603 
March  i,  1897. J THK  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST, 
CHINA  GRASS. 
During  the  past  twelve  months  several  factories 
have  been  established  in  this  counlry  for  utilising 
tlie  remarkable  fibre  of  the  well-known  “ China 
„rass”— by  the  way  it  is  not  a grass,  but  a 
nettle— which  has  been  more  or  less  under  tlie 
attention  of  manufacturers  for  fifty  years  past. 
The  libre  yiehled  by  the  plant  is  exceedingly 
strong,  and  so  light  that  it  has  been  employed 
as  the  material  for  sails  of  lirst-rate  yachts.  Ide 
“Valkyrie,”  for  instance  had  lier  sails  made  of 
this  material.  When  manufactured  it  has  much 
the  appearance  of  silk,  and  is  used  for  a veiy 
superior  kind  of  lace,  damask,  and  even  \elvet. 
The  spinners  of  Lancashire  and  \orkshiie  aie 
using  it  for  these  purposes,  and  there  is  a factory 
near  Westbourne-park  that  is  turning  out  a ton 
or  so  of  bleached  libre  for  the  silk  weavers  every 
week.  The  very  valuable  character  of  the  fibre 
has  long  been  recognised,  but  it  has  not  hitherto 
been  much  utilised  for  manufacturing  purposes 
owing  to  the  great  difficulty  that  has  been  ex 
perienced  in  extracting  the  fibre  from  tlie  stems 
The  plant  is  of  a gummy  character,  and  it  has 
been  found  very  difficult  to  get  at  a satisfactory 
method  of  “ deguinming.”  Decided  advances  have 
liowever  been  made  of  late,  and  the  prospects 
of  complete  success  appears  to  be  good.  It  seems 
likely  that  the  West  Indies  may  be  able  to  take 
up  the  cultivation  of  this  China  grass  or  ramie. 
— Home  Paper. 
A NEW  FIBRE.— A CORRECTION. 
[to  the  editor  op  the  “ SPECTATOR.  ] 
Sir — In  the  very  interesting  article  on  ‘‘A  New 
Fibre’”  in  the  Spectator  of  January  2nd  there  is  a 
statement  which  needs  correction,—  * Denierara  alone 
has  half  a million  of  them,”— coolies.  The  last  census 
returns  of  British  Guiana— which  includes  Berhice 
and  Essequibo  as  well  as  Demerara— give  the  popu- 
lation of  the  entire  Colony  as  278,382,  and  the  number 
of  coolies  as  105,463. — I am.  Sir,  &c., 
Leeds,  January  4th.  .John  Grimshaw. 
I The  word  “alone”  was  not  in  our  article,  out, 
of  course  even  as  it  was,  the  coolie  numbers  were 
overstated. — Ed.  Spectator.^ 
KANAPEDIWATTIE  TEA  CO.,  LD. 
This  Company  has  just  been  incorporated,  ine 
capital  is  R340.000,  (with  power  to  inci-ease)  m 
3 400  shares  of  RlOO  each,  of  which  only  .1,340 
will  at  present  be  issued.  The  directcrs  are  Hon. 
T.  N.  Christie,  Mr.  George  Christie  and  Mr.  W. 
Kingsbury,  and  the  Bankers,  the  National  Lank 
of  India,  Ld.  „ , , 
Proctors  : — Messrs.  Fislier  & Borrett  (Kandy.) 
Agents  and  Secretaries.  Messrs,  Lee  Hedges  A 
^^tIus  Company  is  formed  for  the  purpose  of 
nurchasing  Kanapediwattie,  Blackford  and  St. 
Cuthbert  Estates  situated  in  the  I ussellawa  and 
Ulapane  Districts.  The  approxiniate  acreage  of 
the  properties  is  as  follows  :— lea  34o,  Cocoa  6, 
Cardamoms  6,  Timber,  Patna,  &c.  61.  T^al  418. 
The  properties  have  been  valued  by  Mr.  VV. 
P.  Metcalfe  at  R321,845,  being  on  a basis  of 
8i  years’  purchase  on  the  protits  of  tlie  past  tniee 
seasons.  No  agreements  for  the  purchase  of  the 
Estates  have  been  made,  but  negociations  have 
been  opened  with  the  Shareholders  of  the  Ceylon 
Cinchona  Association,  Limited,  (the  owner  ot 
Kanapediwattie  Estate),  and  the  proprietors  of 
Blackford  and  St.  Cuthbert  Estates  to  sell  their 
nroperties  to  the  Company  as  from  the  1st  of 
knuary,  1897,  for  the  sum  of  R322,200  payable 
in  fully  paid  up  shares, 
76 
TEA  GROWING  IN  THE  CAUCASUS. 
