468 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [November i, 1881. 
ESPARTO OR ALFA. 
By C. G. Warnford Lock. 
The celebrated German traveller, Dr. Gerhard Rohlfs, 
devotes a whole chapter of his new book, " Neue 
Beitriige zur Entdeckung und Erforschung Africa's " 
to the subject of "Esparto, and its increasing Im- 
portance in European Commerce," from which the 
following notes are condensed : — 
A portion of the Sahara, known to the French as le 
petit desert, comes within the influence of moisture- 
laded winds, and is clothed with vegetation. One 
of the most useful plant?, covering almost the 
whole district, is espario or alfa (Macrochloa or Stipa 
tenacissima). Long known and locally utilised for 
mat-making, it i9 only within recent years that the 
true value of this plant, which needs neither care 
nor culture, and thrives with a minimum of moisture, 
has been recognised. It grows in thick branches 
close together, presenting a subulate appearance, 
and reaching a height of six to ten feet. The 
tenacity of its fibre constitutes its industrial value, for 
it is scarcely fitted for consumption as fodder. In- 
deed, Duveyrier states that it has such a powerful 
constipative effect, that the shepherds of the desert 
edge drive their camels and sheep every third or 
fourth day to drink at mineral springs, in order 
io counteract the binding action of the esparto diet. 
Rohlfs himself noticed how soon the camels and 
sheep grew tired of grazing upon it. 
The one word paper explains the whole import- 
ance of esparto. The clay lias long since passed when 
rags and similar stuff sufficed to supply the world's 
needs of paper. The moment has arrived when new 
sources of paper material must constantly be sought. 
This is easily explained when we reflect that the 
yearly consumption of paper by the four great cult- 
ured nations of the world stands thus -.—England, 
13£ lb. per capilem of the population ; America. 121b.; 
Germany, 10;lb. ; France, 8flb. These figures are always 
on the increase. And though Russia takes only about 
lib., and Austria 4^ lb., the amount in both these 
countries double themselves with every generation. 
No plant eeems better adapted for paper-making than 
esparto. It may be regarded as an inexhaustible 
source of wealth, not only in Algeria, but for all 
northern Africa. Algeria already owes a portion of 
her railways to this plant. The section from Arzew 
to Saida is approaching completion, mid others are 
in progress. Soma seven or eight million acres of 
esparto ground exist in Algeria alone. 
Hitherto, the greater part of the esparto grown both 
in Spain and North Africa has gone to England, though 
the Americans are beginning to import direct from 
Africa. Up to the present, German paper-makers have 
not availed themselves of the use of this plant. Eng-' 
land, in 1868, imported 95,828 tons— 92,927 being 
from SpaiD, and the rest from Algeria. But Algeria 
rapidly attained greater importance, while Spain fell 
off. In 1874, England's imports were 119,188 tons — 
54,942 from Spain, and 37,516 from Algeria. Since 
1870 other countries have contributed to the total. 
Tunis and Tripoli figure in 1871 with 11,579 tons, in 
creased to 18,070 in 1874. Malta provided 3,261 tons 
in 1871, aud 7, 185 in 1874, not of its own production, 
hut derived from Cyrenaica, and the co-called Libyan 
coast plateau. 
The influence of other lands, Tunis, Tripoli, Cyre- 
naica, and perhaps the Libyan coast plateau, upon the 
Algerian aud Spanish trade, has, especially of late years, 
caused a reduction in price. As, however, in most of 
these lands, robbery is still rife, Spain and Algeria 
will long continue to enjoy a practical monopoly. 
How strongly the rational conservation of this valu- 
able plant is urged in France may be gathered from 
I the following words of the journal, V Exploration 
(1878, p. 156) : — "As in Fiance laws have been made 
j against the felling and destruction of forests, so must 
the Colonial Government busy itself with the pro- 
| tection of this great staple of the high plateau, 
and not only severely punish tbe before-mentioned 
crimes (burning by the Arabs, and killing of the 
plants by careless gathering), but also fortify the 
esparto region against the constant i-ncroachmenta of 
tbe sand of the Sahara. [Rohlfs characterises the 
latter as a groundless fear, the sand-dunes being on 
the whole stationary ] It must not be lost sight of 
that all Europe and America are dependent upon Algeria 
and that, should the whole esparto district be care- 
lessly left to greedy robbers, who care little for the 
public property, finally nothing will remain but a 
neglected waste, an unfruitful steppe." It is as well 
to observe that, firstly, Algeria possesses, at the ut- 
most, not more than one-sixth of the esparto region, 
and, secondly, the same land will, when desired, grow 
excellent wine. 
On the subject of adulteration and faulty packing, 
Dr. Rohlfs quotes at length from Noble's circular of 
14th January 1875. 
The preceding remarks indicate what stress is laid 
upon the export of this plant to France, Great Britain, 
and the United States, while Germany remains outside. 
Yet none will suppose that Germany is blessed with a 
superabundance of paper material. The Leipzig paper 
trade alone has of recent years a value of about ten 
million marks (£500,000). It is therefore a reproach to 
German merchants that they should have paid so little 
attention to this material. With this object, it is not 
at all advisable to go to Algeria, nor to Spain, where 
German merchants would find it difficult to gain a foot- 
ing in competition with the -old English houses. But is 
not the whole remainder of North Africa open ? Not to 
speak of Morocco, where, especially south from Cape 
Ger, a wide stretch of country still remains unoccupied, 
on which esparto forms the chi-f vegetation — the 
esparto-grown portions of Tunis, Tripoli, Barca, and 
the eastward- lying Libyan coast plateau, stretching to 
Alexandria, are absolutely without any rational com- 
merce ; as the natives tear up the esparto, root an3 
branch, so is it carried to the shipping ports, sorted, 
aud sent into the market. Here is a field for German 
enterprise. Dr. Rohlfs suggests the possibility of 
establishing esparto paper factories in convenient 
localities, and supposes that about half of each plant 
would be available as fuel. 
The remainder of the chapter deals with African 
trade generally, but the whole tenour of it is to urge 
the Germans to no longer remain passive and unmind- 
ful of tbe resources of North Africa : and Dr. Rohlfs is 
not likely to preach in vain to his countrymen. Now, 
if these waving acres of esparto offer su'di great in- 
ducements to the astute and cautions German, do they 
not merit even greater attention from ourselves 1 
Already our paper makers have cause to tremble for 
the future, since Frauce has made such strides on Tunis, 
aud if our merchants allow themselves to be outstripped 
by German rivals on neutral territory, we shall soon 
have to import all our paper from the Continent, in 
spite of all that Mr. Routledgeis doing for us.— Journal 
of the Society of Arts. 
Gold Production. — It is reported that the total 
product of gold in the whole world last year was. 
1 18,000,000 dols , nearly half of which was mined on 
the continent of America. The product of silver is 
said to be 94,000,000 dols., of which 76,000,000 dols. 
was produced in that country. The grand total of 
precious metals was, therefore, 212,000,000 dols., an 
increase, as compared with the three preceediug years. 
— Journal of the Society of Arts. 
