828 THE TROPICAL 
COCONUT PRODUCTS AND TIIETR 
DISTRIBUTION: 
LARGE INCREASE IN TRADE WITH 
RUSSIA. 
The ninvai'd tendency of copra, or the dried 
kernel of tlie eoconnt palm, the price of which 
is generally regulated by the price of coconut 
oil in London, has attracted attention for some 
weeks back, during Avhich the ruling prices 
have been far in excess of those which the piice 
of oil would indicate. The explanation is that 
tliere i.s a strong demand for conra for Russia, 
which has specially developed tins year with the 
e.stablishment of new Russian linns in Colombo. 
Germany had been a gcod customer of ours for 
the article for some time, and la.st year .she took 
42.87S cwt , out of a total of only 100,601 cwt. 
exported — Belgium coming next witli 2.'v2to cwt. 
Duriiig the present year, however, the i i'st four 
month.s .show an cxpnitation of no less than 9::', 753 
cwt., — increased to 100,253 cwt. hy 10th May — 
and this promises almost a tiebled demand tor 
1898. Of this quantity, 40,376 cwt. were taken 
by Russia, while Belgium comes next with 20,283 
ewt. j and Germany has had to be content with 
the third place, with 14,001 cwt. ! Tlie United 
Kingdom took only 10,208 cwt., indicating, we 
suppose, that London i.s ceasing to be a distri- 
buting centre for copra (as well as for other of 
our products,) for continental needs. This 
comes among tlie revolutions which the Suez Canal 
has wrought, and is the fruit of the great deve- 
lopment in colonial commercial enterprise on the 
continent, wliich the past few years liave witnessed. 
We have nothing to complain of in regard to this re- 
sult; for keener competition and a steady demand 
secure to the iiroducer adequate returns for his 
labour, and must stimulate agricultural industry. 
In reviewing the Export returns for 1897, early 
this year, we drew attention to the sliifting of 
the Coconut Oil trade. The mother conntiy, 
which was not only our largest customer for a 
long period, but piactically our only customer for 
some time, took only last year about one-sixth of a 
by no means large outturn, and about 20,OCO 
cwt. less than she had taken in 1896 ; and even 
America, which has been proving a good cus- 
tomer, took only 12,000 cwt. more than in tlie 
previous year, or about 16,000 cwt. more than 
tlie United Kingdom. India, on the other iiand, 
imported almost twice as mncli as slie did in 
1896— that is about double the quantity shipped 
to America! iSingaiiore, too, about doubled her 
dcmai d, from 34,133 cwt. to 64,(58, and was 
short of the United Kingdom hy only 8,000 
ewt. These figures indicate a great revolution 
in the oil trade ; and if only our old customers, 
whose orders had slackened .somewhat owing to 
tlie cheapries.s of tallow, resumed their former 
demands, w e pointed out tliat there was the pros- 
pect of a ri-e in the piice of oil, and with it 
of better iirices for co|ira and nnts. Since we 
wrote in tliis .sense, Rus.sia has been coming 
toi'ward in a reniaikahle w.ay as a bidder for 
coconut prod'ict.s. There are evidently ob.slacles 
in the way of lier taking oil from us; for last 
year, out of exports .aggregating 409,600 cwt. 
Ilnssia claimed only 299; ami in 1896 slie had 
hut 81 cwt.; whi'e this year, so far, there i.s 
a blank ofiposite her lu nic. Rut, ns we have 
seen, in cojuasbe has taken the lead this year, with 
four times the quantity alre.ady that she took for the 
whole of last year; while in desiccated coconut 
in which slie made a good show last year with 
AGRICULTURIST. [June i. jSqS. 
18,2.30 lb., she has taken nothing so far. It is 
to be hoped the trial shipments will lead to 
business. On the ( tlier hand, Russia has up to 
date taken 60,000 coconuts — of which we have 
been sliipiiing immense qnantilie.s this year, nearly 
34 niillion nuts — as against 30,000 last year. Al- 
together, the outlook for the coconut in hmfiy, 
in connection witli siiipments to Russia, is deci- 
dedly ho]ieful, and should cheer the hearts of 
]danters wiio were l.ameiiting the f.ill in price.'; 
a.s compared witli tliree orfonryeais ago. Those 
)irices, lunning close during tlie short crops to 
H50 ]»er thou.'and of nuts, may never come hack, 
hut growers will luive little reason to complain if 
I'lices do not fall below those of hist year. 
In making special reference to the new hu.si- 
iiosR wliicli Russia is doing— throngli enterpris- 
ing firms, to whom we wi.'li all success — with the 
Colony, we do not lose sight of the grow.Lli in 
tea pnrcdiases localljq apart from the business 
whicli is done through Loinlon. 'I'lie ilircct siiip- 
mciil.s to Ilnssia this year are nearly five times as 
great as they were for the corresiioiiding part 
of last year, and even more than was taken 
during tiie whole of 1897 ! We regard these 
figures with satisfaction, not only for commer- 
cial reasons, hut owing to their political signi- 
ficance; since nothing can he more helpful to a 
good uiulei standing between the two great Euro- 
Asian Towers, than intimate commercial relations 
which should provide an added bulwark against war, 
with its dislocation of trade and possible ruin to 
lovers of peace, quite as much as to those who 
iiave to bear the brunt of battle. 
^ 
THE GROWTH OF RAMIE. 
A gentleman down South, who has experi- 
mented, writes : — 
“ As regards the growth of the plants from which my 
fibre is procured, it may he of interest to say they 
were originally given to me by Mr. Drieberg, of 
the Agricultural School, and plan ed out by me 
(3 3) in .June last jear. They were fenced in and 
protected from catde and wild animals, but no 
further care or atten'i- u paid to them. As I was 
assured ‘(here was nothing in Ramie,’ I did i.o'hing 
until a few da,ys ago, when I cut one plant and 
found it yield 50 stems, weighing (deprived of leaves) 
7i lb. Only 12 of the twigs weighed over4oz.’* and 
these I decorticated and they yielded just < ver g 
ounce of fibre. This is equal to 35,0001b. ner 
acre for one cutting or over 25 tons per cutting. 
Mr. MacDonald estimates ‘ one acre of land should 
produce at least 70 tons of stems stripped from leaves.’ 
N.B. — The bush I cut was a corner one, with nothing 
growing near it in two sides, so perhaps it was of extra 
size.” 
Great credit is due to the pioneers with this 
industry and to Mr. Manley Power in particular 
who has had the courage to plant an appre- 
ciable acreage, although he by no means ac- 
cepts Mr. MacDonald’s sanguine e.stimate as to 
continuqn.s yield (ler acre per annum. Still he 
is convinced there i.s a thoroughly profitable 
margin and even if a Conijiany be not started, 
Mr. Manley Power will probably go in for 
100 acres. But nothing can be done now in 
clearing in his district till Jaiuiary next ; and 
meantime the field of Bamie already foimed is to 
be carefully attended to, cropped legularly and an 
exact reco d of results kept. This should form a 
valuable guide to future operations. 
Those cropped should average 6oz. (Mr. MacDonald 
sava. — Cor.) 
