March r, 1884.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



6S7 



and from similar parts of the trees. _ If your cor- 

 respondent were to give a fuller description of the 

 bark than simply " bark from the same place," his 

 experience might add something to our knowledge 

 of alkaloid production, provided no mistake has been 

 made. 



The analyses referred to were not made by me, 

 but a few days ago 1 made two analyses which 

 were sufficiently remarkable, as sho-ffing the great 

 difference which may exist in alkaloidal value be- 

 tween root and stem bark from the same tree, to 

 justify theii- being placed upon record. The planter 

 for whom the analyses were made, in answer to my 

 enc[uu'ies, furnished the following particulars : — "The 

 bark I sent you of stem and root was all that could 

 be collected from one tree. It was only about two 



years, old seed from , Dikoya. The growth was 



faii-ly good for calisaya. The tree was about six feet 

 high, grown amongst coffee at an elevation of about 

 3,000 feet. Leaf lanceolated, broadest at centre, 

 pubescent beneath, capsule much longer than usual 

 in calisayas. Cattle- manure was applied last year to 

 the field of coffee, and this tree may have got some." 

 The following are the analytical results : — 

 Boot. Stem. 



Quinine alkaloid ... 2 47 per cent. -31 percent. 

 Amorphous alkaloid... '95 ,, 1'29 ,, 

 Other alkaloids ... "86 ,, '43 „ 



Total alkaloids ... 4'28 ,, 2-03 ,, 



Cryst. quinine sulph... 3'33 ,, '•42 ,, 



In the above figures there are certain relations that 

 are worth noting. The root bark contains, in round 

 numbers, twice the amount of total alkaloids and 

 eight times the amount of crystallizable quinine con- 

 tained by the stem Ijark. The quinine and amorphous 

 alkaloids taken together, bear the same proportion to 

 the total alkaloids in eacli case. When we consider 

 that quinine and its amorphous alkaloid quinicine are 

 isomeric, i. e., have exactly the same chemical compos- 

 ition as represented by the formula C5oH24N2 0.;, 

 we see in this case a striking example of the 

 tendency which the same alkaloid has to assume 

 the crystallizable form when protected from the light, 

 and to become uncrystallizable when exposed to the 

 sun. Besides the influence of sunlight, or in con- 

 junction with it, we know that free organic acids 

 in the bark have likewise the tendency to develop 

 quinicine out of quinine. In the laboratory, quinine 

 is easily converted into quinicine by heating the dried 

 acid sulphate cf quinine for a few minutes to a temp- 

 erature of about 132° C. The pity is that no one 

 has found out how to reverse the process and turn 

 the amorphous substance quinicine into crystallizable 

 quinine. Unfortunately, I had disposed of all the 

 stem hark before it occun'ed to me to estimate which 

 sample of bark had the largest quantity of free acid 

 present in proportion to the amount of alkaloids. 

 I believe all the cinchona barks contains some free 

 organic acids. It does not ci me in the way of 

 ordinary commercial cinchona analysis to examine the 

 unture and amount of the organic acids present, 

 esat in every case in which I have, from curiosity, 

 betted an aqueous decoction of cinchona bark, I have 

 found it to give a distinctly acid reaction. 



In the two samples of bark analyzed, the sum of 

 the alkaloids other than quinine and amorphous 

 alkaloid, bore the same proportion to the total alkaloids 

 in each case. M. COCHRAN. 



[The enormously superior value of the root bark, 

 in this case due, as Mr. Cochran believes, to the 

 exclusion of sunlight, renders the more puzzling the 

 widely differing prices obtained for root bark. For 

 the first samples sent from India and Ceylon very 

 high prices were given, and this was most important 

 in view of Mr, Gammie'8 calculation that one-third 



of all their bark in Sikkbim from uprooted trees was root 

 bark. Latterly, root bark has not obtained high prices, 

 and the question is why? Ihe dirtier condition of the 

 bark could scarcely be the reason. Can it be that 

 it is more intractable in the hands of the chemist ? 

 Mr. Cochran does not seem to have found it so. — 

 Ed.] 



SUGAR CULTIVATION IN CEYLON : SUCCESS 

 DEPENDENT ON GOOD CANES. 



Kandy, 23rd February 18S4. 



Sir, — I notice in your issue of 20th inst. a letter signed 

 " Saccharometer," in which the writer stfiteB |lie failure 

 of sugar cultivation near Kandy to be due to exceseive 

 moisture or as he states it "too damp a cbmnie." 



Having with Mr. Toskey (the proprietor of Poloo estate) 

 planted 222 acres of sugnrcane at Navure, Fiji, I can 

 certify that I have there eeen 50 inches of rainfjvll 

 during a month, the greater part of the estate being 

 undi r water for a week of that. I never saw so wet a 

 climate. 



In that part of Fiji, Honolulu canes have given the 

 highest density, viz. 11^ per cenf,B8 obt lined by Messrs. 

 Sharp Fletcher & Co. of Navure. 



In one of the letters on the subject of sugar cultivation 

 lately published in your paper, the failures in Ceylon 

 are attributed to the dryness of the climate. How 

 about Queensland with its nine months' drought? 



In another letter, the poorness of i he soil is mentioned as 

 a probable cause. On Mango Island, Fiji, old, 

 abandoned cotton-lands were planted with sugarcane, 

 which gave a high density, and at the Colonial Sugar 

 Company's estates on the Rewa River manure is used. 

 While on the subject of failures, I may mention that 

 some years ago a company was started at Suva for 

 sugar cultivation ; the land they planted was what is 

 called "soapstone," a slippery, barren soil, and the 

 plantation was, in consequence, a dismal failure ; part 

 of the machinery is lying around to this day. 



In view of the various opinions expressed— none of 

 which seem satisfactory — I venture to say that inferior 

 canes are the real cause of failure. Introduce Hono- 

 lulu and other new canes, modern machinery and 

 experienced sugar-boilers ; and even supposing a density 

 of 8 per cent or 9 per cent were obtained, the greater 

 cheapness of the labour employed in Ceylon would 

 make np any deficiency existing in the de.isity of our 

 canes as compared with those of Queensland and Fiji. 



Our chief oljject should be to draw the attention 

 of such large Australian Sugar Companies aa the 

 Colonial Sugar Company of Sydney and Mnssrs. Sloane 

 & Co. of Melbourne, to the great suitability of Ceylon 

 for this cultivation, and induce them to investigate 

 for themselves, so that we may sliare their capital ffith 

 the above-named countries. — I remain, sir, yours faith- 

 fully, HONOLULU CANE. 



THE HISTORY OF THE SUGAR ENTER- 

 PRIZE IN CEYLON IN THE FORTIES. 



Colombo, 1.3th Feb. 1884. 



Dear Sib, — The writers in the local newspapers 



who are advocating the renewed cultivation of sugar 



in Ceylon are, I suspect, uuacquainted with the 



history of the island and with tbe | resent state of 



sugar-planting and mann''acture all over the world. 



When I first came to Ceylon, there was as great 



[ a mania for planting sugar, as there was a few years 



! ago for planting cinchona, and as there now is for 



1 planting tea, and I was slightly bitti n with it my- 



' self to the extent of buying 1,-00 acres of land in 



I the Rayigam Korale, which, howeve , I fortunately 



resold before the epidemic passed awa.'. 

 I If my memory serves me, tbe forn^cr proprietor of 

 I the Observer contributed to generate tie epidemic, and 



