, 1875-11-17
MIXED CULTIVA n.
from the Demeraro Ttmes.)

AT q meeting Vi CIlc 1OydI AS
and Commercial Society held on the I'm
Oct, the President 1.-THE Hon. w, Russeli)
said that at the last meeting Of the Society
he handed in some papers which ne had
been requested to lay before the Society
with regard to the desirableness OF intro
ducing into the colony new plants with q
view to the creation OF new industries, IN
order that those persons who were not
able to work in the canefelds might md
remunerative employment in other branch
es of industry. He had now to lay on the
table a number of specimens OF seeds and
fbres of various kinds including China
grass, fibre from the Agarc americana and
from banana stalks, paper stuff made from
cane megass at Jamaica, the rance more re-
Gently introduced into the Southern States
of America, sc &c, At the last meeting
he promised to give the subject some con-
sideration, and heA had done so. He had
been greatly assisted in SO doing by q
very valuable report upon the cultivation
of jute and other products in Bengal, made
by desire of the Governor General OF IN
dia by Baboo Hem Chunder Kerr. 1t
furnished the.most minute details OF every
thing connected with the manufacture OF
iute, rice, and almost every other product
of the province Of Bengal it also showed
very clearly the rise and growth OF the
great industries of Calcutta ; and on read
ing it any member might blush to think
how very little had been done in this CO.
lony towards collecting the statistics
necessary for the compilation OF such a
report in relation to our products In
considering the dosirableuess OF introducing
any new staple into a country, he beIlev-
ed the first thing to be thought OF was;
How can we compete with other countries
which have already got it established as
an article of export The next queStlon
was Is our land capable OF growing such
products as lute, cotton, rance, &c. From
all he could learn he believed the soil OF
this country to be eminently adapted tor
growing any or all of those articles. But
the next subject which presented itself to
his mind was the cost Of labour, and when
he looked at the vast number of Iabourers IN
India and the price of their Iabour, and con-
trasted it with the scarcity and dearness OF
labourin this colony, he discovered an lnsur-
mountable obstacle to the cultivation Of
either iute or any Of the other articles emu
merated in the report Of Baboo Chunder
Kerr, as a profitable c"ticle of export from
this colony. The nature and constitution
of society here were so entirely different
from what was found existing in India,
that he believed that, unless they could
do away with sugar entirely, root it out
altogether-if they could do that, then
perhaps industry might be diverted into
other and smaller channels. But as
long as the sugar planters continued to
distribute such large sums of money
weekly in the shape of wages, he was afraid
there would be no chance of growing prof.
~tably any of the other staples which had
) been mentioned. If in this colony we
could look forward to the possession of a
population like that of Calcutta. then
sofl course we might go sin for growing
minor products and for the. cultivation of
.small industries but he was quite sure
it could only be done pro6tably by a
s~warming and industrious peasantry tax
ing to it themselves and doing it ID their
avn time.-The hon. Gentleman then
went on to suggest that it might perhaps