July 2, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



43 



WEIGHT OF TEA BOXES. 



{From the Indigo Planters' Oazette.) 



Caraareah, Mirzapar, 19th May, 1883. 

 SiK, — Mr. Tweedie is right with regard to the 

 maugoe chests absorbing moisture. I had a striking 

 proor of this in December. Owing to fome cause a 

 cart-load of packed chests which had come from an 

 out division, was weighei! about S P. M., after com - 

 irig about 16 miles by road, there was found to be 

 a discrepancy of from 0-1-14 to 0-10 chittacks in 

 each chest — although they were carried with a sheet. 

 The following day they were again weighed in the 

 afternoon and had returned to their original weights 

 or very closely so. If chests can thus absorb damp 

 and part with it, no wonder the tares are some- 

 times erratic. I have no doubt that thoroughly 

 dried and seasoned clieets reweighed in the damp clim- 

 ate of England would shew over a pound average 

 difference. Edgar Hill. 



TEA MOSQUITO-BLIGHT.' 



So far no remedy has been found for this formidable 

 pest, and it still continues with impunity to commit its 

 ravages and upset the calculations of the most experienced 

 of our planters. A couple of years ago Government at 

 the request of some of the leading tea agencies sent up 

 Mr. AVood-Mason to report upon the insect and suggest 

 some remedy to reduce its ravages, but alas ! after being 

 up for some time in the tea districts nothing new was 

 found out, alth'"i\.'h a sensational telegram to the Chief 

 Commissioner was sent round to the different planters 

 in all the districts as a circular. The circular recom- 

 mended a severe plucking or a series of pluckings as 

 soon as the mark appeared on the bushes where the 

 mosquito lays its egg or eggs. This remedy had been 

 tried for many years, and was found in many instances, 

 when the bushes were weak, to bo worse than the dis- 

 ease, as the bushes became so debilitated that they in 

 consequence were longer of being able to combat the in- 

 sect, and force a clean flush through, Mr. Wood-Mason 

 threw no light upon how the insect had come to prey 

 upon the tea shrub, more than other jungle plants. 

 Some of our oldest planters no doubt remember the 

 time when the pest was almost unknown, so are we to 

 come to the conclusion that the introduction of the tea 

 plant also introduced the insect? This theory would 

 hardly hold, as in many parts of Assam the plant is in- 

 digenous to the soil, and strange to say enjoys comparat- 

 ive immunity from blight. Some ten or twelve years ago 

 when it first began to assume a serious form, covering 

 over the bushes with blankets, and smoking the bushes 

 in something like the manner bees are smoked in Eng- 

 land was tried as an experiment, but no brilliant 

 results attended it. Then again, some planters re- 

 sorted to catching the insect, and in many instances 

 thousands upon thousands were caught and killed, but 

 without any seeming benefit, for all the slaughter. Jlany 

 and various dodges have been tried, but as yet lurfortun- 

 ately with no brilliant result. Perhaps one of the most 

 successful, and yet we cannot call it success either, has 

 been the wholesale destruction of forest jungle lying cou- 

 tiguous to the plantations. One established fact about this 

 insect is that it avoids exposure to the sun as much as 

 possible, and consequently if jungle lies near the plant- 

 ation it retreats there at sunrise and lies in wait to repeat 

 its depredations after sunset. That every insect does not 

 retreat^ into the jungle we are aw.^re, for at any time 

 almost if the tea bush is shaken, where insects have been 

 at work, one or more will be found to rise out of the 

 bush, but what we believe is, that when the greater pro- 

 portion of jungle is close at baud, they will retire there 

 dm'iug the day, and consequently if jungle, be it forest, 

 be it grass, or any other kind, is removed, it must necess- 

 arily tend to keep away the iusect, more especially if 

 duriiig the cold season, it is cut down and burnt, as during 

 the cold season not an insect will be found amongst the 



* BdopeltU Anton a, which in Java attacks cinchona 

 eaves as well as tea flushes. — Ed. T, A. 



