300 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



June 20. 1914. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



Letters and matter for publication, as well as all 

 specimens for naming, should be addressed to the 

 Commissioner, Imperial Department of Agriculture, 

 Barbados. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agricultural 

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

 the Department. 



Local Agents: Advocate Co., Ltd., Broad St., 

 Bridgetown. London Agents: Messrs. Dulau & Co., 

 37, Soho Square, W.; West India Committee, Seeth- 

 ing Lane, E.C. The complete list of Agents will be 

 found on page 3 of the cover. 



The Agricultural News : Price \cl. per number, 

 post free 2d. Annual subscription payable to Agents, 

 2s. 2d. Post free, 4s. 4d. 



|i!9riciittiir;il ^tiuii 



Vol. XIIL SATURDAY, JUNE 20, 1914. No. 317 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Oontents of Present Issue. 



The recent discussion in South Africa on climatic 

 changes in that country has suggested the subject of 

 vegetation and the conservation of rainfall, which is 

 dealt with editorially in this issue. 



Under the heading of Fruit and Fruit Trees, on 

 page 196, a review is given of the canned pine- apple 

 trade. An article on the exportation of grape fruit 

 from East Africa also appears on this page. 



Under Depxrtmental Reports, on page 197, will be 

 found a review of the work done in connexion with the 

 new Government Land Settlement and Experiment 

 Station in .St. Lucia. A short note appears as well on 

 the Annual Report on Agricultural Education (1912-13) 

 in the Lnion of South Africa. 



Publications of the Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture. 



The next number of the West Indian Bulletin, 

 Vol. XIV, No. 2, will contain papers on soil chemistry, 

 veterinary science, and miscell.'meous subjects. An 

 interesting study of the results of the manurial experi- 

 ments with cacao conducted at the Botanic Station, 

 Dominica, will appear in the form of a p<iper by Mr. 

 H. A. Teiiipany, "whilst the same writer coiitributea 

 another paper on the bacterial relationships of certain 

 soils in the West Indies. Three papers on veterinary 

 subjects will appear, written by Mr. P. T. Saunders, 

 M.R.C.V.S., Veterinary Officer to the Imperial Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture. These comprise the following 

 subjects: Spra}ing for the Control of Ticks in Antigua, 

 Notes on Some Parasites of Live Stock in the West 

 Indies, and a paper on Mai de Caderas. 



The 1914. edition of the West Indies in Canada 

 is now nearing completion, and will be issued 

 about the middle of July. Ic will contain one or two 

 new features, and many changes have been made in 

 respect of the illustrations. In connexion with this 

 publication (which is distributed gratis at the Canadian 

 National Exhibition held at Toronto), it may be men- 

 tioned again that Mr. C. S. Pickford, of the firm of 

 Messrs. Pickford & Black, Limited, Halifax, has advised 

 that non-perishable goods should go forward by the 

 S.S. 'Chignecto', leaving Denierara July 23, and perish- 

 able goods by the S S. 'Chaudiere', leaving Denierara 

 August 27. (See Agricultural Neics for May 9, 1914.) 

 Jlr. Pickford has further advised that adequate and 

 prominent space has been secured for the display of 

 the W^est Indian exhibits. 



Two important articles entitled, respectively, Nitri- 

 :fication and Disease, and The Bacterial Treatment of 

 Peat, appear under the general heading Soil and Plant 

 ■Growth, on page 198. 



Two notes occur in this issue dealing with tropical 

 development, on pages 200 and 206 respectively. 



Under Insect and Fungus Notes, a new invention 

 in the form of a soil sterilizer composed of carbon 

 bisulphide in emulsion is described in detail on pages 

 202 and 203. 



Tropical Development. 



Of recent years much more attention has been 

 given in England and other European countries to the 

 development by means of capital and literature of the 

 Tropics than was formerly the case. An attractive 

 publication, entitled 'Invest in the Tropics' has recently 

 been issued by the Tropical Agriculture Development 

 Agency, London. This book describes in a popular 

 way the cultivation and the scope before the invest- 

 ment of capital in tropical crops. Reference is made 

 to the rising prices of food and to the increased demand 

 in manufacturing centres for raw produce like oils and 

 fibres. As might be expected, a large amount of 

 attention is given to coco- nuts, owing to the wide 

 varieties of uses to which this plant can be put and its 

 general importance in the manufacturing industries. 



Special reference is made in places to the position 

 of tropical agriculture in the West Indies, and on jiage 

 48 will be found an extract from an editorial in the 

 Agricultural News on the market prices for West 

 Indian coco-nuts, and another on page 103, which 

 discusses the market conditions in respect of the lime 

 industry. 



The publication is well illustrated, and should 

 serve a useful purpose in the matter of bringing the 

 Tropics more prominently before the eyes of British 

 and American investors. 



