Melbourne bot. Garden
21/7/69
Sir
In compliance with your request I have the honor of reporting on Mr Carruthers proposition, to render the Zamias available for the preparation of starch and fibre through prison-labor.1
As far as the Colony Victoria is concerned this project cannot be carried out, in as much as the Zamia is not a native of this colony. It occurs neither in Tasmania, South Australia and New Zealand, but it is to be found2 in some localities of New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia to be found. That the Zamias are yielding a sago-like starch is well known, as many experiments with the stems and fruits have shown, the starch being under careful manipulation separable from the acrid poisonous principle. I have rather recommended on various occasions (e.g. Exhibition essays)3 the Zamia as an article for export to the gardens of Europe, because it has been proved that the stems can be sent as ordinary merchandise for months oversea and will thrive their palmlike leaves again when plunged into a Forcing House. These stems are of slow growth and thus a plant, perhaps 100 years old, may at once be obtained for a conservatory by mere transmission, and a higher price would be realized for such stems for horticultural purposes than the value of the Sago and Fibre, without sacrificing the plant.
I have the honor to be,
Sir, your very obedient servant
Ferd. von Mueller
The honorable Jam. Macph. Grant, M.P.,
President of the Board of Land & Works
&c &c &c
P.S. The extreme abundance of Zamia is comparatively local, and in such localities doubtless Mr Carruthers would answer admirably. For dressing cotton fabrics our Wattle Gum is extensively available and a good deal exported.
Zamia
Please cite as “FVM-69-07-21,” in Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, edited by R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora†, J.H. Voigt† and Monika Wells accessed on 19 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/69-07-21