Sear! 5S eae 
= 
— Ie Nees ab 
~ 
226 QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. [1 Ave., 1901. 
The height of Dlusa textilis varies from 12 to 30 feet, and at three years of age 
it begins to flower. As soon as the flower is out, the plant is cut down and the 
sheathing stalks are torn into strips, the outside sheaths being kept distinct 
from the inner ones. The outside ones produce a strong fibre of great 
durability and strain-resisting power. This fibre is used for cordage. The 
inner fibre is fine and weak, and is used by the natives for weaving fine, almost 
transparent, yet fairly strong dress material. A Manila native merely cuts 
down the plant, shreds it, and then scrapes off the soft cellular matter, after 
which he hangs it up to dry, and no further treatment is necessary. He can 
produce 25 lb. weight of fibre per day in his lazy fashion, each stalk yielding 
1 lb. of fibre. By the employment of suitable machinery the work of cleaning 
the fibre is very rapidly performed. 
Six hundred thousand seven hundred and thirty-eight bales of hemp were 
exported from the Philippine Islands in 1899, equal to 1,201,476 piculs, or 
71,337 tons. At the price quoted by our correspondent—£25 per ton— 
this represents a value of £1,818, 425. There seems no reason why Queens- 
land should not capture some of this trade. 
COFFEE IN BRAZIL. 
A Brazilian journal, the Boletim da Agricultura of Sao Paulo, furnishes 
some interesting statistics relating to six municipal coffee-growing districts of 
the Republic. 
From these, it appears that there are in those districts 466 -plantations, 
having an aggregate area under coffee of 56,414 acres, carrying 22,944,188 
trees, of which 15,116,188 are four years old and upward, and 7,828,000 trees 
under four years. The hands employed number 12,919, being 4,748 less than 
are actually required. During harvest time, 10,034 extra hands are engaged. 
The Brazilian coffee crop for the year 1901 is estimated at 9,500,000 bags. 
On analysing the figures given in the Boletim, Planting Opinion says :— 
From this it would appear that one hand can care and work about 1,300 trees, 
of which 1,000 are in full bearing and the rest under four years, and that one 
extra hand is required per 1,500 trees in full bearing at harvest time. Supposing 
that all these hands employed were male adults earning, say, 2$500 (1 dollar—1s. 
8d.) per day or 70$000 per month, including keep, the cost of labour would be 
11,69x,960$ for maintenance, and 2,107,140$ for harvest, in all say 13,800,0008. 
At an average of 80 arrobas (1 arroba = 33 |b.) per 1,000 full-bearing trees, the 
ageregate yield would be 1,209,288 arrobas of 15 kilos, and the cost of labour 
work out at 11$400 per arroba. Evidently there must be a mistake somewhere, 
as, with coffee selling at 9$000, it is quite impossible that labour should cost 
11$000 per arroba or anything like it. The mistake must be either in the 
number of hands employed or in the estimated number of trees. 
COFFEE IN QUEENSLAND. 
Commenting on the last report of Mr. H. Newport, Instructor in Coffee 
Culture, on the state of the coffee industry in this State, Planting Opinion 
says :— 
In Queensland, coffee-growers—of whom Mr. Newport reports some 200 
altogether, cultivating from 1 to 75 or 80 acres (the biggest estates) or in all 
700 acres—are so far more fortunate. They sell all their coffeé for local 
consumption, and get 56s. per ewt. for it in parchment or 112s. per ewt. clean 
according to sample. With such a difference, it ought to pay to run a pulper 
and drying-ground in some of the districts. The oldest coffee is not more than 
,ix years old, and the Indian planter who is now coffee inspector for the 
