ear 1794, the cultivation had succeeded so
well that they were enabled to meet the demand for the spice from
trees of their own growth, independent of any supplies from the
Kandian monarch's territory.

In 1796, when this island fell into our hands, the local government
endeavoured, after the former fashion of the Dutch, to restrain the
production of this article of commerce within due bounds, by
destroying all above a certain quantity.

General Maitland, in 1805, and his successors in the government,
seeing the folly of such a ridiculous policy, very wisely fostered and
promoted the extended cultivation of cinnamon plantations.

In the island of Java, and in Cochin-China, cinnamon culture has
within the last few years made considerable progress.

The leaves of the cinnamon tree are more or less acuminated, from five
to eight inches long, by about three broad, growing in pairs opposite
each other. They have three principal ribs, which come in contact at
its base, but do not unite. The leaves, when first developed, are of a
bright red hue, then of a pale yellow, and lastly of a dark shining
green; when mature, they emit a strong aromatic odor if broken or
rubbed in the hands, and have the pungent taste of cloves. The young
twigs of the true cinnamon tree are not downy, like those of the
cassia bark. The plant blooms in January and February, and the seeds
ripen in July and August.

The blossoms grow on slender foot-stalks, of a pale yellow color, from
the axillae of the leaves and the extremity of the branches. They are
numerous clusters of small white flowers, having a brownish shade in
the centre, about the same size as the lilac, which it resembles. The
fruit is a drupe, about the size of a small hedge strawberry,
containing one seed, and of the shape of an acorn, which when ripe is
soft and of a dark purple color.

The roots are fibrous, hard, and tough, covered with an odoriferous
bark; on the outside of a greyish brown, and on the inside of a
reddish hue. They strike about three feet into the earth, and spread
to a considerable distance. Many of them smell strongly of camphor,
which is sometimes extracted from them.

The trees in their wild state will grow ordinarily to the height of 30
feet. The trunk is about three feet in circumference, and throws out a
great number of large spreading horizontal branches, clothed with
thick foliage. When cultivated for their bark, the trees are not
permitted to rise abov