700,000 pounds. At present it is not exported, nor is it cultivated in quite sufficient quantities for home consumption.
In 1806 Mexican cotton-seeds were introduced into Mississippi by Walter Burling, Esq., and are supposed to have improved the character of the staple thus grown.
Vanilla is produced in the States of Vera Cruz and Oaxaca. According to Humboldt, Europe received its entire supply of this commodity from Mexico previous to 1812.
Bananas grow luxuriantly in the tierra caliente, and the maguey, or aloe, is cultivated extensively on the table-land. It is said that a plantation of the latter pays better as an investment than any other kind of crop in Mexico. The maguey will grow in a soil that is almost barren. It matures in eight years in the States of Puebla and Mexico; and in San Luis Potosi it becomes ripe in five years. This plant will not blossom in northern climes.[1]
- ↑ There is a popular belief that the maguey in temperate latitudes will reach maturity once in a hundred years. Hence the name "century-plant."
