Vol. XV. No. 358. 



THE AGKICULTUKAL NEWS 



■2d 



AGRICULTURAL EXAMINATIONS. 



Peelijiinary Exa.mixation. 



Four candidates presented themselves for this exam- 

 ination: three in Antiiiua, and one in Grenada. Of the 

 Antigua candidates, two sent in papers of such poor cpiality 

 as to lead to their rejection by tlie local examiners. The 

 remaining two papers were answered satisfactorily. In the 

 viva voce examination, the local examiners found the 

 Antigua candidate well grounded in the majority of the 

 subjects of the syllabus, his knowledge of agricultural 

 chemistry and elementary botany being decidedly creditable. 

 His knowledge of agricultural operations was rather weaker, 

 and he had no knowledge of the structure and functions of 

 farm animals. According to the local examiners' report from 

 Grenada, the candidate in that island did better in the 

 written paper than in the oral examination. On the whole, 

 his knowledge of the subjects of the syllabus was very 

 creditable. 



Inte rmediate Ex a m i natiox. 



One candidate only presented himself for this e.fanun- 

 ation this year. In oral examinations conducted by the 

 agricultural officers and by local planters it was found that 

 he was, on the whole, well up in the subjects under examina- 

 tion, although he exhibited weakness in estate practice, his 

 experience having been gained in work connected with the 

 E.xperiment Siaiion. His knowledge of cotton was found 

 to be decidedly good, while his acquaintance with sugar-cane 

 cultivation was found to be somewhat weak. The written 

 papers were fairly well answeretl, except that there was 

 a tendency to be slipshod in the matter of expression. 



RESULTS. 



Preliminary Examination. 



Island. 



Antigua 



Xame. 



E. F. Shepherd 

 S. Hagley 



A. W. Gallwey 



Result. 



2nd class. 

 Grenada 2nd class. 



iNTERMEniATE E\ AMIN.4^TI0N. 



Antigua 1st class 



LIST OK E.VAMINERS. 



The Imperial Department of Agriculture is indebted to 

 the following officers and planters for the care and trouble 

 •exercised in the conduct i)f these examinations: — 

 H. A. Tempany, Esq., D.Sc, F.I.C, Government Chemist and 



Superintendent of Agriculture for the Leeward Islands. 

 T. Jackson, Esq., Curator, Botanic Station, Antigua. 

 R. S. D. Goodwin, Esq., Collins Estate, Antigua. 

 John Roden, Esq., The Cotton Estate, Antigua. 

 -J. C. Moore, Esq., Superintendent of Agriculture, Grenada. 

 D. Hedog Jones, Es(|.,M.A., Princiii;il, Government Secondary 



School, rjrenada. 



The examination papers were prepared as usual at the 

 Office of the Imperial De()artment in Barbados, and the local 

 reports and the corrected papers examined by Dr. Francis 

 Watts. C.M.G., the Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture, and 

 Mr. W. R. Dunlop, the Scientific .Assistant. 



In the next column will be fnund the questions set for 

 the Preliminary paper. The questions set for the Intermediate 

 Examination will be published in thr next issue of the Aijricul- 

 tural News, 



PitELI.MIXARY EXAJIINATIOX. 



The Preliminary Examination of the Imperial Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture was this year held in .\ntigua and 

 Grenada during November. The following are the (piestions 

 set for the written paper: — 



(Jf the thirteen questions set not more than nine were 

 to be attempted, \vhich had to include three from section A, 

 three from section B, and one from section C. The remain- 

 ing two questions were allowed to be selected irrespective of 

 the section. 



A. The Soil. 



1 . To what causes do you attribute the I'ojs of humus 

 in tropical soils > How does this loss compare with the 

 loss in temperate climates I In what ways is the supply 

 maintained in practical agriculture? 



2. Explain the rnle of lime in the soil. 



3. Describe the various measures that may be employed 

 to ensure the proper ventilation of the soil. Why is soil 

 ventilation necessary? 



4. Explain how you would secure a supp!;. oi pho.sphoric 

 acid and potash for the soil without artificial fertilizers. 



■5. Describe how the nitrogen content rit the soil is 

 infiuenced by bacteria. 



B. The Plant. 



6. Describe by means of labelled large scale drawings 

 onli/, the structure of any two of the following: (a) a coco-nut, 

 (b) a cacao pod, (c) a lime fruit, (d) a pine-apple. 



7. Describe (in words only) the habit of growth and 

 rate of development of any species of bean yon have grown. 



8. Give an account of the structure and germination of 

 a grain of Indian corn ( Maize). 



9. Explain the meanings of any five of the following 

 terms: (a) protein, (b) chlorophyll, (c) vascular ti.ssue.s, 

 (d) respiration, (e) stigma, (f) corbohydrate, (g) .saprophyte, 

 (h) embryo. 



10. Describe any cri).ss-pollination experiment you have 

 performed 



C. The Animal. 



11. What is the appearance of a horse's teeth at one 

 year old? Compare this with its dentition at three years. 



12 Describe the digestive system of the ox. 

 1.3. Record any observations you have made in regard 

 to injurious birds and vermin of agricultural crops. 



It is stated in the Voice of Si. Lucia (ov Hecember 4, 

 191.5, that .some twenty donkeys have been imported by the 

 Government, and will be sold at cost price, the object being to 

 improve the breed of donkeys in the island Some of the 

 animals have already been landed; others will arrive soon. 



Some appreciative reviews of the agricultural report of 

 the different islands, issued through the Imperial Ltepartment, 

 appear in the West Indfi Conimiilee Circular for November 

 30, 191.5. Special attention is given to Dominica and 

 Grenada. In connexion with the former, an editorial on the 

 subject concludes that not a stone is being left unturned to 

 establish subsidiary industries to limes in Dominica, and that 

 it will be through no fault of the Local Department of 

 .\griculture if this object is not ultimately achieved. 



