ToL. Yin. No. 182. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



123 



AGRICULTURE AND TRADE IN THE 



LEEWARD ISLANDS. 



Ill liis adiliess t'l the geiici.'jj ].,oj:;isIative Council 

 of llie Lcewaril Iblaiuls (ui ' I'Vbiii.-iiy 22 last, his 

 E.\(:'elleiicv Sir Bickliaiti Swce'l-E.-cott, K.C.M.G., 

 refeiieil lu t.lie niaiked iiii|irove'iiient which had taken 

 jjlace in ilie trade of (acli Pie.'sidency in the colony 

 durinj,' the past five y». us. This improvement is in 

 large measure due to the development and extension of 

 the ayrienltiiial industries of the several islands. 



Hel'errjiig in the tir.«t place td Antigua, the Governor 

 pointed out the lieneticial intluonce ' which the two central 

 ^ugar factories at Gunthorpe's anil Bcndal's had exercised 

 upon the trade of the island since thev were started. Another 

 ini|)ortant factor, of course, was the ciiltivation and export of 

 j:-otton. 'I'he value of the cotton shipped from Antigua 

 increased from £1,-508 in l&O-f to £17,479 in 1907. In 

 1908, notwithstanding a short croji and reduced prices, the 

 cotton exported was valued at £12,9^^. 



The financial conditions of St. Krtt's-Nevis were also in 

 >i satisfactory state, and this mu>t be in large measure 

 iittributcd to the increased output of sugar from St. Kitt's, 

 and the development of the cotton industry in the islands of 

 St. Kifi's'-Nevis and Anguilla. The revenue of Anguilla 

 in 190.J-'i was £57-^ I2.i. Id., but in 1007-8 it had increased 

 to £1,001. 



Sir Bickham Sweet-Escott tiit-n alluded to the great 

 development of the lime and cacao industries at Dominica 

 which have been the principal cause of increased revenue in 

 that i.sland. The total value of the Dominica trade had 

 increased by no less than £111,02."? in the past five years. 



Mont.serrat had also experienced increased prosperity of 

 recent years, although it had not the resources of some other 

 islands in the Leeward group. The value of the cotton 

 exports from Montserrat had advanced from £2,072 in 1901 

 -to £28,370 in 1908. 



Cotton, too, had been an im]jorlant source of prosperity 

 to the Virgin Lslands, and the .shi[)ments of lint from that 

 Presidency in 1908 were valued at £1,992. A hope was 

 expres.sed that the development of the lime industry might 

 prove to be equally profitalde to those islands in the future. 



Sir Bickham Sweet-Escott then referred to the unfortu- 

 nate experience of cotton growers in the past two seasons 

 owing to low yields and reduced prices. In tho.se islands of 

 the Presidency where a heavy yield per acre could be expect- 

 ed with confidence, there was no doubt that this cro]) would 

 give a remunerative return ; but since the results of the past 

 two seasons had not been so profitable as those obtained when 

 the industry was first started, he ex[iressefl a hope that iilant- 

 ers would not lose sight of the possibilities of other crops, 

 which, if included in their cultivation.s, might give lucrative 

 returns. 



At the conclusion of that part of his address which 

 rtdated to agricidtural industries, the Governor referred again 

 to the central factory question. He kthided to the profitable 

 results that had been obtained at Antigua, and suggested 

 that if a central factory were established at St. Kitt's and 

 were managed with the same ettii-iency as the factory at 

 Antigua, even better results might be obtained than in the 

 latter island. He .should be very glad to .see the inhabitants 

 of St. Kitt's participating in the advantages which Antigua 

 now derived from the e.xistence of ' the;^ two central factories 

 in that island. 



EDUCATIONAL EXHIBITS AT AGRI- 

 CULTURAL SHOWS. 



Tlie stimulating influence and educational value 

 "f iirofieily c"nduct(d Agricultural Shows are too 

 obvious to neod ninch comment. At these f'unctii'ns 

 e\eiy competitor and visitor has a eluiiiee of comparimr 

 the results obtained ly the prize-winners vvitii those 

 achieved on ihoir ouii holdings, and of ascertaining 

 the methods by which. .these results were bioiight 

 about. Ill this way the iiiHiienee of intelligent caie 

 and attention and superior methods of cultivation 

 upon the nature of the return is amply demonstrated 

 for the benefit of all. 



Apart from the comjietitive side of these meetings, it is 

 interesting to note that increasing attention has of late been 

 given at many of the prominent Agricultural Shows in Great 

 Britain and other countrie.s, to the display of certain classes 

 of exhibits which have for their aim a purely educational 

 function. Such exhibits include specimens of agricultural 

 plants showing signs of various diseases, or of attack by 

 insects, mounted .specimens of insects responsible for damage 

 to crops, collections of fungicide.s, insecticide.s, spraying and 

 dusting apparatus, samples of various kinds of artificial 

 manures, prepared feeding stuffs, specimens of plants which it 

 is proposed to introduce into local cultivations, or improved 

 varieties of crops already generally cultivated. Such collec- 

 tions are, of course, usually prepared and arranged under the 

 direction of Agricultural Departments, Colleges, or 

 Experiment Stations. Diagrams illustrating in a gra|ihic way 

 points to which it is desired to draw special attention are 

 frequently found very useful in connexion with these educa- 

 tional sections, and an officer from the Department or Station 

 is generally in attendance to explain points that give rise to 

 enquiry. 



At the .Agricultural Show held at Port-ofSpain, Trini- 

 dad, in January last, a very interesting collection of 

 exhibits, such as those to which reference has been made, was on 

 view. The total number of .separate exhibits reached about 140. 

 Among these were included twenty-eight samples of ditierent 

 fungicides and insecticides-^-botli liijuid and .solid, with four 

 kinds of s[vraying machines; there were also twenty-eight speci- 

 mens of various jilant diseases affecting the principal crops of 

 the colony — cacao, sugar, fruit tree.s, etc.; parasites, such as 

 the 'love vine,' were also repre-sented. In addition, visitors to 

 the Show had opportunities of exannning the various life 

 stages of the chief insect jipsts affecting cacao, cocoa-nuts, 

 sugar-cane, oranges, etc., in Trinidad. The final class in the 

 section consisted of twenty-.six exhibits illustrating various 

 natural and artificial sources of plant food, and comprised 

 a number of leguminous plants, such as 'IminorteF (Erythrina), 

 velvet bean, (>igcoii peas, ' sensitive plant ' (Mimosa j/iidira), 

 et<\, carefully removed from the soil, and showing the nodule.s 

 formed on the roots by the nitrogen-fixing bacteria which are 

 associated with plants of this order, together with many 

 specimens of artificial manures. 



The exhibit thus organized by the Department 

 created a fair amount of interest, which should be an 

 encouragement for maintaining the 'educational section' 

 at subsequent Shows. 



