Feb. I, 1887.J tME TROPICAL AG^ICtJLirtJRiS'r. 



565 



and without the least air-bubble. Then all are raised 

 together, plate, bouquet, and bell-glass filled with water, 

 and placed on a table, carefully wiping the exterior, but 

 leaving on the plate, around the base of the bell-glass, 

 a little provision of water which prevents the entrance 

 of air. The flowers in this condition will be preserved 

 in all their freshness for several weeks, and their 

 beauty is iucreased by a great number of bubbles of 

 gas produced by the respiration of the leaTes, and 

 which attach themselves to the petals appearing like 

 pearls. The edge of the plate and the water that it 

 contains should be concealed by a light bed of moss in 

 which are set some other flowers. In the evening by 

 artificial light, a bouquet thus arranged produces a 

 charming effect." — Jndtan Agiiciduirist. 



Fair Pat kor Ocean Mail Sektice. — Although 

 Oougress failed to make fair provision for American 

 vesseis carrying freight mails, it is mtt resting to 

 kno^v that the bnsiuess men of this city are in 

 favour of fair play for ocean mail service. The 

 following is a memorial sent to Congress on the 

 question :-"It is applying the same principle to carry- 

 ing the mails between the United States and neighbour- 

 ing countries that is applied to our coastwise 

 steamship lines and to our entire postal system, and 

 which has given other nations Jhe world's trade. 

 Steamships build up their respective countries just 

 as trunk lines of rail road do their respective termini. 

 We have only about 6 per cent of the Spanish-American 

 trade, which for contiguity and natural laws of tr^de 

 would, with proper steam communication, naturally 

 come to us. We are now carrying only 14 61-100 

 per cent of our own products, against 75 per cent 

 in 1859. Our country needs an outlet for her products. 

 The last steamer in the South American line took 

 out merchandise manufactured in twenty-six different 

 States. This is no party question. It is business 

 common sense that if we would obtain our share of 

 the world's trade, we must do as our competitors, 

 do to obtain it. A cry of 'anti-subsidy' cannot fairly 

 be applied to a proposition to pay American steamers 

 a fair price for a necessary service. The same cry, 

 if heeded, would stop three-quarters of the mail 

 routes in the United States." This memorial was 

 signed by the leading busmess men of New Yoixi, 

 and particularly by houses interested in foreign trade. 

 The number included eight bank presidents and 189 

 prominent in^porting and manufacturing firms. — 

 American Exporter. 



Thb Wobld's Sugar Pkoduction.— The statistics 

 of the world's production of sugar .■'how that there 

 is a steady and large annual increase. The amount 

 of cane sugar produced in the season of 1885-l> was 

 2,905,000 tons, an increase of 733,000 tons over that 

 of 1884-5 and 1,078,583 tons over that of 1875 6. Cuba 

 led the list with (500,000 tons this season, which was 

 a falling off' of 27,000 tons from the year before and 

 61,058 tons less than in 1875 6. There was also a 

 decrease in the product of Java, the nest greatest 

 source of supply, of 60,000 tons from the yield of 

 1884-5. But in the production of almost all other 

 cane growing countries there has been, as shown by 

 the totals, a marked advance. The yield of beet- 

 root sugar (2,014,000 this season) has fallen off 501,000 

 tons from the last annual report, but comparison 

 with the statistics of 1K75 6 show a growth of 702,689 

 toi)8 in ten years. These reports do not recognize 

 glucose and grape sugar, or sorghum sugar or maple 

 sugar, and, are evidently made up from the basis of 

 of commercial statistics concerning the sugar that 

 has entered the market. Beyond this there are 

 vast quantities of cane sugar produced for domestic 

 ■ nse in all tropical countries and consumed by the 

 producers and their immediate neighbours, which do 

 not enter into the computation. The most notable 

 increase in any country is in the beet root sugar 

 yield of Russia, which has grown from 222,000 tons 

 in the sea,son of 1875-6 and 386,000 tons in 1884-5 up 

 to 525,000 tons in 1885-6. — AmtrKaii Exporter. 



I'oiiESTKY AND BoTANv IN Ceylon, are thus noticed 

 ju ai) article on Indian Forestnj by Surgeon-General 

 Eiward Balfour : — Cejlon has been equally progress^ive 

 and though not politically forming part of Britibh 

 India, it may bo meatioaed, as it bae n Forest De- 



partment of its own, and its Flora and Timber trees 

 h.ave been well described by Dr. Thwaites and Mr. 

