S96 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



fjup: 2, 1884, 



in his dilapidated cart, plodding slowly with hia 

 mule or ox aloug the heavy sandy roads, and is 

 astonished at the progress a few years has made. 

 The streets show a Northern population, and here 

 in our Southern journey we first experience the 

 revival that has come from tlm investment of so 

 much Northern and European capital in Florida, 

 This process has already done much for the State, 

 and will before loni; make a complete change in its 

 character and position, os a large immigration is 

 coming in, and in many respects this land of the 

 orange and the alligator is looked upon as a new 

 American agricultural El Dorado. 

 ♦- 



WARM OR COOL AIR IN WITHERING TEA. 



In a letter to the Indian Tea Gazette, Col. Money 

 advocates the use of Blackman's air propeller in 

 ooanection with tea factories to aid the process of 

 withering in rainy weather. His position is that luaf 

 would wither better in an atmosphere cooler than that 

 which prevails in factories owing to the tires. Now 

 we have taken it for granted that one of the benefits 

 of furnaces or driers in a factory was the pxteot to 

 which they raised the temperature ot the air. But 

 Col. Money desiderates air cooler than that inside 

 the tea-house and this cool air i« motion. No doubt 

 dry air would be an adv.^ntage, bat wliat have tea 

 experts to say to lowering the temperature of the 

 air in order to expedite withering? The Colonel's 

 formulai are : — 



"The agentsneccssary to wither well — are 1. — Light. * 

 2. — Dry air in motion, 3. — A lower temperature 

 than is generally found in Tea factories in the hot 

 weather and rains. If these agents are present in the 

 factory, the leaf will wither well in a few hours ; 

 no need to move it from place to place. Turning it 

 occasionally would be the only necessity, and it would 

 of course wither equally well in all parts of the f»ictory !" 

 All will agree in the benefits of abundant light 

 and dry air ; but is any advantage to be gained by 



cooling the air V 



. > _ 



CINCHONA ALKALOID.S AND CINCHONA 

 FEBRIFUGE. 

 Below, will be found a number of most valuable 

 analyses of cinchona barks of numerous varieties, by 

 Dr. Paul, as also his analysis and opinion of a febrifuge 

 prepared from red baik in Jamaica, by a process similar 

 to that employed in British Sikkim, and by which 

 about 30 per cent, of the total alkaloids contained in 

 the bark is lost. The febrifuge is excellent, but i' 

 could only be prepared and issued by a Government 

 like that of India more anxious to benefit its subjects 

 than to make profit. If ever we have a manufactory 

 in Ceylon, it ought of course to be conducted on the 

 principle of extracting practically all tha alkaloids. 

 Manufactories out of Europe have not been success. 

 ful, however, and at present low rates of freight 

 the best course, probably, fur Ceylon growers of bark 

 will b' to s^ud their produce to the London market. 



OiNCHOhfA FeBEIFDGE. 



Tlie following very interesting papers appear in the 

 Ceylon Government Gazette : — 



His Excellency tho Governor has been pleased to direct 

 that the following letter from the Director of the Royal 



* Many do not realize its importance. Let such place 

 leaf in two lots to wither, both iu the same atmosphere as 

 to temperature and motion of tho air, but one lot in a 

 lifjhtened space, one iu a dark space: a single experiinont 

 will ciiiiviiiee them. Or test the time necessary to wittier liy 

 day and night. 



Gardens, Kew, to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 

 on the subject of a Cinchona Febrifuge prepared in Jamlaica, 

 be published for general information. 



By His Excellency's command, 



"G. T. M. O'Beien, 

 Actiug Colonial Secretary. ■ 

 Colonial Secretary's Office, \ :. :.: , 'iu 1 



Colombo, 10th May, 1884, 



No. 1. 

 EoY.^li Gardens, Kew, to Colonial Office. 



Eoyal Gardens, Kew, 26th March, 1884. 



Sir, — I am desired by Sir .Toseph Hooker to acknowledge 

 the receipt of your letter of 22nd January, enclosing a copy 

 of a despatch from the Government of Jamaica transmitting 

 a copy of a correspoudence on the subject of a Febrifuge 

 prepared in Jamaica from red cinchona bark grown in the 

 Uolony. 



Sir Joseph Hooker has carefully considered your re- 

 quest to have the sample of Febrifuge, to be deposited 

 iu the iluseum of the Royal Gardens, examined by a com- 

 petent chemist. After some enquiry it was decided to 

 entrust the investigation to Dr. Paul, v. c. s., who is en- 

 tirely occupied with this branch of commercial chemistry. 



I am now to transmit a copy of the letter addressed 

 to Dr. Paul and of his report, which Sir Jeseph Hooker 

 regards as very satisfactory. You will observe that Dr. 

 Paul was prepared for tho investigation by ha\'ing already 

 on his own account made a careful study of certain 

 samples ot Jamaica red bark' presented by the Jamaica 

 Government to the Museum of the Ph.arinaceutical So- 

 ciety. 



The process used in Jamaica was that devised by Mr. 

 0. H. Wood, late Government Quiuologist, Bengal, and 

 it is believed to be that which is now employed in India 

 in the manufacture of Febrifuge for the Bengal Govern- 

 ment. The defects of the process are, as pointed out by 

 Dr. Paul, (1) that the alkaloids are only imperfectly 

 extracted from the bark by treatment with dilute acids ; 

 (2) that a portion ot the alkaloids is lost owing to theii- 

 solubility, especially in the case of quinine, in a large 

 volume of water. This loss is probably to some extent 

 obviated by carrying on, as described by Mr. Bowrey, the 

 weaker liquors containing alkaloids in making subsequent 

 extractions of fresh bark. n 



I gather from Dr. Paul's report that he fixes the total 

 result of extraction of alkaloids, as the process is worked 

 iu Jamaica, at about 70 per cent., though possibly much less. 



It appears that in the process as worked in Sikkim 

 there is a loss of about 50 per cent. This is not cuii- 

 sidered satisfactory by the India office, and the question 

 lia\'ing been referred to Kew, Professor Armstrong, F.R.S., 

 is now engaged in reporting on the methods employed, 

 with a view to ascertaining if the defects in their work- 

 ing can be remedied. Mr. Wood was himeelf of opinion 

 that this process could be worked so as to extract 75 per 

 cent, ot the alkaloids, and Dr. De Vrij, the eminent Dutch 

 Quinologist, who was consulted on the subject liy the 

 India OlBce, was of opinion that by some improvements 

 in the manufacture directed to reduce the waste of alkal- 

 oids, something like 80 per cent, of the total amount 

 might be extracted. Better results than this cauuot be 

 obtained apparently'without having recourse to the meth- 

 ods employed in Europe, by which something like a 

 total extraction is effected. But these are more costly 

 and complicated, and it is doubtful whether they could 

 be advantageously employed except by persons working on 

 a large scale and controlled by large comniei cial interest. 



It will be observed, however, that Mr. Bowrey's work 

 does not fall far short of what Mr, Wood thought the 

 possible maximum of his process, 



Tho question whether the manufacture of Febrifuge in 

 Jamaica will pay is one for the careful considcratigu of 

 the loc.'d Governmeut. 



Tha.t Mr. Wood's process — and no better one for the 

 end in view has at present been devised — involves a waste, 

 is generally admitted. This waste does not occur in bark 

 worked by more perfect processes in Europe, The ad- 

 vaiita.ges on the side of local mnnufaetiire are. diminished 

 cost in packing, transport and fri^'obt. iiml the lessened 

 risk of loss froiiv; market fhictuations in the price of bark. 

 It is a financial qiiestiou liow far these may be set off 



