Ar"*Novr,'i89i!rm*}  Liquorice  Plant  on  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates.  547 
THE  LIQUORICE  PLANT  AS  FOUND  ON  THE  BANKS  OF 
THE  TIGRIS  AND  EUPHRATES. 
In  a  report  on  the  trade  of  Bussorah,  Consul  Chenevix-Trench 
says :  The  great  rivers  of  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates,  in  the  part 
where  the  liquorice  root  is  found,  flow  through  flat  treeless  prairies  of 
uncultivated  and  nearly  uninhabited  land,  capable  with  irrigation  of 
producing  any  grain.  For  three  months  of  the  year  hot  winds  blow, 
and  the  temperature  reaches  104  degrees.  For  six  months  the  climate 
is  moderate  and  salubrious,  and  for  three  months  bleak  and  wintry, 
the  thermometer  going  down  to  30  degrees  at  night.  The  liquorice 
plant  is  a  small  shrub,  with  light  foliage,  growing  to  about  3  feet  high , 
invariably  where  its  root  can  reach  the  water.  It  grows  without 
any  cultivation.  No  lands  are  leased  for  the  purpose,  and  no  objec- 
tion is  made  to  its  being  collected.  It  is  found  in  abundance,  from 
Ctesiphon,  20  miles  from  Baghdad,  down  to  Kut-ul-Anara,  178 
miles — the  latter  place  being  half-way  between  the  ports  of  Bussorah 
and  Baghdad.  It  grows  on  red  earth  soil,  and  also  on  light,  almost 
sandy  soil,  where  the  wood  is  best — provided  it  has  plenty  of  water, 
and  the  ground  is  not  more  than  50  yards  from  the  actual  river  or 
stream.  The  one  firm  which  works  it  in  Baghdad  is  Messrs. 
Zerlendi  and  Essayie  ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  the  business  is  a 
prosperous  one.  The  plant  is  dug  up  by  Arab  labor,  which  is,  gen- 
erally speaking,  plentiful,  and  the  men  can  be  brought  by  boat  to 
where  the  plant  is  growing.  The  laborers  need  superintendence. 
They  are  paid  according  to.  the  quantity  dug.  The  wood,  after 
being  once  dug  up  and  cut,  grows  again  better  afterwards.  The 
time  of  collecting  is,  generally  speaking,  during  the  winter,  but  it 
is  possible  all  the  year  round.  The  root  when  dug  is  full  of  water, 
and  must  be  allowed  to  dry  ;  this  process  takes  the  best  part  of  a 
year,  especially  in  hot  weather.  After  it  is  dry,  or  during  the  pro- 
cess, it  is  sawn  or  cut  into  small  pieces  6  inches  to  I  foot  long.  The 
good  and  sound  pieces  are  kept,  and  the  rotten  bits  removed  for 
firewood.  A  local  tax  of  10  per  cent,  is  claimed  by  the  Govern- 
ment, which  may  be  taken  in  money  or  kind  from  roots  cut  from 
the  Sultan's  lands,  and  20  per  cent,  from  Government  lands.  It  is 
then  shipped  in  river  native  boats  for  Bussorah,  where  there  is  a 
wool  hydraulic  press.  It  is  afterwards  shipped  in  pressed  bales  to 
London,  and  again  shipped  from  there  to  America,  where  it  is  used 
largely  in  the  manufacture  of  tobacco.  The  trade  is  capable  of 
expansion.  The  demand  in  America  is  great,  and  shipments  are 
easily  disposed  of. — Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Sept.  26,  p.  247. 
