I do not desire to set up as a teacher, but facts and figures speak for themselves. The account shown is not an approximate one, but the money has been received and the Canadians are asking for more at the same price. An order is now in hand for 224 pounds for London at 6d. per pound in bulk, the consignee to do the retail packing and advertising. As the fruit is something new it is being sought, and all that can be dried is being profitably disposed of. I may add that the dryer does his work well, turning out the fruit in uniform color. Attention must be paid to this, and also that fruit as nearly as possible of one size be dried, as this facilitates packing. Small ones can be used for stock, etc. Twelve good sized fruits weigh one pound. The _Daily Gleaner_, of Kingston, Jamaica, said in March, 1899, in reference to an enterprise on the Montpelier estate of Hon. Evelyn Ellis: As far as dried bananas are concerned the investment is a success. Orders are already taken for more than can be supplied. The factory will be duplicated as soon as possible. Every one who has tasted the bananas is of the opinion that they are superior to figs in every way, and there is likely to be a large home consumption as soon as the factory can supply the market. Housewives who wish for novelties to lend new charm to their tables, to tickle the palate of the epicure, or to coax the reluctant appetite of the invalid, will find them in novel dainties made from bananas. Excellent and nutritious bread may be made of the flour. Puddings, fritters and sauce have already been mentioned; but bananas glacé are new to most northern folk, and may be made a most delightful addition to our desserts. They are superior to dried figs, for when split into four slices, thickly covered with powdered sugar, and exposed to the sun awhile they turn themselves into a jelly-like, delicious and delicate confection, such as is at its best when made in the native home of the fruit, and packed in pretty boxes to be sent to people of fine taste in the cold North. Having in view all these facts, why should not multitudes make homes where scorching heat and biting cold are never felt, and tornado and deadly blizzard are unknown; where no destructive floods nor ruinous droughts ever come, and never ceasing winds bring coolness from the sea; where spring is eternal and harvests never end, and delicious fruits yield profusely all the years; where the pine and palm together shade the ground, and the coco and banana yield generous provision for every need; where a little work insures against want and care, and health and leisure make old age secure and content? [Illustration] * * * * * Transcriber’s Note Minor typographical errors (i.e. missing punctuation and “egiv” changed to “give”) have been corrected. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Bananas, by Edward Wilkin Perry