5H 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Nov. i, 1886. 



was made in Wynaatl, as au experiment, in 1822 by 

 Major Bevan, and Komewhat later Mr. Oauiiou opened 

 his celebrated estates in Mysore. The various species 

 of the plant are next enumerated, and a glowing 

 account is quoted of that atrocious and unpronoun- 

 ceable fraud the " Maragogipe " coffee. Indeed, we 

 are inclined to quarrel witli Mr. Arnold for devoting 

 two p>ges to an extract on this subject — which first 

 appeared, if we are not mistaken, iii a circular — and 

 for api^arently accepting the wild statements therein 

 made about that variety of coffee as undoubted f nets; 

 if he had examined anj' of the beans he would have 

 found them rather smaller than ordinai-y coffee instead 

 of being " much larger," and any planter who had 

 experimtnted with it, could have informed him of its 

 worthlessuess, in this couutrj' at least. We next 

 have an account of the climate and soil most suitable 

 for coffee, and may raise a casual objection to the 

 statement that " the best zone of latitude for coffee 

 is 15° ou each side of the equator." As to soil, 

 the recommendations on this point are, we think, 

 good as far as they go, but the author himself 

 remarks that it must be remembered by the intending 

 planter, that "an estate may have everything to 

 recommend it to the external view, and fulfil to a 

 nicety all the conditions he has been taught to seek 

 for, and yet disappoint when the crucial test of crop 

 time comes." In fact, excellence of soil is one of 

 the most deceptive of all tests on which to rely; 

 negatively it may be a good guide, as there are 

 classes of soil which no cue with any experience 

 would care to put coffee in ; but affirmatively it is 

 likely to be neutralised by many other considerations. 

 The next chapter is devoted to an account of the 

 means employed to get together a gang of coolies, 

 and of tbe various races the beginner is likely to 

 come in contact with. Some useful hints are given 

 as to the best way of treating them, so as to gain 

 their confidence, and induce them to remain on an 

 estate ; and the author then proceeds to give details 

 of the vaiious works that have to be undertaken in 

 connection with opening. It is this part of the work 

 that will probably be found most useful to the 

 beginner. The question of cost is an important one, 

 and Mr. Arnold thinks that nobody should attempt 

 to open on his own account with a smaller capital 

 than £5,000. AVe shall have occasion hereafter to 

 aualj'se his "estinaate for bringing 200 acres of forest 

 land into bearing," but even if we adopt the somewhat 

 lavish seale therein advocated, we find the planter who 

 starts with £5,000, at the end of three years with his 

 estate of 200 acres in bearing, all his buildings, ex- 

 cept cattle sheds, complete, and about £2,600 in hand. 

 Now this is a state of felicity which most men, and 

 all coffee planters, would be glad to work a good deal 

 longe for, and, as a matter of fact, comparatively 

 few of those who have succeeded in coffee commenced 

 with as much as this fortunate youth's balance. 



The account of the numerous countries in which 

 coffee can be grown is interesting. Burmah appears 

 as likely to come to the ivoat in this respect as any 

 other place, for the authorities are anxious to establish 

 the industry there, and have offered considerable 

 advantages to planters. The first accounts received 

 from the Tavoy district were rather encouraging, but 

 we have not had much opportunity lately of judging 

 how things are going ou. So much depends upon 

 the course of events in Brazil that we should have 

 liked our author to have given more space to an 

 account of the present state of the cultivation 

 and prospects of coffee in that country. The inform- 

 ation is to be found in Mr. Van Laerne's book, but 

 thi.s is not even referred to. There can be no doubt 

 that the cultivation of coffee in Brazil is gradually 

 declining; but it is dying very hard, and it would be 

 difficult to say with certainty that the influence of 

 Brazil coffee on the markets of the world is appreci- 

 ably less than it was five years ago. The abolition 

 of slavery, and the consequent inability of proprietors 

 to work their estates as economically as they now ilo, 

 ate powerfully destructive agents, but absolute predic- 

 tion on this matter is nearly useless. Of the other 

 ountriej noticed as likely to compete with India and 



Java, little need be said here. Ceylon need not 

 have been omitted by Mr. Arnold from his list, for 

 the export is stiil Jarge, though terribly decreased; 

