JtTNE 2, 1884.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



933 



rocks in their immediate neighborhood, especially of those 

 which occupy the eminences. But as rocks differ much 

 in their composition, the soils which are formed on their 

 degradation must necessarily present, in many cases, great 

 differences etjually with the rocks themselves. But, in other 

 instances, the natiu-e of the soils in a given locality partakes 

 nothing of the character of the rocks in the immediate 

 neighborhood, nor even of those upon which they rest. 

 The first class of soils to which we have referred are those 

 which may be said to arise from '* mechanical causes." 

 the others, the origin of which is more difficult of explan- 

 ation, arise from "chemical causes," and in the production 

 of others both these causes are combine'l. Among the 

 mechanical causes which operate in the disintegration of 

 rocks may be mentioned the action of winds, rains, streams 

 of water, and the tendency of all bodies when moved in elev- 

 ated situations to gravitate towards the centre of the earth. 

 Among the chemical causes are the action of the gases 

 of the atmosphere upon mineral surfaces ; the action of ' 

 the sun's rays ; and of the fermentive processe.s wherever i 

 accumulations of organic substances take plac^'. To these ' 

 causes may be added the action of living beings upon all 

 classes of substances. All rocks, and indeed almost all 

 mineral substances, have a greater or less tendency to com- 

 bine with the oxygen of the atmosphere, especially when 

 under favourable circumstances of heat and moisture, and 

 probably alno of electricity and light. Carbonic acid and 

 water, also, are absorbed by rocks, in considerable quantity; 

 and the effect of these combinations, whether chemical or 

 mechanical, is to loosen the cohesion between the particles 

 of stone, and induce a tendency to disintegration. This 

 .separation of the part? is very mucti accelerated by these 

 sudden expansions and contractions which are occasioned 

 by changes of temperature, and especially during frost, when 

 the imbibed moisture is converted into ice. This slow and 

 silent work of waste is unremittingly going on wherever 

 rocks are exposed to the weather. No species of stone is 

 exempt ; and even granite, which in general is so little 

 subject to change as to be proverbially a symbol of en- 

 durance, and is selected for our bridges and other great 

 works of architecture, under peculiar circumstances of con- 

 stitution and exposure, is remarkably disposed to this pro- 

 cess of crumbling. The granite of some parts of Finland 

 is so lialjle to decomposition that masses of it may be 

 cut down and shaped in the same manner as a hay rick. 

 To devise an arrangement of soils at once comprehensive 

 and distinct is no easy task. The distinctions ought to be 

 simple and obvious, without regard to minute differences, 

 which may be of no material importance. For practical 

 purposes soils may be classed under the following general 

 heads :— Sand, gravel, clay, chalk, peat, alluvial, marsh and 

 loam, or that species of artificial soil into which the others 

 are generally brought by the effects of manure, and of earthy 

 applications in the course of cultivation. 



What is the origin of sandy soils ? Most sands, whether 

 on the surface of the ground or in strata at a certain 

 depth, whether forming the beds of rivers or the shores 

 of the sea, are the fragments of disintegrated rocks, and 

 are red, white, grey or black, according to the rocks from 

 which they were derived. The grains of sand are, for the 

 most part, composed of silica, and soils containing it are 

 called silicious. Sand is probably formed for the most part 

 of quartz, as it does not differ materially from that mineral 

 in its chemical composition. Immense floods of water, the 

 action of the atmosphere, an*! probably also that of fire 

 and other agents, have reduced quartz to fragments, which 

 have subsequently acquired a rounded form by rubbing against 

 each other, in consequence of the motion communicated 

 to them by air and water. River sand is deposited by the 

 waters of springs and rivers. Pearl sand, having lain im- 

 prisoned in the earth, is larger than ordinary sand ; it is 

 frequently found below the surface, and is sometimes washed 

 up, and ileposited by springs of water. Moving sand — which 

 is frequently heaped up in valleys by currents of air and 

 water — is generally mixed with various heterogeneous mat- 

 ters, with which it becomes associated by shifting ; it 

 generally carries with it alumina, lime, &c. 



