120 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



April 9, 1904. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



Letters and matter for publication, as well 

 as all specimens for naming, should be addressed 

 to the Commissioner, Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, Barbados. 



Communications are invited, written on one 

 side of the paper only. It shovdd be understood 

 that no contributions or specimens can, in any 

 case, be returned. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agricul- 

 tural News' should be addressed to the Agents, 

 and not to the Department. A complete list of 

 the London and Local agents will be found at 

 foot of page 1 27 of this issue. 



The 'Agricultural News': Price Id. per 

 number, post free I'/^d. Annual subscription 

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



^(jricultural |)inu!) 



Vol. in. SATURDAY, APl'JL 9, 190-t. No. ry2. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



West India Committee Circular. 



During the past year thi.s Cirrular has been 

 largely e.\ten(k'(l and iriiprovefl. It is now a fortnightly 

 publication likely to prove of great vahie to the 

 West Indies. A new feature in conne.xion with the 

 efforts of the West India Committee is the organiza- 

 tion of lectures on subjects of interest to these 

 colonies. On March 8, a lecture was delivered at the 

 Committee Rooms (1.5, Seething Lane, E.G.,) by Sir 

 Patrick ]\[anson on ' The Disease Problem of i%; West 

 Indies.' A summary of this lecture, published .in> the 

 West India Committee'Ch-evhir^i March \St, ijeser\es 

 careful attention. It may be hiefi'tioned' t1ia<^all%he 

 Publications of the Imperiid Dcpart;!neUt of Agriculture 

 are obtainable at the West Indi&^^nrT»Jttee KfJWs. 



Horse Breeding in Jamaica. ,f //^ 



A couuiiittee of the Jamaica Agricultural Society 

 has recently formulated plans for the improvement of 

 horses in Jamaica. 



It is argued that the industry needs resuscitation 

 and that efforts in this direction should not be left 

 entirely to private enterprise. It is recommended that 

 four approved sires and also four approved jacks be 

 placed at the disposal of the peasantiy in the parishes 

 of St. Elizabeth, St. Catherine and St. Ann at reduced 

 fees. 



In the event of suitable animals not being pro- 

 curable, it is recommended that the society be emjww- 

 ered, as soon as a Stock Farm is established, to obtain 

 a stallion of the type used for getting hunters in 

 England and a jack of the Maltese breed. 



Seed Potatos. 



The most satisfactory sort of Eiigli-sh potatos to 

 ])lnnt in the West Indies is that known as the 'Bliss 

 Triumph ' Potato. It is the one largely grown at 

 Bermuda for e.xport to the New York market and 

 after careful trial in the West Indies it has given the 

 best results of any. The difficulty is to obtain the seed 

 potatos early enough in the autumn to allow them to 

 be planted before the dry season sets in, in the 

 Windward and Leeward Islands, in November and 

 December of each year. The Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture is prepared to obtain (at cost price) seed 

 potatos to be delivered in the West Indies early in 

 Se|jtember ne.xt. The cost last year was at the rate of 

 I'S.-'. per barrel. Those desirous of obtaining supplies of 

 English seed potatos are requested to conmiunicate 

 with the officers of the Department in the several 

 islands not later than May 1 next. 



Supply of Paris Green. 



During the period when the cotton worm is 

 prevalent in the West Indies there is jjossibly no 

 article likely to be in more urgent demand than Paris 

 green. This is an aceto-arsenite of copper and is 

 regarded as the most effective substance yet known 

 for the treatment of the cotton worm. Indeed, without 

 it, there would be little chance of making the industry 

 remunerative in any locality where the worm is 

 common. As already advised in these pages, the first 

 thing to be done by the cotton grower before the next 

 planting season is to provide himself with a supply of 

 Paris green and keep it on hand ready for immediate 

 use. Probably" Paris green will be procurable locally 

 in all these colonies at a reasonable cost. Where, 

 however, any difficulty is likely to be experienced, the 

 material might be imported direct from Messrs. 

 Gillespie Bros. & Co., 4, Stone Street, New York, 

 Mr. James A. Blanchard, 80 and 82, William Street, 

 New York, or Messrs. Legget and Brother, Agricultural 

 Department, 301, Pearl Street, New York, or other 

 manufacturers. 



Agricultural Progress in Ceylon. 



In a paper read before the Royal Colonial Institute 

 by Jlr. John Fergu.son, C.M.G., JM.L.G., on 'Ceylon 

 from 189G to 190:V, it is shown that there has been 

 most satisfactory progress in the principal agricultural 

 industries of the island. 



Coffee, which twenty years ago was the staple 

 crop, is now a thing of the past : its place has been 

 taken by tea, cacao, cardamoms and rubber. The rise 

 of the green tea industr)- has all been within the last 

 five years. In the eight years, cacao cultivation has 

 expanded from '21,000 to about S.5,0()0 acres, the 

 exports having risen in that period from 31,000 cwt. 

 to about (30,000 cwt. The area under cardamoms has 

 been doubled, the exports in 1903 being 910,000 ft. 



The development of the new rubber-growing 

 industry has been most satisfactory: there is no risk of 

 over production, and Ce^dcm rubber has alread}- secured 

 a high character and good price in the London market. 



