328 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



OcTOBEE IG, 1909. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



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 Commissioner, Imperial Department of Agriculture, 

 Barbados. 



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 News' should be addressed to the Agents, and not to 

 the Department. 



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 will be found on page 3 of the cover. 



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^ijriciiltiiral ^Iriu 



Vol. VIIL SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1909. No. 19.5. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



In this number, the editorial has for its subject 

 the Imperial Institute. Especial reference is made to 

 the aim and scope of the work of this institution. 



On page 323. tlie results of the sugar-cane variety 

 experiments in Antigua, for the season l!>08-9, are 

 summarized. 



An interesting account of the way in which nitrate 

 of lime is manufactured appears on page 325. 



Page 327 contains information which deals with 

 the question as to what becomes of the rubber that is 

 left in trees that have been tapped, and with the ways 

 in which eel-worms are conveyed to soil which has 

 previously been free I'rom them. 



In Insect Notes (page 330) an interesting article, 

 which is illustrated, has for its subject Cotton Stainers. 



In the Students' Corner, on page 333, a useful 

 diagram, which will serve as a guide in n\i.\ing manures, 

 is given. 



The Annual Reports of the Botanic Suilions, etc., 

 in Antigua and (iienada, are noticed on page 334. 



Cases of sudden death among fowls are often 

 difficult to diagnose without a po.'^t mortem examina- 

 tion. On page 33.5 hints are given which shoulil 

 enable such an examination to be conducted in 

 a simple, but useful, manner. Information is also 

 given, on the same page, with regard to the progress 

 of the rubber industry in Nigeria. 



A Correction. 



The second word in the last paragraph but one on 

 page 319 of the last issue (No. 194) of the Agricidtiiral 

 Neios should be ' Dominica '. 



Cotton in Rhod,esia. 



According to the Empire lieriew for September 

 1909, satisfactory reports are being received which 

 show that short, and medium stapled cotton of an 

 excellent quality can be succesfully grown in both 

 North-eastern and North-western Rhodesia. Samples 

 from an experimental plantation of about 50 acres, 

 grown from E^yptinn and American seed, were sent to 

 the Briiibh Cottun Growing Association for inspection, 

 and were reported to be of good colour and of long and 

 strong staple, tlie value being 7 Id. to SUl. per ft. 

 Further samples of Abassi and Upland from another 

 plantation were highly commended by the British- 

 Cotton Growing Association, and were valued at Sd. 

 to Sir/, per lb., with Jliddling American at iyijiid. per lb. 

 Cotton has, for some years, been shipped from North- 

 eastern Rhodesia to Liverpool, but the progress of the 

 industry has been slow, and it has been conducted on 

 more or less experimental lines. Awakening interest, 

 however, gives h6pe of its speedy development. 



Experiments with Camphor in Jamaica. 



An account of experiments with camphor, which 

 were carried out at the Government Laboratory, 

 Jamaica, is given in the Report of the Department of 

 Agriculture for that island for the year 1908. Weighed 

 quantities of different parts of the stem, which were 

 obtained from trees growing at Knockalva Pen, were 

 subjected to steam distillation, and the distillate suit- 

 ably treated in order to separate oil and camphor, the 

 latter then being heated over quicklime for the purpose 

 of getting the pure sublimate. The highest yield of 

 camphor was obtained from the tips of the shoots. The 

 amounts of camphor oil and camphor that were obtained, 

 on an average, from the whole stem were respectively 

 23 per cent, and 02s per cent., making a total of 

 O'ol per cent. 



The West Indian Bulletin, Vol. IX, pp. 275-G, 

 gives an account of somewhat similar experiments that 

 have been carried out at the Government Laboratory 

 and Botanic Station in Antigua. In these, oil only was 

 obtained, and it was found that the wood gave 0'4 per 

 cent, of this, while the amount that was obtained from 

 the leaves and twigs was 1'2 per cent. Thus in both 

 cases the observation was made that the younger parts 

 of the plant give the largest fields. 



Science in the Primary Schools, Grenada. 



A Rule has recently been made by the Board of 

 Education, Grenada, whereby an old Rule of the 

 Primary Education Ordinance, 1907, which defines 

 various conditions under which bonuses may be given to 

 head teachers from any special sums voted friun public 

 revenue lor such purposes, is amended in tiie following 

 way. Special bonuses will be paid to head teachers of 

 CDmbined schools for efficient instrijction in (a) Practi- 



