OCR Text |
Show CHENEY'S LAST LETTER. T.e last message Arthur S. Cheney, Amcilcan consul to Mess.na, sent to the United States, referred to tho suffering suf-fering which would result to the ent crn part of Sicily following the tot.".t fraliire of the olive crop. Writing K December, he said: Never In the memory of the proverbial prover-bial "oldest Inhabitant" has there been such an absolute lack of production produc-tion of this necessary fruit as now prevails in this district. When it is remembered how essential in the diet of every Italian olive oil is, tho great Importance to the .cntiro population of a failure of the home supply may bo romewhat realized. Added to this is the loss to the whole country! owing to the impossibility of securing the large income from selling in foreign markets, and the failure of the supply of common oil . for . home industries. Thus the crop failure this year becomes be-comes nothing less than a national i misfortune. Owing to an exceptionally mild win-1 ter In this 'region, with Its. absence ot cold and rain, an unusually largo number of Insects were hatched out this season, especially of that destructive destruc-tive pest, the so-called "olive fly." The fruit. was early attacked by these Insects and dropped from the trees J prematurely, while the few remaining olive wore destroyed by tho notable seven-months' drought of the past summer. In -consequence the olivettes olive-ttes are completely barj and there are no olives and no production or olive oil. WTien Consul Cheney wrote tho foregoing, he little realized that the least of Messina's impending troubles was the condition of the olive crop. Explaining the importance of the olive oil Industry in relation to, tne w.'den cloth Industry, hj said: Especially in the woolen cloth Industry In-dustry will the lack of a particular kind of olive oil be felt. Jn spite ot the great advance In prlci tho English Eng-lish mills, notably the large factories at Bradford, England, aro still purchasing pur-chasing the best grades of common clhe oil here, that coming from Call-1 Call-1 oil being preferred, by chemical coin-position coin-position or otherwise, lor producing a lme quality of cloth. In ihe United States there Is a large marfet Tcr this nil, chiefly at Boston, and It is used for similar purposes. Buyers in the P.oston market usually lay great stress in placing their orders here, upon ob- taiiilng this particular ol! only. Under present conditions It would seem that thty will be unable to iuioort tbetr preferred brand. |