations was uprooted 
and barked on the 7th of April last. It yielded 40 
pounds of trunk bark, 5 pounds of twig bark, and 
9 pounds of root bark, equal in all to 54 pounds of 
green bark. This when thoroughly dried was reduced 
to a total of 16 pounds. At the average price ob 
tained for this kind — the hybrid variety — viz : — 6s lfd. 
per pound, the produce of this one tree was worth 
£4 18s 4d. It may be added that this tree was grow- 
ing in a sheltered situation in good soil, and was 
nearly twelve years old, It measured 40 feet in height 
and a circumference at the base of about 30 inches. 
The spontaneous growth of cinchonas, especially of- 
ficinalis, by self-sown seedlings on the Blue Mountains 
bad been already noticed . Mr. Morris adds another 
fact of the same tendency : — 
It appears that in 1867-68, before the sites of the 
present Government Plantations had been fixed, Mr. 
Robert Thomson, the late Superintendent, planted out 
with the consent of the owners, several seedlings in 
nurseries on Hibernia, Whitfield Hall, Farm Hill, and 
other estates for experimental purposes. When the 
Latimer plantation was finally opened in 1868, most of 
these seedlings were removed— a few only, of the smaller 
and weaker plants being left behind. The patch 
plan'edat Whitfield Hall, occupied a small area at an 
elevation of 4,800 feet, surrounded by forests about two 
miles from Whitfield Hall Great House. After the 
removal of the plants, in course of time, the road to 
the nursery became overgrown ; and the locality and 
its assoeiaiions had apparently passed out of notice. 
While in the neighbourhood last year, meeting with a 
man who had assisted in removing the plants from 
Whitfield Hall to Latimer in 1868, and hearing that a 
few Cinchonas were still left, I was led to visit the spot 
in order to examine the tre< s and their condition after 
the lapse of *o many years. It was evideut that, since 
1868, nothing, whateevr, had been done to the spot. 
The road was suite overgrown and the surrounding 
forest was thick and almost impenetrable. The con- 
dition of the Cinchona trees occupying an a ea of about 
120 square yards, was, however, very remarkable. By 
carefully counting them, I found that there were 379 
trees on this small area ; BOme of which were only 9 inches 
apart, Most of the trees consisted of the Crown bark 
AGRICULTURIST. 6* ; 
(O. officinalis) ; they were about 20 feet high, with tall 
clean stems; the largest measuring 15 inches in circum- 
ference at the base, and the smallest 8 inches. Being 
the remains of a nursery, it was, naturally, expected 
that some of the trees would be very close and others 
considerably isolated. They appear, however, to have 
grown up and completely shaded the ground ; for 
underneath, the soil was clear of weeds, and covered 
with a thick covering of fallen leaves. The condition 
of the trees and the locality in which they were found 
showed clearly that Cinchona trees thrive best when 
tbey are planted closely, together, and when the 
ground is well shaded and kept cool and moist More- 
over, these trees indicated that when a Cinchona 
Plantation has been thoroughly established and the 
trees completely cover the ground, (say in the 3rd 
year from planting), no further attention is necos.-ary 
tiil they have arrived at maturity and are lit for 
barking. As indicating the value of Cinchona planting 
in the Blue Mountains, — taking these 379 trees, which 
occupied an area of less than 120 square yards. —it 
was estimated that if they yielded on the average one 
pound of dry bark per tree, (younger trees, at the 
Government Plantations yielded 1£ pounds per tree), 
each tree would be worth at least 5s.; this would give 
£94 15s Od. as the value of 379 trees on an area of 
120 square yards — one-fortieth of an acre. Under 
ordinary conditions it would not, however, be advisable 
to plant the trees so closely as this, but the valut 
of an acre of land planted with trees even at one-half, 
the above rate would amount to more than £1,890. 
Large as this sum may seem, it appears that with the 
precious Ledgeriana Bark, grown by the Dutch in Java, 
(a few plants of which have just been introduced to 
Jamaica), the yield per acre, as quoted by Mr. John 
Eliot Howard, F.U.S., (Pharmaceutical Joh.rnul, No. 534 
p 244) is estimated, from actual sales, at £2,000, pej 
acre. The natural inference from these remarks will 
be, — If Cinchona is so productive a cultivation and 
these large sums are obtainable with so much ease 
and facility, will not such large areas be ultimately 
planted with Cinchona as to lower the prices and rendes 
the culture unremunerative ? Commercially, of course, 
cheapness means small profits, and, as with all other., 
products, so with Cinchona, the supply should not ex- 
ceed the demand. But to examine these points in 
detail. The demand for quinine is so extensive, 
and the terrible death roll amongst all nations of 
the world from fevers, for which quinine is the sole 
remedy, is so vast that, there is no prospect, whatever 
at present, of the price of quinine being seriously 
reduced. On the other hand, the prices of good quinine- 
yielding barks have been steadily rising. Again, whem 
we consider the comparatively small areas in which 
all the conditions necessary to the production of the 
best qualities of Cinchona Bark obtain, we shall find 
that very few tropical countries can enter, successfully, 
upon the cultivaiion; and of these, possibly, only two 
or three will possess in so eminent a degree all the 
favourable conditions enjoyed by Jamaica. What is. 
absolutely, necessary is to select suitable sites where 
the plants will enjoy the requisite climate, shelter, 
and soil ; to cultivate only the more valuable and quick- 
growing species, and to establish plantations on syste- 
matic and scientific principles, whereby, the utmost 
value is obtained for the outlay and the conditions of 
growth carefully studied 
Mr. Morris evidently realizes the duty of the 
Government with regard to the cinchona plantations,, 
as may be seen from the following remarks : — 
The demands of the market for the best bark 
are so extensive that for many years to come the 
quantity likely to be sent from Jamaica will be 
very small compared with the extensive shipments 
from South America, and the East Indies ; but 
if chief attention is devoted to the kinds which 
