iK8 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



'?» 



[Sept. i, 1886, 



A fIRAND SUKSKT AMIPST THE STORM — FIEE, FIREWOOD 

 AKD ARTIFiriAI. FTjEI, — MR. GEO. WALL V, SIR SAMUEL 

 RAKEK OX CETLON SOILS — TITE IMPERLU. DUTY ON 

 TEA — THE NATIVES AND LOCAL TAX.\TION AND GOVERN- 

 MENT RAINFALL DISTRIBUTION ON THE HILLS 0¥ 



CETLON. 



Upper Lindula, Aug. 10. 

 I ought to have mentioned that the storm of 

 Saturday, which, in the shape of wind and drizzle, 

 still continues, was preceded on Friday evening by 

 one of the most glorious possible sunsets. Golden 

 beams of light coming over the summit of Rilla- 

 galla, striking on the flanks of Great Western and 

 illuminating the whole valley of Dimbula were set 

 off by a perfect rolling sea of clouds floating over 

 Dikoja and Maskeliya. First snow white and win- 

 try looking, the masses of cloud slowly darkened 

 and then as the sun was sinking, put on an in- 

 describably beautiful cobalt blue. The whole circle 

 of mountains by which we are here enclosed, from 

 Pidurulallagalla round by Totapale, Kirigalpota, 

 Elbf-dde, Talangkande, with the summit of the 

 Peak, overtopping it, to Great Western, stood clearly 

 revealed. We at first, naturally, anticipated a 

 clearing up of the weather, but there were signs of 

 anger on the horizon of the beautiful sky which 

 too truly predicted what came to pass, the approach 

 of a storm during which, for three days, (this is 

 the fourth,) we have known of the existence of the 

 central orb of our system, only by light struggling 

 through wind-driven drizzle an:I canopies of dense 

 mist. Better planting weather, barring the evapor- 

 ating w.nd, which chills the poor coolies, there could 

 not bo. Any one visiting this valley or Nuwara 

 Eliya in such weather would be very apt to go 

 away with a very erroneous impression of the 

 climate, which for & large portion of the year is 

 most enjoyable. Indeed even in such weather as 

 this, although the magnificent scenery may be 

 hidden, healthy exercise can be taken, if only 

 thick-soled boots, good great coats and umbrellas 

 are put in requisition. When once the weather is 

 faced, the discovery is made that both wind and 

 rain sound worse when we are indoorb than when 

 in the open air we give them battle. The great 

 point is, on return from a walk or ride in wet 

 weather to obey the Scotch injunction of " change 

 ye're feet," the change being carried further, but 

 the additional injunction of ''gang into the tire " 

 being obeyed with some qualification. What a com - 

 fort a bright warm fire is ; but how rapidly fire- 

 wood disappffifs, when the requisitions of "the 

 Factory" are added to those of the hundred- 

 peopled lines and the bungalow, I cannot doubt 

 that ere long artificial fuel will come to our aid in 

 the shape of petroleum and other substances in 

 wh'Ch the preatest possible amount of caloric 

 is compressed into the smallest possible space. 

 Our forest up in this region is sparse beyond what 

 any external and superficial view would indicate, 

 the redeeming feature as to quality of soil being 

 the dense and luxuriant undergrowth of /f(7///. We 

 have found this all prevalent shrub a true index 

 of fertility, but it is of little value for heating 

 t)Uiiioses. By the way what is to be said about 

 Mr. George Wall's assertion that our Ceylon mineral 

 soil is generally rich ? Most authorities, hitherto, 

 have recognized the paucity of phosphates as a 

 serious defect, Baker attributing lo this cause, the 

 disproportionately small antlers of our elk or rather 

 sambur deer, and the fact that, while in South 

 Africa all elephants, females as well as males, 

 bear tusks, in Ceylon only one in sixty of the 

 males and none of the females produce ivory. 

 Surely Mr. Hughes' analyses proved that our soils 

 icere somewhat deficient in phosphoric acid. Our 

 iffei but warm insular climate bas been supposed 



hitherto to compensate for a soil, poor in compari- 

 son with the black free earths of India and the 

 decomposed volcanic muds and ashes of Java. Mr. 

 Wall's tendency has ever been to take sanguine 

 views of the capabilities of Ceylon and we know 

 how to the last he refused to believe in the decad- 

 ence of coffee, although predicted by his 

 friend " dear old Thwaites." Aided by our 

 moist . warm meteorological conditions, our soil 

 generally, is excellent for tea, but inevitably, 

 we must ultimately supply phosphoric acid, potash 

 and nitrates to our soil, when exhausted by in- 

 cessant harvesting of cropsi of leaves. It is true 

 that those leaves are three-fourths moisture, but 

 the remaining fourth — which leaves the land as 

 dried tea, at the rate of 200 lb. to 500 lb. per 

 acre per annum, — carries away a very appreciable 

 amount of mineral matter. The question is, whether 

 the consumers of tea will consent to pay the pro- 

 ducers a price sufficient to enable them to manure 

 their lands when manuring is, as the doctors say, 

 " indicated." The sixpence per pound duty is a 

 very serious consideration, in this light, and per- 

 haps that heaven-born Chancellor of the Exchequer, 

 Lord Randolph Churchill, may surprise and delight 

 us all by a reduction of the impost to one-half 

 its present incidence. As to Mr. Wall being a 

 special sympathizer with the natives, this sympathy 

 took the form of advocating the abolition of one 

 of the very few taxes they pay, that on native - 

 grown and imported grain, a bread-tax and, there- 

 fore, objectionable in theory ; but, as the Observer 

 ever contended and still holds, better a tax on 

 grain (fruit, vegetable and root cultivation, includ- 

 ing coconuts, being free), than no revenue where- 

 with to construct roads, irrigation works and all 

 other improvements, including the extension of 

 elementary education, on which the progress of a 

 country and people, the natives of Ceylon included, 

 depends. It is just as well to recall the fact that 

 Sir Wm. Gregory, who gave Mr. Wall such special 

 credit for sympathy with the natived, not only 

 embodied in his dit;patches views identical with 

 those held by the Observer, but that he did us 

 the honour to quote from our articles, the tendency 

 of which was, " Better a moderate tax on one 

 staple article, from all previous time a subject of 

 taxation, than an acreage tax which would include 

 every food substance from the sweet-potato and 

 the pumpkin to the coconut and jialmyra fruit." 

 The bobt friends of the natives and of the masses 

 everywhere are not those who tell them, "Base is the 

 rogue who pays" — taxes. Mr. Wall is an able man 

 who has done good work in his day, but we decline 

 to recognize his efforts to sweep away a large 

 portion of the revenue of the island, easily raised 

 and lightly felt, as a service to the natives ; while 

 cominonsense and expediency are simply outraged 

 when it is contended that a Crown Colony can 

 be governed on the principle that the Queen's 

 representative, who is personally responsible, ought 

 in all cases to allow perfect freedom of vote to 

 the servants of Government who are members of 

 the Legislative Council, even if his policy of 

 necessary revenue, public works, education, Ac. is 

 as a consequence overset. Questions of religion 

 and conscience being reserved, we hold that the 

 Governor of a Crown Colony like Ceylon can 

 demand from the servants of the Crown under his 

 rule, the same support which the Prime Minister 

 of the Sovereign has a right to demand from his 

 associates in Government. 



But I have wandered far from my subject which 

 is the question of comparative Rainfall in various 

 localities and at difi'erent elevations. We had a 

 pretty heavy rainstorm here on Saturday last at 

 an elevation of 5,800 feet and at a distance of 



