March i, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



725 



undoubtedly a grand advantage to the cocoa which 

 rapidly sprang up in the good soil available for it. 

 White ants arc not nearly so troublesome as in the 

 lowcountry : that they attack the living cocoa plant, 

 however, has been made very manifest in Matale; 

 but the chief enemy here as in the West Indies proves 

 to be hares which are particularly fond of nibbling 

 the young plants and ai'e so numerous that aljundant 

 occupation for a pack of hounds could be found iu 

 ooimectiou with the plantations. 



Much more wonderful than the growth of the 

 cocoa among the old coffee, is that of rubber, on 

 Kowdapollella. Our readers are familiar with 

 accounts of the rapidity with which the Ceara 

 seed takes root and sends up its stem, rivalling the 

 Aloe stalk which to the patient observer can almost 

 be seen growing. It is argued from its rapid growth 

 that rubber is bound to be a short-lived tree, but 

 if it is to become so plentiful as to run wild in 

 Ceylon, there is the less reason to regret this. Mean- 

 time we trust the pioneers with this product will 

 secure the ample return their enterprise deserves. 

 So far, in Matale North, none of the evil effects on 

 surrounding plants or vegetation (referred to else- 

 where) have been noticed from the rubber : it flourishes 

 exceedingly and the coffee beneath it has taken no 

 harm. Possibly as it grows older some difference 

 iu the coffee may be observed. 



Forest Cle.\eings vniH Libekian Coffee. 

 The. sight on the Kawdapollella properties however 

 is neither the cinnamon, cocoa nor rubber growing 

 among the old coffee, nor yet the detached field of 

 cardamoms, nor the clearing of cinchonas at the 

 top of Sunderland. The part which has attracted so 

 many visitors and which more immediately requires a 

 few \vords of description at our hands is the 

 clearing from the virgin forest planted with cocoa 

 and Liberian coffee. We visited the latter first and 

 were pleasingly surprised at the vigorous growth and 

 most healthy appearance of trees which were 

 simply l.paded with fruit. SYe are not able to 

 insti:ue comparisons lietween this clearing and the 

 best Libtr.an estates in the Kalutara or tvurunef'ala 

 districts ; but certainly there is no comparison be- 

 tween anything seen from the railway hue and the 

 North Matale trees. No one would suppose from the 

 appearance of tlie latter a few weeks ago that there 

 was any reason to doubt tbe success of this product, 

 for the tries seemed vigorous enough to defy heinileia 

 vastMtru; of which no trace was then visible. The 

 maguificeiit display of blossom, along with berries in 

 all stages from green to dnrk-red ripe cherries seen 



on many of the trees in this grove or orchard we 



can scarcely speak of it as a coffee clearing in the 

 ordinary sense— was very delightful ; aud as for the 

 rate of bearing per acre, it is impossible to estimate 

 when trees are no sooner stripped of tlieir ripe cherries 

 than others take their place. Crop all the year round 

 promises to be the experience in Matale North and 

 with a tine soil and genial cbmate, we are very hope- 

 ful that from this quarter for many years to come 

 we may hear of good and largely profitable crops from 

 the, at present, comparatively despised "Liberian." 'Ihe 

 mistake of planting too wide apart which is rcretted 

 at Monrovia, in the Awisawella district and elsewhere 

 does not seem to have been made here, or tbe growth 

 is greater, for the trees completely cover the ground 

 and meet iu their branches. 



Cocoa Waucs in ViRfjiK ^'orest Soil. 

 However, there can be no doubt that on Cocoa (wilh 

 no fungus to sap its life juices) is placed the greater de- 

 pendence. We pass on to tbe virgin clearings of the 

 latter, a series opened at intervals in the forest, iji- 

 tersected with belts of tbe original trees, a chain of 

 the forest being left all round each clearing. The 



opening, planting, roading and draining were most 

 carefully attended to under Mr. Milne's energetic man- 

 ageuunt and now we have bere perhaps the prettiest 

 as well .IS most satisfactory piece nf cultivation iu 

 the countiy. We feel sure that no "cocoa" walk in 

 South America or Trinidad, of the same age, can equal 

 that of Kowdapolleila. A recent visitor with cocoa 

 experience said he never saw anything like it in the 

 West Indies. The trees are all fmost regular aud 

 healthy from three years downwards, many of them 

 being so laden with pods that it is a task to count 

 tbem and apparently requiring in some cases, stakes 

 to support the branches. The nice wide level roads 

 with the fields of cocoas extending on each side on 

 gentle slopes backed by the variegated vegetation of 

 the forest was quite a new experience iu a bill plant- 

 ation and the whole afforded an idea of permanency 

 and success which at least for many years back ouo . 

 has been unable to associate with coffee. 



Although the pioneer plantations in North Matale, 

 the Kowdapollella group stand by no meims alone in their 

 cocoa walks. Still farther North, there is a productive 

 plantation (Arduthie) with some 200 acres of cocoa 

 and Liberian coffea reported to be very flourishing and 

 Mr. Tucker's grant e,vperiment on 100 acres is also in the 

 same neighbourhood and doing well. On other ui-iah- 

 bonring estates the example has also been followed 

 of interspersing the coffee Arabica with cocoa, althonoh 

 we saw one wide field of ordinary coffee on Hupu- 

 gahalande in such splendid condition, that it seemed a 

 positive sbame to meddle with it, even to the extent 

 of putting down an occasional cocoa plant betw-een 

 the rows. 



Cocoa Preparation jor Market. 



There pan be no question that tbe preparation of 

 the cocoa seeds for market is the most important, 

 as it is the most ticklish, part of the work con- 

 nected with this industry. Already Ceylon has turned 

 out parcels of cocoa superior in colour to anything 

 from the West Indies, but whether due to our soil, 

 climate or the mode of preparation adopted, has not 

 yet been made clear. \Ve were told by a good 

 authority from Minciug Lane the other day, that 

 the high prices paid for the Ceylon parcels referred 

 to, were not due to any intrinsic superiority in the 

 quality of the bean, hut simply tn the taking ap- 

 pearance (the charming colour and evenness of the 

 beans) and that such parcels were chiefly bought by 

 French and Swiss houses to work up (adulterate) with 

 inferior lots of cocoa for chocola e ! Consequently that 

 when appreciable shipments were made from Ceylon, the 

 same exceptional prices could not be obtained. Be this 

 as it may, it is evident that so far as growth is con- 

 cerned, the select spots in Ceylon hitherto planted, 

 or rather producing cocoa, leave nothing to be de- 

 sired in respect of crop, and that the only doubt 

 is in regard to preparation. To indicate the con- 

 tradictory views afloat we may mention that Mr. 

 Morris in his little Handbook (which we are repub- 

 lishing in the next number of the "Tropical Agri- 

 culturist") says that on no account should cocoa 

 beans be washed, and yet the Ceilon parcel which 

 fetched one of the highest pi ccs in London, was 

 washed ! With reference to a sample from Mr. 

 Jeffreys of Gangaroowa (once Sir Edward Barnes' 

 coffee estate, opened over 50 years ago) our morning 

 contemporary had the following report a few week- 

 ago :— 



A recent sale of the first produce of any extent of tlie 

 cocoa trees on the Gangaruwa estate, Feradenija, i." 

 without ili'ubt the finest, both in well-developcd giowth 

 and perfect prepaation that has bi en seen in Ceylon. 

 This small parcel was purcha.seil by Messrs. Volkarl! 

 Brothers who have given a good ileal of attention to thi 

 continental trade in the article, aud who are prepared to 



