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THE AGRICULTUKAL NEWS. 



November 11, 1905, 



EDUCATIONAL 



Grenada. 



The following is an extract from the Inspector of 

 Schools' Report on Primary Education in Grenada for 

 the year 1904, in which reference is made to teaching 

 principles of agriculture in elementary schools: — 



This subject continues to be taught in all the schools, 

 ■with decidedly satisfactory results. The spiiit exhibited on 

 the first attempt to introduce the scientific teaching of this 

 subject into the schools has now happily disappeared, 

 altlieugh there still remains room for the display of active 

 co-operation as between manager and teacher in a few solitary 

 instances ; and to-day, teachers have learnt to regard their 

 schools as the agencies, and themselves the immediately 

 responsible agents, through whom the introduction of this 

 .subject into the school curriculum, assisted b}- school gardens, 

 is intended as the means of opening the eyes of the masses to 

 the fact that Grenada is not a manufacturing but an 

 agricultural community. The suspension of all active work 

 in the Agricultural Department at the Botanic Station, 

 through the \acancles in the offices of Curator and 

 Agricultural Instructor, has acted as a check on the vigorous 

 life that was in evidence a year ago, when the school gardens 

 were laid out and enclosed. As soon as an Agricultural 

 Instructor is appointed, the work of fencing in plots will 

 again be proceeded with. 



At the close of 1904, the foUowijig school gardens were 

 in full working order, and had been so for the whole year : — 



St. Paul's Anglican- -ilanager, Revd. G. W. Branch. 



„ „ liom. Cath. „ „ Fr. Gurrin. 



„ George's Boys' B.C. ,, ,, „ „ 



„ John's B.C. „ „ Fr. Tigar. 



„ Mark's Anglican „ „ Canon Arthur. 



Ill connexion with work on the practical side, the 

 teachers were awarded sums amounting to £1.3 as lump-sum 

 bonuses on the result of the examinations held in October 

 and November last. 



Nearly every one of these schools had had seAcral sales 

 of garden produce during the year, the proceeds of which 

 Avei-e employed by the teachers, with their manager's 

 permi.s.sion, in giving .school treats by way of encouragement, 

 and in improving the gardens. Samples of garden produce 

 w^ere from time to time sent to the Department i.nd 

 submitted for the inspection of his Excellency the President, 

 ■who encouragingly had the receipt of them acknowledged. 

 One school secured prizes at the Agricultural Society's 

 Exhibition held in the month of March this year. 



Trinidad. 



The following are extracts from the Annual 

 Report of the Inspector of Schools in Trinidad, in 

 which reference is made to the teaching of the 

 principles of agriculture and school garden shows : — 



During the .year 1904-5, 190 .schools were examined in 

 practical agriculture, fifty-four of these being successful in 

 obtaining the highest award — 'Very good.' In the previous 

 jear, of the ISO schools examined only thirty f)btainod the 

 highest award, so that a clear note of progress has been 

 sounded in this direction. And while it is admitted that the 

 production of vegetables for the annual shows seems to be 

 the sole aim in some of the schools, it is only fair to state 

 that there are not a few teachers who show, by their 

 intelligent methods of teaching agriculture, and by the 

 a.ssiduous cultivation in their pupils of habits of observation, 



both in and out of school, that they are aiming at a far 

 higher ideal. The Assistant Inspectors gratefully acknowl- 

 edge the valuable help afl'orded by the visits of the 

 Agricultural Instructors, and I wish it were possible for 

 these officers to devote more time to this part of their work. 

 Throughout the year weekly lectures have been given by- 

 one of them at the Government Training School, Port-of- 

 Spain, and at the Presbyterian Training School, San 

 Fernando, the students of Nelson Street Boman Catholic 

 Training School also attending at the former. The 

 bi-weekly chemistry lectures at the Government Training 

 School were conducted as in the previous year by Mr. A. E. 

 Collens, of the Government Analyst's Department. In 

 future, however, these lectures will be given at the 

 Government Laboratory, which aftbrds better facilities for 

 experimental work. 



SCHOOL O.VRDEN SHOWS. 



The exhibits of vegetables and vegetable products were 

 a distinct advance upon those of previous years in regard 

 to both cjuantitj' and ijuality, and, judging from the crowds 

 who turned out to see the .siiows, a .spreading interest is 

 being taken in what is now looked forward to as the 

 function of the year at each centre. A new departure was 

 made last year by the inauguration of a section at all the 

 centres comprising exhibits of local cultivators (apart from 

 schools). The prizes for these were contributed to the extent 

 of £50 by the Agricultural Society, with an additional £25 

 raised by subscription. The fact of their lieing two separate 

 sections, one exclu.sively for schools, and the other for the 

 general public ser\ed to create a healthy rivalry and to add 

 to the popularit}' of the shows. It is not unreasonable to 

 lielieve that these annual exhibitions, though on a compara- 

 tively humble scale, will help in no small degree to develop 

 the great natural resources of the colon}', and they prove 

 beyond a doubt that many of the necessaries of e\'eryday life 

 can be produced at our own doors with little trouble or 

 expense. 



AGRICULTURE IN BRITISH HONDURAS. 



The Avixuu.l Beporf on British Honduras for 

 IS)04 has the following note on new industries of the 

 colony : — 



Several cacao plantations are now established in the 

 colon}', and some are producing good ci'ops. AVhereas, a few- 

 years ago, cacao was imported from London to supply local 

 reijuirenients, it is satisfactory to note that during 1904 

 British Honduras was not oidy able to satisfy home demands 

 but to export the produce. Several banana growers have 

 taken up the cultivation of cacao. 



In parts of the colony the soil is well adajited foi' the 

 production of coffee. The industry, howe\er, is still 

 unde\eloped. A plantation in the Toledo district is the 

 only one of any pretensions. The planters of Jlullins Blver 

 cultivate small patches of the product for their own use. 



There is plenty of land in the colony capable of 

 liniducing good tobacco, but only a comparatively few jieople 

 in the northern districts pay any attentinu to its cultivation; 

 the little produced is consumed locally. 



Further efforts were made during 1904 to establish 

 a cotton industry. Two of the largest landowners in the 

 north cleared and prepared about 40 acres of land for the 

 purpose of growing cotton, and some seed was planted. The 

 results were not satisfactory. ^lost of the seed failed to 

 grow, and those plants which did well were damaged by 

 excessive rains. Maize is produced plentifull}' wherex'er an 

 Indian population is settled. It is their main article of diet 



