May I, 1883.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 923 



tation upon them. It may be hoped that, as nothing more is required in such an investigation 

 besides careful and sustained observation, full and accurate information on the life and habits of 

 these coleopterous larvie (chiefly cockchafers) will be forthcoming from the Association. I fear, 

 however, that with reference to any remedies that might be suggested, the sam£ want of co-oper- 

 ation will be met with as in other similar cases. It is a fact that there are some gentlemen here 

 who, in opposition to the agriculturists of every other country, maintain that these larvaj do no 

 harm whatever, as they feed only on rootlets already diseased or decayed. It is obvious that 

 persons guided by such notions could seriously hinder ai^ plan that might be recommended. 



Liberian Coffee has had to bear severe attacks of leaf-disease,* and rises and falls in 

 planters' estimation, yet in suitable soils and localities it does well, aud the old trees in P6rd- 

 deniya (now eiglit and nine years old) though badly diseased show no marked diminution in their 

 crop-bearing capacities ; they are, however, regularly manured. I regret to find that it is not 

 possible to ascertain the exports of this coffee from Ceylon, as it is unfortuuately not distinguished 

 from other "plantation" in the returns. 



The gratis distribution of seedlings to native cultivators through the Government Agents 

 has continued, and I have drawn up a short paper of s^imple instructions for planting and culti- 

 vation. This has been printed in the vernacular and distributed with the plants. We have at 

 Henaratgoda far more seeds and seedlings than are applied for, and I should be glad if a more 

 general distribution could be carried out. 



Cinchona. — The enormous advance in the cultivation of cinchona fully justifies one in 

 considering it, at present, as the foremost product of Ceylon. In some of the older districts C. succi- 

 rubra is, on numerous estates, now completely supplanting the coffee which is allowed gradually 

 to go out of cultivation as the former grows up amongst it. During the year ending September 

 last, as much as 3,099,89.5 lbs. were exported, being an increase of 1,892,175 lbs. over that for 

 the previous year, or considerably more than double. It has, however, to be allowed that a large 

 quantity of inferior bark has gone into the market. The position at the end of the year may be 

 well seen from the following, extracted from Messrs. Rucker and Bencraft's Weekly Circular dated 

 21st December, 1882 :— 



" The shipmeuts from Ceylon are very heavy, and altogether beyoiul what was at present expected, 

 but they are also soinewhat deceptive. A very cousiderable proportion of these barks are twigs, scrapings, 

 weak branch, &c., barks, which in bales appear important and affect statistics, but from a snlphare of 

 quinine point of view, of little value. Also much young bark is being sent forward, and for these reasons 

 we think that those who study the position of this market must be careful not to turn round now and over- 

 estimate the production in Ceylon. 



" Ceylon barks were, as usual, catalogued to be sold at market prices, and a fall of 15 to 20 per 

 cent, was at once established. Some barks sold well, and apparently at full prices, but these were invari- 

 ably barks containing a heavy percentage of cinchonidine, orders for which alkaloid had been received." 



The remarks made in my report for 1880 become thus every day more and more warranted 

 — that, so long as quinine retains its supremacy, only the rich barks can secure good prices, whilst 

 the inferior ones must hang on hand and only be sold at reduced rates. There is little or no fear 

 of an excess in production of bark of the best qualities here, but it is otherwise with the poorer 

 sorts, and it is with these that from the planting point of mew production may be overdone. On this 

 account, in growing quiuine barks planters will do well to go in for the best kinds only. Of these 

 G. Ledgerkma still remains by far the most desirable, but it cannot be grown at high elevations. 



It is, however, at the same time pretty evident that we are approaching the time when the 

 almost exclusive estimation of quinine must give way before the evident advantages of employing 

 the mixed alkaloids. The great philanthropic idea which led to the acclimatization of these trees 

 in the East — the provision of the blessing of cheap febrifuge to a fever-stricken population — must 

 be carried to its issue in spite of any interested efforts to delay it ; the practical ethciency of the 

 imperfect preparation made by the Indian Government, now well established, has shownthe way 

 to a vast future development of the use of similar and improved preparations. Foreign manu- 

 facturers have already appreciated the great market opening before them — (thus the Zimmer 

 manufactory at Frankfort-on-Maine makes vast quantities of sulphate of cinchouidine for export 

 to the United States at a price from one-third to one-fourth that of quinine suljihate)— and growers 

 should not be unjirepared for the change. This, when it comes, will not be disadvantageous to 

 Ceylon ]ilanters with their large acreage of C. succinibra, the proportional value of which to other 

 barks will rather be increased. 



Hemileia not unfrequently attacki the fruit in thii speciei. 



