THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[August i, 1882. 



Mr. Roberts corroborated this from personal inspec- 

 tion o( the office books. 



The Governor eaid he heiird these statements with 

 surprize. Mr. McGregor, the Protector of Indian im- 

 migration, had been sent to India with orders strictly to 

 enquire into the arrangements tliere in every detail. 

 He was expected to return veryishortly,!a>id, if he corrob- 

 orated these statements, as further explanations were 

 required, he would at once bring the matter forward, 

 and make representations to tlie Indian Government. 

 Mr. Morrison next brought under considerntion the 

 enforcement of the provisions of the law in regard to 

 *' cutting" a cooly's pay for short time of work. 



The Governor i-eplied that he was not above the law, 

 and that, if the planters wished a change in the law, they 

 must draw up a petition which he would carefully 

 consider ; but that they must be aware that there 

 were stroug reasons why auy " cutting" of wages must 

 be carefully guarded against. Mr. de Moruay then 

 pointed out that, when a cooly wanted a day's leave 

 now, it. could not be given liim, as there was no 

 power, without troublesome reference, to deduct the 

 day's pay. 



Mr. Moirison requested that the new Indian Immi- 

 gration Act might be pressed forward into law. The 

 Governor said that it was only delayed because the 

 Indian Government had lately pointed out that, accord- 

 ing to their law, passage money, and he believed 

 advances also, could not be recovered from immigrants. 

 H. E. said that he had requested that their law might 

 be altered in that respect, as otherwise immigration 

 (other than free immigration) must stop. The gentle- 

 men of the deputation expressed a general assent to 

 tliis view. 



Mr. Morrison called His Excellency's attention to 

 Mr. McGregor's report as misleadivig in respect to 

 his quoting the profits of Batu Kawau estate as repre- 

 sentative of the financial condition of estates in the 

 province generally. He said that, on those he (Mr. 

 Morrison) represented, a capita! of £154,000 only .yielded 

 a 4 per cent return. His Company could not afford 

 to give increased wages ; 16 cents would hardly cover 

 the daily cost of a cooly ; other gentlemen remarked 

 that it was nearer 20. 



8ome conversation here ensued on the Governor 

 remarking that it was unfortunati-' that higher wages 

 than those now current could not be given in the 

 coloqy. It was constantly found that men of one race 

 broke their agreement, and left those who had brought 

 them out, to siek higher wages elsewhere, and it 

 could not be expettd that a cooly should take a higher 

 view of morality. Labour would like water find 

 its level— it would alwa.is flow to higher wages; he 

 did not think that any Government etfort could pre- 

 vent desertion so long as the rate of wages in Province 

 Weilesley was less than in Perak. The Government 

 had in the face of some opposition passed a meas- 

 ure to facilitate the capture of deserters, and Indian 

 immigration to Perak was being pushed forward as rap- 

 idly as the necessity for preliminary arrangements would 

 permit, and this would doubtless tend to equalize rates 

 and dimini>h the temptation to absconders. In re- 

 gard to offenders, the introduction of tlie treadmill 

 into the gaols, which was decided on, would enable 

 the authorities to see that punishment was sulBciently 

 deterrent, which is admitted not to have been the 

 case hitherto. 



Mr. Morrision lastly brought forward the question 

 of Chinese contracts. 



The Governor produced the agreement which, after 

 he himself had, as he believed, come to an under- 

 standing with the planters, was drawn up by Mr. 

 Pickering, th Protector of Chinese acting under 

 His Excellency's authority in connection with them. 

 The Governor agreed on principle in favour of 

 periodical rest being allowed to labourers, whether 



Chinese or others. His views on that point were in 

 no ways altered by the statement that the coolies 

 had not complained in this case ; the indulgence was 

 only asked for men who were unwell or needed rest. 

 Indians, well or ill, were allowed 52 days (Sundays) 

 in the year, and were paid for those days of rest, and 

 had not to work them out. Afterwards Government 

 only asked for 30 days for Chinese, who could plead 

 ill-health, and did not ask that wages should be 

 paid to them for those days. The Governor thought 

 this was a very small cimcession to ask the employers 

 to make. Mr. Morrison said that the planters would 

 be content if 15 out of the 30 days were worked 

 out afterwards. He also pointed out that the prin- 

 ted form differed from the written agreement now 

 produced by the Governor as assented to by Mr. 

 Pickering with His Excellency's authority. 



The Governor replied tliat he would see Mr. Pick- 

 ering on his arrival here, and draw his attention 

 to this statement which bore upon a point of legal 

 interpretation. 



The deputation expressed their thanks to His Ex- 

 cellency for the time and attention he had devoted 

 to them and withdrew. 



NEW PRODUCTS IN CEYLON. 



LowconNTRY Repokt : 



LiBERiAN Coffee— Cocoa — Pepper Vines — Vanilla — 



Cardamoms. 



Near Henaratgoda, 12th June 1S82. 



Excepting the five days that followed the 17th, when 

 it did little but rain, May was a series of alternations 

 of sun and shower. 



The coffee has continued to °grow, but hardly so 

 rapidly as a few months ago. The oldest plants are 

 ripening a little crop, and the last year's planting 

 is beginning to branch. I planted all the plants that 

 were sufficiently forward under what I considered 

 very favourable circumstances, but within a few days 

 a new enemy appeared on the ground. The new clear- 

 ing had become fearfully dirty with the fresh crop 

 of batal and other jungle products. This con- 

 dition of the land seems to have suited the views of a 

 species of moth for reproductive purposes, and the 

 result was an immense army of caterpillars, that, find- 

 ing the coffee leaves, among other things, to their taste, 

 has reduced some thousands of thriving plants to 

 mere skeletons, showing nothing but the stem and 

 the midribs of the leaves. This is an unlucky chance, 

 and, as it is altogether a new experience to nie, I could 

 not provide for it beforehand. I am now rooting and 

 weeding the planted land to the quickest of my poss- 

 ibility, but I think the enemy has now nearly done 

 his worst. The crows and minas bad a week's feasting. 

 That the plants will be thrown back and checked in 

 their growth there can be no doubt, but, as the roots 

 are sound, and the summit bud untouched, I have 

 great hopes that nothing very serious will ensue, beyond 

 a little retardation in the growth. All the injured 

 plants, however, that do not make an immediate start 

 after the weeding and rooting I will discard, and 

 replace at my earliest convenience; for a Liberian coffee 

 plant that has encountered a serious check will (how- 

 ever promising it may be for a time,) play its cultivator 

 a dog's trick in the end. The hemiieia vantatiix 

 invariably feasts on a plant that has been checked 

 in its growth, or has had its constitution weakened by 

 any cause whatever. I have given the best that 

 is in me to the observation of this matter, with the 

 result that a Liberian coffee plant that has once en- 

 countered a serious check from any cause is almost 

 certain to become the victim of hemiieia vastatrix 

 before it ripens a fruit. 



