The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-08-25
big MIKE" THE KING OF THE CAR1BEEs

Hispaniola and Porto Rico little. if
any. better than those they had been
in the habit of eating In the United
States.
They learned that the natives of
the tropics also PICK the banana green
for their own use, letting it ripen
artificially. The banana which ripens
on the stem is hardly fit to eat; in
ripening a chemical process sets in
which partially disintegrates the pulp
and destroys the flavor, leaving 1t in
sipid and almost tasteless. The rind
cracks when the fruit starts to ripen
and numerous insects burrow in and
mar or spoil It.
The new workers whom the Episco-
pal church will send to the tropic
as a result of its nationwide cam
paign now in progress here to awak-
en- the church to the need Of men and
women and funds to increase and ex-
pand its schools, hospitals, orphan
ages and missions at home and abroad
are due to have their notions OF the
banana further shattered In these
islands OF the West Indies where the
Episcopal church has undertakings
the cultivation of the banana has been
almost entirely abandoned in favor
of sugar and the new missionaries.
physicians and teachers will not find
the fruit growing abundantly wherever
there Is soil enough for the tree to
take root.
The United Fruit company aban-
doned Its banana plantations in Cuba
in favor OF sugar in 1905 and In 1909
it sold all its property in Hispaniola.
where the banana was first introduce
ed, and began extending its holdings
in Panama, Costa Rica, Columbia,
Guatemala, Jamaica and Honduras.
1t employs $4,000 men. mostly lanai
can negroes, on it's plantations.
Many articles have appeared in
the press OF this country stating that
enormous profits could be made by
the grower of bananas In the Ameri-
can tropics. even as high as $1,000
an acre. Such Is not the case. The
average annual gross yield for one
acre planted to bananas is between
$50 and $40. -,
Most OF the small independent
growers sell their yield by contract
either to tho United Fruit company
Of one OF Its competitors. They must
know just the right time at which TO
cut the banana. To do this they must
know not only the day on which the
steamship calls but must also know
the destination OF the fruit for 1t must
be cut at such stage of development
that it will arrive at its place of
consumption in condition fully to rfpen
within forty-eight hours. If one
banana "opens In the hold of the
vessel 1t will spread the contagion to
thousand others and that fruit is
a total loss to the importer.
Fruit that liz over-ripe for the jour
ney, that is imperfect or not up to
standard il rejected. The growers and
importers formerly stood great losses
from these rejects" except such as
were fed TO cattle. Recently science
has stepped In and now banana -four.
bana-nutro Ia coffee substitute),
banana vinegar, banana marmalade.
etc, are made from the flesh OF the
fruit too near the ripening stage to
be shipped The -four Is used in max
ing. cakes custards. biscuits. etc. It
requires 700 pounds OF bananas in
their natural state to make 1tu pounds
of flour.
In Jamaica, banana thieves are
traced much as our police trace crirni-
nails by their finger-prints. But in
stead of finger prints the Jamaican
constabulary make use of the stem OF
the banana bunch which Is found Id
possession OF the thief. The stem
will fit only on the tree from which
1t was cut, but Of the many thousand
that may have been cut that day.
The thief is compelled to lead the
officers to the very tree from which
he cut it and ownership Is thus estab-
lished