Oct. ], 1900.1 
THE TROriOAL AGRICULTURIST. 
277 
MUCH ADO ABOUT COIK. 
[How time and money are wasted at the Imperia^ 
Institute.— Ed. ] 
It is recorded in the abstract of the proceedings 
at the thirty-first meeting, on the 11th April, 1899, of 
the Indian Section Snb-Committee of the Imperial 
Institute, Sir Sten:i,rt Cliye Bayley, k.c.s.i., in the 
chair, that Sir George Birdwood, one of the members 
of the Committee, reported that enquiries had been 
made by firms anxious to import coir fibre into the 
United Kingdom direct from' India as to the best 
means of obtaining supplies, and also the amount 
of our coir fibre available for this purpose, and that the 
information asked for had been obtained and com- 
municated at once to the enquirers. Yet, towards 
the close of last year Sir Frederick Abel, Bart, kc.b., 
D.C.I.., &c., the Honorary Seci-etary and Director of 
the Institute, was moved to place himself in epis- 
tolary communication, by what is departmentally 
described as the "flying seal," — whatever that may 
mean — with Dr. George Watt, c.i.e., Reporter in Cal- 
cutta on Bocnomic I'roducts to the Government of 
India, on the subject of coir. His letter is not given 
in the Annual Report of the Institute, which was 
presented to both Houses of Parliament by the 
Secretary of State for India, on behalf of the section, 
last month, nor is even an abstract of it offered. 
Whether the Institute had it in mind to improve its 
slender finances by 
A LITTLE DABBLE IN COIE YARN, 
or whether the Director only thought of ascertaining 
where he could s-ecure, on exceptionally favourable 
terms, the means for covering the floors of the long, 
and generally empty corridors of the Institute with 
coir matting, is thus left to the imagination. Be this 
as it may, the Reporter immediately placed himself 
in communication with various members of the mer- 
cantile community of Calcutta. 
Thus it was that he was informed by Messrs. 
Batligate Pim & Co., that they '• handle that article 
to sotne extent," but they were of opinion that coir 
"of better quality at a cheaper price is to be obtained 
in Ceylon than in Calcutta." They determined, there- 
fore, to send on the P>,eporter's letter to their firm in 
Colombo. In due course the Ceylon firm informed 
him that it would be glad '' to undertake to supply 
annually the 300 to 400 tons of coir desired by the 
Ir-.perial laslitute authorities. As we are uncertain 
as to what form of coir is wanted, we are sending 
to yiiu, under separate cover, samples of the products 
of the coconut husk, viz. : mattress fibre, first and 
second quality, bristle fibre, coir yarn, and coir dust. 
Piease indicate which of these products is required 
by the Imperial Institute authorities." Messrs. McLeod 
and Co., of Calcutta, stated that they were large 
shippers of coir, and that they would be obliged if 
the Reporter would favour thetn with full particulars 
of his requirements in order that they might be in 
a position to follow up the matter. iVIessrs. Blackwood 
Blackwod & Co. wrote that they were in a position 
to do business in coir, and would be pleased to learn if 
tenders for the supply of the article were required, 
and what quality was needed. Messrs. Ullmann 
Hirschtom & Co. similarly expressed a wish to 
have details, together with a sample of the coir re- 
quired. Messrs. , Simpson & Co. said that they 
would be much obliged to the Reporter if he would 
favour them with the name a^nd address of the officer 
in charge of the Institute to enable them to address 
him direct on the subject of coir. Messrs. F. Munjia 
& Co. wrote: — " Referring to your enquiry regarding 
any merchants in Calcutta who might be able and 
willing to undertake the supply of coir, we beg 
to state that we are able and willing to do the 
same, whether coir, coir fibre, or coir yarn, 
up to any quantity that you may desire, and all quali- 
ties, as we are thoroughly conversant with this class 
of business, and shall be glad to wait upon you with 
our samples and quotations on receipt of your reply 
mentioning the class of goods you require." Finally, 
the Inspector-General of Jails reported that his 
Department was prepared to supply coir fibre to the 
Institute and he asked for a statement of conditions 
and other particulars. 
