SCIENCE’ AND INDUSTRY.' © 
13. Castor Beans—Valuable results have already been obtained 
from experimental work on the cultivation of castor beans in Queens- 
land, and it appears likely that this will have practical results of 
importance. The Queensland Acclimatisation Society is co-operating 
with the Institute in the work. 
14. Sorghum.—Systematic experiments are in progress in New 
South Wales, in co-operation with the State Department of Agriculture, 
regarding the possibilities of utilizing sorghum as a raw material for 
the distillation of power-alcohol. 
B.—Forest and Vegetable Products. 
1. General.—The vegetation of Australia is highly peculiar, a great 
number of the commonest and most widely distributed plants of the con- 
tinent being quite distinct from those of other countries. Many whole 
groups of plants, comprising the genus Eucalyptus, which includes most 
of our forest trees, are entirely Australian. The fact of this high 
degree of peculiarity in our flora renders it essential that for the full 
development of the forest and vegetable resources of our continent 
researches into the products of all our indigenous plants should be 
conducted. It is not improbable that work of this nature may reveal 
new oils and drugs of importance to mankind, new sources of dyes and 
tannin, or timbers specially adaptable to certain particular uses. Most of 
the drugs, spices, &c., of India and America were discovered and utilized 
by the natives of those continents before intercourse with Europe opened 
up a trade in these products. In Australia, however, the natives made 
very little use of the indigenous plants for such purposes. In the early 
days of settlement, primitive experiments were made, and the useful 
properties of some Australian plants discovered. More recently definite 
chemical researches have been carried out on scientific lines in various 
States, especially at the Technological Museum, Sydney, and much 
important information obtained. Nevertheless, the work is still only 
in its infancy, and there can be no question that further researches of 
this nature are urgently required. The temporary Institute has already 
been able to carry out a good deal of preliminary work in this direction. ~ 
The problem is essentially a national one, and the co-operation of the 
_ Forestry Departments of the States has been promised for the establish- 
ment of a Forest Products Laboratory. 
2. Paper Pulp—Special attention has been given to this question. 
As a first step, all the available information regarding the pulping quali- 
ties of various Australian timbers and grasses was’ collected, and a 
considerable amount of further preliminary experimental work was 
carried out by the Institute. In particular, investigations made in 
Western Australia for the Institute on the pulping qualities of young 
Karri timber have given very promising results. : 
Investigations are now in progress in regard to the pulping qualities 
of Vietorian Mountain Ash, Western Australian Jarrah, Pinus Insignis, 
and other timbers, and the Forestry Commissioners in practically all 
the States have agreed to co-operate in this work, and to contribute 
towards its expense. Investigations of this nature require not only 
specially trained assistants, but also special laboratory apparatus and 
plant. The Institute has only recently been able to make a beginning 
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