666 THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [April 1, 1903. 
Ciruelo del pats or atoyaxocotl, Mexican plum, 
Spondias myrobolanns, etc., Terebintaceas ; in many 
varieties, in temperate and hot zones. 
Comiuo, cumin seed, Cuminum, Umbellifcras : Pro- 
dnotion in 1880, |23,.500. 
Copaibo, copaiba, Terebinthina copaiferaa, LeKumi- 
nosas : Pui'nishes medical balsam. 
Copalillo, Elaphrinm copallifernm, etc., Rutaceas: 
Mexican gum-tiee; the gum of this tree was the incense 
of the ancient Mexicans. 
Of^quito de aceite, oil-palm, Elaeis melanococca : 
Palm of the hot zone ; produces oil, article of export. 
Ebiino, ebiuy, Diospyros ebenum, Ebenaoeaa ; 
Cabinet wood. — Modern Mexico. 
{To he concluded.) 
NUTMEGS AND CLOVES. 
CROP PROSPECTS IN THE EAST INDIES. 
Through the kindness of Dr. H A A Nicholls, c m o, 
of Dominica, we are enabled to publish the follow- 
ing important communication received by him from 
his London agents Messrs. Boddington & Co. 
' We have received through the London Correspond" 
ent of an Amsterdam house the following : — " In our 
last Dutch auctions high prices were paid for all kinds 
of nutmegs and mace and everything was sold with 
a good demand. The advance has already partly dis- 
counted the bad outlook of nutmegs dui ing the next 
few years but certainly to a small extent only. The 
low prices ruling during the last few years have been 
the cause of a decrease in the production which has 
fallen off more and more onBanola Island since 1901 
and feel sure that the effect of it will ba more acutely 
felt in 1903 and during the next few years, as not 
only is a small and late crop expected on the Banda 
Island in 1903 (November instead of May to June) but 
it is anticipated that the crop will not yield more 
than one third of the average quantity on account of 
the drought from which ttie East Indies have suffered 
throughout this year. Beside this, the quality of 
nutmegs and mace will be poor. Considering that values 
ruling at present are only one third of what they were 
in 1872 in which year nutmeg prices in Holland 
reached 215e.* for llO's to 115'8, and taking into account 
that the consumption is increasing steadily and will 
continue to do so independently of the price, it seems 
that present values are ripe for a further advance." 
" The Amboyna clove crop is also reported to be 
affected by drought and it is a total failure and will 
not yield this year more than 200 piculs t against 
6,000 last year." ' — Agricultural News, Feb. 14. 
GOVERNMENT QUININE FACTORY, 
NEDIVATAM. 
(To the Editor, ''Madras Mail,") 
Sir, — The following case may interest cinchona 
growers who have supplied this factory with cinchona 
bark and those who may contemplate doing so. For 
twenty years the bark from a well known estate near 
Ootacamund has been analysed in England and found 
to contain 2^ per cent and 34 per cent respectively of 
sulphate of quinine in its natural and renewed barks. 
For the first time in the history of this estate it sent 
a consignment of about 30,000 lb in three lots to the 
Nedivatam factory. The owner of the estate accepted 
the departmental rules. Shortly after the bark had 
been delivered Mr Sianden informed the supplier that 
his bark only contained, natural 1'48 ppr cent and 
renewed 2'5.5 per cent sulphate cf quinine. On hearing 
this astonishing result the supplier sent a sample of 
* Presumably reference is made to the Dutch coin- 
age. 100 Dutch cents--l guilder^ls 8d.— [Ed A N.] 
1 1 picul or pical::=:13G lb, avoir., nearly.— | Ed. A N.] 
natural bark, which had been obtained from the Nedi- 
vatam factory sample bag, to Dr. Schulten of Calcutta, 
for analysis. Dr. Schulten certifies that it contains 
2°25 per cent sulphate of quinine, and upon this basis 
the renewed bark would contaiii 3'25 per cent which 
practically confirms the English analysis of 20 years. ■ 
This was represented to Mr Standen, who replied 
that he had submitted another sample to Mr. 
Hooper for analysis from the sam^ sample bag, and 
that the second analysis worked out nearly 0'25 per 
cent, worse than the first. Your readers may not be 
aware that the samples sent to Mr Hooper by Mr 
Standen are not cinchona baik in its original quill or 
chip state but merely so much disintegiated powder, 
which it is impossible for any public analyst to say 
was a genuine or manipulated sample of bark. In this 
case the loss to the supplier is about 1 per cent, of 
sulphate of quinine on 30,000 lb. supplied at l^S. per 
unit, which represents about R2,000. Now, Sir, this is 
a very serious matter. If this was an isolated case it 
rnight be capable of explanation, but it is no exaggera- 
tion to say that the whole District is seething with 
discontent, and it is difficult to meet the supplier who 
does not feel that he has been made the victim of an 
appalling mist aJce of the factory. It may be remem- 
bered that when Government opened the Nedivatam 
factory it was with the avowed intention of assisting 
growers to obtain the rates ruling in the London 
market without incurring the formidable expenses of 
sending the bark Home. The previous crop from 
the same estate has just been sold in England as 
follows ; — 
Natural bark, 4Jd. per pound ; renewed bark, 5 3-8d. 
to 6id. per lb. It was analysed by T R Vizey and 
certified to contain, natural 2-48 per cent and renewed 
3 i9, per cent, sulphate of quinine, and the brokers' 
account sales show that the bark was all round richer 
than the analysed samples. 
There is no question that it pays better to send bark 
(even the poorest) to London tl »u to sell it to the 
Government quinine factory at Ni divatam ! The only 
alternative cinchona growers have is to open a small 
quinine factory of thsir own. For some years past tha 
Government factory has been practically run with 
supplies from private growers, yet large profits have 
been made. The actual process of manufacture is mere 
child's play. What cinchona growers want is a quinine 
factory of their own on the co-operative supply system 
where they can go and see their barks worked up, and 
whnt is more to the point, get the full value of what 
their barks contain. The following table compares the 
results of bark from the above estate when sold in 
England and when sold at Nedivatam :— 
Sold in England. Sold at Nedivatam. 
Analysis Price obtained Analysis ^4^;^^*^' 
Natural 2-48 4Jd per lb Natural 1-48 2d 
Renewed 3'42 5|'l to 6id per lb Renewed 2 55 3d 
—M. Mail, March 30. 
Another Victim. 
Eggs. — Over five millions pounds worth of eggs 
are now annually imported into England, but not 
one halt of these are used for culinary purposes. 
The calico Print works use over 40,000,000 eggs 
a year, photographic establishments use millions 
of dozens, and wine clarifiers 10,000,000 dozens in 
the year ; bookbinders, kid glove makers, and 
leatlier finishers use them in abundance, as well as 
other trades. The general public appear to have 
but little knowledge of tlie magnitude ot the 
numbers wanted for practical commercial u.ses, 
apart from those of food, though in the latter 
respect not a few of the figures are absolutely 
et'Utling ; as an instance one of the London clubs 
alone contracts foi more than 100,000 eggs a year.— 
A(jricultural GazeUe of New South Wales, March, 
