132 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Al'gust I, 1883. 



from China anil the adjoiuing territories of Sulu and Eruuei, 

 which would supply cheap labour; and a large investment of 

 capital for its profitable employment in plantations and in 

 many other ways. I'rom Mr. %'on Donop, their superintendent 

 of agriculture, a very interesting report to the end of last 

 year'had been received, " on the agricultural prospects of 

 North Borneo,' giving the results of his personal observa- 

 tion of the various kiuds of soil and the natural products, 

 which could not fail to be useful to planters, with a selection 

 of land for the cultivation of different crops. The soundness 

 of the policy pursued by the directors had been fully demons- 

 trated. "While there was no prospect of large profits for the 

 Company either by mining or trading on their own accouut, 

 there was every probability of an immigration securing at no 

 distant period a very large Chinese population, supplying 

 cheap labour for planters, and a source of revenue to the 

 Company. This had now become a certainty, and everything 

 tended to encourage it. North Borneo was not only in close 

 proximity to Hongkong and the southern coast of China, but 

 it was a healthy country, as Dr. "Walker, the Company's prin- 

 cipal officer, in his official report had satisfactorily shown. 

 Although it was not their intention to make North Borneo a 

 Chinese colony — and he should be sorry to think that that 

 was the destiny reserved for it— there was an oljvious neces- 

 sity for encom-aging. iu the first in,stance,alargeiramigi-ation 

 of Chinese to supply the artisan and agricultural labour 

 which the natives could not at present afford. Of course 

 many unforeseen contingencies arose in such au enterprise 

 as the founding of a new colony in the far East, which not only 

 interfered with its progress, but strained all the powers of 

 those engaged in the arduous work on the spot. The 

 Company had within the la,st few months iost three of 

 the most efficient of their staff, two by misadven- 

 ture- and one by sickness. A wave of cholera also swept 

 over the island last autumn, which x-aged with great 

 violence ever the whole archipelago. Fortunately it was 

 very transitory, and not as serious in North Borneo as else- 

 where, nor did any European fall a victim. But while 

 present it paralyzed trade among the natives and work in 

 ihe jungle, and otherwise greatly interfered with their 

 progress. Notwithstanding these trials, the onward pro- 

 gress of the Company had been marked, and each mail for 

 some months had brought fresh intelligence of the most 

 encouraging character, of new Companies forming in China 

 and Australia, and fresh applications for large blocks of 

 forest or waste lands. "With all this capital and labour 

 immediately available for the full development of the 

 territory and iu so many different directions, the share- 

 holders might assume that if then own capital subscribed 

 at this time should seem at any time to fall short of the 

 large demands which such an enterprise created, more 

 would be forthcoming from other sources. Now that Aus- 

 trahan legislation, expelling the Chinese, had rendered 

 sugar growing more difficult for want of cheap labour, and 

 that American legislation had equally tended to close the 

 field for their labour on the Pacific coast, this surplus 

 labour must find an outlet. After quoting from an article 

 iu the Tiiiits on the '■ Resources of Madagascar," he stated 

 that with these prospects before them, so full of promise 

 for the profitable and peaceful occupation of a new terri- 

 tory-, so lately given up to jungle and a few scattered 

 tribes of natives— promise of a good return in the immedi- 

 ate future and evidence of active progress in the present 

 — the directors could feel no serious doubt as to the suc- 

 cess of the Company and the prosperity of the colony. 

 Its national importance, either iu peace or in wa>', he had 

 never doubted. For British interests it was essential that 

 its magnificent harbours should be accessible to our fleets, 

 and afford sure harbours of refuge to our merchant ships, 

 lying as these ports diil right in the fairway of the great 

 trade between China, India, au I Australia. Maruda Bay 

 in the north, and Saudakan in the east, were not more than 

 five <1ays from Pint Darwin, in the North Australian ter- 

 ritory, "and a similar distance from Hongkong and Singa- 

 pore, the two great ititrtpiAs of the trade carried on 

 between India, China, au<l Great Britain. If any lingering 

 doubt could rcmam on this view of the great future in 

 store for this country, it must, he said, yield to the most 

 cursory review of the progi-e<s made iu the last few years 

 by other calouies in the ^ame sees- The prospects of 

 North Borneo were th refore bright, but the development 

 of a new country, in the most favourable circumstances, 

 must be a work of time. A lar^e leveaue depended almoe); 



