420 
Clove  Culture  in  Zanzibar. 
J  Am.  Jour.  Pliar ai. 
(        Aug.,  1890. 
with  proteids  they  refused  to  excrete  the  diastatic  enzyme  which 
they  produce  in  abundance  when  only  carbohydrates  are  at  their 
disposal.  Similar  proteid  layers  exist  in  the  seeds  of  buckwheat 
and  in  the  tubers  of  some  potatoes. 
Professor  Green  said  that  in  the  case  of  the  date  stone  his  obser- 
vations led  him  to  believe  that  the  enzyme  was  independent  of  the 
endosperm,  and  that  probably  it  was  located  in  the  epithelial  layer, 
but  in  castor-oil  seeds  not  only  the  embryo  but  also  the  endosperm 
cells  appeared  to  be  possessed  of  vitality,  the  fatty  matter  in  the 
latter  undergoing  change  even  when  not  subject  to  the  action  of  the 
embryo;  probably  the  enzyme  was  present  in  the  form  of  an 
enzymogen,  as  extracts  of  the  seeds  were  rendered  active  by  acids. 
CLOVE  CULTURE  IN  ZANZIBAR.1 
Zanzibar  is  noted  for  being  the  principal  source  of  the  world's 
supply  of  cloves,  and  a  report  on  the  cultivation  of  this  article  of 
domestic  economy  may  prove  of  interest. 
When  speaking  of  Zanzibar,  we  include  the  islands  of  Zanzibar 
and  Pemba,  three-fourths  of  the  entire  crop  of  cloves  being  produced 
in  Pemba.  Those  grown  on  the  island  of  Zanzibar  are  reckoned  of 
superior  quality  and  command  the  better  price,  but  this  is  probably 
due  to  the  fact  that  the  owners  reside  here,  and  can  thus  give  their 
affairs  the  benefit  of  direct  supervision. 
Certainly  the  conditions  for  their  successful  cultivation  are  most 
favorable  at  Pemba,  where  the  rainfall  exceeds  that  of  Zanzibar,  but 
the  management  being  left  to  careless  overseers,  the  result  is 
the  cloves  are  imperfectly  cured  and  (but  little  care  being  observed 
in  handling)  are  frequently  marketed  in  an  inferior  condition. 
The  clove  tree  was  first  introduced  into  this  country  by  the  then 
Sultan,  Seyed  Said  bin  Sultan,  about  the  year  1830,  since  which 
time  its  cultivation  has  gradually  extended,  until  it  is  now  the  chief 
industry  of  the  islands. 
The  industry  received  a  check  in  1872,  the  date  of  the  great 
hurricane.  At  least  nine-tenths  of  the  trees  were  destroyed  at  that 
time,  so  the  larger  part  of  those  now  standing  are  of  new  growth. 
A  peculiarity  of  the  clove  tree  is  that  every  part  is  aromatic,  but 
1  Report  of  Consul  Pratt.  Reprinted  from  the  Oil,  Paint  and  Drug  Reporter. 