 W. Ferguson. In climate and flora it assimilates with 

 the Peninsula. Dr. Balfour adds : — It is 50 years since 

 Indian Forestry had a beginniug,in the nomination of Dr. 

 Gibson to the superitendence of the Bombay forests, 

 and there is now needed from them one book bringing 

 their knowledge of the forests and their trees up to 

 the present time, and another as a handbook of Indian 

 Forestry, arranged in parts, to admit of the region 

 of British India being worthily described. The in- 

 formation in Drs. Stewart and Cleghorn's works on 

 the trees of the Punjab Himalaya ; in Stewart and 

 Brandis' Forest Flora of IV.- W. and Central la dki. ; 

 in Mr. Kurz's volumes on the trees of Burma; in 

 Mr. Gamblers Trees of India; in the third edition 

 of Surgeon-General Balfour's Timher Trees of India 

 and of Eastern e.nd Southern A tia ; and iu Colonel 

 Beddome's Flora Sylmtica, need all to be brought 

 together in compact volumes. The financial results 

 from establishing a Forest; Department in India justify 

 liberality in making its trees and forests belter known. 

 Its revenue has been coutiimously on the increase. 

 Twenty years ago, in 1867-68, the gross receipts were 

 stated at £334,000, but iu 1883-84 they amounted to 

 £1,052,190, and the clear profit in that year was 

 £403,816. 



The Swallow's nest has always been a delicacy high- 

 ly prized by the Chinese ; but from an interesting report 

 recently submitted by Mr. Portman, in charge of the 

 Andamanese it appears that the high estimation in 

 which these nests are held is not confined to the Celes- 

 tials. It is not generally kuown that the Government 

 derive a revenue from this source, of which they have 

 a monopoly, as we learn that Mr. Portman was directed 

 to " take charge of the monopoly of edible birds-nests 

 and trepang, " and he now furnishes some interest- 

 ing particulars on the subject not generally known. The 

 nests are as a rule found in caves, and as many as 

 four crops may be gathered in a year, although 

 three only were gathered by Mr. Portman. The birds 

 begin to build in February, and the nests can be 

 collected up to June, after which the birds are allowed 

 to build for breeding. Each collection takes about a 

 month's time, and the swallows rebuild iu six weeks 

 or so. The collections averaged about 52 lb of nests 

 each. It i.s a regular industry in the Andamans, and 

 many caves are known to the people of the islands. 

 The Chinese obtain the most highly-prized nests, how- 

 ever, from Borneo, where they are also fouud in cives 

 in the interior of the island in crystalliue limestone 

 rocks. Mr. Portman thinks that when the interior of 

 the Andamans is explored, similar caves will be found,as 

 this crystalline formation is common throughout these 

 islands. There are many theories as to the competition 

 of the nests, one being that the glutinous matter is 

 extracted by the swallows from a species of sea weed 

 somewhat similar to Iceland moss ; another, that it is 

 secreted from the throat of the bird ; but Mr. Portman 

 is unable to give any opinion in the matter. There 

 are three kinds of nests found in the markets. The 

 most highly prized are pure white, and fetch from 

 KUO to 150 per viss of Zh lb; another is slightly dis- 

 coloured, an 1 fetches froni RlOO to 140 per viss; the 

 third is more discoloured and dirty, fetching from 

 K75 to 115 per viss, The refuse also sells at from Ro to 15 

 per seer. The financial resul'u of the edible birds-nest 

 industry for the past season, shows a net profit oi 

 R4,000 paid into the treasury; the total expenditure 

 ha\it)g been R791. The manner of cooking these 

 nests is thut described by Mr. Portman : — " They are 

 first foaked in cold water for two hours', when they 

 swell ujj and become soft. They are then easily picked 

 to pieces and cleaned. After this they are boiled iu 

 clear chicken broth untill dissolved, a process occupying 

 about two liours king r. The usual allowance is one 

 nest ( value one rupee ) to a tea-cupful of s-oup. Any 

 clear soup may be used." Mr. Portman adds that the 

 nest is absolutely tasteless and flavourless, and he ha» 

 not found that it is particularly strengthening or useful 

 in anyway. We therefore conclude that it is not at all 

 likely to lecome a favourite dish with European?,— r 

 Indim Agriculturist, 



