272 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTUEIST. fOcT. a, iSpj. 
and the work technically proceeds with the atm^at 
satisfaction, the output being as uniform in qaaiity 
ai it is possible to obtain aoyivaece. Taa fuel 
(furna-e coke) employed in the kilns was also a great 
source of trouble at drat. lu order to effect its 
combustion, a vary free pa,s a<^e of air is nesesaary, 
but unless the greatest care is exercised at this stage 
of process, the heat produced is so intense that 
complete fusion at once takes place at the very 
bottom of the kiln, thus shutting off all drau -ht — 
in other words, the decarbo lisatioa and subsequen 
fusion of the upper layers of the kiln are arrested 
By the introduction of air passagjs throughout the 
depth of the kiln this difScuf y has been completely 
overcome, aud the even aud uniform clinkering of the 
entire mass is now effected with great regulari'.y. 
48 hours b ing sufi&oient for a 90-ton charge. Owing 
to the severity of the winter, it i.s impossible to do 
any mixi g for four months in the year, so that the 
output is limited to about 9,500 to is per annum 
The works are in full swing 16 hours a day 
including Sundays. — Jownal of the Society of Arts. 
QUININE CONSUMPTION AND THE SUPPLY 
OP CINCHONA BARK : 
IS DEMAND TO EXOEED SUPPLY ? 
Iq aummlag up the informatioa at oar aommaad 
in reforenoe to the produotion and export of 
Cinahoaa Burk frooi diffirent oountries, the 
requirenaenta of miaufiioiurera and the latest 
statistios of the produotion and oonaumption of 
Quiniae, — tb<) fact ia borne in upon ua that the pri.)e 
of Oinohcua Bark muet erelong advaaoe oonaider- 
ably unless Java planters ohooae to throw away 
their virtual command of the situatiou. So far 
BS we oan leirn there are now saventean m;tnu- 
iaotories of quinine and alkiloidj in the world; 
but of th^se the German faotoriea are by far the 
most important. List year there are autbentio 
figures to show thut Germany exports 1 very 
nearly 8 milli''n ounoaa of quinine and quinine 
Balte, a quaatity which even if mide ohit-fly 
from Java bark (averaging close on 4^ per cent). 
South American reaching to 7, with an aJmixture 
of Oeylon and Indian of about 2i per cent, must 
have required from 12 to 13 million lb. of bark 
to give so large a yie.d, lo ea'.imitin^ the an- 
nual outturn, we have only ve ituced to put 
400,000 lb. (6,400,000 ounoet) of quinine down far 
the fi»e manuCaotories in Qer'niny ; Kgvinst 60,j00 
lb. for four faotoriea in the United ScMtea (a good 
deal of the birk in Amerim and E.iglani and 
speoially in Spiin is used in the form of " de- 
oootiona "); 5\000 1b. f >r two minufao'ories in 
England; 30,000 1b. for two fiocoris m Frauoe 
and the same for two in I.aly (Gsuoa and M<lan) ; 
10,000 lb. for one iu Hoi anJ and 8.00J lb. for 
India, making a grand total of 5^>8,000 lb., 
.although probably tbe round ten million oaaoes 
.of quinine mty be turned out in a ba^y year 
like the present. By far the gr< atest oonsumers 
are th'* people of the .-<outhern States, and America 
altORether teqaires oloae on 4^ million ounces 
of quinine a year ; while Buasii, Southern and 
M ddle Europe gent rally, and India co jxe next 
jB the list of consuming oountries. 
