ApRit i, 1885.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



749 



by artificial means. Every time the stream changed 

 its course it washed the sand from the alluvial de- 

 posits, and turned it over aud over again, allowing 

 the water to pass through the midst of it, so that 

 the tin was gradually left, and the sand, or lighter 

 portions were carried away. It was in this way that 

 the tin came to occupy the lowest portion of the 

 deposit. It was covered with a deposit of alluvium 

 sometimes as much as 30 feet in thickness, in others 

 as much as 50 feet, but usually much les^, sometimes 

 as little as ten feet, The thickness or richness of 

 the tin deposit bore no reference to the thickness of 

 the deposit above it. It was merely a matter . of 

 chance, only he thought it might be inferred that 

 where there was a thick deposit of alluvium over the 

 tin, and the tin was not very thick, the deposit 

 could not be of a very rieh character. The_ audi- 

 ence would now understand how 6tream tin oc- 

 curred. ' What occurred in Perak occurred also in Aus- 

 tralia, and in all mines he had visited where stream tin 

 was worked. There .seemed to be an impression that 

 the stream deposits in Perak were poorer than those 

 in other places, whereas the fact was that if any- 

 thing they were richer. If people thought, too, there 

 was a larger deposit of sand over the tin that was 

 a mistake. It would be found that in some cases 

 there was more in Cornwall, and it was so also in 

 Australia. Probably in Australia the tin deposits had 

 not been fairly worked, for on account of labour 

 being so very dear none but the richest mines were 

 worked and these were worked very differently from 

 the mines in Perak. People asked him, again, how 

 it was that the result of tin mining in the Malay 

 Peninsula was unsatisfactory if the mines were as rich 

 or richer than those in other parts of the world. 

 That depended upon economical considerations with 

 which he could have nothing to do, but still he could 

 form his ideas upon the subject, which might be 

 right or might be wroDg, for clergymen were not as 

 a rule very good men of business and when he told 

 his hearers what he thought about the matter at the 

 termination of his lecture, they might take his re- 

 marks for what they were worth. 

 The lecturer then went on to describe granite as, 

 in his opinion, the result of pressure and superheated 

 steam on stratified rocks, f and he stated that tin was 

 always found in stream beds at the junction of the 

 paleozoic rocks with grauite indicated by a fiery red 

 soil. Then came the practically important part 

 as to the best system of mining : — 



Then another thing was to be said about the deposits 

 of tin. They were not to be worked on ordinary min- 

 ing principles, because the alluvial soil was at most 

 only some fifty feet thick, rarely so much, and more 

 often only fifteen or sixteen feet. Under these con- 

 ditions they could not go tunnelling and burrowing 

 aud putting in operation all those mining apparatus 

 fouud so useful where great depths below the surface 

 had to be reached. Piratically they could do nothing 

 but strip off the alluvial soil, and on coming to the 

 tin extract it from the deposit by means of washing. 

 That was tl.e simple process of mining in the Malay 

 Peninsula. He did not know of any place where 

 similar deposits could be worked otherwise unless they 

 were very deep, and then they could not be worked 

 profitably unless they were unusually rich. He did 

 not think that had been recognized by the Europeans 

 concerned in the Malay Peninsula. It had been as- 

 sumed thev could siuk shafts and run galleries and 

 tunnels. That was sure to lead to failure. Even if 

 they could do so they were sure to meet with large 

 granite boulders, aud as they could not use dynamite 

 where the working was so shallow they would have 

 to work round bhe rocks and leave a ^ood (leal of 

 valuable tin in doing bo. No doubt it was very gratifying 

 to our national vanity to be able to show the Chinese 



what could be done with machine appliances, and if it 

 were merely a benevolent undertaking that would be 

 very interesting, but in practical work it led to a great 

 deal of unnecessary expenditure and could not result 

 in any great gain to those interested. HiB impres- 

 sion was that the mistake had been in not mining as 

 the Chinese do. They strip off the soil in the most 

 economical manner, they wash their tin deposits with- 

 out any great appliances, and iu that way they make 

 their money. Probably it would be said the Chinese 

 have advautages which we do not possess. This was 

 perfectly true, and it seemed to hint, if he might offer 

 a suggestion — and this was where he meant his ability 

 was not sufficiently trustworthy — he would suggest that 

 the mines should be carried on by Europeans on the 

 tribute system rather than by the use of appliances 

 which from the nature of the case could not be ex- 

 pected to pay. He would give an illustration of this. 

 In the early days of gold mining in Port Philip some 

 of the mines gave very large dividends. One of the 

 most prosperous for a time was the Cluoes mine, but 

 as they went deeper and deeper the quartz got poorer 

 until at last it was found the mine did not pay. The 

 shareholders got alarmed, and some of them were for 

 selling off and realising their property as soon as 

 possible. However, better counsels prevailed. Those 

 who understood the matter said : — " Look here, these 

 miners are bringing up all sorts of stuff for you to 

 crush in your mills. They do it because they are paid 

 so much a ton, and they will go on doing so without re- 

 ference to anything but bringing so many toae to grass." 

 The miners were then told they could take so 

 many cubic yards, they could take all the gold, and 

 the company would pump and wind for them. The 

 consequence was that the Chines mine, instead of 

 becoming a loss, was soon returning nearly as large 

 dividends as it did previously. He thought the only 

 way to mine successfully in Perak would be on a 

 somewhat similar principle. Let the tributaries be 

 the Chinese, who knew how to work the mines, and 

 let as few Europeans as possible have anything to 

 do with it. The climate was bad, the privations 

 great, and the Europeans employed deserved to be 

 paid good salaries ; but let there be as few Buch 

 as possible. He would not detaiu them further. He 

 could say more, but what he had said he hoped was 

 sufficient to make clear to them that mines in Perak 

 are no exception to mines elsewhere. They are rich : 

 they offer favourable fields for the employment of 

 British capital ; but they require care in the working. 

 In the end they cannot fail to yield satisfactory 

 results. (Applause.) 



Cankeh in Frcit Trees. — Canker in fruit trees is 

 considered by most cultivators as caused by unhealthy 

 root-action. For mauy years I have each season had 

 something to do with the renovation of fruit trees, and 

 in many cases had to deal with canker in its worst form ; 

 but wherever lifting the roots from unhealthy quarters 

 was practised, the wounds well cleaned with the knife, 

 and a good coating of clay aud lime painted intc- the 

 Wounds, the trees recovered and did well. By inducing 

 the roots to grow upwards into wholesome mulching 

 disease disappeared, and the wounds healed. I can point 

 to many cases where such manipulating was practised, 

 and the trees are now healthy. This experience dates 

 back from the present time to the earlier days of my 

 gardening life while an under gardener iu the south and 

 west of England, and I will refer to a few cases, which 

 is better than theorising. I cannot nt any time point 

 to a case where 1 could have blamed insect agency as 

 being the direct cause of canker, but I have very often 

 seen the disease accelerated (after it was established) by 

 insects harbouring all over the wounds, American blight 

 Vicing tin- most formidable enemy to contend with. — Journal 

 of Horticulture. 



