[Charles Ledger and the Cinchona]

Reading "The life of Charles Ledger", the book written by Gabriele Grammiccia, one notices immediately, what an extraordinary personality Ledger was. He was typically British and belonged to that generation for which, as he wrote himself, "the fact of being a British subject is in itself a reason of pride, including as such a definite obligation to serve the country." This blinding patriotism of even modest British people all over the world, gave the City, as well as the British Empire, a remarkable place in the world trade. The history of Ledger's life, derived from the most authorized sources, is a real adventure novel. At the age of eighteen, he goes to Lima (Peru), in order to find a job. It takes him but a few years to build up his own import-export business. In Tacna, in the very South of Peru, near the Chilean and Bolivian borders (the region where he lived), alpaca wool and quinquina bark are some of the most traded goods. These two products will determine his further life. The principles of his commercial policy were as follows: to buy first quality products, and pack the goods in such a way that they reach the British or European customers in perfect condition, thereby always giving a preferential treatment to the Commonwealth. The quinquina bark trade is hampered by the fact that there is a very great quantity of varieties, each having a different concentration of alkaloids in its bark. To buy the best species, Cinchona calisaya, one needs a perfect knowledge of these trees. The expertise is only to be obtained by visiting the regions where the quinquina tree grows and finding one's way with the help of willing "cascarilleros", the Indians collecting the quinquina bark. During one of his exploration trips, Ledger was fortunate enough to enjoy the service of a Bolivian called Manuel, who faithfully assisted him and his family for years. Together they ranged, at great pains, across every possible region, even the most remote ones; they succeeded in identifying the richest collections of quinquina trees and signing buying contracts on the spot. The most beautiful trees are usually unsuitable for any form of exploitation. In order to understand the special atmosphere that made the solving of the quinquina problems so arduous in the course of time, it seems best to place them in a historical perspective.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)