768 



THK TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[April i, 1885. 



Talking of the earliest rocks and their constit- 

 uents, what has R. to say about the modern 

 theory that, granite is derived from gneiss '; When 

 ■we first dipped into geology, the stratified rocks 

 were represented as deriving their origin from granite. 

 But quien sabe 1 Those who know most are the first 

 to confess how little is yet known of the history of the 

 earth we treid upon. 



SUGAR AND COFFEE IN NETHERLANDS INDIA. 

 (Translated for the "Strait* Timet.'') 



Mr. Van Peldeu Laerne, who was lately commis- 

 sioned Try the Netherlands Government to report upon 

 coffee growing in Brazil, reeommeuds to the fame, on 

 the strength of his experiences there, that State coffee 

 cultivation in Java should be made less burdensome 

 on the people, and be only proceeded with on land 

 proven to be suitable for it on careful inquiry, the 

 yield to be delivered uneured by the natives at great 

 central establishments of at least ten thousand pieuls 

 storage capacity, where its preparation for the market 

 shall be carried through on Government aocount, the 

 Government also to do everything in its power to push 

 the sale of Java coffee abroad, especially in Russia 

 and Central Asia, to encourage the collection of statist- 

 ical information regardiug coffee cultivation and the 

 coffee trade in Java, and enable the Java Bank to lend 

 money on hypothecation. 



0»ing to the sugar crisis, many European over- 

 eeers have been dismissed from Java su^ar estates to 

 make room, in some instances, for Chinamen at lower 

 wages. Two of them have left for Australia to try 

 their luck in that quarter, on the understanding that 

 they would send back word should success attend them, 

 mauy others being ready in that case to follow their 

 example. The Sourabaya Coitrant affirms that molasses 

 sugar has fallen there in value to two guilders per picul. 

 Two wealthy planters have determined to keep then- 

 white sugar in warehouses, in hopes of that article 

 soon rising in price. The disadvantage attending this 

 course is that, after oue year and a half the sugar falls 

 off in quality, changes colour, and becomes less sweet. 



MAURITIUS. 



THE FUTURE OF SUUAR AND OTHEK CULTURES. 



(From the Mercantile I'ecord and Commercial Ga:.'tte, 

 16th Feb.) 



If when every imaginable economy has been effected 

 on sugar estates,- the wages of the Indians reduced 

 to 5 or G rupees per month, for the 1st and 2nd class 

 best labourers, the rations reduced to the lowest 

 figure, the salaries of the sirdars, and all the em- 

 pUryei lowfred in the same proport-'on. After all this 

 has been done, supposing sugar not to rise in price 

 so as to be able to pay for its own cost in making ; 

 and compelling all those who depend upon it to seek 

 some other employment; supposing all this to come 

 to pass, we a-k what will be done with the mills 

 and sugar-house machinery, which have been the 

 principal cause of the sugar-estates be ng so deeply 

 indebted, which will be left stanoing and only a part 

 of them salable at very low prices to perhaps Aus- 

 tralia, what we ask, will be done with the buildings 

 of the sugar houses &c. ? 



We ask these questions, for we have certain mis- 

 givings that, although sugar may -now and then be 

 sold at a laying price, i. "., that the sale-price may 

 pay for the cost of making, giving a slight prohr, 

 the general ruling prices will be of less than cbst-pnce_ 

 If the averaoe of the occasional slight rise and of 

 the occasional slight fall is in the long run only equal 

 to par, sugar-makiug must be| given up ns a losing 

 game, unless very Euperior agricultural chemistry of 

 which we spoke yesterday, can turn the balance. 