tea bushes, all having migrated into the jungle. Some plant- • 

 ers, we believe, advocate manure to keep it off, whilst 

 again others will inform you that it aggravates it. Our own 

 opinion is, that there may be truth in both. That manure 

 will strengthen the bushes we do not suppose any one will 

 doubt, nor that the insect always selects the young and 

 succulent flushes just as they come out, and will not touch 

 an old leaf, hence our opinion supports the latter theory, 

 that the bush being more vigorous throws out more 

 flushes, and hence seems to suffer more. But then this 

 extra vigor given by the manure causes it to push through 

 the blight and recover more quickly than its more sickly 

 neighbour without the manure, thus supporting the first 

 theory. The mosquito may be found at any time between 

 March and November, but its ravages do not seem to 

 become serious before June or July, and continue most 

 severe during July, August, September, and the early part 

 of October ; ilnring the latter part of October it begins to 

 Ijft, .and generally disappears for good in November. 

 Like everything else, the weather seems to have a good 

 deal to do with it, and dull cloudy weather seems to 

 propagate it faster than bright sunny days. Last season, 

 1882, it appeared very late, but came on very suddenly, 

 and with great severity when it did come. This was 

 naturally put down to the season, which was bright and 

 sunny tlu-oughout, with a short raiirfall. In many gardens 

 this accounted for the laige increase in quantity over former 

 years, and it may be that in 1S83 those gardens will again 

 return to their former normal yield. It is, however, quite 

 impossible to foretell or for. cast in any way, the poss- 

 ibihtiesof blight and although l his pest lias been increasing 

 for many years, we are still in comparative ignorance 

 regarding it. As we have mentioned before, the only 

 thing that has been found of any avail up to date is a 

 wholesale destruction of jungle in and around I he cult- 

 ivation. "We are much afraid that many of our planting 

 friends will say, when they read this "Ah, we knew that 

 before : tell us someihiiitj new," and our only answer is, we 

 wish we ceuld. If we coiUd' discover some natural enemy 

 to the insect, and introduce it into the tea districts, we 

 would feel we had acted the part of a benefactor, but up to 

 date our search has been in vain. — Indigo Pltmterii' Gazette. 



CHAMBER OF 



SILK IN THE MAC0LE.SFI1 LD 



COJlJIERCi;. 

 The quarterly meeting of the members of the Chamber 

 of Commerce was held ou April Vlh. 



Kef use Silk from .South India.— rha directors have had 

 submitted to them for examination a sample of refuse 

 silk from Southern India, for the jiurpose of ascertaining 

 whether a market could be found for the article iu this 

 country. After careful consideration, the directors were 

 of opinion that the waste is too worthless to be of any 

 commercial value. 



The ,Silk Trade of iyons.— Lyons purchases on the aver- 

 age £I7,70«,333 of the raw silks of France, Italy, the 

 Levant, India, China, and Japan ; and exports £rO,».-.3,o33 

 OS goods manufactured therefrom, or mixed with wool 

 and cotton, being about three-fouiths of her entire pro- 

 duction, (jreat Britain and the United States arc the 

 principal markets for these exports. The trade in cotton 

 and woollen stutfs exceeds £833,33:;. The number of house.', 

 large and small, engaged in silk manufactures, reaches t'.i 

 nearlv auO. Besides these, there are some eighty houses 

 engaged in the raw silk trade, aiul about 60 commission 

 firms, whose business extends to all the countries of the 

 globe. The manufacture of silk tulles, owing to a newly- 

 pei-fected looin, has regained its old favour, and is largely 

 extended. Silk handkerchiefs (foulards) are exquisitely 

 manufactured, and command orders from every country. 

 Trimmings (tissues of-silk, with gold and silver in part- 

 icular) are here produced superior in iu^tistic beauty to any 

 market in the world. Eight hundred looms arc constantly 

 engaged in this production. Church regalia, altar cloths 

 in silk and velvet, wrought with gold and silver and the 

 most precious jewels, military and masonic banners, flags, 

 emblems, and trimmings are umivalled in then beauty 

 and production. A silk exchange has been established in 

 New York. It f urnislies silkworms, eggs, cuttings of the 

 trees upon which the worms feed, and piwchases -the 

 cocoon. It also gives full directii us for the beginning ot 

 silk cviltvae.— British Mail. 



