4o8 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[November i, 1882. 



f^ixumesptxti^moe. 



To the Editor of the Ceylon Observer. 



OIL OR EXTRACT OP EUCALYPTUS AND 



GUMS : USEFUL HINTS BY AN 



AUTHORITY. 



Dear Sir, — In reply to a planter's enquiry (page SS4) 

 as to how the oil or extract of the eucalyptus is prepared, 

 I send you the following from Squire's ' ' Companion 

 to the British Pharmacopceia." -.—"Liquid extract of 

 eucalyptus rostrata. — gum 1 part, water 2 parts : dis- 

 solve and strain. An excellent remedy in arresting 

 bleeding from the nose : to be injected into the nostril. 

 Liut dipped in it checks bleeding from wounds. The 

 gum is used in doses of 5 grains every 4 hours in 

 riiarrhcea and dysentery. The oil is obtained from the 

 leaves by distillation." 



Reading of the antiseptic properties of blue gum, 

 and the question " can we not turn our gum trees 

 JQ Ceylon into some use," reminds me that large 

 quantities of cashew gum are not collected and used, 

 owing to persons not knowing that it can be utilized 

 as well as gum Arabic if dissolved in cinnamon 

 water, which is an antiseptic and keeps the gum from 

 fermenting and tui-ning so ur. It is not generally 

 known that distilled cinnamon water, which can be 

 bought fresh from the oil manufactories in Colombo, 

 preserves animal matter also from decomposition. It 

 can be used for preserving flesh meat and specimens 

 of natural history without decomposition. Large speci- 

 mens of fleehy matter after being immersed in sijirits 

 can be transferred to vessels containing cinnamon water. 

 This reminds me also of the beneficial effects of the 

 pure oil of cinnamon for curing lameness in horses. 

 A couple of teaspooufuls of the oil and equal parts 

 of salad oil slionld be well rubbed in on the affected 

 part which will be blistered slightly ; after which there 

 will be an oozing of watery humour. A little olive oil 

 should now be applied, and the lameness will disappear 

 if the remedy has been properly used. At this season, 

 when horses are afffcted by strokes of "land-wind," 

 it will be found invaluable ; also when rubbed out- 

 side the windpipe for catarrh. A light oil, resembling 

 that made from cloves, is prepared by natives from 

 the leaves. What I have found useful is the pure 

 heavy oil, which sinks in water, and is made from 

 the bark of the cinnamon tree only. For human 

 adults equal parts of cinnamon and olive oil make a 

 good liniment for chronic rheumatism. 



Yours faithfully,— MEDICUS. 



NEILSON'S PBOCESS FOR CUEING DAMP HAY 



AND CORN. 



Thatched House Club, St. James' Street, London, W. 



Sir, — Reference is made in a letter in your over- 

 land issue of 27th July to Neilson's exhaust fan for 

 rick drying. I have given this fan a moet success- 

 ful trial this summer, and, without being able to say 

 what it may be capable of doing with cinchona bark, 

 I may shortly explain the process witli hay. In a 

 damp and partially aired state, the hay is carted into 

 a round or square stack, in the centre of which a 

 flue is formed in the usual way. A 9-inch drain 

 pipe, laid underneath the stack, serves to connect 

 this flue with the exhaust fan outside. Thermome- 

 ters placed in tubes, set in the stack during building, 

 shew the temperature in the interior. In 24 hours 

 the heat registered will rise to 160°, when it is neces- 

 sary to set the fan in motion. If driven by hand, 

 it will reduce the temperature to 120° in about SO 

 minutes. The process is repeated day by day until 

 the stack is permanently cooled and cured. This 



usually takes a fortnight. Heat sufBcient to engender 

 steam is necessary in the stack before starting the 

 fan. The damp is thus extracted in the form of 

 steam, and cool air is drawn from the outside equally 

 through the stack. Unless the hay is allowed to 

 heat, it is impossible to cure it. In making hay by 

 this process, sun is still necessary. The fan supple- 

 ments the sun, but does not take its place. 



Failures in its use have been numerous, but chiefly 

 have arisen from attempting too much or from oare- 

 les.iness. 



There are numerous patterns of fan. I have used 

 one by Phillips of Newport, coating £12. It is of 

 iron and gives about 1,200 revolutions a minute. Driten 

 by steam or water 2,400 revolutions are obtainable. 



I have given the subject considerable and careful 

 attention during the last twelve mouths, and with 

 Ijerfect success. I shall be much pleased to give any 

 information in my power, and hope the system may 

 be of use to Ceylon. The cost being sm.ill makes 

 it worth a trial. It would be easy to work the tan 

 by usual estate water jrawer, and, provided the cur- 

 rent of air can be distributed evenly over the bark 

 operated upon, mould should be, I think, prevented, 

 and the drying much accelerated whenever the air 

 outside is fairly free of moisture. Long cylinders 

 made of reepers and ceiling cloth, wherein to place 

 the bark, might answer the purpose. But practical 

 trials will have to be made, before this can he ascert- 

 ained.— Yours truly, CHARLES S. COX. 



CULTIVATION OF RICE ON COFFEE 

 ESTATES. 

 Kalutara, 7th September 1882. 



De.4R Sir, — The very interesting letter from F. B., 

 in your issue of the 5th instant, on "Tissamaharama 

 and the rice-growing enterprise of Europeans" opens 

 an important question for discussion and careful con- 

 sideration. 



In times of depression like the present any new 

 outlet for European enerpy and safe investment for 

 European capital with early and good returns will be 

 eagerly welcomed by every one interested in the 

 colony. The object of this missive is to direct at- 

 tention to what miglit be done on many estates in 

 the lower districts and to ask Mr. Benzie, of Donside, 

 to give the public, through your columns the particu- 

 lars and returns from his cultiv.ated ravines, as he 

 can write with some authority, having a consideiable 

 acreage under cultivation and being past the experim- 

 ental stage. 



There are at the present moment many old estates 

 at medium elevations which are barely paying their 

 way or being worked at a loss with a hope that in 

 a few years new products will take the place of old, 

 and cocoa, tea, cinchona, or Liberian cofifee flourish, 

 and pay, where coS'ee arabica has died out or gone 

 back so much as to be worked at a loss. 



On most of those estates large quantities of manure 

 have been applied from time to time and want of 

 drains has sent a considerable amount of it down to 

 the flats or edges of ravines, which have consequently 

 very valuable deposits, if available for rice cultivation. 



That in many cases those flats or ravines could be 

 cultivated in paddy to great advantage there can be 

 no doubt, and, while the outlay would be very small, 

 the returns in the shape of rice for the coolies would 

 go a long way to keep the pot boiling till the better 

 times (we have looked for so long) come round. 



Ramasamy is a very long-suffering party when he 

 gets his weekly allowance of rice; and an occasional 

 rupee, but when the rice is stopped he "cuts up 

 rough" very soon. The possibility of being able to 

 grow rice for estate requirmeuts (a very few bushels 

 do nowadays in many cases 1) and being inde- 



