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and report of results ; papers might be drawn up in the 

 department detailing- the importance of the manure and 

 its successful use in every other country, and, when 

 results permit, its success in this. Substantial prizes 

 might be offered to successful users ; not a rupee or iwo 

 for a sample of grain or produce, but Rs. 20 or 25 for a 

 crop on the field, of an area of, say, ^ or i acre. Long 

 ago, and often since up to 1907, I have advocated the 

 use of the prize-field system ; originally and in detail in 

 my letters read in Board's Proceedings No. 214 of the 

 13th July 1887, in paragraph 98 of my note to the 

 Agricultural Committee of 1889 who adopted the 

 suggestion in paragraph 53 of their report ; later on in 

 my memorandum of ist November 1899, and finally in a 

 note to paragraph 175 of my note on Japanese Agri- 

 culture ; my visit to Japan has indeed strengthened my 

 views as the system is in vogue there ; see paragraphs 

 175 (i), (11), {\2\ (16). 180 (2), 182. 184 (3) and (6), etc. ; 

 moreover the Irish Agricultural Department has recently 

 re-adopted and is now working this stimulative method ; 

 in Denmark it is largely employed through the local 

 societies. I presume it lias never been tried in this 

 country because of the want of judges and of funds ; if 

 the new Agricultural Associations are worth anything, 

 judges ought now to be available — with departmental 

 help — for so simple a matter as judging the success 

 or not of a field crop, growing with a particular manure 

 amidst similar unmanured crops. As for money, much 

 is not required for experiment ; personally I shall be 

 happy to give Rs. 500 per annum for three years 

 as prizes in the Agricultural Department for field 

 crops grown with fish scrap fertilizer in the Coimbatore 

 district and within a small typical area which can be 

 properly supervised and judged. It goes without 

 saying that the fertiliser will be exhaustively tried 

 in the Coimbatore Agricultural Institution, but I see 

 no reason why ryots should not be invited to try 

 it at once on certain selected crops, in selected cultiva- 

 tion seasons, and in a selected area. If the ryot 

 will but take to fish fertilizer as a rich and necessary 

 manure, we shall at least keep the product of our sea 

 harvests in our own country, so that both fishermen, 

 ryots, middlemen, industry, and transport will reap 

 ihe benefits. 



IQ 



