Antiquity and Universality of the Banana--Its Many Uses--Commercial Cultivation in Cuba--Methods of Culture--Varieties--Pineapple Culture in Cuba--One of the Staple Crops--Difficulty of Marketing--The Canning Industry--The Fruit of the Anon--The Zapote or Sapodilla--The Tamarind--The Mamey--The Guava--The Mamoncillo--Figs of All Varieties--The Aguacate. CHAPTER XXII. GRAPES, CACAO, AND VANILLA.....232 Grape Culture Discouraged by Spain--Recent Development of the Industry--Much Wine Drinking but Little Drunkenness--Food and Drink in the Cacao--The Chocolate Industry--Culture and Manufacture of Cacao--The Vanilla Bean--Methods of Gathering and Preparing the Crop. CHAPTER XXIII. VEGETABLE GROWING.....240 Vegetable Growing in Cuba--Regions Most Suitable for the Industry--Seed Brought from the United States--Winter Crops of Potatoes--Green Peppers a Profitable Crop--Cultivation of Tomatoes and Egg Plants--Okra--Lima Beans and String Beans--Squashes and Pumpkins--Desirability of the Canning Industry--Utility of Irrigation--Prospects of Profit in Truck Farming. CHAPTER XXIV. STANDARD GRAINS AND FORAGE.....248 Indian Corn Indigenous--Improvements in Culture Desirable--Millet or Kaffir Corn--Neglect of Wheat Growing--Culture of Upland Rice--Possibilities of Swamp Rice Culture--Profusion of Meadow and Pasture Grasses--Experiments with Alfalfa--Cultivation of Cow Peas and Beans--Peanut Plantations. CHAPTER XXV. ANIMALS.....257 Paucity of Native Fauna--Deer, Caprimys and Ant Eaters--The Sand Hill Crane--Guinea Fowls, Turkeys and Quails--Buzzards, Sparrow Hawks, Mocking Birds and Wild Pigeons--Varieties of Parrots--The Oriole--The Tody--The Lizard Cuckoo--The Trogon--Water Birds. CHAPTER XXVI. STOCK RAISING.....263 Introduction of Horses and Cattle by the Spaniards--Improvement in the Quality of Stock--A Favorable Land for Cattle Ranges--Importation of Blooded Stock from the United States and Europe--Introduction of the Zebu--Great Profits in Hog Raising--Forage, Nuts and Root Crops for Stock Food--Sheep and Goat Raising for Wool, Meat and Hides--Value of the Angora Goat. CHAPTER XXVII. POULTRY: BEES: SPONGES.....278 Recent Scientific Development of the Poultry Industry--President Menocal’s Importations of Choice Stock--Opportunities for Agriculture--Wild and Domesticated Bees--Varieties of Honey Yielding Flowers--Large Exportations of Wax and Honey--Valuable Sponge Fisheries on the Cuban Coast. CHAPTER XXVIII. PLACES OF HISTORICAL INTEREST.....284