Vol. XV. No. 366. 



THE AGRICULTUKAL NEWS. 



159 



year under report their services were sought after in a manner 

 which indicated that the peasantry appreciated the advantage 

 offered. The boars were stationed in different parts of the 

 Presidency, and were maintained in healthy condition 

 throughout the year. It is known that over a hundred half 

 Ireeds were raised in Tortola during 1914-15. 



Plymouth Eock Fowls. 



Through the kind assistance of the Imperial Commissioner 

 of Agriculture, a trio of Plymouth Piock fowls was purchased, 

 and introduced at the Tortola Experiment Station during the 

 year. The birds are fine specimens, and Won the 1 st prize 

 in the Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition at Barbados in 

 December 1914. The hens have proved excellent layers, and 

 a fair number of eggs for hatching were sold during the year, 

 but some difficulty in raising the pure-bred chickens is being 

 experienced. 



Horses and Donkeys in St. Kitts and Anguilla. 



The stallion imported from Jamaica into Anguilla by 

 Mr. C. Rey, on which a bonus was paid by the Imperial 

 Department of Agriculture, has done good service, and 

 continues in good conditon. 



In St. Kitts a bonus of £-30 was paid to Dr. L. Shannon 

 for the use of his thoroughbred stallion 'Tim Healy' on moder- 

 ate terms for the space of three years. This arrangement has 

 proved a great success and should result in the breeding of 

 some very fine young horses in the near future. 



The jack donkey imported by the local Government from 

 Jamaica for improving the local breed of donkeys has been 

 stationed at Mansion estate. This animal, although of first 

 rate quality and well kept, has not been appreciated by the 

 peasantry, even at the normal rate of the service fee. 



Barbuda Stock Farm. 



Barbuda is a small island managed by the Antigua Gov- 

 ernment. In addition to cotton cultivation a stock farm is 

 maintained on which are raised horses, cattle and mules. In 

 this connexion pastures are kept clear of bush, water-supply 

 by means of wells provided, and paddficks and enclosures 

 maintained, while two thoroughbred stallions and two jack 

 donkeys are kept for service. 



Apart from the stock owned by the Government, a large 

 number of animals exist which are owned by the peasantry, 

 these enjoy in return for the payment of a small annual 

 license the use of the Government stallions, pastures, water- 

 supply, and paddocks. 



In addition to cotton cultivation, areas are each year 

 planted by the Government under maize, Guinea corn, and 

 other fodders, mainly for use as fodder for the stock. 



Spraying for Ticks in Antigua. 



In Volume XIV of the West Indian Bulletin there 

 appeared an article written by Mr. P.T. Saunders, M.R.C.VS., 

 Veterinary Officer on the Staff of the Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, on Spraying for the Control of Ticks in Antigua, 

 This article describes a spraying appliance for the control of 

 these pests, the ordinary local method adopted for the 

 control of ticks, and other information of interest. 



The machine mentioned in the preceding paragraph was 

 erected at Tomlinsons estate in 1913, and has proved effica- 

 cious. Information obtained from the Manager of this estate 

 indicates that the spraying not only frees cattle from ticks, 

 but when the cattle are regularly sprayed and pastured in 

 isolated fields, the pastures are also cleared of the.se pests. 



Cattle newly introduced are sprayed every ten days; others 

 every three weeks. The spraying solution used is Coopers' 

 Cattle Dip. 



As a direct consequence of the above, many estates in 

 the island are subjecting their cattle to periodical sprays of 

 the above solution. It is applied in various ways, in some 

 cases being sprayed on the animals by means of a hand pump, 

 and more recently a dipping tank has been erected on one 

 estate. Particulars in connexion with this tank will be given 

 in a subsequent report. 



LIVE STOCK OBSERVATIONS IN 

 ST. VINCENT. 



The Government Veterinary OfiBcer in St. Vincent, 

 Mr. C P. Stoute, has recently made some observations on the 

 value of dipping dogs for the eradication of fleas and mange. 

 The dip used was the same strength as that used against 

 ticks on cattle, namely 1 oz. of Coopers' Dip to 1 gallon of 

 water. Mr. Stoute states that he has succeeded in getting 

 several of the principal stock owners interested in the ques- 

 tion of spraying cattle, and experiments with a spraying 

 machine are being conducted on the estates. 



Mr. Stoute has also been experimenting on the salting of 

 pork. A pig weighing 118 lb. was killed and salted. This 

 pig, locally bred barrow, razor back type, gave 87^ lb. of 

 pork. The mixture used for salting was 8 B). of common salt, 

 3 B). of white sugar, 2 oz. of saltpetre. The finished product 

 sold readily in St. Vincent. Apparently the only difference 

 between this and the imported article is the thickness of the 

 fat and the difference in the colour. The fat was not as plenti- 

 ful, and the lean was redder than in the case of the importe,-! 

 pork. 



Conservation of Soil Moisture in Sugar- 

 cane Plantations. —The rainfall of Porto Rico is 

 sufficient for the cultivation of sugar-cane, but its distribu- 

 tion during the year is sometimes unfavourable. Methods 

 for the conservation of soil moisture are therefore very 

 useful. The two practicable methods for this purpose are 

 frequent weeding, and mulching with cane trash. 



An experiment was carried out with three plots: one 

 fallow, another mulched with a 6-inch layer of cane trash, and 

 the third hoed to a depth of 2 or 3 inches once a week to 

 represent shallow cultivation. At the end of the period 

 September 8, 1914 to June 1, 1915,- the percentages of 

 humidity in the first 1 2 inches of soil were as follows: — 



Plots. 



1 Fallow 



2 Trash mulch 



3 Shallow cultivation 



Humidity. 



27-8 

 319 

 29-7 



It is therefore evident that mulching is the most 

 advantageous process, especially where the soil has not been 

 hoed. It should be noted that the surplus in favour of 

 mulching represents moisture which is all available to the 

 plants. (JMon'.ldy Bulletin of Agricultural Intelligence owZ 

 Plant Bise<ises for October 1915.) 



