230 
Only about 500,000 nuts per annum are produced in Dutch 
Guiana, and an insignificant number in French Guiana. These arc 
consumed locally. 
Coco-nuts in Venezuela. 
At La Guayra, the annual crop of coco-nuts amounts to about 
1 ,000,000. At Barcelona and Comana, however, it is much larger; 
the latter could easily furnish 5,000,000 nuts a year. The cultiva- 
tion of coco-nuts receives very little attention in La Guayra, and 
practically no efforts are made to extend their growth. There is 
no reason, however, why the present area should not be increased, 
as the palm thrives wonderfully along the coast, and nearly ail of 
the land within half a mile or a mile of the sea could be furtilized. 
The nuts grown in La Guayra district are mostly absorbed by the 
local retail trade of the cities of La Guayra and Caracas, a great 
many being sold to the natives, who drink the milk. The nut is also 
used for cooking, confectionery, etc. In Cumana, most of the crop 
is manufactured into oil. This oil is said to be of an excellent quality. 
A few nuts are occasionally shipped from La Guayra to the United 
States, but the trade is not profitable. The harbour dues on all 
kinds of freight is $4 a ton, and planters find that it pays them 
better to hold the nuts for local consumption. Coco-nuts are never 
shipped in the husk. 
In La Guayra the price of coco-nuts is from $2.50 to $>5 gold per 
hundred; in Cumana, from $2 to $3. 
The production of coco-nuts in the Puerto Cabello district of 
Venezuela is limited, as there are but few trees. Very little atten- 
tion is paid to their cultivation and the supply is decreasing. The 
soil, however, is excellent for the growth of this palm. 
The nuts are marketed hero green for the coco-nut water the)' 
contain; ripe, for the meat, from which oil for soap-making and other 
purposes is extracted, and as copra, for foreign shipment. The 
green coco-nuts are sold for 1 cent, each , ripe ones at about the 
same price, and copra for about 2 \ cents per pound. 
A NEW INSTRUMENT FOR TAPPINGf 
RUBBER TREES. 
The “ Teysmannia ” and the “ Indischen Merkur ” give a des- 
cription of a new instrument for tapping rubber trees, invented by 
Mr. H. C PRAASTERINK of Toeder in Dutch India. This instru- 
ment is highly recommended, and has the shape of a hollow stem 
(iron) of 2.5 centimetres breadth. In the middle of the iron there 
is an oval opening, and on each side, just above the opening, there 
is a small tag fixed underneath, on which an earthen vessel can be 
hung up. The way of using the instrument is very simple. With 
aid of a wooden hammer it is knocked into the tree in a slanting- 
direction, and if some small pieces of the bark should happen to 
fall into the instrument, these can be easily removed by blowing 
them off. The vessel is hung upon the two tags and the latex 