How may sandy sods he improved ? By a mixture of clay, 

 marl, or warp (the 8ediment| of navigable rivers.) sea ooze, 

 sea slii-lls, pi*at or vegetable earth. It frequently happens, 

 that under the sand itself, or in its immediate neighbor- 

 hood, the materials may be found which are requisite for 

 its improvement. Even light sandy soils may bo rendered 



retentive of moisture and manure, when mixed with the 

 subsoil, or ameliorated by admixture with other soils. In the 

 management of sandy soils three rules are to be observed : — 

 1. Never to pick off any small stones that may be found 

 in them, as they answer many valuable purposes ; they 

 shelter the 3'oung plant in bad weather ; they preserve 

 moisture, and prevent the crops ftom being burnt up by 

 scorching heats ; they hinder the evaporation of the enriching 

 juices ; and, by these means, greatly assist the progress of 

 vegetation. 2. Frequently to renovate the strength of such 

 soils, by laying them down with grass seeds, and pasturing 

 them for a few years, as they are apt to be exhausted by 

 ploughing if corn crops are too frequently repeated. 3. 

 "When farm yard dung is applied to this description of soil, 

 always to give it in a state of compost, with a new of 

 adding to the tenacity of the soil, and of preventing the 

 manure, from being dissipatt'd in a dry season, or washed 

 down by rain. Example of improvement : — The north and 

 west of the country of Norfolk forms an immense sandy 

 plain of 75(1,000 acres, where there is no obstacle to large 

 property and large farming, and where everything favors 

 horse tillage, cultivation of roots, the use of machines — in one 

 word, the four course rotation. By means of this system, 

 steadily pursued for sixty years, these inferior lands, pro- 

 ducing scarcely 5s. per acre in 1780, now return on an 

 average 25s. per acre, or five times their former net pro- 

 duction, and the gross production has risen in at least an 

 equal proportion. A large part of the credit due t-o this 

 wonderful transformation belongs to an extensive proprietor 

 in the county, Mr. Coke, who, in acknowledgment of his 

 services to agriculture, was created Earl of Leicester. He 

 died a few years ago. at an age not far short of 100. 

 Mr. Ooke had a large property in the west of the county, 

 called Holkbam, containing about 30,000 acres. This im- 

 mense estate, which is now worth at least £1,200,0<X), was 

 worth at most £300,000 In 177*3, when Mr. Coke inherited 

 it. It was then in the occupation of a great number of 

 small farmers, who paid their rents with difficulty, although 

 these were very low; and ultimately a great many of them 

 abandoned their farms alt-ogether, because they could not 

 make a living out of them. It was then that Mr. Coke 

 decided upon farming a portion of these sandy wastes him- 

 self; the rest he put into very large farms, and, by offer- 

 ing leases of twenty-one years, held out an inducement to 

 farmers of inteligence and capital to take them. The farm 

 which Lord Leicester personally directed lies in the park 

 belonging to the mansion. Its extent is 1,800 acres, 500 

 of which are permanent pasture ; the rest is arable, laid 

 out exactly for the four course rotation. The farm main? 

 tains 250 large cattle, 2,500 sheep, and 150 pigs. — Leader. 



NOTES ON SOME MALAY TIMBER TREES. 



BY JAMES COLLINS. 



The subject of a regular and large supply of timber is 

 a most important one, and a few notes on the question as 

 regards the Straits Settlements will, it is hoped, be found 

 of use. These will be but brief and preliminary, as the 

 materials at command are too scanty at present to deal with 

 the question otherwise. Johore, althougii an independent 

 State, under the rule of his Highness the Maharajah of 

 Johore, K.C.S.I., &c., is also included in the present note. 

 The extent of forests has been variously stated, but the 

 following figures may be taken as an approximation: — 



Singapore 20 to 30 square miles. 



Malacca 160 to 17'i „ 



Renang and Province Wellesley.. 110 to 120 „ 



Johore and adjacent Islands ., 10,000 „ 



To this must be arkled Selangor, Perak, and the other 

 native States of the Malaj^an Peninsula, some of which are 

 more or less under British Government control. 



The forests of the Straits Settlements, properly so called, 

 are the sole property of the Govenmient. as is the case 

 also with those under the Maharajah's rule. They are, 

 however, in all cases rapidly decreasing, and no means 

 .are taken to stop this. The system of working them is 

 as follows: — A person wanting a tract of land applies to 

 the land office, and pays tenths on the value of the timber 

 cut. Forest rangers, and occasionally the police, havi; to 

 see that npne but those having this license or permit cut 

 timber. ' 



This laud may be required for the timber ou it, or for 



