BOTANY AND AGRICULTURE IN CEYLON 321 



reasons, the Experiment Stations have started what we may term 

 Co-operative Experiments. Thus, for example, to determine 

 the effects upon the quality and quantity of tea produced, 

 experiments with the various manures have been started upon 

 no fewer than six selected estates at different elevations in 

 Ceylon, and upon different types of soil; and other similar series 

 of experiments are in progress. The actual work of the 

 experiment, and the keeping of the records of the quantity of 

 tea picked, or what not, is done by the superintendent of the 

 estate, but the whole work is under the superintendence of the 

 officer in charge of the Experiment Station, and all the returns 

 are sent to him. In this way the work of the Experiment 

 Station is, so to speak, multiplied, and increased in efficiency, by 

 being made more directly applicable to many districts. As time 

 goes on, probably this method of experimenting will become the 

 common one, trial or control experiments being the main 

 business of the Experiment Station proper. 



It is obvious that in an Eastern country, with an unprogressive 

 population, the work that has been outlined in the last few 

 pages must mainly appeal to the European planter, but will not 

 appeal to the ordinary villager. For one thing, all work of this 

 kind requires capital, and the general tendency of all scientific 

 improvement is, if anything, to increase the amount' of capital 

 required ; and the villager has not got capital at his disposal. 

 To the native capitalist, who is every year going in for 

 agriculture more and more, the work of the Entomologist, the 

 Mycologist, the Chemist, and the superintendents of Experiment 

 Stations appeals with almost as much force as to the European 

 planter. 



There is no doubt that agricultural progress is just as 

 possible to the tropical villager as to his European or American 

 prototype, but before it will be reasonably practicable he must 

 have proper conditions as regards land, capital, transport, 

 education, and labour. Land and labour have long been 

 satisfactory enough for the purpose, transport is now provided 

 to a moderate — though insufficient — extent, and capital and 

 education are the main difficulties. We shall deal first with the 

 latter. 



The main differences between the West Indian and the 

 Ceylon agricultural departments have been with regard to this. 

 The former, having to deal mainly with a population of tropical 



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