292 
SPICES 
CHAP. 
1875-1876 to 1879-1880 as mucli as 7,322,176 lbs. 
This import trade decreased, in 1883 to 1889, to less 
than half, but rose the next year to 5,707,147 lbs. 
Nearly all of this was derived from the Straits Settle- 
ments. 
Of late years the cultivation has been much disturbed 
by the several diseases which became very serious (see 
Pests and Diseases). Steps, however, have been taken 
to remedy these evils, which seem to have been largely 
due to constant propagating from cuttings. 
In Ceylon , — Pepper is said to have been one of the 
earliest exports from Ceylon. When this island came 
under the rule of the Dutch, some attention was 
paid to its cultivation, and in 1739 it is recorded that 
they exported 465,000 lbs., the greater part of which 
was derived from the Kandyan provinces. After the 
island passed into English hands, the pepper cultivation 
declined, and though a little was grown for local con- 
sumption, nothing further was done till about 1879, 
when it again attracted the attention of planters, and 
several restarted the cultivation. The plant seems to 
have grown well, even to an altitude of 2,000 ft., and 
the produce was considered to be of very good quality, 
but perhaps from a fall in price the cultivation seems 
soon after to have lapsed again, and little more has been 
heard of it for some years. 
Malay Peninsula , — Linschoten mentions much 
pepper as being grown around Malacca in 1583, but at 
that time there was little trade in it there to Portugal, 
for he says that it was two years between each shippe 
which sailed thence,” and though each ship took some 
pepper, it was chiefly loaded up with cloves and nut- 
megs, and other merchandise of China. Most of the 
local -grown pepper went to Pegu, Syon (probably 
Siam), and China. 
Garcia da Orta (1593) says that pepper, in his time, 
grew in Malacca by the sea, but was inferior in quality 
et magna ex parte inane, by which I presume he 
means flavourless. 
