Evening star., 1914-08-16
May

The samples Of corn to be sent to San
Francisco comprise twenty-five different
varieties. some grains being not bigxer
than popcorn. while others are as large
as the largest thumb nail and quarter
grows on the plateau. where the eleva-
ton is not too great. The color is snow
white, and the corn is so soft that il
appears to be made of aour pressed
into shape. Another variety as Set
black, and others are red and pink. II
is possible that some of these could
be crossed with our American corn to
advantage
Eastern Bolivia may be one Of the
cotton lands Of the future. The people
nave been experimenting with seed from
america and Egypt. and they find that
eight or nine Thousand feet above the
sea downward. Indeed. some good cotton
is being raised in the depressions Of
the high plateau of the Andes and on
the slopes that lead down into the val
leys. Some has been grown even az
two miles above the sea. This is the
case near Cuzco. Peru. When I called
on the governor of that province and
asked as to the agricultural develop
ment OF the Andean region he told me
that they were successfully experiment
Ing with cotton and tea. He brought
out some cotton bolls which he had
produced on his own farm near Cuzco
The staple was comparatively short.
but the lint was beautifully white and
SILKY. That cotton was planted in
January. and it was ready for picking
in August. The governor said that tea
did very well. and that he believed the
mountainsides lining the valley OF
Cuzco might some day be covered with
tea gardens. go far. the bushes have
been grown only in a small way. The
seed has been imported from Japan and
emma The plants are easily Rrown
and. as the labor used costs only about
10 cents a day. 1t is thought that the
business can be made a profitable one
One Of the reasons for the tea experi
ments has been the hope that 1t might
take the place Of the coca shrub. which
Is now being grown at comparatively low
profits. on account of the fal, in the
price of cocaine. There are vast tracts
in Peru and Bolivia devoted to the grow
ing OF this plant. which in its habits is
not unlike tea. II th-ives in the tenn
perate regions of the western plateans.
IT is set out in plantations. and the third
year after sprouting it is ready to crop.
The leaves are then stripped from tire
shrub and dried fat. They are then put
up in bags. and brought to the. cities
where they are peddled out to the ma
tives.
All of the Indians chew coca leaves
and the demand for them is enormous.
Every farm hand has to have them. and
an allowance of coca Is part Of the
contract with all the miners. The coca
leaves are also shipped to Europe and
the United States to be manufactured
into the cocaine of commerce.
Among the products OF eastern
Bolivia are rubber and quinine. Bolivia
has been producing millions Of pounds of
rubber every year and there are rubber
camps scattered all along the tributaries
of the Amazon. Just now these camps
are In a bad way on account OF the COM
petition, the rubber of South America is
having with that Of Ceylon and Ma
laysia which, although cultivated, can
be produced at far less cost than that
of the wild trees of eastern Bolivia.
For a similar reason there Is also
falling Off in the product Of the cinchona
tree from which comes our qulnine
Quinine is often called Peruvian bark
It first came from Peru, but later from
the trees that grow wild in this country.
For a long time Bolivia and Peru had q
monopoly of the quinine production. and
in order to hold 1t they forbade the send
ing OF cinchona seeds away from the
country However. some were sneaked
out and taken to Ceylon and other parts
of India. Plantations were started there
and within few years the Indian quiz
nine was competing with that of South
America Later still the seeds were car
ried to Java, and now Java is producing
most of the quinine of the world. In
the meantime the prices have steadily
fallen. The bark which in 1852 brought
something like 81 a pound in Bolivian
money, now sells for a bagatelle, and the
cultivated plantations that were set out
mere are run at a loss.
FRANK G. CARPENTER