Bureau of Agriculture of Western Australia. 1
WELD CHAMBERS,
Perth, 5th January 1895
Sir,
Fibre Plants
I am sending you under separate cover samples of Fibre plant indigenous to this Colony.
Some twenty years ago it was discovered in our South Western Districts, & a local cordage manufacturer converted it into rope, & made some very passable headstalls for horses.
The Government, with a commendable desire to patronise local industry, gave the manufacturer a large order for halters. A survey party then starting out into the interior was furnished with these halters as part of their equipment. The horses were tethered in Perth the evening prior to the start of the expedition but in the morning it was discovered they had developed, during the night a taste for their halters, & had eaten all that was possible, apparently with the greatest relish.
Whether this was the cause which proved the death blow to the industry I cannot ascertain, but the manufacture of the fibre ceased soon after this untoward event.
The Bureau would be greatly obliged if you will give us the botanical name of the plant, & your opinion of its value commercially for rope making purposes.
I have the honor to be
Sir,
Your obedient servant.
L. Lindley-Cowen
Secretary2
Please cite as “FVM-95-01-05,” 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 28 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/95-01-05