6 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. V, January, 1951 
definitely known or documented history, cer- 
tain additional conclusions regarding its still 
earlier history have been based upon circum- 
stantial evidence. 
As has already been stated, some of the 
early horticultural journals in England men- 
tioned that the Cayenne variety had been im- 
ported from French Guiana. The name it bears 
is also circumstantial evidence for that con- 
clusion. This latter statement is based upon 
the frequency with which plants, particularly 
the pineapple, are given names according to 
the place from which the varieties are ob- 
tained, even though they already possess 
local names. Among pineapples there are a 
number of varieties named after geographical 
areas in the West Indies and South America. 
Among these may be mentioned the follow- 
ing: 
WEST INDIES SOUTH AMERICA 
Antigua 
Providence 
Jamaica 
St. Kitts 
Cuban 
Havannah 
Puerto Rico 
Bahia 
Esmeralda 
Pernambuco 
Taboga 
Surinam 
Trinidad 
Demerara 
In the hope that further knowledge regard- 
ing the history of the Cayenne variety might 
be found in French Guiana, a search was made 
of the botanical literature for reports of plants 
and plant collections in the northern part of 
South America. This search disclosed the in- 
formation that in 1819 the French govern- 
ment sent an expedition to the French coloni- 
al possessions in America and the Pacific 
Ocean area to collect plants and seeds for the 
French botanical gardens at Paris and Ver- 
sailles. Samuel Perrottet, the botanist on this 
expedition, filed a report of the plants col- 
lected, in which he records finding a new 
variety of pineapple growing at Cayenne, in 
French Guiana, having spineless leaves (the 
others in the region having spiny leaves) and 
delicately flavored fruits averaging about 20 
pounds in weight (Perrottet, 1825: 103). 
He collected and sent to Versailles five 
plants of this variety in 1820. This date fits in 
well with that which we have suggested above 
as being about the time the Cayenne variety 
is presumed to have been introduced into 
France. 
The description, as it appeared in Perrot- 
tet’s report, is included here as a part of the 
history of this variety, with a free translation 
following it. 
Bromelia mai-pouri, Perr. Cette nouvelle. 
espece ananas provident de Cayenne; cinq 
plantes ont ete, comme je Fai dit deposes au 
jardin des primeurs a Versailles. Le mai-pouri 
n’a point les feuilles armees de dents comme 
ses congeneres; ses fruits, d’un manger fort 
delicat, pesent d’ordinaire 10 kilogrammes 
(20 livres), et sont tres-beaux. M. 
This new species of Ananas was procured 
from Cayenne; there were five plants as I 
have said, deposited in the garden of new 
varieties at Versailles. The mai-pouri does not 
have spiny leaves like its relatives; its fruits, 
of a very delicate flavor, weigh on an average 
10 kilograms (20 pounds) and are very fine. 
The description given by Perrottet is in it- 
self not sufficient to establish the identity of 
Bromelia mai-pouri’ d.n6. the Cayenne variety. 
In fact, the 20-pound average weight of fruit 
mentioned by Perrottet is difficult to believe 
of any variety of pineapple and must repre- 
sent an error in the record. The varieties Trini- 
dad and Cabezona were reported to have 
fruits sometimes reaching 20 to 24 pounds, 
but there is no other reference to a variety 
having an average fruit weight anywhere near 
20 pounds. 
In commenting upon this description of 
Bromelia mai-pouri^ Dr. L. B. Smith, of the 
National Museum in Washington, D. C., re- 
marked that it looked as if someone made a 
major error between collection and publica- 
tion. An inquiry concerning these plants sent 
to the Natural History Museum in Paris re- 
sulted in information that no herbarium speci- 
mens now existed of this Mai Pouri variety, 
but that they were considered the same as 
Smooth Cayenne in 1850 by Gautier, 'hhe 
famous grower of Parisian pineapples.” The 
