rflHF TPtOPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[February i, 18^2. 
fourths grown the mischief is already effected and 
cannot easily be remedied, but even should the tree 
not perish, the crop will scarcely be worth the ga- 
thering so inferior will be the quality and the tree 
unable to perfect its fruit, which splits ere the mace 
is red and while the nut is soft and good for nothing. 
Unhappily some trees have a habit of splitting their 
fruit untimely although their general appearance 
indicates strength and vigor. This is a fault for 
which as yet I know of no remedy ; I attribute it 
to an original fault in the seed, and if this be correct 
I feai it admits of none. 
The planter having his tree arrived at the agreeable 
point oi -producing, has but slight trouble in pre- 
paring his produce for market. As the fruit is 
brought in by the gatherers, the mace is carefully 
removed, pressed together and flattened on a board, 
exposed to the sun for three or four days, it is then 
dry enough to be put by in the spice house until 
required for exportation, when it is to be screwed 
into boxes and becomes the mace of commerce. The 
nutmeg itself reqviires more care in its curing, it 
being necessary to have it well and carefully dried 
ere the outer black shell be broken. For this purpose 
the usual practice is to subject it for a couple of 
months to the smoke of slow fires kept up underneath, 
whilst the nuts are spread on a grating about eight 
feet above. I myself prefer one raised fully 10 feet, 
but the model of a perfect drying house is easily 
obtained, and the process is too well known to require 
any further explanation. The only caution I would 
give is that planters ought to take care and not dry 
their nuts by too great a heat as they shrivel and 
lose their full and marketable appearance ; for this 
Eurpose I think it desirable to keep the nuts, when 
rst collected, for eight or ten days out of the drying 
house, exposing them at first to an hour or so of 
morning sun, and increasing the exposiu-e daily until 
they shake in the shell ; the nuts ought never to be 
cracked until required for exportation or they will 
be attacked and destroyed by a small weevel-like 
insect, the larvas of which is deposited in the ovule 
and, becoming the perfect insect, eats its way out, 
leaving the nut bored through and through and 
worthless as a marketable commodity. Liming the 
nuts prevents this to a certain extent, but limed 
nuts are not those best liked in the English market, 
whereas they are preferred in that state in the 
United States. "When the nuts are to be limed it is 
simply necessary to have them well rubbed over 
between the hands with powdered lime. I am given 
to understand that they are steeped in a mixture of 
lime and water for several weeks by the Dutch mode 
of preparation. This no doubt will preserve them, 
but doubtless it must also have a prejudicial effect 
on the flavor of the spice. After the nuts are thoroughly 
dried, which requires from six weeks to two months' 
smoking, they cannot be too soon sent to market. 
But it is otherwise with the mace, that commodity 
when fresh not being in esteem in the London 
market, seeing that they desire it of a golden color 
which it only assumes after a few months, whereas 
at first when fresh it is blood red ; now red blades 
are looked upon with suspicion, and are highly 
injurious to the sale of the article. This is one of 
those peculiar prejudices of John Bull which some- 
what impugns his wisdom, but it must be attended 
to, as John is ever ready to pay for his caprice ; 
therefore those who provide for him have no right 
to complain altliough they may smile. 
Through the kindness of the Resident Councillor 
I have been furnished with the following correspou- 
dence and statistics which shew that the nutmeg tree 
was sent from Bencoolen to Singapore the latter 
end of 1819, so tliat twenty-nine years have elapsed 
since its first introduction. Some of the plants alluded 
to in Sir Stamford Raffles' letter were set out at the 
foot of Government Hill in neither a bad soil nor 
locality, and several of them arc at present and have 
been "for the last ten years fine fruitful trees. 
Table No. 1 shews tliat HI.') trees in this garden 
yielded last year li)0,'l'2(; nuts oral the average of (iol for 
each tree, but of t)ie :-ilS bearing trees menti nod in the 
table not over fifty arc of the old stock, uxost hav- 
ing been planted since 1836, so that a Planter may 
safely calculate on having a better average than is 
here set forth, provided he attends to bis cultivation 
and his trees are brought up to the age of 15 years. 
If a plantation be attended to from the commence- 
ment, after the manner I have endeavoured to ex- 
plain, and the trees be in a good locality, the Planter 
will undoubtedly obtain an average of 10 lb. of 
spice from each tree from the 15th year. This at 
an average price of 2s. 6d. per lb. is 25 shillings per 
annum. He can have about 70 such trees in an acre, 
so that there is scarcely any better or more remuner- 
ative Cultivation when once established, but the race 
is a long one, the chances of life, a high rate of interest 
in this country make it one of no ordinary risk, and 
it is one that holds out no prospect of any return 
in less than 10 years. A person commencing and 
stopping short of the bearing point either by death 
or want of funds will siiffer almost total loss, for 
the value of such a property brought into a market 
where there are no buyers must be merely nominal. 
Again if the property has arrived at the paying point, 
almost any person of common honesty can take 
charge of and carry it on, for the trees after 12 
years are remarkably hardy and bear a deal of ill 
treatment and neglect ; not that I would recommend 
any person to try the experiment, but it is some 
consolation for the Proprietor to know that stupidity 
will not ruin him, and that even at the distance of 
thousands of miles he can give such directions as, 
if attended to, will keep his estate in a flourishing and 
fruitful state. 
I have now set the pros and cons of nutmeg cul- 
tivation before the reader. Should he like to try 
the experiment there is ample scope and verge 
enough for him in Singapore. He need not be afraid 
of failure if he proceeds with energy and persever- 
ance. The cultivation, as will be seen by the ap - 
pended tables, is rapidly extending, and I fear the 
prices are falling. Should the Moluccas be throvm 
open I cannot answer for how much greater may 
be the depreciation in value, but a produce that re- 
quires 15 years to bring it to market in remuner- 
ative abundance is not so easily overdone. The tree 
is not more quickly productive in the Island of 
Banda than in the Straits, and, as I have before 
said, neither do they excel us in relative quantity 
or quality. Those who have established plantations 
may laugh at the bugbear of over production and rest 
content even with some further reduction in prices. 
The consumption is increasing and likely to increase 
in the United States, and no doubt were the heavy 
duty exacted in England lightened, the consumption 
would also increase in Great Britain. At present the 
duty is above the value of the article, which is 
anything but encouragment to our eastern colonies, 
and is hardly fair considering that the differential 
duties have been done away with and that we have 
to compete on equal terms with our monopolizing 
neighbours the Dutch, who take very good care to 
make no reciprocation in favor of British commerce, 
To Major Faequhab, 
Resident and Commandant, Singapore ^ 
Sir, — Enclosed, I transmit a list of Nutmeg and 
Clove Plants this day shipped on the " Indiana " for 
100 Nutmeg Plants, in 3 boxes^ Singapore, and put 
100 Clove do. in 3 do. imder the immediate 
1000 Nutmeg seeds, half of them charge of Mr Dunn, 
in a double row. ^who is proceeding 
350 Clove ditto. j thither on the same 
25 Large Nutmeg plants and | ship. 
the same number of Cloves. J You will be pleased 
to report the condition in which these Plants are 
received, and to exert your utmost endeavours to 
establish the cultivation under your immediate 
authority. 
I have &c., 
(Sd.) T. S. Raffles. 
Fort Marlbro', ISth Aug^t,st, 1819. 
To the Hon'ble Sir Stamford Raffles, Kt., 
Lic.vt.-Governor, cj-c. ^-c, Fort Marlbro''. 
Hon'ble Sir, — I liave the honor to acknowledge the 
receipt of your letter dated the 18th August covering 
