91 
The wild calleryana pears are ripening 
slowly and irregularly and this job to get 100 
lbs. of dry, clean seeds is going to take up 
a v/hole lot of time. It will make lae late for 
many other good things in the mountains North 
of Ichang. 
The weather here is very changeable. We 
are getting a good deal of rain and dark, gloomy 
skies, something like in Central and Western 
Europe; it makes us people from the Horth in- 
tellectually more active, but on the Chinese 
it seems to act the other v/ay. 
Persimmons are coming in in good numbers, 
but nothing very special among them; some 
strange tangerines are also seen, with a 
v/rinkled skin, but they are like condensed 
vinegar globes to the palate. This whole 
King men disti'ict does not stand out for any- 
thing very superlative and one cannot even get 
potatoes, onions or beef, but of course, it 
could be much worse. 
On October 17, 1917, we sent Mr. Meyer the following cable 
through the State Department : 
Confer as soon as possible with Consul 
and report by cable on available tonnage 
and price castor oil, also castor beans. 
Ship immediately hundred pound lots of best 
oil varieties. Aviation need estimated at 
four million bushels. 
In confirming the cable the next day, October 18, 1917, M:r. 
Fairchild wrote: 
I trust tliat you will be able, without 
having it seriously Interfere with your v/ork 
on the pear, to give Immediate attention to 
this problem of castor oil. My reason for 
cabling you is that there appears to be a 
strong probability that the use of castor 
oil will be found essential to the operation 
of the thousands of aeroplanes which are nov/ 
being built as rapidly as possible in this 
country. Castor oil seems to be the heaviest 
oil and, of all the vegetable oils, the only 
one which will retain its viscosity at the 
high temperatures necessary in the pov/erful 
December 31, 1917. 
