35 
[ Rep. No, 564. ] 
be lawful for each and eveiy grantee to enter upon and take possession of 
the respective section or sections which may be assigned to him or them 
by the said Perrine, for the propagation of tropical plants. 
Sec. 3. And he. it fmdher enacted, That, at the expiration of ten years, 
or as soon as revenue duties shall be laid again on all tropical products, 
ports of entry be established along the cifasts, and the other obstacles re- • 
moved, or as soon as the territory adjacent to said lands shall be sold, a 
patent shall be issued to said Perrine and-his associates for any and every 
section which shall be actually inhabited by a- bona fide cultivator of tropical 
plants, on the payment of the minimum price per acre within that time ; 
and at any previous period, for any legal division of-any section aforesaid, 
oil the payment of the same price, with a deduction of six per cent, per 
annum. • 
Charleston, September 22, 1837. 
Sir: It becomes my duty, as corresponding secretary of the South 
Carolina Agricultural Society, to‘transmit you their report on the subject 
submitted to them by you. They have instructed me to write to Mr. H. 
S. Legare, our, representative in Congress, and, by their resolve, recpiest 
his aid in furthering your patriotic undertaking. I have done so ; and he 
will await your presenting him with the report, (of which he has no copy.) 
and will, no doubt, comply with the wishes of the society. The report 
will also be published in the coming number of the South Carolina Agri¬ 
cultural Journal, published in Charleston. 
I have the honor to be your obedient servant, 
WILLIAM ROPER, 
Secretary of the South Carolina Agricultural Society. 
To Dr. H. Perrine. 
The committee to whom were referred the specimens of foliaceous fibres, 
brought from South America by our intelligent and enterprising country¬ 
man, Dr. H. Perrine, and the subject of the acclimation of tropical plants, 
respectfully report: 
That, after an attentive review of the documents in his possession, and 
a careful examination of the specimens presented, they attained the con¬ 
clusion that Dr. Perrine must have sacrificed much time, a large amount 
of professional emolument, and endured considerable labor and annoyance, 
in procuring and forwarding the plants hereafter described; which, should 
they be acclimated, and found to flourish in aiiy part of our country, will 
be of distinguished advantage in one of the most useful departments of hu¬ 
man industry, viz : in nautical affairs. The jealousy of the South Americans 
is such, that they not only withhold all aid from foreigners, but actually 
prohibit the transplantation of any of the products of their soil and cli¬ 
mate. In consequence whereof. Dr. Perrine was compelled to avail him¬ 
self of the gratitude of the Indians, whose families had received his medi¬ 
cal aid gratuitously, to procure and remove the plants ; upon whose ha¬ 
bitually suspicious and jealous minds no pecuniary remuneration would 
have had any persuasive efficacy. The specimens exhibited were the 
following: Agave Sisalana, and commonly called the Sisal hemp; of this, 
there are two varieties, which flourish in stony or sandy sterile soils; itg 
fibres are remarkably strong, and make the most beautiful and apparently 
