764 



the tropical agriculturist. 



[April i, 1885. 



fflon^sporukmce. 



To the Editor of the " Ceylon Observer." 



CUCA SEED AND CINCHONA GRUB?. 



20th Feb. 18S5. 



Dear Sir,— I' m a native of the "Emerald Isle" 

 and am almost as green as the auld counthry. 



I 've chosen a small bit of land on the higher ranges 

 of North Travancore as a field for investment, " for 

 a rayson I have " in preference to other parts of the 

 globe. 



It 's all very fine for Ceylon planters to be called 

 enterprising etc.— no doubt they are so,— but, as the 

 ■whole island is interested in plauting, more attention 

 is given by the mercantile portion of the country to 

 planting interests than here in Iudia. Now, if a 

 Ceylow man wanted some "cuca" seed, I 've no doubt 

 he 'd know where to get it ; but, although I 've written 

 to most places in Iudia where I thought it possible 

 to obtain that seed, I have failed; the Madras Agri- 

 cultural Society have three or four plants, which I 

 am to have in the course of time. Having failed in 

 India, maybe some planter in Ceylon, who has been 

 more fortunate than myself in getting the seed, can 

 tell me wheie he got it, and, if he thinks there is 

 more, where that dime from? I have no doubt that 

 the attempts of ludian plauteis to be "euterprizing" 

 have been constantly nipped in the bud, because of the 

 comparatively few firms who are equally euterprizing. 



I have noticed a large percentage of my seven- 

 month old cinchonas ringed at the collar by a dirty- 

 looking grub ; forgive my asking you the scientific 

 name of the spalpeen.— YourB truly, 



SHAMROCK SO GREEN. 

 [Will correspondents answer?— Ed.] 



TWO ACREAGES. 



y 1R in former days we outsiders of the coffee world 



were 'always in doubt when we heard of large yields 

 of crop. Conscientious superintendents u-ed to estimate 

 the breadths of cultivation : A field 30 to 40 acres B 20 

 to 28, C 50 to 60, and so on. When they talked of 

 crop, the minor extent was always paraded. "I g<>t 

 eight hundred hundred -veight off my little place of 100 

 acres." The proprietor however could not quite see it in 

 the same rosy light, he found that to encourage kulis 

 liberal contracts were given and found he was charged 

 for abnut a hundred and thirty -two acies of weeding 

 somewhat in excess of the major breadth. 



Of course the flights of experimental incursions on 

 hearers' credulity by imaginative managers were regulated 

 by no hard-and-fast rules. Now, what I want to come 

 to is this: how can my friend X. came to a fair estimate of 

 the probable returns of an investment ? He has several 

 intimates : some will show their books, but, being 

 economically inclined, have not had their different 

 fields measured, and are going on guesswork. Some 

 do not think it right to show the cost of working. 

 Others a<>ain have partially abandoned fields and guess 

 again how much of each is in tea. If a few straight- 

 forward men, who do know how much each field con- 

 tains, would publish results trustworthy, the matter 

 would lie in a nutshell -such as are given by Abbots- 

 ford, for instance. We want more such, so as to be 

 able' to strike au average. It is easy enough to 

 calculate profit by the theoretical " Getting five hund- 

 red pounds an acre and selling at sixty cents equals 

 a profit of fifty per cent," but in Algebra aj's are 

 unknown quantities, and in the above equation we 

 have nothing else. How can anyone say that an 

 acre will give hundred pounds, averaging sixty cents 

 in value? B - B - B - 



[The yield of 500 lb. per acre was taken by us 

 as _ a medium between the 400 lb. and 700 lb. 

 estimates for high and low estates respectively, and 

 we allowed for a fall in price to lOd per lb. A "devil's 

 advocate" however, for the duties of which office our 

 correspondent is eminently qualified, has his uses, and 

 eo we submit this letter as an incentive to accuracy 

 in stating acreage. — Ed.] 



HELOPELTIS ON TEA. 



Sir, — Considering the importance of tea as a sub- 

 stitute for our declining old staple coffee, every- 

 thing affecting its future in Ceylon becomes of the 

 very highest interest to the planting community. 

 It is therefore with much concern that I have to 

 inform you that I have lately had tit cut down 

 several acres of tea owing to a severe attack of 

 Helopeltis. I have known of the existence of this 

 pest on tea for some mouths past. But, as the mis- 

 chief done has generally been of slight extent, I 

 have not called attention to the facts as I was un- 

 willing to create alarm, but now I think it my 

 duty in the interest of the enterprise to state the 

 fact as abovemeutioned in order that tea plauters 

 may be on the alert and watch the first symptoms 

 of attack, and use such means as they may deem 

 best in their defence. — Yours faithfully, 



OLD PLANTER. 



[We believe the scene where the pest has ap- 

 peared so badly is in the south of the island. On 

 Abbotaford where one helopeltis was found, we have 

 heard of no second specimen. Experience with cacao 

 seems to show that the evil can be coped with. In 

 an Eastern district, we learn children gather and 

 destroy the insect. — Ed.] 



TEA DRIERS: "SIROCCO" VS. "KINMOND." 



Ambagamuwa, 6th March 1885. 



Dear Sir, — The discussion between the patentee of 

 the Kinmond drier aud the local agents of the 

 "Sirocco" is calculated to benefit the tea planters 

 in general, and therefore I do not hesitate in respond- 

 ing to a call by the latter to support the "Sirocco." 

 I cannot add to what has already been Baid by so 

 competent an authority as Mr. Armstrong of Rook- 

 wood ; but I would point out, that, although the 

 "Sirocco" is capable of a high degree of temperature, 

 most authorities on tea prefer tiring at 270 degrees, 

 where there is no absolute call for quick drying, caused 

 by pressure of leaf on hand. This would apply equally 

 to Kinmond. But what is of importance in compar- 

 ing the respective prices of the two makers has, 

 I fear, been lost sight of entirely, and that is the 

 cost of power to drive the fan in the Kinmond. The 

 champion for the "Sirocco" should add the value 

 of water-wheel, pit and pipes or gutters, tank, etc. 

 etc., and wear and tear of these supplementary items 

 as indispensably connected with this drier ; also, for 

 estates where there is no water, the cost of engine, 

 fuel, wages of stoker, wear aud tear, etc. There will 

 be an appreciable difference, I thiuk, iu favor of the 

 "Sirocco." But we have not seen enough as yet of 

 the No. 3 Sirocco, I think, to dispose of the ques- 

 tion thus summarily at this stage. If in the 

 course of the year it be found that the No. 3 is as 

 satisfactory in its working as the old "Sirocco" has been, 

 plus the larger outturn, then I am inclined to think 

 that the tea planters of Ceylon will spare Messrs. 

 Davies & Co. the trouble of wasting their spare time 

 in discussing the respective merits of the driers for 

 our sole benefit ! My friends will not take offence at 

 the playful remark in conclusion. — Yours truly, 



AGRIC'OLA. 



