322 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Kov.  i,  1892. 
midribs  which  the  natives  use  for  brooms  and 
whisks,  had  been  found  too  weak  and  brittle  to 
be  of  use.  The  reason  is  supposed  to  lie  in  the 
fact  that  the  coconut  palm  flourished  ody  where 
moisture  in  tbe_  soil  was  abundant,  while  the 
palmira  palms  grow  in  dry  and  even  arid  situa- 
tions. The  timber,  too,  of  the  palmira  vies  with 
ebony  in  denseness  and  hardness,  while  the  trunks 
of  all  save  very  old  cooonut  palms  are  composed 
of  soft  fibre. 
Since  writing  the  above,  we  have  read  the  fol- 
lowing notices  of  the  palmira  fibre  and  allied 
substances  in  the  Kew  Bulletin  for  May  and 
June,  whioh  we  quote  for  the  information  of  our 
readers  : — 
PALMYRA  BASS  FIBRE. 
( Borassus  JlaJtettiformis,  L.) 
Owing  to  the  scarcity  of  the  Bass  fibres  hitherto 
obtained  from  two  Brazilian  palms,  Attalea  fun  if  era 
(Kew  Bulletin,  1889,  p.  237)  and  Leopoldinia  1‘iasnaba, 
inquiry  has  been  made  in  most  tropical  countries  for 
palms  likely  to  yield  fibres  of  a similar  character. 
A bass  fibre  has  been  obtained  in  Madagascar  from 
a species  of  Dypsis  ; and  more  recently  Lagos  or 
West  African  bass  has  been  obtained  from  Itaphia 
vinifera  (Kew  Bulletin,  1891,  p.  1).  A fibre  almost 
identical  has  still  more  recentlv  been  prepared  in 
Ceylon  from  the  Palmyra  palm  (Borassus  ftabelliformis). 
The  following  information  has  been  obtained  on  this 
subject. 
DIRECTOR  OF  NAVY  CONTRACTS  to  ROYAL  GARDENS,  KEW. 
Admiralty,  Whitehall,  S.W.,  June  1.  1892. 
Bir, — I shall  be  much  obliged  if  you  will  be  good 
enough  to  inform  the  Department  whether  anything 
Is  known  of  a material  called  “ Bassine”  said  to  be 
grown  in  India  and  dressed  for  the  English  market 
at  Colombo,  as  to  its  value  as  a substitute  for 
Brazilian  Bass,  and  whether  it  is  likely  to  displace 
bass  on  account  of  its  quality  or  price.—  I am,  Ac., 
(Signed)  C.  M.  Heath,  for  Director  of  Navy 
Contracts. 
The  Director,  Royal  Gardens,  Kew. 
ROYAL  GARDENS,  KEW,  to  DIRECTOR  OF  NAVY  CONTRACTS. 
Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  JuneS,  1892. 
Sir, — I am  desired  by  Mr.  Thiselton-Dyer  to 
acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  1st 
instant  on  the  subject  of  fibre  prepared  from  the 
Palmyra  palm  as  a substitute  for  Brazilian  Bass. 
As  shown  in  the  enclosed  extract  from  the 
Report  of  the  Director  of  the  Botanical  Gardens, 
Ceylon,  the  fibre  from  the  Palmyra  palm  is 
being  prepared  in  small  quantities  in  the  north 
of  the  island.  The  quantity  available  is  evi- 
dently limited,  and  as  the  palm  is  an  important 
source  of  food  supply  to  the  people  it  would  be  im- 
possible to  develop  the  industry  to  any  very  large 
extent  without  affecting  that  supply. 
As  regards  the  value  of  the  fibre  in  European 
markets  it  may  be  useful  to  communicate  to  you  a copy 
of  a letter  received  from  Messrs.  Ide  and  Christie, 
a firm  of  fibre  brokers  in  the  City,  giving  particulars 
of  the  prices  recently  obtained  for  the  fibre.  A small 
quantity  of  the  fibre  as  received  today  is  forwarded 
to  your  address  in  a separate  parcel. 
This  fibre  is  apparently  not  so  good  as  the  West 
Afrit.'111  Bass  (Kew  Bulletin,  1891,  p.  1),  and  it  is 
■decidedly  inferior  in  length  and  flexibility  to  the 
Bahia  Pias'.^va  (Kew  Bulletin,  1889,  p.  237),  Its  chief 
use  would  probably  be  to  adulterate  these  fibres  and  not 
to  be  used  alonn.~-I  am,  Ac.  (Signed)  D.  Morris. 
The  Director  of  Navy  Contracts, 
Admiralty,  Whitehall,  S.W. 
EXTRACT  FROM  THE  RETORT  DF  THE  DIRECTOR  OF  THE 
ROYAL  BOTANIC  GARDENS,  CEYLON,  1891,  p.  15. 
