18 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



.1\mu:y 16, 191o. 



who endeavour to conducl parti.- of visitors 

 through such institutions, and make observations 

 on the various point'- of interest, in short, explain 

 things. This idea is soon to be adopted al the Lmper- 

 ial Institute; bul it "ill be applied in a different and, 

 it is believed, a better way. All the lecturing will 

 he done before the visitors proceed to examine the 

 'Collections. This is preferable to the former method 

 for at least two reasons. First, i1 is easier to discuss 



a subject i cisely under the conditions of a lecture 



room than while moving from point to point; secondly, 

 visiters are mentally prepared by this method to take 

 an intelligent interest in the specimens. It maj be 

 added that the Imperial Institute has been able to 

 secure an officer, eminently fitted as a traveller and as 

 an educationist, to undertake this work, which will 

 be principally dene in connexion with the London 

 ■Count) Council and their schools throughout London 

 and the neighbourhood. 



These points should appeal to the West Indies, 

 and help to show the value of a comprehensive 



and up-to-date exhibit. lint there is still another way 

 in which the educational value of the galleries comes 

 out. Occasionally, merely as the result of an enquiry 

 1>\ a casual visitor, a very important investigation 

 arises which may, indirectly at least, be the means of 

 •-considerable development both at home and abroad. 

 Lastly, there is the Imperial aspect. It would seem 

 unnecessary to say much in this connexion, but it may 

 be pointed out that a permanent display of colonial 

 produce in London helps appreciably to maintain 

 mutual interests and sympathy between the Mother 

 ■Country and the Colonies. Politically, therefore, it is 

 desirabl" tor each Colony to do as much a- it em to 

 show to the British public what it produces. 



Leaving these general considerations, we may 

 turn now to a brief description of the West. Indian 



: section as it is at present. It must be understood that 

 its own equipment rests with each Colony, both 

 financially and as regards the number of exhibits, but 

 the amount ofspace occupied is naturally limited by 

 the size of the building, and the relative importance of 

 each group of colonies. In the West Indian section. 

 British Guiana now presents the most exemplary 



■ display. This is largelj die to the combined efforts ot 



the Local Permanent Exhibition Committee and the 

 Department of Science and Agriculture, supported by 

 the enterprise of the British Guiana Government. 



'The first thine which strikes one is the prominence 



gjven to the most important industries. In the middle 



ion is a handsome case, constructed of 



British Guiana crabwood, containing specimens of 

 sugar and sugar products. The specimens are in bulk; 

 tor instance. Demerara sugar is exhibited in half-barrels 

 of longitudinal section. The enquiring visitor likes to 



see things 111 bulk, he wants to be able to handle 



a specimen, whether it be sugar, rubber, rice, or cot ton. 



and, if possible, to be able to take away a small 



quantity with him. This question of specimens in 

 bulk is thereforeol general importance, though here 

 again the factor of limited space comes in. Ag 

 one side of the wall in this section ate cases con- 

 taining specimens of balata, rice, and rubber < >n 

 the opposite side of the section is a collection of 

 minerals, principally auriferous rocks repn senting the 

 gold industry, a collection of great interest, well classi- 

 fied and displayed. < >n the walls, above, are to be si i n 

 diagrams on a largi scale showing the relative impor- 

 tance of the various industries, and space is reserved 

 tor extending the diagrams in future years. Below 

 these is a la ree map of the Colony, designed to indicate 

 the areas under the different crops, and to display other 

 features of economic interest, as for instance, tlie aurif- 

 erous areas and the forest land. The construction of 



the cases from local hirdvv I is a noteworthy feature. 



This is made more prominent by the presence oi two 

 screens constructed of the same material. Specimens 

 are also to be seen of other kinds of timber for which 

 British Guiana is noted. Taken as a whole, the 

 exhibit is attractive and representative. Considerable 

 space is rightly devoted to fibres and cotton. 



The adjoining section, and the one next in impor- 

 tance, belongs to Jamaica and Trinidad. It is under- 

 stood that the Government of Jamaica has decided to 

 follow British Guiana in the matter of increased 

 expenditure on itsdisplaj of exhibits in these galleries. 

 Thus the Jamaica section maj be considered to be 

 under re-arrangement, and. In a more limited sense, 

 the same tnav be said of the other West Indian sections. 

 In a general way there is considerable scope for impro^ e- 



meut. The exhibits of Trinidad sugar, and even of cacao. 



the chief industry, are verj inadequate. But in the 



case of both Trinidad and Jamaica then- is an extensive 

 exhibit of minor products which, as has already been 

 pointed out, is of considerable educational value owing 

 to its local nature. It would be useful to represent 

 Jamaica's principal industry bj models of local I \ grown 

 bananas, as has been done In the Fiji section. 



The Windward and Leeward Islands share half 

 a section. Tins section is under re-arrangement, and 

 there appears to be some room for this. It seems 

 misleading for instance, tor the Virgin [slands a 



