Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-10
PEANUTS FOR FRANCE.
Plan for Increasing Commercial Value
of American Product

"On several occasions" says United
States Consul General Skinner at Marseile
IN a recent report, II have been consulted
IN regard to the possibilities of securing
American peanuts for the French market
but thus far our crop has never been
large enough to enable our exporters to
snare In the business in an important way,
nor have the oil-yieiding qualities of the
sample shipments greatly encouraged eff
forts In this line. The American nut fur
nishes an oil that is not remarkable as to
quality. and of such limited quantity com
pared with the quantity extracted from the
Airlcan Kernels. as to have suggested the
imperative necessity of cultiyating naw
variety If our farmers expect to engage in
this business. Indeed, the American mt
possesses not only these defects but is fur-
thermore triturated with especial difficulty
and to the injury of the mats EMPLOYED for
this purpose
The American peanuts are now CON
sumed exclusively in natural form mr. bv
the confectionery trade For these nur-
poses they are perhaps the best in the
S Molia, a,though the Spanish variety is also
mighty thought of. Last year owing to a
short crop in the United States peanuts to
the declared value of S27 O65 were sent To
the United States from MarseilIe. T fol-
lowed these shipments and learned that
however excellent for oil-making p,Irnoses
these re-exported African nuts were much
less desirable for eating than our own
Since that time l have been In corres,ond
ehce with the Department of Agriculture
upon my proposition to produce a new va
r1ety in America which will combine both
the excellent flavor of the native nut and
the oil-giving qualities of the African. IF
sclentinc cultivation can bring about the re-
suit hoped for our southern farmers may
not only DE able to offer their product in
Europe, where peanuts are desired for OIL
making only. but they may also make nos
slpie new oil-crushing industry in the
United States only less important than the
cotton-seed oil industry of today Should
1T be impossible to obtain a new variety
that will satisfactorily meet all require
ments, our planters must then either re-
main satisfied with such domestic business
as they have at present grow two varie-
ties one for oil and one for roasting.
The best oil nuts handled in Marseille
are received from the provinces of Ruff
hsque, Sine and Cayor, in Senegal SAMPLES
of these seeds have been sent to Washing
ton for the service of the Department. of
Agriculture IN connection with the sug-
gestion referred to above They could, of
course, be obtained in commercial quanti-
ties for planting on a large scale if any
body wished to undertake private expert
ments.
I'm Europe it has long been regarded as
strange that so little has been done in the
United States in the direction of manufac-
turing vegetable oils other than cotton seed
The demand for these oils throughout the
world appears to be slowly but steadily in
creasfng. 1t is unfortunately the case that
practically the whole value of the peanut
plant resides in the commercial value of
the nut, and it remains to be demonstrated
whether an acre planted with this seed will
yield as generous return acre plant
ed with cotton. and giving a return both in
fiber and in seed. Whatever the answer
may be, 1t is probably true that peanuts
may be cultivated over much wider area
than may cotton"