entirely on the population, and at the present rate of in- 

 crease a year or two should balance their revenue and ex- 

 penditure. Lord Elphinstone, the vice-chairman, seconded 

 the motion, and the chairman, in reply to questions, stated 

 that the directors saw no reason to doubt that they had 

 quite sufficient capital, having regard to the infliLX of capit- 

 al from outside, to work the colony as rapidly as circum- 

 stances would permit. They had made no apphcation to 

 the Stock Exchange for a quotation, and they were not 

 in a position to apply. The report was then uuanunously 

 adopted, and the auditors, Jlessrs, Turquand, "i'ouugs, 

 and Co., were afterwards re-elected. In reply to a vote 

 of thanks to the chairman and directors, the chairman 

 again alluded to the political importance of North Borneo 

 to England. — Loncton Times. 



BOTANICAL TRANSGRESSORS. 

 Impersouification is a comparatively inuocuoua offence. 

 Graver charges may be brought against the seemingly 

 peiiceful denizens of our fields and hedgerows. It ia 

 often noticed that special varieties of plants grow in 

 special districts, and the guide bonks which find their 

 way into the hands of autumn wanderers generally 

 contain some accouut of such local varieties. These 

 variations are often ascribed to difl'ereuces of soil and 

 climate, and certainly both iiava a good deal to do 

 with the well-being and the perp tuatinn of specially 

 varied forms. But many facts show that the jioteucy 

 of soil and climate is by no means so ereat as it is 

 popularl.v supposed to be. Cultivated plants, for in- 

 stance, plants which are under the care of man, grow 

 equally well and produce equally abundant fruit in 

 veiy varying soils and climates. Wheat ripens in 

 Sibtria and in Egypt, in Southern Russia as well 

 as iu NorthWest Canada. The scil and the climate 

 of Europe is sufficiently like to that of temperate 

 North American to lead us to suppose that the liora 

 of both would be the same, but iu fact it is not. 

 "We might suppose that plants would fl'mrish beat 

 in their native soil and in their native climate, and 

 here again facta falsity many of our suppositions. 

 En<;lisb watercress (A'((s(lH?-if(!«;i officinnU) was unknown 

 in New Zealand, but when introduced there it took 

 so kindly to its new home that it is not nnfrcqutntly 

 found with stems 12 feet iu length. This prodigality 

 of growth was not only found inconveniently large 

 for the breakfast table, but it made watei-cresa a form- 

 idable impediment to river nav gation, it blocks up 

 river courses, and costs the Nev Zealand Government 

 some hundreds of pounds yearly to keep it from al- 

 tofether choking up the water way. Similarly the 

 American water weed or ditch moss (Anachciris canad- 

 ensis), although harmless enough in America, has 

 spread with such rapidity in this country since its 

 iutroduction about 1^40, that there are few rowing 

 men whose sweet serenity of temper has not been 

 occasionally ruffled by it. The fact seems to be that 

 plants depend not only on the soil and climate, but 

 also, to au extent hardly as jet suificently appreciated 

 upon the good- will and forbearance of other plants. 

 Plants crow, it has been epigrammatically observed, 

 not where they like so much as where other plants 

 will let them. No idea seems more tittingly associ- 

 ated witli the quiet beauty of foliage and of flower 

 than thut of tranquillity and peace, and yet this seem- 

 in" peaoefulness only veils to the passerby nn in- 

 ternecine war which is ever going on. It almost seema 

 a mere rhetorical flourish to assert that war, biiter 

 and unsparing and to the very death , is carried ou 

 by th^ sdent beauties of our fields and meadows. 

 But war there i«. Many speuies have faded away and 

 have become quite extinct in certain localities, not 

 beoiuse the soil was unsuitable or the climate too 

 rigorous, but because they have been overpowered and 

 crushed out of esistence by their floral rivals. Warfare 



