August i, 1884,] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



»5» 



spring of No. 23, ten trees mixed; 8 to 15, offspring of 

 No. 38, a to h ; 16, offspring of No. 38, ten trees mixed ; 

 17 and 18, offspring of unnumbered trees, handsome type ; 

 19 to 22, offspring of No. 23; 23 and 24, offspring of 

 unnumbered trees ; 25 to 32, broad-leaved sturdy growing 

 tree, A to G, succirubra-form ; 33 to 38, offspring Of No. 

 23, 1 to 3, No. 38, 4 to 6, succirubra-form ; 40, harvest 

 shaving three years renewed ; 42, scion of mother tree No. 89 

 specimen of 21 trees 2 year bark; 43, scion of uuanalysed 

 trees, leaves underside red, bark of 10 trees 2J years old ; 

 14. scion of uuanalysed trees, bark of 9 three year trees; 

 45 to 54, harvest: the bark of young branches and 

 twigs mixed ; 55 to 57, stem on which the Ledgeriana, 

 analyses 42 to 44, is grafted; 58, harvest; 59, stem on 

 which the Ledgeriana, analysis 41, is grafted ; GO, bark of 

 shoots of coppiced trees; 61, root bark of stumps; 63, 

 very small-leaved variety ; 53, renewed bark of the tree 

 referred to in analysis of 1881 ; 65 and 66, stem bark of 

 ten year old tree; 67, branch bark of ditto. 



Table 0. — Amount of Rain and Number of Rainy Days 

 on the Cinchona Plantations observed during 1S82. 



(*) Soekawana, a private cinchona estate, lies on the 

 Tangkoebau Prahoe, 15 kilometer from the Government 

 estate Nagrak and 30 meters lower than the residence of 

 the observer there. 



PINKOS TUBERS. 



Under the name " Pinkos-knolleu," a very hard red woody 

 substance has lately been introduced into the Vienna market, 

 probably from Australia, which is found to be almost as 

 valuable for turning purposes as ivory. Dr. Franz vou 

 Hohnel has subjected this substance to careful examination, 

 and has determined, from the following characters, that it is 

 the product of a coniferous tree belonging to the family 

 Araucariea?: — 1. The absence of true vessels. 2. The 

 absence of resin passages. 3. The extremely thin-walled 

 medullary rays, consisting of a single row of cells, comparat- 

 ively large, and placed in bulgiugs of the tracheids. 4. The 

 remarkable pits which indicate the tracheids on the borders 

 of the medullary rays. 5. The large bordered pits of the 

 tracheids, which meet from opposite sides, usually placed in 

 two rows, and then nearly polygonal. 6. The sclerenehym- 

 atous pith, from -1 to 5 millimetres wide. The so-called 

 "tubers" are turnip-shaped, 15-40 centimetres long and 7-16 

 broad : broad and apparently broken off at oue end, running 

 out into a point at the other end. The transverse section 

 shows .-I sclerenchymatous pith, 4-5 millimetres wide, sur- 

 rounded by a number of very narrow annual rings, the older 

 of which are concentric, the outer ones strongly excentric. 

 They ,ne usually covered by rotten wood and soil, and are 

 probably gigantic knots which have fallen out of decaying 

 and mouldering trunks in the primeval forest. Of the genera 

 of Araucariese they must be derived from either A, 

 or Dammara , and very probably from Araucaria Bidwillii, 

 the "bunya-bunya pine." a native of New South Wales. — 

 Pharmaceutical Journal, 



AGRICULTURE ON THE CONTINENT OF EUROPE; 

 Spi < ial /■< tt r 



Paeis, June 21st. 



Except for the extending ravages of the phylloxera, 

 French farmers would not have much to complain of this 

 season so far. The grass crop is short and light, but hopes 

 are entertained that the aftermath may turn out well. 

 In any case intercalary crops are being taken. Cereals 

 are well eared, and the filling promises fairly. The rains, 

 warm and refreshing, are telling favorably on roots. The 

 Beet crop will be a fair average, but the area of land 

 under it will be less than last year. The sugar industry 

 appears to be in a state of confusion ; the manufacturers 

 are not opposed to levying the fiscal dues on the roots 

 rather than on the juice, but they demand the government 

 to accord them a bounty,. in order to hold the market 

 against tb.2 German and Russian producers. In the end 

 they may succeed as have the ship-builders. No farmer 

 complains respecting the custom's dues on live stock being 

 more than doubled ; no augmentation will take place re- 

 specting grain, but that on flour will be increased. France 

 is free to do as shi pleases to protect her interests against 

 the foreigner ; only when the latter does the same she 

 ought not to lecture him on free trade. 



French agriculture is making rapid strides ; it would 

 walk with something like seven-league boots, did the farmers 

 possess any rational system of banking accommodation. 

 An agriculturist is not viewed by the Bank of Frauce as 

 a trader, hence, his paper is refused commercial accom- 

 modation. There are roundabout ways of coming to the 

 rescue, but they are too dilatory, too uncertain, and too 

 costly. 



The Italian farmers are a model in this way ; they form 

 in each canton a mutual guarantee for one another, and 

 that arranged, the popular banks immediately advance the 

 funds, and at a rate of interest not at all of a hampering 

 character. Temporary loans to farmers are useless if not 

 for eighteen mouths ; longer, for permauent improvements. 

 The French farmer must apply to usurers if he has no 

 friends ; he can of course mortgage his holding, generally 

 his own property, but the law expenses alone would amount 

 to 10 per cent — a two years interest at 5 per cent. Such 

 loans ought not to be either more expensive or more dif- 

 ficult to negotiate than ordinary commercial paper. 



Salt is a commodity, next to a necessity, for French 

 farmers ; yet it is so heavily taxed, surrounded with so 

 many irritating conditions, as to limit its employ. You 

 cannot cart a barrel of sea water to your house without 

 permission of the authorities. You would be suspected of 

 wanting to cheat the revenue perhaps by manufacturing 

 your own salt. The tax brings in over three millions of 

 francs annually to the exchequer ; better reduce that and 

 make up the deficiency on drink licenses. Mixed with 

 lime salt is beneficial for all crops. It is generally applied 

 at the rate of 3 to 4 cwt. per acre, and is most efficacious, 

 according to Boussingault, when mixed with two-thirds of 

 its weight of lime or marl. Salt exercises a most favour- 

 able influence on the formation of the ear of wheat, bar- 

 ley and oats, aud adds to the weight of the grain itself. 

 In the case of potatoes, the action is marked, the soda 

 replacing the potash in that plant, but it is in colza that 

 salt tells with most benefit. For feeding mangels salt is 

 excellent, but it is detrimental wdien beet is cultivated 

 for sugar. It was Davy who first directed attention to the 

 value of salt in the agricultural point of view. It aug- 

 ments the appetite of stock and enables the latter to 

 consume acid or inferior herbage. The famous prt 

 sheep that commaud the highest price with the butcher, 

 are fed on the salt marshes of Lower Normandy and the 

 coast of Charente-Inferieure. Mixed with guano and urine 

 salt prevents the escape of ammoniacal fumes. M. Velter 

 concluded the ultimate action of salt was to convei or- 

 ganic mailers into nitrate of soda. In any ease before 

 employing salt, the nature of the soil ought to be care- 

 fully studied. 



M. Pasteur hesitates to give his experiments resp 

 inoculation against hydrophobia, with virus of rabie 

 specially modified as definite, till a government ci 

 sion report on s : ,me. which it will do in the cours. of a 

 few months. At present Scientists seem to be concen- 

 trating their attention on micrabes, bacteria, bacelli and 



