204 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



June 18, 190-t. 





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GLEANINGS. 



On Empire Day a grouj* oi cabbage palms was planted 

 ill the central i>ortion of the Botanic Station at Tobago. 



The jirincipal exjiorts from Poudicherry are ground nuts, 

 oil cakes, rice, an<l oils (ground nut, cocoa-nut, castor, and 

 sesame). 



Carbon bisulphide is l)eing used with great success 

 against the parasol ant in Tobago. Repeated applications 

 are being received at the Botanic Station for this insecticide. 



The cob stallion 'Jamaica Lad,' imported into Dominica 

 by the Imperial Department of Agriculture, is now stationed 

 at Picard estate, Portsmouth, and will serve ai)iiroved mares 

 at a fee of 10.<. 



During the ipiarter ended March 31, 1904, 5.31 bales 

 and 74 l>ags of cotton were exported from the British A\'est 

 Indian Colonies. The total weight was 14-5,0.36 lb., and the 

 estimated value £5,440 1.?. Gd. 



The .Jamaica Leader advocates the planting of the 

 Riplej" ■^•ariety of pine-apple. It fetches from half as much 

 again to twice the price of other kinds, weight for weight : it 

 is also a good shipping pine and sells well in British markets. 



At a meeting ot the Xevi> Agricultural and Commercial 

 Society, Mr. W. S. Ma3'nard mentioned that his first 

 shipment of cotton had been fa\ourably reported ujion, the 

 account sales showing that the price had ranged from l.s. 3(^ 

 to Ls. 4(/. per lb. 



Essence of orange leaves is a not unimportant article of 

 commerce. It is used in i^erfumery and soap manufacture, 

 ^lost of it comes at present from South America, but there is 

 no reason why it should not be produced in -Jamaica. 

 (Jamaica Leader, May 20, 1904.) 



Professor F. S. Earle, of the New York Botanical 

 Garden, has Ijeen asked by the Cuban Government to aid in 

 the establishment of a Department of Agriculture. He has 

 been granted leave of absence from the Garden for this 

 purpose. {Botanical Gazette, May 1904.) 



A circular recently issued by the Reporter on Economic 

 Products to the Government of India gives the results of an 

 analysis of rice-husk ash from the rice mills of Burma. It is 

 stated that the fertilizing constituents are not very largely 

 represented, but the return of the ash to the land would be 

 a distinct improvement. The silicious ash might also, it is 

 suggested, be employed in manufacturing mortars and 

 cements. 



According to the SiKjar Planters' Journal of May 21, 

 the number of beet sugar factories in the United States has 

 increased from 43 at the close of 1902, to 56 at the begin- 

 ning of 1904. 



The Berbice Cotton (Growers' Committee is proposing to 

 h'lld a show in New Amsterdam late in October or early in 

 November. Prizes of $100, §50, and 825 are being offered 

 for the best three bales of Sea Island cotton of not less than 

 250 lb. A luimber of other prizes will also be offered. 



Mr. Win. Seabrook, a cotton gin expert, arrived in 

 -Jamaica last week and has done some valuable Avork in the 

 island. He has fitted up a steam gin on Mr. Fursdon's 

 property at Hartlands and given advice to those who cared to 

 consult him. (Jamaica Leader, May 20, 1904.) 



Mr. J. H. Hart writes : 'The mango crop in Trinidad will 

 be short this year. Such varieties as Pere Louis, Gordon, 

 Divine, Mango D'or, Peters or Bombay, ^lalda. No. 11 or 

 lieine Amelie, and other imported kinds have not more than 

 25 per cent, of an average crop on them, while even the 

 commoner kinds have not half the usual crop.' 



India rubber was exiiorted last year from the French 

 colony of Guinea to the amount of 1,467 tons, representing 

 a value of more than £580,000. Only half this sum was 

 realized in 1900 with nearly the same cjuantity ; and the 

 increase in value is explained by the im}iroved quality due to 

 more careful collection and preparation. {Journal of the 

 Society of Arts.) 



Field of ilay 1 4, discusses tiie merits of bananas from 

 various parts of the world. While it is held that the Canary 

 banana is of finer quality than that from Jamaica, the 

 Barbados bananas are rei>orted to be even better still. The 

 flavour is much liked in the British market, where they are 

 preferred to the ^fartiniijue or Gros Michel bananas exported 

 from Jamaica. {West India Committee Circular.) 



Five packages of cotton were shipped to England yester- 

 day in the Direct Line steamer. This is the first shipment of 

 cotton that has been made to England for a great many years. 

 The cotton has been inspected liy several parties who have 

 pronounced it to be nmch superior to the ordinary cotton 

 shipped from American ports. (Jamaica Gleaner, May 30, 

 1904.) 



Recent issues of New York papers contain the announce- 

 ment of the discovery of a very effective enemj' of the cotton 

 l>oll weevil in Guatemala and ^Mexico. This is a large, 

 reddish-brown ant which is described as feeding systemati- 

 cally on the weevil larva. The U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture is said to be arranging for the introduction of 

 this ant into the cotton-growing districts where the boll 

 weevil is such a serious menace to cotton growing. 



The total value of the sugar exported from the British 

 West Indies to all countries was £2,740,808 in 1899-1900 

 and £2,101,988 in 1902-1903. The figures for the United 

 Kingdom were £619,642, and £434,486 in the two years, and 

 for the United States £2,067,615 and £1,482,033 respec- 

 tively, thus more than accounting for the total reduction of 

 £638,826. The shipments to Canada, on the other hand, 

 rose from £51,312 to £173,008. {Our Western Eminre^ 

 May 1904.) 



