264 



THE AGFJCULTURAL NEWS. 



AurusT 10, 1913. 



EDITORIAL, NOTICES. 



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Slnricultural Mnm 



Vol. XII. SATURDAY. AUGUST 16, 1913. No. 295. 



^NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



The editorial in this number deals with the 

 subject of the control of milk supply. It serves to 

 indicate the necessity for control in the West Indies, 

 the proper person under given circumstances to carry 

 it out, and the lines of work to be followed. 



Under the heading of Agricultural Engineering, 

 on page 2(Jl, will be found an account of a forth- 

 coming exhibition of tractors to be held in Brabant, 

 Belgium, towards the end of September 1913. 



The successful nature of the work of the United 

 States Inspection and (.JuarantiDe Service is dealt with 

 in an article on page 263. Laying capacity in fowls is 

 also considered on this page. 



Under the caption Insect Notes, on page 2(56, 

 •will be found a useful account of recent work on sugar- 

 cane pests in British (Juiana. The subject of cacao 

 thrips in Florida is also dealt with. 



On page 2G7, the last Annual Report on the 

 Experiment Station, Tortola, is briefly reviewed, and 

 consideration is likewise given to the recently published 

 report on agricultural progress in India, 1911-12. 



'J'he Philippine College of Agriculture is described 

 \mder Students' Corner on page 2(19. 



Fungus Notes, on page 270, include a short 

 account of recent French work on diseases of Jlevea 

 and cacao. 



Trade Products of the British Empire. 



It may be stated without hesitation that the 

 Special .Supplement to the Cliaraher of Ooramerce 

 Journal for July 1913, is a jiublicaiion which will be 

 found of the greatest use and interest to manufacturer 

 and agriculturist alike. More especially will it prove 

 instructive to the planter and estate-owner in the 

 Tropics, foi it gives statistical accounts of the resources 

 of the British Empire as a .supplier of foodstuffs and 

 uf rail' materials for British iii'lustries. ' 



In this brief notice it will not be possible to do 

 more than make reference shortly to those faits 

 presented which relate lo the West Indies in particular. 

 The West Indies, as regards ana. form a very 

 small part of the British Empire, and important 

 markets for many of its products are centreil in Canada 

 and the Uniteil States. Nevertheless in the 

 Supplement under consideration we find first of all 

 under the heading of Arrowroot, the following statement: 

 'The imports of arrowroot to the United Kingdom in 

 1H12 were 28,941 cwt, valued at £49,1.52 of which 

 28,303, cwt. valued at £47,122 came from the Wes5 

 Indies.' The greater part of this quantity was produced 

 in St. Vincent. Aerain under the heading of Coffee, the 

 West Indies and British Guiana take second and third 

 place respectively in regard to the imports of this 

 material into the United Kingdom. Both the amount 

 and value are seen by the figures quoted to be 

 undergoing an increase As is well known, the 

 United Kingdom derives the greater part of its cacao 

 supply from the West Indies. The imports in 1912 

 were 17,344990 ft. valued at £45.5,9M. It may be 

 well to bear in mind, however, that West Africa — in 

 particular the Gold Coast — is rapidly"- catching up the 

 West Indian supply in regard to both quantity and 

 quality. 



In the section dealing with cotton, the British 

 West Indies comes second un the list which is headed 

 by India. This position has been attained rather by the 

 high quality of the produce than the quantity produced. 

 It may be noted that a serious decrease in both amount 

 and value took place in 1912, la regard to other 

 produce, the importance of the West Indian supply of 

 lime products and spices is brought out in the publica- 

 tion. In regard to the latter class of articles, the rapid 

 development of the lime industry in Dominica and 

 St. Lucia would appear to indicate that the West 

 Indian status in this respect, is likely to continue to 

 improve. 



Kegaiding those forms of raw material in the 

 supply of which, to the United Kingdom, the West 

 Indies takes little part, mention may be made of rubber, 

 and to some extent, sugar. It is of general interest to 

 note that the total imports of rubber into the L^nited 

 Kingdom in 1912 were 1,100,471 cwt. valued at no less 

 than £21,-580,331. There is every possibility of an 

 increase in the production of rubber in the British 

 possessions, and part of this development will take 

 place in British Guiana, Trinidad and Dominica. 



In the next column we present a few ideas in 

 regard to the importance of an increased supply of 

 raw material coming from the Tropics. 