 m Natal, the attempt to grow coffee has been an 

 utter faiure and there does not appear to be much 

 likelihood of estalishing it in Queensland. New Guinea 

 appears to be adapted for ths purpose, but immigration 

 to that great island is not yet encouraged. The West 

 Indies, espt-cially Jamaica, produce a limited quantity 

 of very fine cuffee, but ou the whole "middling 

 plautatiou " appears likely to decrease in quantity, and 

 rise in value m the near future.— 3/af/)'«s Mail 



Scientific Tea Manuiactvee.—" Another Old 

 Plaoter," writing to the Indian Daih/ News, takes 

 up this subject, and abu-es all who differ from him 

 in the necessity for a "scientific" knowledge of Tea- 

 making in ludii\. He states that he does not believe 

 there is a man in India with the reijuisite scientific 

 knowledge. As long as there are meu with a Practical 

 knowledge of Tea making, and who can succeed in 

 making good Tea to fetch good prices, we should 

 prefer them to any number of chemical experts. 

 You mav overdo even chemical analysis. We should 

 have thouglit that if the cognomen "Old Planter" 

 is a correct one, he might have told us something 

 about the "'science iu Tea-making " of which he* 

 says all are ignorant ; but although he claims to have 

 age and experience, and presumedly therefore " scientific 

 knowledge," he seems indisposed to part with any 

 of the results of the latter for the benefit of his 

 neighbours.— ///d/fljj Tea Gazette. 



A Plague of Eaewigs. — Earwigs are a perfect 

 plague here; the place is swarming with them. 

 They eat the hearts out of lettuces, injure fruit trees, 

 and otherwise do harm in the garden. Is there any 

 ready way of getting rid of them ?— Hazelwood 

 (King's Langley, Herts). [These destructive insects 

 cannot be destroyed upon the plants they are devouring, 

 but they can be trapped in several ways. The 

 dahlia grower places small pots, partly filled with dry 

 moss, upon the tops of the stakes, into which they 

 gather for shelter and security through the day. 

 These he examines every morning, and casts the 

 occupants into hot water. The fruit grower places 

 pieces of beanstalk Sin. or 9in. in length about his 

 trees, and once at least every day blows the earwigs 

 into a bottle of hot water. Earwig traps, too, can 

 be obtained from dealers in horticultural requisites, 

 but their superiority over the gardener's jjrimitive 

 contrivances is doubtful. The insects being so very 

 numerous in your garden, get small pots Sin. diameter, 

 by the score or the hundred, put a small piece of 

 dry moss into each pot, place them ou their sides 

 in j'our lettuce beds, anywhere and everywhere about 

 the garden, where they will be partially or entirely 

 covered by the foliage or other shelter from raia. 

 Equipped with a cau of hot water, send a boy round 

 every morning — the earlier the better after they have 

 retired from their night's feed — and he will soon 

 make a perceptible reduction in their number. Some 

 put a piece of raw potato into each pot, but this is 

 superfluous, as the earwigs go out to feed by night, 

 and only require a dry shelter from rain aud cold. 

 This .system of catching and killing is the best for 

 the time being ; but, to prevent a recurrence of the 

 plague another year, dress your lettuce and other 

 beds with gas lime as .soon as the crop is off, and 

 let it lie until the time arrives for winter digging. 

 Scrape the surface soil away from nut bushes and 

 other fruit trees, and let i»; be burned, but do not 

 place the gas lime near the stems, as it is powerful 

 and dangerous to the roots. Collect all the soapsuds 

 from the laundry into tubs or tanks, and, so soou 

 as the leaves have fallen from the trees, commence 

 washing every twig and stem, also the old walls and 

 trellises, with the garden, engine or an old syiinge. 

 Eepeat the washings throushout the winter as often 

 as the supply of soapsuds will admit, and the earwigs 

 will not again trouble you. The benefit will not, 

 however, end here, as moss, lichen, and the larvje 

 of other insects will disappear. — Field, 



