February i, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



659 



plants throws 30,000 seeds at a time. The ageratura of 

 goat weed is a great en my and every effort should be 

 made to keep it down. 



General KEMARKS.^O«e cooly an acre is required to work 

 this estate at an expenditure of ahout 50 dollars jier acre 

 per annum inclusive of .'superintendence and tran port of 

 crop. An estate in Ceylon kept in first-class order from 

 tbo c mimencement is worked lor from 70 to lOO rupees, 

 but (labour mPerak is dear and difficult to obtain. 'X here fore 

 a liberal expenditui-e should be allowed and the area nuw 

 opened brought into hi^h cultivation before extending 

 the area of the estate. HliNRY COTTAM. 



THE NORTH TRAVANCORE LAND 

 COMPANY. 

 This Company has now been in existence for nearly 

 four years. The property consists of about 120,000 

 acres of land situated on the Kanau Devan Hills, a 

 mountainous range adjoining the Pnlney hills and 

 situated just over the Travancore boundary. The best 

 road at present is the same as leads to Kodakanal, 

 going to Ammauayakanoor on the South Indian Rail- 

 way, and then by transit to Periyakolam. Instead 

 of stopping at Periyakolam, as visitors to the Pulueys 

 do, it is necessary to go sixteen miles further to a 

 small post-town named Bodanaikauore, at the foot 

 of a range of lofty mountains. From here to the foot 

 of the hills, is a distance of five miles, and a bridle 

 path leads up the side of the hills. After ascending 

 4,500 feet, which takes about two hours, we reach 

 some grass huts situated on the other side of the 

 saddle. This place is called the Mettoo, and is the 

 Travancore boundary. Here we descend a few hund- 

 red feet into a large valley shut in on either side by 

 lofty-hills ; to the left are the Travancore cardamom 

 gardens, and to the right the hills which form the 

 boundary of the Company's property. From here it 

 is ten milea along a good • path to the Company's 

 settlement, Devaoolam. During the last two miles of 

 this road the ascent is rather steep, and we rise to 

 about 5,600 ft. We then cross a small saddle betw- 

 een two hills, turn a corner and enter the Deva- 

 colara valley. In front is a small natural tank with 

 a bungalow on its bank?. On all sides are hills 

 covered, for the most part, with thick forest, except 

 where the forest has been felled and planted with cin- 

 chona. Here, in this valley, there are nearly 300 acres 

 of cinchona from three years of age to last season's plant- 

 ing. The soil appears to be very rich and the growth 

 of the trees is very remarkable indeed. They are all 

 C. Condaminea with some Pubesoensand hybrids. The 

 hybrids are especially sturdy, and many of the three- 

 year old trees which we measured were more than 

 1 1 feet in height aad as thick round the stem as a man's 

 arm. The trees of later seasons were also remarkably 

 fine and healthy. Some of the two-year olds were nine 

 feet high, and all of them were a good level lot. The 

 plantations are for the most part well sheltered by 

 belts of forest, but in a few places where the trees have 

 been more exposed and wind-blown, they are not so 

 well developed as in the more sheltered spots. Some of 

 the clearings here run up lo 6,000 ft., and we were 

 informed that the rainfall is steady throughout the ye;ir. 

 The last season has been an especially wet one, and 

 many of the young trees suffered from an excess of 

 rain. The amount of rain registered was, we believe, 

 150 inches, ext-nding over the whole yerir. During 

 the winter months there is generally a sharp loar frost, 

 which, however, is chiefly confined to the hollows and 

 bottoms. The mornings are misty and there is a heavy 

 dew. Devacolam is situated in the soath-east corner 



of the estate, which forms nearly a square. Towards 

 the west the property extends down the lowcountry, 

 and from some of the hill tops the fhips in the Cochin 

 harbour are distinctly visible. Altogether the Com- 

 pany have openeil out and planted more than 800 acres 

 situated in three diflerint portion-i of the estate. 1. 

 Devacolam 5,600 ; 2. Moonaar 4,500 in the south-west 

 corner ; and Palliar 4,500—5,500 in the north corner. 

 From Devacolam to Moonaar is abnut twelve miles 

 for the most part along a ridge of hills dividini^ two 

 valleys, each of which is watered by a river. The 

 valley to the left is the Aniikadaviio valley, and is the 

 best wooded of the two. Here there are some 2.000 

 acres of dense virgin forest. The valley runs east and 

 west, and the sholas seem for the most part to be 

 well sheltered from the force of the monsoon. The 

 height of the sholas average about 5,000 ft., thouoh the 

 hills behind rise to upwards of 6,000. The Moonaar 

 plantation consists of about 250 acres of tea, coffee 

 and cinchona The elevation is 4,500 ft. Here there 

 are no trees older than two years, but they are all 

 doing remarkably well. The special feature, however, 

 of this plantation is the tea. The tea is only two 

 years idd, but the bushes are very strong and healthy 

 and are already yielding a crop. During our stay 

 we drank many gallons of Moonaar tea, and we can 

 vouch for its superiority of flavour and quality. The 

 coffee here is also very good, and a large proportion 

 of the two-year old trees were covered with a very 

 good show of berries. The cinchona here is also good, 

 but not so big and strong, as the trees of the same 

 season in the higher elevation of the Devacolum plant- 

 ations. In the Pulliar valley, some fifteen miles to 

 the north, there are about '100 acres opened. This is 

 a splendid valley with an unbroken stretch of about 

 10,000 acres of dense virgin forest. The plantation 

 here has only been recently opened, and it is there- 

 fore too early to speak of it- The lowest part of 

 the forest in this valley being about 4,000 ft. and the 

 the highest about 5,500 to 6,000, it would seem to be 

 well adapted for cinchona, coffee, and tea. Five years 

 ago these hills were almost entirely unknown. On 

 our last visit, during the Christmas holidays, we 

 found ten gentlemen planters who are employed on 

 twelve dilierent estates, besides whom a native gentle- 

 man was opening out another estate on his own 

 behalf. Of these gentlemen, three are in the Compay's 

 employ, and the remainder are engaj;ed in opening out 

 private estates, containing altogether about 2. OUO acres 

 of land. Two of these estates are held by joints-tock 

 Companies, and consist of plantations of 500 acres 

 each. We have seen the articles of association of one 

 of these Companies, the Anabody Co., and remark that 

 an estimate is attached to it of the annual cost until 

 the whole estate comes into beariag. It is calculated 

 that the capital expended (Rl, 50,000) will be nearly 

 recovered lu the fifth year from planting, and from 

 that time the profits will be about une lakh of rupees 

 per aunum, or an interest of 75 per cent, and judg- 

 ing from the growth of the trees up to the present 

 time, there would seem to be no reason to doubt the 

 correctness of this estimate. This calculation is based 

 on a supposition tha' there will be a full in prices 

 and I he estimate will be realized if the bark is sold 

 at one shilling per pound. Specimens of the bark 

 grown on the Company's plantations have already been 

 sent home, and a highly favourable analysis obt'tined. 

 What is now wanted is a road to the nearest port 

 on the Wesiern Coast, Cochin The construction of 

 this road is now contemplated, and, as there is a 

 navigable river not far from the loot of the western 

 slope, the road will probably be made .at no distant 

 day at a not excessive coat. When this has once 

 been done, there can be no doubt that the Company's 

 prospects will greatly iinpn;ve, not only as regards 

 planting but also for settling purposes, — Af, MaU. 



