Sbptemcer I, 1883,] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



i8i 



THE "TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST." 



We have pleasure in acknowledging the receipt of 

 the that number of voL III., being the number for 

 July this year, of this most vahiable journal, which 

 every planter in the Straits would do well to have on 

 bis table, full as egg is of meat as every number of 

 it is of invaluable practical information upon all matters 

 connected with planting in the East and West Indies, 

 the Americas, the Australias, and the South Sea 

 Islands. It is published, mouihly, at tbe Colombo 

 Observer Ollices, Ceylon, and the annual subscription 

 is only £1 or K12. Tbe present number contains 79 

 two-column closily printed pages ; and some idea 

 of the nature of its coateuts and their varied 

 and interesting character may be obtained if we 

 summarise a few of the subjects dealt with. There 

 are then several editorials on cinchona and card- 

 amom cultivation in India, Ceylon and Java ; on 

 « the labour question in Fiji and Mauritius ; on Mada- 

 gascar plants ; on clean weeding ; on coffee and 

 its insect enemies. There is a large amount of cor- 

 respondence regarding Tea-plantiug in all its aspects ; 

 sdk culture in Cevlon ; planting experiences in Fiji, 

 Chili, California, jaraaica ; how to collect Kubber ; 

 seasons ; manuring ; weeds, &c., &c. Then numerous 

 extracts are g'ven from the local publications regard- 

 • ng planting in lirazil, West Indies, Eastern Arabia, 

 India, Java, Qrtensland, the Northern Territory, &c. 

 There is notliing regarding the Straits, Sumatra, or 

 Borneo, but no duubt the Planters of the Malay 

 Archipelago will erelong, when they have had more 

 time and e.\]iericnce, be moved to exchange views 

 with their brother planters elsewhere, and they could 

 not have a better medium for doing so than this 

 excellent magazine. — Stiaits Times. 



"TEA-BULKING." 



The report of the East and West India Dock Com- 

 pmy just issued speaks of a new system of " tea- 

 bulking " which has been invented by one of the 

 company's stiifl", by which it is hoped that a much 

 larger share of the tea imported into London may be 

 attracted to their warehouses in Fenchurch-strcet and 

 Crutched Friars. So much is mysterious in connection 

 with liie tea tr.ule that this incidental allusion to 

 one more mystery will hardly perhaps awaken a passing 

 curiosity in the generality of '.he public, who as a rule 

 do not not know at all what " tea-bulking " may 

 be, and will hardly feel it a vtry hopeful subject 

 of enquirj'. Yet it is a matter not altogether 

 without its iute.'est for most of u?, as will be readily 

 apparent when it i.s stated that this " bulking " is 

 simply turning the tea out of the chests or bixes iu a 

 heap, partly for the purpose of mixing thoroughly, so as 

 to ensure perfect uniformity of quality throughout a 

 " bre.di," and partly for the purpose of "taring" the 

 receptacles in which the tea arrives. Ordinarily the 

 conteuts are turued out upon tbe warehouse Haor, 

 well mixed up with wooden shovels, and then returned 

 to tbe chests, into which — inercdib'e (lii-lu — the ware- 

 housemen get, and tread down the tea with their boots ; 

 and it has been noted by some who ought to kn(>w 

 a good deal about these matters, as a veiy remark- 

 able illu5iratinn of the great care with wbn^h the pro- 

 ceeding is carried out by this company, that the nun 

 are nut permitted to do tins treading with their dirty 

 b-ots entirely unguarded, but are cimpelied to ])ut a 

 clotli over tbe tea before stepping upon it. It is 

 more than hinted th^it in some estnbl's'imeuts 

 this little precaution is neglected. Tlie great objection 

 howi v« to the ordin.Try mode of " bulking " is that 

 the tea, being turjid nut in a heap in tiie warehouses 

 in which it is practically exirs d to the ('pcn air, 

 is very liable to lose much of its freslmcss and nronia, 

 ai.d indeed, the whole p40«iB3 of exposure, blioTclliug 



and refilling is calculiited to deteriorate its quality 

 The secretary of the company, the warehouse super- 

 intendent (Mr. Adams) and one of the engineers, have, 

 therefore, been turning their attention to this matter, 

 and they contrived a machine which seems to do all 

 the work very etiicientl}' and to avoid all the objectious. 

