June 1, 1901. J Supplmmt to the " Tropical Agrieult%n»t" 
877 
soft are taken out and beaten into a pulp by 
means of wooden mallets, any impurities being 
picked out by hand during the process. The finely 
divided pulp is next poured into a stietched sheet 
of cotton through which the water slowly perco- 
lates, leaving a sheet of paper pulp. The latter 
when about half dry is glazed by rubbing with a 
piece of earthenware. Finally, when quite dry, it 
is stripped off by means of wooden knives. This 
forms the common writing paper of Burma. A 
coarser kind used for packing is also made which 
is sometimes rendered waterproof by smearing 
it with melted beeswax, A third kind is also 
made in a similar manner, but is finished by 
treating with finely powdered charcoal, so con- 
Terting it into a paper which can be written on 
with soft talc pencils, — Imperial Institute 
Journal. 
«> 
GENERAL ITEMS. 
The introduction of synthetic indigo has caused 
a serious crisis in the Indian indigo trade. Dr. 
Brunch, chemist to the firm now manufacturing 
synthetic indigo, lecturing in October last before 
the German Chemical Society, gave an interesting 
account of the laborious research of the last 
twenty years, which were fruitless till 1894. The 
chief diiSculty was in securing an initial material 
in sufficient quantity, but this has now been 
found in Naphthalene. By a complicated process 
this Naphthalene is converted into indigo. 
Mr. Wardleworth's lecture on " Jamaica : The 
Isle of Springs " delievered on March 11th at the 
Imperial Institute, shews that that colony is 
alive to its own interests in agricultural matters. 
Referring to his recent visit to the island, the 
lecturer stated that the most important feature 
in the landscape was the coconut palm. Among 
other products of the palm Mr. Wardleworth said 
he had tasted excellent butter — quite free from 
the, characteristic flavour of the coconut — from the 
fruit of tree. Could this be a local product in 
Jamaica ? 
Speaking at the Imperial Institute on March 1.3th, 
the Duke of Cornwall and York said : — Anything 
that marks the good work of the Imperial Institute 
must be of interest to every member of my own 
family ; for it was to commemorate the completion 
of fifty years of that great and glorious reign — now 
alas! ended — thac this Institute was founded. 
And I can assure you that our late beloved Queen 
always had its welfare very near her heart. You 
know with what assiduous care and keen interest 
the affairs of the Institute have, from the firsft 
days of its existence, been watched over by my 
dear Father the King ; and only recently the 
Executive Council recorded their grateful re- 
cognition of the benefits conferred upon it by His 
Majesty. Being myself a member of that Council, 
I naturally take a great interest in the fortunes of 
the Institute. 
A new substitute for leather called " fibroleum," 
invented in France by M. Brigalant, is described in 
« report preaented to the ' Societe Eacouragtmont 
by M. Livanche. According to an abstract printed 
in the Revue Scientifique, this product is obtained 
by chemical treatment of leather waste, which has 
hitherto been used only for the extracting of the 
grease that it contains. To quote the abstract : 
' The clippings of leathei', cut into very small bits, 
are stored in great vats, where they are macerated 
in an alkaline solution, which by dissolving the 
substance that cements the fibres together, leaves 
them independent. This operation requires great 
delicacy, for a too concentrated solution or a too 
prolonged maceration would alter the fibres as 
well as separate them. The operation, which 
lasts two to fifteen days, takes place at the 
ordinary temperature. After washing with cold 
water the material passes to a special defibrator. 
The resulting pulp, which is very soft to the touch, 
is treated in machines similar to those used in 
paper-making, and the result is a very light, but 
strong, sheet not more than 1 millimetre (1"250 
inch) in thickness. These may be made to adhere, 
forming sheets varying in thickness from 1 to 10 
centimetres (2'5 inch to 4 inches). After treat- 
ment in the hydraulic press, these sheets look like 
leather and have its strength, M. Brigalant has 
made interesting uses of fibroleum, chiefly ia 
replacing the inferior products that are used in the 
manufacture of cheap sUoes. At present the 
inventor is making daily 125 to 150 gross of soles, 
and is putting in machinery suificient to turn out 
1,000 gross a day. Although fibroleum is more 
absorbtive to water tiian real leather, its strength 
and flexibility, as well as its cheapness, make it 
suitable for all sorts of uses, and M. Livanche 
thinks that the industry is destined to extend 
widely." 
In view of the increasing price of camphor, a 
German firm have suggested India and Ceylon as 
suitable countries for cultivating the camphor tree, 
The world's requirements of camphor are estimated 
at 10,400,000 lbs. per annum ; of this, under the 
new administration, about 5,200,000 lbs- will be 
supplied by Formosa, while about one-third of the 
whole will be exported from Japan, leaving a 
diminution in the exports, compared with 1898, 
of about £5,640,000 lbs. 
To prepare sweet potatoes according to the 
Southern mode, we {Florida Agriculturist) are told 
that they should be peeled and boiled until they are 
thoroughly but not too well cooked. They should 
be cut into four pieces lengthwise, and placed in 
a tin baking pan. Butter and sugar should be 
placed over the potatoes abundantly before they 
are put in the oven to bake slowly. After a while, 
the butter and sugar mingling with the juice of 
the potatoes form a delicate crust that should be 
cooked until it has almost reached the point ab 
which it is candy. Under this crust is a thick, 
rich syrup of the sap of the potatoes, sugar, and 
butter. Anybody who has eaten sweet potatoes 
in this way will never be satisfied with any other 
way of cooking them. The principal merit of thig 
method lies, of course, in having them thoroughly 
cooked. The fire must be slow, and the cooking 
must continue until the sugar and butter on top of 
the potatoes haya formed a crust. 
