224 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[September i, 1882. 



centage of loss from crickets would have been pre- 

 cisely one hundred, in open nursery beds, and but 

 for the fortunate discovery, tliat the plants were 

 comparatively safe in baskets, the attempt to rear 

 them hero must have been abandoned. Furthtrmore, 

 the seed I hael to deal with was not obtained for 

 one rupee per thousand, some of it having cost as 

 much as twenty rupees. If I expressed myself, so as 

 to lead an "old friend" to believe, that I meant to 

 use baskets, when or where there were no crickets, 

 I am sorry for it, as I never intended to convey such 

 a meaning, and if my critic will visit me 1 will 

 show him as tine a mersery in the open ground, as 

 heart could desire, the army of mole crickets having 

 failed to put in its half-yearly appearance last March. 

 I remain in total ignorance of the conditions, that 

 rendered this place, for two and a half years, the 

 favourite breeding ground, of myriads of mole crickets; 

 as of the change of conditions, that has led to their 

 almost total disappearance. X do not hold any one a 

 competent judge of the necessity of the precautions 

 taken, to counteract an evil, that the critic has 

 never had to deal with, on an equal scale. Let my 

 old friend one day plant out 2,000 plants, and find 

 one half of them cut oif next morning, and he will 

 probably feel less ready to find fault with the 

 doings of those who have had to deal with such 

 mischances. 



I had not one of my last planting cut in the field, 

 but I have lost some hundreds from caterpillars : 

 quite a new experience. 



TOBACCO-PLANTING IN DELI (SUMATRA). 

 (From a Coi-respondent. ) 



27th June 1S82. 



I am glad to be able to report that cholera is now 

 on the decrease. A short time ago this fatal epidemic 

 seemed to have been raging in all parts of the coun- 

 try, sweeping away the "Celestials" and Bataks 

 in great numbers. It was a sad tune indeed for 

 tobacco planters, who could ill afford to lose their 

 coolies just about the middle of the planting season. 

 However, we are now pretty nearly rid of the enemy, 

 and the drooping spirits of the plantmg community 

 are beginning to look up again. Much is owing to 

 the recent heavy rains we have had in arrestmg the 

 epidemic, and still the cry is for more rain, being as it 

 is so very beneficial to the growth of tobacco. This 

 is the only product cultivated to a great extent and 

 the prosperity of Deli has been hitherto mamly due 

 to the success which has attended its cultivation. All 

 the planters are looking forward to " bumper crops " 

 this year. Cutting has already been begun on most 

 of the estates, and there are not a few who hope to 

 make from 12 to 14 piculs per cooly. The advices 

 which have lately been received from Amsterdam show 

 as usual that most grades of Deli tobacco have met 

 with a favorable reception in that market : the ex- 

 ception being broken leaf, which is now in little de- 

 mand. So far everything looks promising for the 

 planters, and should the strong winds we are having 

 just now from the south-west do no damage, all will 

 be as desired. 



I do not think it will be long before the planters 

 here take to cultivating other products, besides tobacco. 

 The long range of hills in the distance offers a tempt- 

 ing prospect to those who are contemplating the cult- 

 ivation of coffee, &c. The soil is rich and the climate 

 delightful. But unfortunately the hUls are forbidden 

 ground to the "Orang putih"; notwithstanding this 

 there seems to be a steady advance made on them liy 

 two enterprising Dutch gentlenien, an advance which, 

 it properly directed and carefully assisted by the 

 ruling powers, may ultimately result in a good portion 



of the hill-country coming under cultivation. At present 

 all is but a wilderness of fertility, awaiting the busy 

 hand of the planter. 



COFFEE CULTURE IN CENTRAL AMERICA 



AND MEXICO. 



(From the Rio News.) 



The following remarks upon coffee culture in Mexico 

 and the Central American states, are from the pen of M. 

 Thiersant, French consul in Central America, translated 

 from the Journal dcs Economistes into the New York 

 Commercial Bidletin of March 3rd : 



" When the railways now in course of construc- 

 tion are finished we may look forward to great im- 

 provements and extension in the cultivation of coffee 

 m Mexico. The present export is estimated at 

 4,000,000 pounds, almost exclusively purchased for 

 the United States. The culture was introduced in 

 1828, and has now extended to the states of Ohiapas, 

 Coliraa, Michoacau, Vera Cruz, Talhzeo, &c. Colima 

 coffee is well known in all markets. The Govern- 

 ment and planters are doing everything in their 

 power to extend the cultivation and improve the 

 product. An agricultural Society is established in the 

 city of Mexico, to which most of the planters belong, 

 and a weekly paper is published containing their ob- 

 servations, etc. Here, also, however, plants that are 

 five years' old are attacked by a disease termed 

 chahuistle. It is especially observable in dry and 

 worn-out soils, or on sun-exposed slopes. 



"Costa Rica began to grow coffee in 1820. Iq 1830, 

 the immense tracts to the south of the capital were 

 sold on condition that only coffee trees would be 

 planted. Still, the cultivation has only slowly ex- 

 tended until recently. At present, from 250,000 to 

 300,000 quintals are annually exported. The soil of 

 the country is extremely fertile, and the climate most 

 favourable to the coffee plant. Labor and capital are, 

 however, wanting, and roads and means of transport 

 in the interior very deficient. Almost the whole 

 foreign trade of the country is done through the 

 port of Pueuta Arenas, on the Pacific, aud to this 

 port there is only one line of communication, and 

 even this is only pructicable iu the dry season, from 

 December to March. The freight from the port to 

 the capital is often SO piastres per ton for a distance 

 of 18 league.'.. Only one-halt of the 300,000 bags 

 harvested can be exported, on account of the bad 

 roads. A railroad from Limon on the Atlantic, which 

 is to coimecfc the port with the principal centres, has 

 been in course ot construction since 1870, but is still 

 far from being completed. The totitl length will be 

 about 115 miles. The soil has been exhausted iu 

 many instances, and manuring will be requisite. 

 There is a very suitable zone for the cultivation o£ 

 coffee which is traversed by 70 miles of railroad, 

 and which can be connected with the port of Limon. 



"Nicaragua began to grow coffee in 1848, and now 

 some four and-a-half million of pounds are annually 

 exported. The same hindrances alluded to above are 

 here in force. Lately, new plantations have been made 

 and the construction of i> railroad had been begun. 

 The country is of extraordinary natural wealth, but 

 its fields are deserted, its forests silent and its har- 

 bors empty. The inhabitants seem to have been plac- 

 ing illusive hopes on the construction of a trans- 

 oceanic canal. 



"S.ilvador now ships 200,000 quintals — a quantity 

 which may be doiibh-d within a few jeirs. Tne cult- 

 ivation was almost entirely coiifiucd to the western 

 part of the republic, but is now extending to other 

 parts. Some plantations liav3 been lately made on 

 the heiglits near the volcano of San Miguel. A foreign 

 Company has been given a concession to build a line 