Russian Duty on Tea and Oil. — From the Loudon 

 Times we learn that the Board of Trade have re- 

 ceived through the Secretary of State for Foreign 

 Affairs a despatch from Her Majesty's Minister at 

 St. Petersburg, enclosing a translation of a decree of 

 the Russian Government, dated Jan. 20-Feb. 1, 1855, 

 increasing the rates of import duty upon the follow- 

 ing, among other articles : — Tea, imported at European 

 ports, and across European land frontier, per poud, 

 21r. (gold) (£10 6s lid per cwt.); olive oil and all 

 vegetable oils (except coconut, palm, &c. ), bone oils, 

 fatty and empyreumatic oils, and olive oil with ad- 

 mixture of turpeutine, per poud, 2r. 20c. (£1 Is 8d 

 per cwt.). These increased rates of duty are levied 

 on and from the above-menti >ned date. 



Encouragement to growtiie Pepper-vine. — There are not 

 twoarticlesin the spice trade, says the Home and Colonial Mail 

 now so dear as hlack and white pepper, aud there are good, 

 reasons why the prices ruling should be comparatively high. 

 For some time past, chiefly in consequeucc of diminished 

 imports, stocks have been working down into a narrow 

 compass, aud as it is between the seasous now, two or three 

 months must elapse before any material additiou to the 

 supply on offer, by fresh arrivals, can possibly take place. 

 Even theu the quantities on hand will require so much re- 

 plenishing that large proportions of the quantities put for- 

 ward will be quickly absorbed for that purpose, and still 

 further heavy importations would be necessary to bring the 

 value down to a more moderate level thau it has stood at 

 for years past. With few lauded parcels offering, the bulk 

 of the business done for several weeks running has been for 

 J.muary or "distant"' shipment at stiffening rates, till 

 Acheeu, Pcnaug, has fetched 7d, and Singapore black 7gdto 

 8d per lb. It is believed that on the Coutiueut the same 

 scarcity prevails, as at Havre, for instance, only about 

 8,300 bags are held by the importers, in contrast with 22,7uU 

 bags at this period in 18S-1 ; aud the exports from hence 

 area much-needed supply drawn away from this side. The 

 same remarks apply to white pepper, which is also very 

 scarce, and is likely to be much dearer before the market 

 is adequately supplied, as its manufacture by the natives in 

 the East is sure to be interfered with or delayed while 

 black descriptions of pepper command advanced prices such 

 as those now existing. Indeed, if it were not for the London- 

 made sorts of white pepper which are regularly producod, 

 there would doubtless have been another and more con- 

 siderable rise-in value long ago ; and as a sign that there 

 has been no accumulation of supplies in the hands of sell- 

 ers, we may mention that it is some months since anything 

 of importance pertaining to this kind of pepper was offered 

 for sale by public auction. 



Lyi.e's Improved Tea Roller. — Perhaps the next best 

 thine to a new invention is an improvement on an old 

 one, especially when such ^improvement is accompanied 

 with reduction of price. We are able to notify that the 

 combination of advantages has been attained by the pro- 

 prietors of T.yle's Rolling-machine. The former price of 

 £85 f. o. b. iu London, or Rl,200 in Calcutta, has now 

 been reduced to £70 and SI,000, respectively. The present 

 machine is stronger in make than the original one, and 

 can roll oil' a larger quantity of leaf. Eight maunds of 

 leaf can be double-rolled in au hour, or 12 maunds single- 

 rolled iu the same time. This is very rapid work, but the 

 leaf has a good twist, and those who have used the 

 machine say that the outturn in the cup is always of a 

 very even colour. The machine is remarkably simple in 

 construction, and cannot well get out of order. The pressure 

 can be regulated at will, by a ratchet movement. This 

 is a great, desideratum, as the tendency of some machines 

 is to smash the young leaf or insufficiently twist the hard 

 pluckings of the finish of the season. Although the model 

 we were shown is for steam power, the machine can he 

 readily fitted with a lly-wleel for hand-driving ; aud as 

 no foundation is required, its erection is simple and cheap 

 enough. Mr Kirwan, the superintendent of the Doom- 

 Dooma Co., says that he considers the outturn of infused 

 leaf brighter from this machine than from any other. 

 This is high praise, as we all know how prices are affected 

 by the colour of the infused leaf. As to working cap- 

 abilities, the machine can roll 100 maunds of leaf daily 

 aud no hand finishing is required. — Indian Tea Gatette. 



