Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-11

business capacity was SO high that tie
banks of Liverpool furnished him several
millions of dollars to make the trade.
From that time the firm. which sun
& Co. began to extend its business IN
every direction. and its interests were
multifarious. They had seven lines OF
steamers to Canada. the West lndles:
the East Indies and the African coast.
They went in coal mining, banking, man
ufacturing. hotel keeping and established
mercantile trading posts in various parts
OF Africa. Jones bought coal mines IN
Wales and established coaling stations
for merchant marine in various parts OF
the world. He set up oil and soap rae
tories In Liverpool to utilize the materials
brought by his ships from Africa lie
started banana plantations in Africa ana
the Canary Islands and built hotels IN
those islands as winter resorts for the
people of England. He established line
of cold storage warehouses along the
African coast and went into the whole
large scale. until he secured a monopoly
OF the trade in South Africa.
lie then came over to Jamaica and pur-
cha sed the Constant Spring Hotel and the
Myrtle Bank Hotel on the northern coast
Of that island, fitted them up in luxurious
style. and advertised them extensively as
line OF steamers between Liverpool and
Jamaica. bringing out merchandise OF
all sorts az Well as health and pleasure
seekers. and carrying back carSoes OF ~ :
Nh bnncEes of bananas each trip. SIT
Alfred was the first man to demonstrate
that bananas could be transported 1000
miles in commercial quantities without
deterioration. Ultimately he secured con-
troll of the banana trade in the United
Kingdom. bringing his supply from ia
n9ic3 and the Canary Islands. where ne
owned large plantations Of his own and
en-. outraged their cultivation by others.
\ characteristic story is told or the
manner in which he obtained control Of
the trade When he first began to i'm
port Canary Island and African bananas.
in his African ships, he found it difficult
To sell them. The British public was not
familiar with that kind of fruit and
cared nothing for it. hut rather than per
init his bananas to rot in the warehouses.
Sir Alfred hired hundreds OF coster-
nlnngers III Liverpool, Manchester. Lon
don and dozen other of the principal
cities OF England, loaded their barrows
with bananas and told them to sell them
for what they could get and keep the
money. Three or -four cargoes of fruit
were given away in this manner and the
free distribution was kept up until the
British public had become familiar with
bananas and had acquired a taste for
them. Then he gradually began to ad :
vance the price until a profitable bust
ness Was Ia1Tly eSIaDl1SneU- since i.NV or
Alfred has been operating with the ba-
mana trust OF the United States officially
known as the United Fruit Company
Less Successful Venture.
Sir Alfred was not 50 successful in his
cotton growing, although he devoted a
great deal of money and energy to its
development. He believed that the Brit
| ish colonies in Africa were capable of
producing all the cotton that could be
used by the mills of Lancashire SO that
| the manufacturers OF his country would
not be dependent upon the United States
! or raw materials. Besides. this would
| furnish business for his ships, and they
always filled with merchandise the
outward voyage. but there was very little
that they could bring back. That was
]! the reason he started the banana trade.
and he hoped to be equally successful
with cotton. But bananas are easily
| while cotton requires a great deal. and
lie was unable to induce the natives to
| go into the fields and work.
| They have little use for money In those
| tropical clinics. They live in palm huts;
| their supply of food is limited. but can
| be obtained with very little effort; their
clothing is mostly cotton cloth, the cheap
est kind. and one or two garments are
! all that are necessary to fulfill the re-
quirements Therefare. there is no in
! centive for the natives to labor. Even II
| they had money they would not know
| what to do with il.
| That is the chief difficulty in the de-
veopment of the marvellous agricultural
resources of the tropical coast of Africa.
| The Germans, the French, the Belgians
and the Portuguese as we'll as the Eng
| fish have tried to solve the problems and
| have failed. Imported white labor Will
not thrive in that climate. and usually
| colored immigrants who have been
/ brought in from the southern parts of
| the United States and other countries
usually abandon the habits of industry
/ and thrift in which they were bred and
adopt the indolent customs of the natives
| within /; short time after their arrival.