July 1, 1898.] 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
53 
The wonderful tliscoveiy of recent years in such 
seats of early cnlture as E;;ypt and Chaklea and 
Arabia have restored to us a vast amount of 
material with which we can construct the early 
chapters of commercial history, and in this care- 
fully-written pamphlet the author aliords a most 
concise resume of the facts now ascertained The 
quest' on of the period when trade intercourse was 
established between India, the. Far East, and 
Babylon, is a subject which has attracted many 
scholars. Lassen Harren formerly stuilied the 
subject from the Indian side, while De Laconperie 
and Hewitt have availed themselves of recent 
discoveries in Western Asia 
The author deals first with the early trade of 
the Egyptians, Babylonians and Arabs, and 
shows that it could not embrace India ; he also 
treats most exhaustively of the overland trade 
in the ninth century of the Christian era, whicli 
shows by the dis-coveries of the representation of 
the elephant, of Indian apes, a rhinoceros, and 
Bacterian camels, found oa Assyrian sculptures, 
that there was a trade over the Hindu Kush and 
by the Bayazid Pass, in North-East Armenia. 
Whether this repr£sents a trade intercourse of 
any lengthy duration is doubtful, and it must be 
borne in mind that all traces of Western Asiatic 
influence in India are most clearly Babylonian, 
and not Assyrian, and must be assip^ned to the 
period ol the New Babylonian Empire, that is, 
subsequent to B.C. 700. The third section of the 
work deals with gradual growth of a trade not 
only with India, but also China, from the shores of 
the Persian Gulf, the foundation of which was due 
to the lar^'e naval flotilla establislied on the 
Persian Gulf in B C. 695. This fleet was built 
for the Assyrian King by Phoenicians working on 
the Upper Euphrates, and manred by Tyrians, 
Sidonians, and Cypriote Gieeks. It successfully 
broke up the pirate nests on the east shores of 
tlie Persian Gulf, and returned to the mouth of 
the two rivers, but afterwards not a mention 
of its existence is found in the inscriptions, 
while as it was quite new it is hardly likely to 
have been destroyed. In B.C. 675 670, a coinage 
was introduced into China by traders from Lang- 
ya in the Far West, who settled on the Gulf of 
Kiaotehou, in the South Shantung Peninsula. 
The currency took the form of bronze knives, 
but of a standard exactly uniform with the 
Babylonian. Later, in B C. 613-590, Tchwang, 
King of Tsu, issued two sizes of small bean-shaped 
coins again on the Babylonian tariff, and in- 
scribed them with their weights. At that period 
the Babylonians were in the habit of using small 
pieces of silver, but payment waj still by weight. 
In the time of Darius, earliest date B.C. 521, 
the silver shekel was punched for " giving 
and receiving," and later a device was em- 
bos.sed on them. Thus in B.C. 521 we liave a 
contract which says a payment of " half a maneh 
of pure silver (ingot), and half a maneh fifty 
shekels by one shekel piece stamped." These 
do not appear to have been a State coinage, 
bub issued by private firms, and several kinds 
are specified, and one mint, which marked ila 
coins with a " bird's-tail plant," seems to have 
been regarded as spurious. In the main then 
they resembled the non-Hellenic coinage, punched 
on one side and not inscribed, but appear to have 
been as far as possible of uniform weight. 
We have seen liow shortly prior to tliis 
stamped silver tokens corresponding to the Chal- 
dean maneh standard were coined in China, and 
Mr. Kennedy points out that in just such a 
system of private uiinting we have tUe oiigia 
of the Indian pumiias. They could not have 
borrowed them from the Arabs, and in their rude 
and uninscribed form they resemble the pre- 
Hellenic and not the Greek coinage, which was 
afterwards copied. 
In dealint.' with the commodities imported, the 
authoi', like all former writers, has to deal with 
"peacocks" of Solomon, and the sandal wood, 
and his remarks are of great value, as showing 
that if the usual identifications of the Hebrew 
Tuki with Tamil Togei holds good, the passage 
must be late. The LXX. know nothing of 
either. On this trade the recent discoveries in 
Arabia and South Chaldea throw great light. 
Ophir has been generally regarded as Abhira 
at the mouth of the Indus, but Hommel and 
Glaser's discoveries seem rather to point to the 
Apir of the Chaldean inscriptions, which was 
the east shore of the Persian Gulf. Here as 
early as B.C. 800 were settled a powerful tribe, 
who were certainly mariners. Here the land 
would be, as in Genesis (x. 29,) opposite to 
the Arabian trading stations. It is, moreover, 
the very district near the Karun from which 
the converted fleet of the Assyrians would start. 
This may then have become the depot of Indian 
trade when it commenced. Hie author now quotes 
the Indian folk tale known as the Baveru or Bavilu- 
lataka, compiled about B.C. 400, but probably 
much older, which describes how certain traders 
brought first a crow and then a peacock to Bavilu 
in their ships and sold them for a fabulous price 
This would .seem certainly to fall in with the 
evidence we have referred to, and would show 
that a depot for Indiai; trade was in existence 
on the east shore of the Persian Gulf shortly 
after B.C. 700. With regard to gold theie is no 
difheulty, as alluvial gold is found on both sides 
of the Persian Gulf. Rice was known under its 
Tamil name, «mi, the Greek oruza, in the time 
of Sophocles, and the peacock to Aristophanes 
It would seem that Mr. Kennedy has made out 
a strong case, and added a new and important 
chapter to the history of commerce. 
One word, in conclu.sion, must be said as to 
overland trade with India and Central Asia— it 
existed much earlier than the author suggests. 
The number of jade axes found in Babylonia is 
considerable, and all of them in buildings of the 
" Tower builders" of Ur and Nippur, ^^hich 
would point to a connection with Central Asia; 
and the jade axe found by Dr. Peters was found 
in the centre of tlie Tower of Ur-Gur. Bactrian 
laptis- lazuli was found as early as B.C. 1500. 
The Bakk tribes, or the so-called " Hundred 
families," left their home on the western side 
of the Tigris about B.C. 3000-2500, and made 
their way to the north-east, entering China about 
B.C. 2300. They took with them a great legacy 
of culture, and it seems very doubtful if the route 
suddenly became closed. However, the subject is 
a wide one, and each day brings to light fresh 
discoveries as to the nature and extent of this old- 
world trade.— Bail;/ Chronicle, May 17. 
THE FLOHIDA VELVET BEAN. 
[TO THE EDITOR OF THK " .SPi:CTATOR."j 
Sir, — I send you herewith a sample of the new 
Florida product, — the woiulerfnl velvet benn. Up 
to two years ago it was grown hero in a limited way, 
mainly as a trellis shade, but afterward it became le- 
cognised Jas invaluablo for all kinds of [stock as a 
f9rsige, and a pheuomeaal fertiliser for orange and 