Some  time  ago  attention  was  prominently 
drawn  in  home  papers  to  the  possibilities  of 
the  Caucasus  as  a tea  ))roduciiig  region.  Not 
only  was  the  opinion  expressed  that  Russia, 
herself  a gieat  tea  drinkin.g  coiiinr.y,  would  be 
able  to  supply  her  own  wants  independent  of 
the  East,  but  in  course  of  time  she  would 
compete  ivitli  these  countries  in  die  markets  of 
Europe.  A gentleman  who  is  himself  qualified 
to  speak  on  the  matter  informs  us  that  he 
recently  had  a conversation  on  the  subject 
with  a Russian  visitor.  The  Russian  who  knows 
the  region  well  and  who  has  had  a look 
round  Ceylon  assured  our  informant  that  tea 
could  only  be  grown  in  isolated  pockets  in  the 
Caucasus.  The  hillsides,  he  .said,  were  valueless 
owing  to  the  intense  frosts  that  were  ex- 
perienced. If  tliis  description  be  accurate  so 
much  the  better  for  Ceylon,  so  much  the  worse 
for  Russia. 
FLOWERING  PLANTS  AND  FERNS  : 
IN  2 VOLS.* 
MR.  WILLI.S’S  NEW  BOOK. 
We  are  indebted  to  the  Director  of  the  Royal 
Botanic  Gardens  for  a copy  of  his  excellent 
contribution  to  the  “Cambridge  Natural  Science 
Manuals,”  edited  by  Mr.  Sliipley,  the  accom- 
plished Fellow  and  Tutor  of  Christ’s  College, 
Cambridge.  The  book  is  evidently  very  care- 
fully compiled,  and  must  prove  an  exceedingly 
useful  manual.  There  are  a good  many  engra- 
vings illustrating  the  text,  and  the  indexes  and 
glossary  are  particularly  full.  The  contents  of 
the  1st  volume  are  indicated  as  follows  : — 
Outlines  of  the  morphology,  natural  history,  clas- 
sification, geographical  distribution  and  economic  uses 
of  the  phanerogams  and  ferns. 
The  second  volume  contains.- — 
The  classes,  cohorts,  orders,  and  chief  genera  of 
phanerogams  and  ferns,  alphabetically  arranged  under 
their  Latin  names. 
The  following  extract  from  Mr.  Willis’s  preface 
will  show  the  object  held  in  view  by  the  autlior  : — 
The  aim  with  which  I commenced,  nearly  seven 
years  ago,  to  prepare  this  book,  was,  to  supply  within 
a reasonable  compass,  a summary  of  useful  and 
scientific  information  about  the  plants  met  with  in 
a botanical  garden  or  museum,  or  in  the  field.  The 
student,  when  placed  before  the  bewildering  variety 
of  forms  in  such  a collection  as  that  at  Kew,  does  not 
know  where  to  begin  or  what  to  do  to  acquire 
information  about  the  plants.  The  available  works 
of  general  reference  are  mostly  very  bulky  and  often 
out  of  date,  and  as  a rule  refer  only  to  systematic 
or  economic  botany,  and  say  nothing  about  mor- 
phology or  natural  history.  I have  endeavoured  to 
bring  together  in  this  book  as  much  information  as 
is  required  by  any  but  specialists  upon  all  plants 
usually  met  with,  and  upon  all  those  points— mor- 
* Now  ready.  Crown  8vo.  Cloth.  2 Volumes. 
Vol.  i pp.  1 — 224.  Vol,  ii,  pp.  1 — 429.  Price  lOs  fid. 
[Cambridge  Natural  Science  Manuals  Biological  Series. 
General  Editor, — Arthur  D.  Shipley,  m.a.  Fellow 
and  Tutor  of  Christ  College,  Cambridge.)  A Manual 
and  Dictionary  of  the  Flowering  Plants  and  Ferns, 
by  J.  C.  Willis,  m.a  , Director  of  the  Royal  Botanic 
Gardens,  Ceylon,  sometime  Frank  Smart  student, 
Gonville  and  Gains  College,  Cambridge,  and 
Senior  Assistant  in  Botany  in  the  University  of 
Glasgow.  Cambridge:  at  the  University  Press  ; Lou- 
don: C.  J.  Clay  & Sons,  Cambridge  University  Press 
Warehouse,  Ave  Maria  Lane;  and  H.  K.  Lewis, 
136,  Gower  Street,  W.C.,  Medical  Publisher  and 
Bookseller, 
