, 1874-10-24
COLONIAL MUSEUMS AND UTILI-
SATION OF COLONIAL PRODUCTS.

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The experimenting Committee Of the Co
lonisI Museum at Paris are setting an exam
pie of energy and enterprise in developing
their colonial resources which is praiseworthy.
A monthly account Of the prooe edings OF the
Committee is published by the Minister Of
Marine and Colonies in the official organ
journal Of applied Science, Sept. y.
The Journal 4. s. names some points
to which attention was prominently directed
in the last two numbers of the French organ.
These embrace the utilization of the Waste
Fish and cfals of the fisheries at Newfound-
lard, by firing and pulverizing, for manure
inquiries into the medicinal properties of
certain Vegetable Poisons Of the West Coast
of Africa THE gathering and uses of BancOul
nuts (csndlenut, A2eurites tril0ba), found
sbundantly in the Pacific islands the fos-
ieriDg Of the Pearl-oyster banks Of the Pau
motu and Gambler islands the extension of
Coconut- growing over tho various Pacific ISL
cts owned by France the establishment of
Vanilla culture in Tahiti (already lntroduced)
and the Msrquesas the examination Of the
bark of a rubiaeeous plant containing a consider
able quantity of Cinchonine, found in New
Caledonia the discovery Of rich deposits of
Copper pyrites in the same island - she OBJ
tainal of lsinglas from the machoiran (Si7uraS
(CtGS VA ChVSai J~diO - OIEuS / iNAhHSO
from birds Of the same region, for fans, FIRE
screens, ladies' dresses sc. and Of G old from
Cayenne.
The local Committee at Reunion (Bourbon)
has nnder investigation a new mode Of treat
ing the Sugar Cane by maceration, and restor.
ing the waste stalk (~bagasse) to the soil as
manure, substituting for it Australian Coal
or other fuel. The Dew mode Of treatment,
it is anticipated, will yield 25 per cent more
Sugar than the ordinary mode of expressing
by mills.
NJ. Delten, q pharmaceutical chemist of the
colony, has also prepared a treatise on the Gull
ture and preparation Of Vanilla, which the Co.
lonial Commission is now passing through the
press for diffusion throughout the colonies.
The local Committee of Cayenne is studying
che means of bringing into use the immense
quantities of Oilnuts which abound in the forests
of Guiana, and taking measures to establish a
permanent museum of colonial products.
A disease is destroying the Vanilla plant in
Reunion, which makes it the more necessary
to extend the cultivation to new points.
Large collections, as complete as possible,
are being made of the products of the French
Colonies by the intelligent curator, NJ. Aubry-
Lecomte, and widely distributed. The Con-
servatoire des Arts ct Meters 10 Paris, the
Professional School Of Lille, the Museum of
Annecy and others, and the School of Com
meroe of Lyons, have received collections of
more than 1000 specimens as types for inStruc.
ton. This measure is to be extended to all
establishments of the same kind, in order to
popularize, as much as possible, the resources
of the colonies, to this time too little known.
The Trinidad Chronicle in referring to the
above makes the following sensible remarks
which in principle if not 10 detail, are true of
other Colonies besides the British
It is a great refexion on the provident fore
thought of Government and societies in our
colonies that so few of them have done any
thing to gather collections of their industri-
al products into permanent exhibitions or mu-
seums. Each colony ought to have one, Com-
menced on no matter how small a scale, for
il would soon create SO much public interest,
if popularity conducted, that it would assured
ly grow in size, variety and utility, and in
time be productive of good results. The Mu-
scum should, when possible, be kept, in the
minor colonies, in the same building as the
Public Library or Reading Room, and the
person In charge Of the latter should be fitted