| Square mileage of territories. | Tons. | Values. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| French | 992,000 | 66,407 | £869,636 |
| Belgian | 900,000 | 3,200 | 60,000 |
| British | 454,160 | 319,507 | 5,300,122 |
| German | 224,830 | 27,650 | 403,830 |
Production in figures sterling per square mile under the several colonizing Powers—
| £ | s. | d. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Britain | 11 | 13 | 3 | per square mile |
| Germany | 1 | 16 | 0 | ” ” |
| France | 0 | 17 | 8 | ” ” |
| Belgium | 0 | 1 | 4 | ” ” |
Whilst the palm provides one of the principal exports of West Africa for consumption in Europe, its domestic uses are inseparable from native life. The fruit is used by the natives in many sections of primitive culinary art. Pounded with manioca leaves, Indian corn and red peppers, a savoury pottage is manufactured which is a universal delight. One of the choicest vegetables in the African continent is the pearly white head of the palm, which, in small trees of two years’ growth, weighs about 1 pound, but in trees of many years’ growth, may turn the scale at 56 pounds. The substance of this vegetable differs in appearance and taste but little from the Brazil nut, but when cooked provides a succulent dish not unlike, though superior to, sea kale. The natives cook this in palm oil, but Europeans usually prefer it boiled and served with a white sauce, or baked in a custard. To obtain this vegetable is almost invariably to destroy the tree, consequently it seldom figures on the every-day menu.
THE OIL PALM IN THE GRIP OF ITS PARASITIC ENEMY.
The Creeper at an early stage.
Root and Branch in deadly grip.
OIL AND WINE