312 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



September 24, 1904. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



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 as all specimens for naming, should be addressed 

 to the Commissioner, Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, Barbados. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agri- 

 cultural News' should be addressed to the 

 Agents, and not to the Depa^rtment. A com- 

 plete list of the London and Local agents will 

 be found at foot of page 319 of this issue. 



The 'Agricultural News': Price Id. per 

 number, post free I'/id- Annual subscription 

 payable to Agents 2s. 2d. Post free, 3s. 3d. 



Agricultural Dmiii 



Vol. IIL SATURDAY, SEPTEMBEH 24, 1904. No. (U. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



On pp. 305-0 will be found a summarized account 

 of an article in the llV.si Imlian Balhtin (Vol. V, 

 no. 2) on the progres.s made by the cacao imlustiy in 

 the West Indies. 



The concluding portion of the progress report on 

 the experiments that have been conducted with sugar- 

 cane varieties on estates in British Guiana is published 

 on p. -107. 



An interesting progi-ess repoit on exjjeiimonts, 

 carried out in Jamaica to test the suitability of local 

 sugars for u.se in fruit preserves, is also included in our 

 ' sugar notes.' 



Several interesting notes i-elating to the cotton 

 industry will be found on p. 309. In one of these the 

 position of West Indian cotton on the English market 

 is clearly stated. 



( )n p. olO an account is given oi' the manufacture 

 of jiajiama hats. 



In the article, on p. oil, on the cultivation of the 

 avocado pear, the advisability of establishing orchards 

 by budding is urged. A brief summary of the methods 

 to be ailopted is given. 



Under the heading ' Insect Notes' we publish some 

 interesting extracts from recent reports by the 

 Entomologist of this Department. 



Till' Times' review <jf the work of the Imperial 

 Department of Agriculture is reproduced on p. of 7. 



Spraying in Lime Plantations. 



In the e.xtracts given on p. 314 from ^Ir. Ballon's 

 I'eport on his visit to Dominica, reference is made to 

 the excellent condition of the lime trees on an estate 

 where .spraying was thorouglily carried out last yeai-. 



In a recent address to the members of the 

 Dominica Agricidtural Society, the Hon. F. Watts 

 referred to the same subject, stating that he had 

 observed a marked improvement in the condition of the 

 trees in the island. ' The lime planters,' he said, ' had 

 evidently been alive to the situation, and had applied 

 repressi\e measures of a varied nature with very 

 marked success.' 



^^»-« -^m^^ 



Exhibitions of Colonial Fruit in Great Britain. 



Ill a previous issue of the A(jriridtv nd ^V'_>('w 

 (Vol. Ill, ]). 270) we gave details of two important 

 Horticultural Exhibitions for wliich preparations are 

 being made in (Jreat Britain. 



The first of these is being organized by the Royal 

 Horticultural Society, and will be held at the Society's 

 new hall in London on December 13 and 14 next. 

 Opportunities will be afforded for collective exhibits 

 from each colony in additi<jn to individual exhibits. 

 The Societ3''s officials will, if desired, unpack and stage 

 exhibits, provided they arrive in good time. 



The other exhibition is that being arranged for 

 by the Ro3al Caledonian Horticultural Society to be 

 held in Edinburgh in September 190.5. It will be 

 seen that a special class is open to the coh.mies for 

 fruits and vegetables of any sort. 



In these two exhibitions the West Indian Colonies 

 have an excellent opportunity of bringing their 

 products prominently before the notice of the British 

 public. Such an opportunity of promoting trade 

 should not be allowed to slip, and we trust that full 

 advantage will be takmi of it. 



^.^^^fr-.*-^ — 



The Oil Seed Trade of Marseilles. 



An important feature of the trade of the port of 

 Marseilles is the oil .seed industry. According to the 

 CiinHuUir Report, this trade was exceptionally good 

 during 1903. ()n account of the record crops of 

 sesame seed and ground nuts in India and on the west 

 coa.st of Africa, the prices of raw material were Ioav. 

 The principal oil seeds imported are ground nuts, 

 gingelly (Scsamiim indlcum), cocoa-nuts (copra), 

 castor oil, cotton, linseed, palm nut, etc. : the gingelly 

 and iindecorticated gi'ound nuts yield edible oils, 

 while oils from the other seeds are used in the 

 Marseilles soap industry and for technical purpo.ses. 

 The large imports of oil seeds have rendered unneces- 

 sary the importation of manufactured oils. 



There is a considerable export of ground nut husk 

 meal from Marseilles. The iindecorticated nuts are 

 shelled, and the shells gnjund to a whitish powder 

 which is used for cattle feecling. It is niainl_y exported 

 to Hamburg and Stettin, wheio it is mixed with 

 molasses, forming a good, brittle cake. All the linseed 

 and practically all the gingelly and poppy cakes are 

 consumed in France for feeding cattle or manuring. 



