136 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



April 27, 1912, 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



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Vol. XL SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 1912. No. 261. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



The editorial in this number gives attention to 

 the subject of Education in Rural Schools. It compares 

 and contrasts broadly the means for education, particu- 

 larly of an agricultural nature, existing in the West 

 Indies with those in England. 



Page 132 contains an account of a prize-holdings 

 competition held recently in Dominica. 



Two departmental reports are reviewed on i^age 

 loo. These are concerned with the work of the Agri- 

 cultural Department in Grenada, and the work of the 

 Aoricultural Instructor for the Virgin Islands. 



On page 135, there appears an article presenting 

 information in connexion with the temperature of soils 

 in the tropics, under different conditions. The details 

 are based on the results of experimental work that has 

 been carried out recently in St. Kitts. 



The Insect Notes in this issue appear ou page 138. 

 They have reference to the subject of eel worms, or 

 nematodes. Another article, in continuation of the 

 information there given, will appear in the next number 

 of this journal. 



A note treating of the action of radium on plants 

 will be found on page 141. 



On pages 142 and 143, there is presented the second 

 and concluding article, giving the latest information 

 that is available in regard to the Panama disease of 

 bananas, and reviewing earlier work on the subject. 



The Longevity of Seeds. 



The Kcw BuUethi, 1912, p. 11(>, contains a note 

 which presents an interesting instance of seeds that have 

 retained their power of germination for a long period — 

 as much as sixtyreight years. These belong to a legu- 

 minous plant called Alhizzia lophuntha, related to the 

 West Indian ebony or 'women's tongues' {AUdzzia 

 Ijchheh). They were received by .Sir John Herschell from 

 the Cape of (Jood Hope, in 1843, and preserved in his 

 cabinet since bis death in 1871. In 1910 and lltll, 

 seven plants were grown from the seed, of which one, 

 two years old, has attained a height of 10 to 11 feet, and 

 flowered abundantly, but did not jiroduce seed, toward 

 the end of last year. 



Part of the information given concerning the seeds 

 and plants is contained in a letter sent to Kew by 

 .Sir William Herachell, Bart., and since it was writteiL 

 the interestirig plant has been presented by him to 

 the collection at that Institution. 



A Method of Cleaning Ramie Fibre. 



The difficulty of separating the gammy matter 

 from the fibres of ramie has engaged the attention of 

 inventors and others for several years, as it is the 

 existence of this gum which lessens to a large degree 

 the extent to which the cultivation of the ramie plant 

 (Boehmeria nivea) is taken up. With reference to 

 the subject, the Jo»/'nai d' Agriculture Troptcalc for 

 December 1911 states that the Bulletin of the 

 Sociedad Agricola Mexicana announces the invention 

 by a chemist of a soap with a petroleum base which is 

 perfectly suited to the cleaning of ramie. This soap 

 contains about 40 per cent, of petroleum, combined in 

 such a way that it is not dissociated from the soap 

 \\hile this is in use. It is stated to possess a useful 

 power of cleaning fibres of all kinds, and in particular 

 to dissolve completely the gum which causes the fibres 

 of ramie to stick together. 



As is mentioned in the article from which these 

 details are taken, it is impossible without farther 

 information to give any opinion in regard to what is 

 claimed for this soap. Nevertheless, at first sight, 

 consideration of the power possessed by distillation 

 products of petroleum to dissolve certain substances 

 makes it appear possible that unrefined petroleum may 

 exhibit active properties in regard to gums and resins, 

 and that the cleaning of ramie fibres may be facilitated 

 by means of this product. 



Id is stated further that it will be interesting to 

 have additional information concerning this soap, for 

 success in its use should lower considerably the price of 

 clean ramie fibre. 



It may be mentioned that the plant from which 

 ramie, or rhea or Chinese grass cloth, as it is sometimes 

 known, is obtained, belongs to the same Natural Order 

 as the stinging nettle, and that, like that of flax (fAvtim 

 iisitatissimum), the fibre is obtained from the inner 

 bark of the stem. 