' , for the present year, we make out that no 
less than 21,200,00!) lb. of bark must be uaed np 
(inoluding requirements for bark daaootiona, 
druggists' show bark, some for brewers in 
place of bop9, &a.), of which Garmany ia 
credited as requiring 10 mill on (probably oelow 
the mark), rest of Earopian faotoriea 6, England 
2^ and America 3. But it is d.fQjult to see 
"Where all is to be got, even when wa put d3wa 
Java for an export of 9 million lb. of htr rich 
bark (to averago thia year 4| per oeni), and ' 
allow for some of (he rich Sooth American barki 
lunning up to 7 per oent ; but only a ?orf 
limit d quintity. Ceylon and Icdia are not lik«iy 
to exp3rt more than 7 million lb. be. ween thaa 
ind this would leave over 5 million lb. to ba got 
from South and Central Americi. Now of lata 
veara the Sjuth A^nerioaa exporis from wild or 
■niigenoua tr«e8 have fallen very low indeed. 
Bolivia and W st Afria* h*»a sent certain qaan- 
titiea of gool bark to Ejropi from oultivated 
trees. But it is v^ry d JUOt uI if bark catting from 
indigenous trees ci i he resum d at the present 
miserably low price 1. Nj doubt a certain quantity 
d)e8 still find i s w^y to th^ ooausan j to Europe, 
through the work of men who cannot well abandon 
their old vocation aito»<rther. We have allowed 
in our E^tim^l>) of Pf jd ij-.oa nb i it 2| mill. on lb. 
fir Bolivia, Peru. Bouilo-, Col imbi i. N w Granada 
&), besides abiul one mill on lo. f 'om on tivaied 
plantations in Bolivi* and Wen Africa. These 
we cannot help thinking to be liberal estimttes,' 
and jet they do not eoiOle us quite to cjver 
the demand. So far as we oio julge ind'ted, 
only large drafta during 1892 3, on existing stoska 
of bark, io Lond )a especially, have enabled the 
quill na minufaotur jra to get all they re- 
quired up to dite an! uulass oar informa- 
tion is a good deal out as to manufacture 
and consumption of quinine, — which we oannot 
admit, because the best local authority generally 
agrees in our figures,— there ou^ht really to be a 
better time approaching for tH- holders of cinchona 
bark. Our adinoa to plaut. re is certainly to h jld 
back their birk. or deliy any harvesting, in the 
well g-oundeJ expectation of ' good times omiag" 
—at any rate of better prices than the miserably 
ioadcquite quotations of birk prevalent for mjoy 
months back. 
SCARCITY OF COFFEE IN THE UNITED 
STATKS. 
Brazil furnishes about 54J per cent of the world'* 
requirement of coffee, taking the average exports for 
five years as a basis of computation. 
It is apparent that any de.:rea9e in the Brazil sup- 
ply below a crop permitting of minimum exports of 
6,000,000 bags, or 54J per cent of the world's total sup- 
ply, means high prices until other producing countries 
extend their area under coffae to an extent great 
enough to produce and export an average of at least 
one-half of the world's requirements -unless Brazil 
has other years of ex^eptiouil yield, as in ISJ -92, 
when the receipts at Rio and >'antos went 1,338, 2jd 
bags beyond the yearly average. 
Coffee cilture is being pushed in Mexico, Central 
Amen, a and the United States of Colombia, but new 
plantations have not yet reached a point where they 
are able to push exports abreast f Bra.zil ; and until 
that time ia reached, high prices must rule. Conamp- 
tion has not increased since 1836 as much as it 
should ia view of the increase in pjpulation and the 
prosperous condition of the United States. It 
requires the stimulus of low prices and exceptional 
prosperity to advance coffee consumption in the old 
time ratio of about 9 per cent, par annum. — Americwn 
Grocer, July 16. 
COFFEE NOTES. 
The government of Coata Rica has repealed the ex- 
pji-t duty on coffee which was established by decree 
ot May 29th, 1890 and December 29th. 1892, to aid 
m the building of the national iheatre at San Jos^ 
la lieu of that duty an increase of one cent per 
kilogramme has been ordered to be made in the 
wharfage dues incurred by all foreign merchandise 
imported in Costa Rica. This new arrangement will 
take effect July 1st, 1893 The increase i.i wharfage 
dues is to be used for the same purpose— that ia 
the completion of the theatre.— ^io If^tws. Aug. 8tb' 
