496 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [December i, 1882. 



To the Editor of the Ceylon Observer. 

 THE EKMAN PATENT : FIBRES. 



London, E.C., 13th Oct. 1882. 



Dear Sir, — The Ekman patent is now getting into 

 work, and Mr. Spioer the great paper manufacturer 

 at Godalming is turning out the paper made in a 

 direct line of machines from the plank of wood. 



A friend described to me this morning what he 

 liad witnessed in these works. In one part was situated 

 the warehouse into which the export bales are thrown ; 

 these have to be cut open and each blade of grass 

 has to be handled by women to ensure all dust, and 

 dirt being removed from it, and he describes it as 

 one of the most distressing occupations he has ever 

 witnessed ; the poor women were smothered in dust, and 

 he cannot understand how they can work in such an 

 atmosphere. 



The fact is, that any dirt passsing with the grass 

 or fibre into the cylinders destroys the pnper in colour 

 and appearance, and this is one of the reasons why 

 wood lias such an advantage over grass and reeds, 

 because as soon as the knots are cut out of the 

 plautf you have a clean pure substance to work 

 upon. So much so is this the case that Mr. Spicer 

 is actually turning out better palmer by the direct 

 process owing to the pulp never having been baled 

 or dirtied en route than is being turned out at the 

 Ilford paper works where the pulp is brought from 

 Sweden in cases. 



I enclose you a sample of flax that has been sim- 

 ply treated and carded : this costs lOd per lb. to pro- 

 duce including the raw material, and it is sold at 

 about "-'/B to 3/ ptr lb. It is employed for trimmings 

 and all sorts of purposes where silk was used ; 

 in gimps and laces, for furniture, etc., etc. It has 

 au equal appearance to silk when dyed. I need hardly 

 say there are many Eastern fibres that would yield 

 as bright a surface. 



I ought to inform you, this sample has not been 

 passed into the last stage of Ijleaching, but is suffi- 

 ciently clear for dyeing. — Yours truly. 



THUS. CHRISTY. 



P. S. — I send you a samijle of seeds from a tree that 

 produces the oil of "lien," the slowest drying oil yet 

 discovered, and is used by watchmakers, and for all 

 delicate instruments. I think it will be largely used 

 when better known. 



THE B^RUIT CROP IN ENGLAND A FAILURE 

 FOR FOUR YEARS RUNNING. 



At Home, l<Jth October 1882. 



Dear Sir, — The fruit crop in England has this year 

 been a complete failure — far more complete than has 

 ever been known to be the case with cofl^ee. Orchards, 

 from which in average years two or three liundred 

 pounds' worth ol fruit has been sold, have this year 

 given scarcely enougli to supply the wants of a single 

 household. I learn that this is the fourth yearthat this 

 I1.1S been the case ; yet people do not there fore take 

 it for granted that England has ceased tube a fruit- 

 bearing country, nor do they abandon their orchards. 



Let coffee planters take heart. If, as is undoubtedly 

 the case here, their short crops have been owing in 

 great measure to abnormal seasons, there may be a 

 good time coming for those who have the courage to 

 wait. NIL DESPERANDUM. 



CEYLON COCOA IN THE EUROPEAN MARKETS; 

 THE MONOPOLY IN WHIIE PEPPER. 



London, 21st October 1882. 

 Sir,— In No. 2 of "New Commercial Plauts " I 

 ave a description of the cocoa (" theobroma cacao"), 



and I shewed that the soil entirely ruled the quality 

 of the production. I have sought to trace the destina- 

 tion of the cocoa that is produced in Ceylon, and I 

 think that the result will prove interesting to many. 



It is known that the cocoa trees, when young, produce 

 the best cocoa, and that, after their first year or two's 

 fruiting, they are not likely to improve in the quality 

 of the berry either for flavour or for size. It is re- 

 marked that the berry of the Ceylon cocoa is small, 

 and to the general observer has not much to recom- 

 mend it, but nevertlieless it commands a high price in 

 the market compared to other descriptions of cicoa, 

 The Ceylon cocoa produces a bright colour; hence it 

 is purchased by the Paris confectioners for the highest 

 class of confectionery, where the colour is shewn and is 

 of importance. It has also rather a i^eculiar flavour, 

 which is also sought after; hence its. high value. 



It will be interesting in a few years to notice if 

 these two characteristics can be maintained, because 

 if such is the case, it may make up for a deficiency in 

 the quantity per acre. 



The narration of these few facts may cause planters 

 to ship direct to French ports and so save English 

 expenses; or they may incline the planter to further 

 research, to see if all his cocoa yields the same bright 

 colour and the same bitter in the flavour, because it 

 must not be forgotten that the finest cocoa produced in 

 the world comes from one farm near Guatemala, and 

 that, even at a mile distant, the seed taken from this 

 one farm will not produce anything like the same 

 quality of cocoa. 



If planters wheu sending home crops fromnew ground, 

 would only ask for a criticial report upon their pro- 

 ducts, they might often do much better than at present, 

 because they row lump their products together, and 

 when the report comes out they cannot tell which part 

 of their estate yielded certain qualities of produce. I 

 am sure this is well worthy of the attention of plan- 

 ters. 



Take, for instance, White Pepper. This is produced 

 by skilful native manipulation, and one family of Euro- 

 peans almost has the monopoly of tlie very best white 

 pepper. The treatment during the stage of fermenta- 

 tion has been carefully watched for many years, and 

 the quality has been improved from time to time, so 

 that this one house in India commands almost the 

 monopoly.— Yours truly, THO. CHRISTY. 



TRANSPLANTERS. 

 Madura District, South India, 29th Oct. 1882. 

 Dear Sir, — I have found Crosse and BlackweU's 

 empty soup and jam tins very useful of late. Cut 

 the two ends clean out, jjlace over a plant and press 

 into the earth with sticks, take up" [he plant in 

 tin. The thing is to get it out. Get a roundish bit 

 of wood, say 2 feet in length, cut ends flat or even, 

 take an auger, bore a hole down the centre (say 

 twice the length of a jam tin), burn it out with 

 the pointed end of a spade bar. At right angles, 

 bore another hole at end of the down centre hole, 

 round off' a stick for a cleaning rod, stick expeller 

 in the ground, place plant in tin on top— (tap root, 

 if any, passes down centre hole) — and press tin down 

 over expeller and you have plant perfect with a 

 compact ball of earth ; its growth unchecked. I was 

 driven to conceive some dodge to get my land 

 planted. It was late in August, and I was planting 

 up to within three weeks of this !— Often, 

 on scorching days, followed by six and seven 

 sunny days. I dim't know of a vacancy in the 

 clearing ! Two neighbours of mine tried very hard to 

 show me one, but couldn't. A saw, an auger, a pruning 

 knife, a spade bar and a tin cutter may be found on most 

 estates. If ground is hard, water the beds. A bucket of 

 water by the side of tbe expeller and a heap of 

 ashes will facilitate the operation. 