Palmyra  Fibre. — The  sheathing  leaf-stalks  of  the 
palmyra,  as  of  many  other  palms,  contains  a stiff 
thick  fibre,  and  a new  industry  in  the  collection  of 
this  has  sprung  up,  under  the  auspices  of  a Colombo 
firm,  )it  the  north  of  the  iaiandi  These  fibres  or 
bristle  are  much  like  the  “Piassaba'’  so  largely 
exported  from  Brazil  (the  produce  of  the  palms 
Attalea  funifera  and  Leopoldinia  Tiassaba)  for  brush- 
making and  are  doubtless  exported  hence  for  the 
same  purpose.  Immense  numbers  of  the  palmyra 
exist  in  the  Jaffna  peninsula  and  the  islands  near, 
and  it  is  in  the  latter  especially  that  the  business 
of  collecting  the  leaf-stalks  for  sale  has  been  carried 
on  by  the  inhabitants.  In  Elavaitivu  the  value  thus 
collected  in  six  months  was  about  R3,000,  a great 
addition  to  the  means  of  the  people.  Unfortunately, 
in  their  eagerness  for  this  easy  method  of  money- 
getting, they  have  treated  the  trees  so  badly  that 
it  is  reported  that  in  that  island  alone  1,000  young 
palmyras  have  been  destroyed.  As  this  palm  is  the 
principal  permanent  source  of  food  in  the  country, 
and  is  besides  of  immense  utility  for  timber,  fences, 
Ac.,  it  became  obviously  necessary  to  put  a stop 
to  this  reckless  destruction,  and  I understand  that 
steps  have  been  taken  to  regulate  the  fibre  industry, 
which,  properly  conducted,  should  become  a valuable 
addition  to  the  means  of  living  for  the  inhabitants. 
MESSRS.  IDE  AND  CHRISTIE  TO  ROYAL  GARDENS,  KEW. 
72,  Mark  Lane,  London,  E.C.,  June  7,  1892. 
Sir, — We  duly  received  your  favour  of  the  2nd  instant 
and  have  pleasure  in  sending  you  a sample  of  Palmyra 
fibre  as  offered  on  this  market.  This  is  of  aveiage 
quality  and  valued  today  at  287.  per  ton  in  London. 
The  first  arrivals  of  this  fibre  took  place  about  a 
year  ago,  the  scarcity  and  high  values  of  Brazilian 
Piassava  having  induced  the  production  and  shipment 
of  substitutes.  The  early  imports  realized  from  867. 
to  427.  per  ton,  against  West  Coast  African  Piassava 
557.  to  657.,  but  with  fuller  supplies  of  these  brush- 
making fibres  (including  split  bamboo)  market  values 
have  receded,  and  Palmyra  ranges  to  day  from  227. 
to  337. 
The  chief  objection  to  Palmyra  by  manufacturers 
is  that  it  lacks  straightness,  but  experiments  are  being 
made  in  this  country  to  overcome  this  defect,  and 
should  they  prove  successful  it  is  claimed  by  im- 
porters and  dressers  that  Palmyra  should,  for  wear 
then,  be  found  equal  to  the  best  Brazilian. 
We  are,  Ac.  (Signed)  Ide  and  Christie. 
D.  Morris,  Esq.,  m.a.,  f.l.s.,  Royal  Gardens,  Kew. 

FROM  THE  METROPOLIS. 
London,  Sept,  16th  1892. 
ESTIMATE  OF  CEYLON  TEA  CROPS  FOR  1892. 
In  reducing  from  85  to  72  million  lb.  the  estn 
mate  of  exports  for  the  ourrent  year,  you  have 
surely  gone  from  one  extreme  to  the  other — and  I 
should  judge  that  the  actual  result  will  be  some  way 
in  the  middle,  say  from  77,000,0001b.  to  78,000,0001b. 
Supposing  that  only  the  same  proportion  is  kept 
up,  we  have  48  million  lb.  shipped  up  to  middle 
of  August  in  7J  months,  and  at  that  rate  we  would 
get  in  the  remaining  4j  months  about  29  million 
lb.,  or  77  millions  in  all.  The  London  Brokers  in 
their  oiroulars  as  a rule  only  take  cognizance  of  the 
estimated  exports  from  Ceylon  to  London — so  that 
to  their  estimate  of  70  millions  will  have  to  be 
added  6 or  7 millions  for  what  is  sent  to  Austra- 
lasia, America,  Ac.  No  clear  light  has  yet  been 
shown  on  the  big  discrepancy  between  the  Customs 
and  Chamber's  figures.  For  myself  I shall 
be  disappointed  if  our  total  outturn  of  tea 
in  1892  does  not  approximate  nearer  to 
80  millions  lb.  than  to  77  millions  lb. 
As  for  the  tea  market  and  prioes,  alterations  in  the 
estimates  can  have  little  or  no  effect,  Tea  dealers 
judge  by  the  immediate  stocks  and  their  own  re- 
quirements mainly  ; but  the  great  factor  in  respeot 
of  estimates  early  in  the  season  for  India  and 
Ceylon  is  undoubtedly  found  in  the  encouragement, 
or  discouragement,  offered  to  the  China  trade,  and 
no  doubt  exports  in  the  early  months  were  increased 
from  China  to  London  owing  to  the  exportation 
of  short  supplies  from  India  and  Ceylon, 
