Am.  Jour.  Pharm.\ 
February,  1896.  / 
Kola  and  Kolanin. 
97 
the  extent  of  the  world's  supply,  nor  the  possible  yield  for  this  drug, 
can  be  given.  The  official  reports  of  the  African  trade  give  from 
2,500,000  to  3,000,000  pounds  per  year,  which  is  mainly  utilized  for 
home  consumption.  Those  who  are  familiar  with  tropical  products 
can  realize  the  difficulties  and  peculiarities  of  the  market  in  such  a 
commodity.  It  is  carried  on  mainly  through  native  women.  There  is 
a  certain  amount  gathered  for  home  demand.  The  quantity  that 
will  reach  the  shipping  ports  must  depend  upon  the  caprice  of  the 
natives,  and  especially  as  to  how  much  they  stand  in  need  of  rum  or 
tobacco.  The  crop  must  all  be  carried,  often  hundreds  of  miles,  in 
head  loads,  through  miasmatic  forests,  over  impassable  streams, 
across  pathless  mountains,  under  a  tropical  sun.  The  conditions 
are  such  that,  to  gather  a  ton  of  nuts  and  safely  land  them  on  a 
ship  that  plies  along  Africa's  sunny  shores,  is  a  task  that  one  would 
shrink  from  after  a  survey  of  the  field.  The  native  gatherers  are 
shrewd  dealers,  even  if  not  well  skilled  in  the  arts  of  civilized  com- 
merce. They  know  how  to  corner  supplies,  to  create  a  rise  in  price, 
and  they  also  know  that,  when  a  European  buyer  wants  the  nuts 
badly,  grades  that  have  no  value  at  home  will  rind  a  ready  market. 
This  accounts,  in  part,  for  the  quite  variable  nature  of  market  specir 
mens.  In  the  West  Indies,  the  governments  encourage  the  cultiva- 
tion of  the  plant,  and,  before  many  years,  ample  supplies  from  this 
source  will  be  obtainable.  In  our  own  country,  some  attention  and 
discussion  has  taken  place,  looking  towards  its  cultivation  on  our 
soil.  Therefore,  the  following  notes,  gathered  from  observation  and 
from  the  notes  taken  in  the  Botanical  Departments  of  the  West 
India  Islands,  may  be  of  interest : 
NOTES  ON  THE  CULTIVATION  OF  KOLA.. 
The  kola  plant  seems  to  grow  well  in  any  climate  where  there  is 
plenty  of  rainfall  and  a  warm,  tropical  sun.  Of  course,  the  hotter 
and  more  moist  the  climate,  the  better.  Wherever  bananas,  nut- 
megs or  cacao  will  grow,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  this  tree  will  thrive. 
The  best  kind  of  soil  is  that  which  is  deep,  rich  and  clayey,  although 
it  will  grow  in  a  great  variety  of  soils.  In  some  of  the  West  India 
Islands,  it  may  be  found  as  high  as  5,000  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
but  the  best  specimens  are  generally  found  at  not  over  1,000  feet 
elevation.  If  the  situation  is  low  and  damp,  the  ground  must  be 
well  drained.    The  young  plants  may  be  obtained  directly  from  the 
