246 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



XOVEMBER 22, 1902. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



Lftters and matter for jiublication, as well as all 

 specimens for naming should be addressed to the Commis- 

 sioner, Imperial Department of Agriculture, 

 Barbados. 



It is iiarticularly requested that no letters be addressed 

 to any member of the staff by name Sueli a course may 

 ■entail delay. 



Communications should always be written on one side 

 ■of the pajier only. It should be understood that no contri- 

 l)Utions or specimens will, in any case, be returned. 



All application for copies of the 'Agricultural 

 News' should be addressed to the Agents, and 



not to the Department. A complete list of the London 

 •and Local agents will be found on page -50 of this 

 number. 



Correspondents sending newspapers .should bo careful to 

 mark the paragraphs they wish to bring under notice. 



^Dricultural |}eiu!i 



Vol. I. SATURDAY, XOVEMBER 22, 1902. No. 16. 



Packing Fruit for Export. 



The extract on page 244 of this number, from the 

 ])amphlet on Jdmaica Fruit in British Markets 

 shows, once again, the absolute necessity of careful 

 seleetiuu and packing, in any efforts to establish and 

 maintain a successful fruit trade. As 5Ir. Gill 

 significantly i-i-marks : ' It is the little things that 

 count.' 



School Garden at St. Lucia. 



The Forestiere East Indian Mission School at 

 St. Lucia is to be congratulated on the good progress 

 made with a school garden during the past year. The 

 account given on page 2.53 indicates that the work has 

 been well carriefl out, through the energetic co-opera- 

 tion of manager, teacher and children. School gardens 

 form an invahiabie meaii-s of giving children a jiractical 

 interest in plants, and it is to be hoped that other 

 schools in the island will follow the excellent example 

 set them at Forestiere. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Blackbirds and Toads as Planters' Friends. 



Tatches of Cluinea gra.ss in iJarbados were, some 

 time ago, attacked by a caterpillar, the chrj'salis of 

 which was to be found in neat little |)ockets forn.ed by 

 folding the leaf-blaile.s of the grass. The common 

 Barbaiios blackbird was seen busily eating these 

 <lestructive caterpillars, affording another example of 

 the great agricultural value of this useful bird which 

 all classes of the community should do their best to 

 protect. The common toad or vrtipcau was another 

 ileterniined enemy of this jiest. (Jne toad dissected 

 had as many as forty caterpillars, besides miscellaneous 

 beetles, etc. in his stomach. 



Packing Material for Cotton Bales. 



The Board iif Tnule JiiuTiud report.s that owing 

 to the accid<?ntal wetting of a cargo (jf cotton by sc;i 

 water, information of considerable value has been 

 gained as to the relative value of two packing materials. 

 'A cargo, chieHy consisting of bales of cotton, was 

 recently landed at Dakar considi'rably damaged by sea 

 water. Wlu^n the bales came to be opened for 

 •examination by the Board of Survey, it was found 

 that two different materials had been eniploj-ed b)^ 

 shippers for the inside packing of the bales, which gave 

 Very difi'erent result.s. 



'In tine case the packing used was oiled canvas, in 

 the other tarred canva.s. \\"\i\\ the first the contents 

 <jf the bales were in ever}' case badly damaged, whereas 

 in the latter they were practically undamaged, although 

 in several cases the outward appearance of the bales 

 led one to expect that the contents would be irretriev- 

 ably .sjjoilt.' 



Diseases of Fowls. 



The most imp<.rtant point in Mr. Barclay's notes 

 on poultry diseases on page 2.50 of this is.sue is the 

 necessity for cleanliness in fowl houses and runs. 

 Some of the ailments from wdiich fowls suffer are 

 highly infectious and apparently incurable. It is to 

 the advantage of every poultry keeper to maintain his 

 birds in a healthy state, and this is best done by giving 

 them clean and wholesome suiroundings. 



Utilization of Home Products. 



The Barbados Aijrirullnnil RrjKirfcr in a recent 

 article on ' Agricultural Economics' described the very 

 special conditions jircvailing in Barbados owing to the 

 dense population of the island. It was pointed out that, 

 'The sugar industry is to-day, no less than it was sixty 

 years ago, that which will .afford the greatest amount 

 of labour to the ]iopulation. So far we may sa}' the 

 ]ilanters' devotion to cane cultivation maybe defended.' 

 'fhen having stated that there is at present no industry 

 which eii\dd ailetpiately taki' the place of sugar, the 

 article continued : 'But, while this is true, it is also 

 e(pially true that there is room tor improvement in 

 agricultural methods with a view both to increasing 

 the export of certain goods and reducing the import 

 < if certain others. This subject has been briefly but 

 lucidly discussed in an article entitled "Utilization of 

 Home ]iroducts'' that ajipeared in the Ayricidlaral 

 Xcws of November S, which we have reproduced 

 below and connirend to the careful study of our 

 readers. If every jilanter in the country would read, 

 mark, learn and ir.wanlly digest its contents, substan- 

 tial benefit would be bound to result.' 



