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A FORTNIGHTLY REVIEW 



OF THE 



IMPERIAL DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOR THE WEST INDIES. 



Vol. XV. No. 368. 



BARBADOS, .JUNE 3, 1916. 



Price Id. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 



Giowiny; 



British Cotton 



Association 



California, Exiieriuu'nts 

 witli Tropical i 'rop.s in... 



Chemical Hygrometer. .\ 

 New 



Chlorate as a Manure, 

 Poisonous Nature of ... 



Colonial Journal 



Corn Cultivation 



Clorn Cultivation in St. Vin- 

 cent, Encouragement nf 1K4 



Cotton Conference: — 

 Thii'd Day's Proceedings 

 ( a^mrliidtd.) 



Gleanings 



(Jrenada. Agricultural 

 Activities in 



Grenada. Peasant Agricul- 

 ture in 



Cirenada .Scholarshi)] 



is:; 



I'.MI 



I'.n 



18! » 

 IS.-) 



1S7 



182 



ISS 



IS!) 



ISO 

 ]S4 



Page. 



Insect Notes: — 



'I'lic Dispersal of Leaf- 



lili.Mer Mite of Cotton ISO 



Iicin- of Local Interest ... 18(1 



MarUet Reports 192 



New Marine Industries ... 185 



Notes and Comments ... 184 

 Plant Disease Legislation, 



Modern Views Regarding 177 

 Porto Rico, Cover Crops 



in 181 



(^iueensland, Reafl'oresta- 



tion in VM\ 



Sea Island Cotton Market ISl 



Soil Temperatinx' ... , 1S,"> 



\'ett'rlnary Work in India I'-U 



,\Ves.t Indian Products ... I'.M 

 West Indian Sour Grasses, 



r...f.niical Identity of .. 17'-' 



Zeliu (■ osses in It'alv ... l'"' 



Modern Views Regarding Plant Disease 

 Legislation, 



•II l'^ ijuestioii ot Ifoislating for the control ot 

 ^plant diseases presents many and great 

 [difficulties, some of which, at least, are not 

 appreciated by the lay mind. -V paper on the subject 

 appears in the recent issue of the West Indian. 

 Bulletin (Vol. XV, No. 8), by Dr. Francis Watts, 

 C.M.G., Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture for the 

 West Indies, which .should pr<'\" helpful to all con- 

 cerned with this import:mt siiViject. In this it is 



pointed out first, that the demand for legislation gener- 

 al!}' arises from the occurrence of some destructive 

 outbreak, which is sufficiently alarming to give rise to 

 the feeling that the (Jovernment should promptly 

 intervene with a \ iew to eradication. Generally the 

 object in view is to prevent the spread of the trouble 

 from the lands of those who may be negligent to the 

 lands of those who are endeavouring to control the 

 trouble. It is nearly always a simple matter to cope 

 with a situation of this kind, but when other pests and 

 diseases which are of such a nature as to give less cause 

 for alarm appear, the question of Government interven- 

 tion is not so simple. There are many difficulties in 

 conne.xion with legislating against these less alarming 

 troubles. In the first place it may be diffictdt exactly 

 to define the nature of tiie particular pest or disease 

 to be able to state what are the e.xact causes, and for 

 scientific advisers to bo ,ible to suggest definite reme- 

 dies or methods of prevention. Moreover, when 

 a disease assumes only a minor degree of importance, 

 there are local wranglings and doubts as to the real 

 necessity for rigorous action, and this leads to adminis- 

 k-utive troubles. It is nevertheless clear that the 

 State ought to concern itself in an intelligent and 

 enlightened manner with the general control of plant 

 pests and diseases, and Dr. Watts in his paper referred 

 to above, suggests that this might be done as follows. 

 All pests and diseases of plants shotdd, it is considered, 

 be regarded as falling into two categories: namely, 

 those that are of considerable gravity, and those, which 

 while troublesome, are of a lesser degree of seriousness. 

 In regard to diseases of the first class, legislation should 

 provide for the definition and description, and should 

 make provision for detection, notification and ultimate 

 control for the use of the proper authority. Pests 

 and diseases of this class might be known as 



