'M 



'tuoPicAt AQi^CDi/tvmi^s 



[May ^, 1887, 



from where, he could not state. He considered the 

 soil to be merely the seat of the phenomena, and 

 modified by the covering of vegetation ; that is to say, 

 the more the soil was aerated the less was the 

 absorption of azote. Thus, two apposite phenomena 

 are recognized; the elimination and the fixation in 

 the soil of nitrogen which vegetation favors. 



About a year ago M. Frank discovered certain bulbs 

 or nodules at the extremity of the rootlets of plants. 

 Some believed these bulbs were mushrooms ; some 

 that they were animalcules. Frank considered they 

 were humus in a stage preparatory to being taken 

 into the tissue of the plant ; others, a kind of magazine 

 of albuminous or plasmic matter prepared in advance 

 by the plant for the wants of fruit time. M. Hellriegel 

 sustains these fucgi-like bulbs absorb free nitrogen, 

 ■which at best is but a gratuitous assumption. He 

 confounds cause with effect, since the bulbs only are 

 formed, or at least appear when the plant has reached 

 an advanced stage of its growth, when the leaves 

 are in full development and active function, and the 

 organs of assimilation at work. 



Conclusion : The question of the free absorption of 

 atmospheric nitrogen by the soil or by the plant, has 

 not advanced a single step towards a definite solution. 

 More rigorous experiments are necessary, and in the 

 meantime let farmers rely on fertilizers and not the 

 air for azote. 



E.^treme attention continues to be given by vine- 

 yard proprietors to the phylloxera. No further pre- 

 servative or remedies have been found to supersede 

 autumnal irrigations, followed by rich spring manur- 

 ings, or sulphuret of carbon or the graftings of Amer- 

 ican vine cuttings. Mildew and its varieties has not 

 been very serioun ; it was tormenting rather than a 

 subject for anxiety. Besides it is a meteorological 

 calamity, not like the phylloxera — "always with us " — 

 like other miseries. 



In Belgium, the sugar-beet crop has suffered from 

 the malady of " black heart." It is a disease pro- 

 duced by a fungus, which settles in the heart of the 

 leaves, down even to the neck of the bulb, and pro- 

 duces black rot. Only cultivating beet on the same 

 land, once in three years, and removing the necks of 

 the roots, and making a compost of them with live 

 lime and earth will get rid of the nuisance. 



The agronomic school at Nancy has conducted a 

 series of experiments on the temperature of soils. 

 Turf has proved to be the warmest, and sandy the 

 coldest soils : the latter is the most sensitive of all to 

 fluctuations of temperature becoming the warmest in 

 day-time and coldest at night, hence the most subject 

 to suffer from spring frosts. As a general remark it is 

 the water in the soil regulates the temperature: vege- 

 table tissues are bad conductors of heat. 



Gboi-ooical Discovert in thb Sai,t Kange. — "We 

 eee from the February No., Vol. XIX., Part I., of 

 the records of the Geological Survey of India, that 

 Pr. "Warth has made a very important discovery of 

 fossils in the Salt Range, which proves that the bed 

 iu which they lie belongs to the carboniferous age. 

 The Salt Range according to Dr. '\Taagen, from whose 

 paper oti the Palcnojioic glacial beds of the Salt Range 

 we f|uote. " formed the northern store of a continent 

 extending from Afghanistan throughout India, and at 

 the Salt Range there was probably the mouth of a 

 great river, down which large masses of ice floated, 

 whilst in other parts of the world the coal measures 

 were being formed, and the ice masses drifted along 

 the shore depositing large boulders, gravel and fiUe 

 *ilt, " All ;thi8 points to a galicnl period at first re- 

 stricted to the Southern Hemisphere, and spreading 

 later on to the Northern one. But we must refer 

 our readers to the Records for the rest of Dr. Waagen's 

 interesting note, and only quote his concluding sei ° 

 tence^' It has been made possible to ascenain all 

 this liy the assiduous investigations of my old friend 

 Dr. Warth, who has thus made one of the most im- 

 portant discoveries that ever could be made IB the 

 Salt JKange,"— /ntfi>tt Foriikr> 



BRAZIL : DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ; 

 SUGAR ; LABOUR ; SLAVERY. 



Central Sugar Factories. 



Notwithstanding the guarantee of interest on the 

 capital necessary for the establishment of factories 

 destined to the preparation of cane sugar by means 

 of perfected machinery and processes, a large number 

 of concessionees were unable to carry out their privi- 

 leges by domestic or foreign capital, through which 35 

 concessions were declared lapsed. One privilege for 

 a central factory at S. Fidelis, Rio de Janeiro, was 

 granted with such favors as were allowed under Art. 

 6 of Regulamento No. 8,357 of December 24th, 1881, 

 except an interest guarantee, or free entry. With 

 this concession the number now in force is : — 



With an interest guarantee : 

 33 factories with a total capital of ... 21,800,000$ 



Without guarantee : 

 19 factories — 



52 do 

 The 33 factories are thus distributed: — 



Province No. capital 



Alagoas 1 600,000$ 



Bahia 6 5,600,000 



Espirito Santo 1 500,000 



Miuas Geraes 1 300,000 



Municipio Neutro I 400,000 



Parahyba 1 500,000 



Pernambuco 11 6,950,000 



Rio de Janeiro 5 3,450,000 



Rio Grande do Norte 3 2,100,000 



S. Paulo 1 500.000 



Sergipe 2 1,000,000 



33 21,800,000$ 



of which 2,400,000S has a guarantee of 7 per cent 

 and 19,400,000$ a guarantee of 6 per cent. 



The production of sugar and rum of the factories 

 for the crop 188-1-85 is given as follows :— 

 Sugar Ram 



Idlos. litres. Value. 



Pernambuco 2,349,17.5 301,395 336,127$ 



Rio de Janeiro. 2,905,800 1,723,200 60,795 



S. Paulo 429,600 480,000 112,221 



Minas Geraes... 183,300 302,400 — 



Ihimigration. 



During the past year '2^2,727 immigrants arrived 

 at this port, considering as such all third-class pas- 

 sengers, of which 10,567 accepted accommodation at 

 the Ilha das Flores Government station. 



There were 14,271 departures for the following 

 destinations: — 



S. Paulo 5,163 



Rio Grande do Sul 4,643 



Miuas Geraes 1,434 



Sta. Catharina 1,3(8 



Rio de Janeiro 1,006 



Parana 429 



Espirito Santo 167 



Pernambuco 53 



Para... 26 



Bahia 23 



Amazonas, 19 



14,271 



At Santos, S. Paulo, there arrived 6,681, thus increas- 

 ing the total arrivals in the Empire to 29,408. Of 

 the arrivals at Santos 3,705 remained in the province 

 of S. Paulo, the others leaving for Parana, Sta. Cathari- 

 na and Rio Grande do Sul. 



New works during the year at the Government station 

 cost 10,410$ and the board of the 10,579 immigrants 

 arriving three cost 35,747$, or 834 rs. per day per 

 individual ; say 2S502 per capita for the three days 

 Allowed tbe immisraut. Only 3 deatbe were reported, 