But it seems at last to have dawned on the Re- 
porter that he bad not addressed to his enquirits 
TO THE BFST QUARTEK, 
for he was informed by the Bombay Chamber of Com- 
merce that there were shippers of coir on the Itlalabar 
Coast, notably Messrs. Volkart Brothers, of Cochin 
and Tellicherry, and Messrs. Peirce Leslie & Co., of 
Cochin and Calicut. The Chamber then remarked 
that the latter "have their firm in London ('2 Lime 
Street Square), and if the Director of the Scientific 
Department ot the Imperial Institute will communi- 
cate with them he will no doubt ohtatin all possible 
information regarding the article." In other words, 
the Director could have obtained all the informa- 
tion that he needed on the subject of the supply of 
coir by trotting down from Kensington to the City, 
or writing a few lines to some well-informed com- 
mercial acquaintance in Mincing Lane, who would 
probably have placed himself at once in telephonic, 
or personal communication with Messrs. Peirce 
Leslie & Co., or some other firm of experts round 
the corner. The Collector of Malabar was referred 
to by the Madras Board of Revenue, and he said 
that Messrs. Peirce Leslie & Co. were willing to 
give the information that was desired. Mean- 
while, however, the Depnty Collector at Cochin 
had referred to Messrs Aspinall & Co., BJessrs. 
Grieve & Company, Messrs. Peirce Leslie & 
Co., IVIessrs Yolkart JBrothers, Messrs Ramachandra 
Mahadeva it Co. , Mr Dharsey Khetser, Mr Gulave- 
ney, Mr K"sseinHaji Ibraim, Mr Kadam Kandi, and 
Mr Moidin Kutli, alt of Cochin, about procuring 
'brush and mat fibre." and the majority of thes« 
merchants said that they were willing to undertake 
the supply of the required quality and quantity of fibre. 
Messrs Peirce Leslie & Co. remarked that they were 
unable to give the information regarding the quality 
of fibre wanted by the Director in the absence of 
sample, but they suggested that the shipment of fibre 
can be made from Cochin to London direct to save the 
heavy cost of sending it to Madras. 
The Collector of South Canara was also referred to 
by the Board of Revenue, and he placed himself in 
communication with Messrs Peirce Leslie and Co. at 
Mangalore, who informed him that the supply of 
"coir fibre in this District is small in comparison 
with the quantity obtainable in the Malabar District, 
and we do not think any firm here could ship to Eu- 
rope at a price that would compete with shipments 
FROM COCHIN AND CALICUT. 
Our firm at these latter ports, we may mention, ship 
annually large quantities of coir fibre and yarn to 
Europe, and if Mr GW R Curtis would communicate 
with our London office, through whom all our business 
ill Europe is worked, they would be pleased to give 
him all information, and to submit him samples with 
quotations of the various qualities usually exported 
from the .Malabar Coast". Thereupon the Collector 
reported to the Board that there are two of the 
European firms at Mangalore who " do not wi.';h to 
enter into the business of supplying coir or coconut 
fibre to Mr. G. W. R. Curtis, v/hile the remaining firm, 
Messrs Peirce Leslie & Co., say that their 
London office would be pleased to give Mr 
Curtis all tlie information that he would 
require, and submit to him samples with quotations of 
the various qualities ttsually exported from the 
Malabar Coasr. I do not think that any native firm 
would undertake the business." Therecord llirows no 
light, sad to say, on the domicile, occupation, ov 
needs of Mr. Curtis. But there is reason to suppose 
that he is one of the exceedingly few individuals who 
yielded in the year under notice to the temptation of 
making a,n enquiry of the Indian Section of the 
Imperial Institute about an Indian product that is 
thoroughly well understood in "the Lane," since 
some 1.52,800 tons of coir of the value of 2J crores of 