 Instead of being turned out iu a heap upon the floor 

 and shovelled about in the open air, the tea is tipped 

 out of the chests or boxes into a revolving drum 

 capable of holding, if completely filled, about 100 chests. 

 Some 50 chests are poured into this, and then the machine 

 is shut up close and set revolving by hydraulic motive 

 power. Inside the drum is a system of iron rods eo 

 arranged as to to-^s the tea about well, and three or 

 four revolutions are sufficieut to thorouglilj' "bulk" the 

 contents. When this has been accomplished, the mixture 

 is poured out again into the chests tliat have the 

 mean time been "tared" and placed in nposition 

 on a scale which constitutes au adjunct to the machine. 

 The tea, however, will not fill into the chests in so 

 close and compact a body as before it was turned out, 

 and treading or something equivalent to it must still 

 be done. For this a very iugeuious provision is made. 

 A flat, iron "pressor" may be brought down upon 

 the tea, fitting into the receptacle, and thru- ting its 

 contents down gently and evenly, while upon the 

 sides of the chest the machine brings to bear four 

 iron beaters, which, by an ingenious method of rapidly 

 turning on and cutting off hydraulic power, are made 

 alternately to fly out and fnll back to the sides of the 

 chests with a succession of thumps that shake 

 down the tea into a close, compact mass. These 

 beaters have already been in use for some time 

 past in the company's coffee warehouses in the docks, 

 and their application to this " bulking " machine 

 appears to render it a very complete and satisfactory 

 operator, though what may be thought of it by the 

 wielders of the wooden shovel, and the wearers of 

 the hob-nailed boots, whos3 services will, we suppose, 

 be materially curtailed, is a different question. — Glo-be 

 July 12th. ■ 



NOTES ON STRAITS SETTLEMENTS: 



LETTER NO. S. 



By .H Oottam. 



jr.wneus and customs 01'' tiik malays op peh.ik — 

 costumes of male a.md fkmale — sakono and keis — 

 kaltit of smoking cigahettes fiiom jiokxijtg till 

 nlgitr— 'thkiu i.kgexds— the tabooed monkeys— a bolt- 

 ing elefhant — the malay house— cultivations in 



MALAY OAUDENS — THE EA.IA's FALSE SET OF TEETH — 

 THE STOUV OF FAIK HELEN IN THE " LADY'S JIAGAZINE" — 

 FE.VTURES OF THE WOMEN OF PEEAK — FILING AND BLACKEN- 

 ING THEin TEETH — SNUl F — RUNNING AMOK A BARE 

 OCCURRENCE— MH. AND MRS. DOKKAR AND LITTLE GIRL 



"tee" REL.ITIONS LOAFING THE MOTHER-IN-LAW BIRD: 



A GOOD STORY — MALAYS AS ROAD MAKERS A.VD BUILDING 

 CONTIfACTORS — BASKET MAKING — FISHING — SONGS AT NIGHT 

 — SLAVERY ABOLISHED AT THE END OF THE CURRENT 

 YEAR. 



Taking tlie Malays all round they arc not a had people : 

 on the contrary a new .arrival is very much a-ton ished to 

 flud them so gentle and respectful to Europu.ins,and well 

 t)chaved to each other in their daily avocations. t is true 

 most of them, if not all, carry a " paraug" or knife of some 

 sort, but not to cut people's throats with, only to cut heir way 

 through jungles and defend themselves against wild beasts. 

 IHiring the past year not a single instance of a Malay 

 drawing his knife on a fellow-creature has even been heard 

 of b3' me in Perak. The kris is only worn by chiefs and 

 well-to-do JIalays by permission of the Perak Govern-- 

 nient, so when your Young Ceylonese correspondent who- 

 ever he was stated tiiey were '* au ugly peojile, drawing 

 their kris upon you on tiie slightest provocation,'' he, your 

 Young <_'eylonesc,corrospomlent frnni Prnik, lold *' (i rram.^^ 

 They certainly don't like beiug triUed with or iUuocd in any 



