A COLONY IN THE MAKING 
CHAP. 
116 
mist belt, a stretch of country some 6,000 ft. high 
with a rainfall of about 60 inches per annum, and a 
long period of dull misty weather, and the tree 
especially favours light, well-drained loams. Such 
conditions are found with us, more especially at 
Londiani, Limoru, and parts of Kyambu, and it is 
possibly here that wattle grows the best. At the 
same time, with us, the tree is not so particular. It 
is growing splendidly on the plains at Njoro at a 
height of 6,000 ft., and again with Mr. Dickinson 
on the Ndarugo river towards Fort Hall at a height 
of 5,000 ft., while the bark from trees in Nairobi 
itself, and growing in shallow soil, has at 3J years 
of age shown a percentage (over 43) of tannin which 
surpasses anything in the Protectorate or elsewhere— 
this too with an average rainfall of less than 40 inches. 
Growth in the Protectorate is very rapid, owing both 
to the soil and to the double season ; and trees are 
ready for stripping in five or six years at the most, 
as against six or seven in Natal, and seven or eight 
or even longer in the Transvaal. The percentage 
of tannin in the bark has proved equally admirable. 
The average throughout Natal is about 34-36 per 
cent. ; in Australia it is about 38-40 per cent. In 
February, 1909, Mr. D. E. Hutchins, Conservator 
of Forests, and one of the first to realise the 
possibilities of wattle culture in the Protectorate, 
sent five samples of bark to the Imperial Institute 
for analysis. The highest percentage, as mentioned, 
came from 3J years old trees in Nairobi, while the 
lowest, which came from a height of 7,500 ft. on the 
Aberdares, showed 35*8. Nor was the quality 
otherwise than good. Prices of from £8 to £8 15^. 
per ton were quoted, a price which must be regarded 
