Avavar i, 1SS5-] 



THE TROf»lCAL AGKiCULTUKIST. 



^35 



receptacle, or shell, which is of a whitish colour. A 

 large portion, however, of the shell or skin is de- 

 voured with the contents. If the orange-coloured 

 spores are the means of propagating leaf-disease (?) 

 we ought to be very thankful that there is s.uch a 

 voracious little animal as our friend the maggot to 

 render so many of them innocuous. 



I think "Oberon" is again mistaken in Baying 

 that the larva is armed witli a sharp pi'oboscis with 

 which he pierces the skin of the leaf, I find many 

 of these larv^u lying in chrysalis form and perfectly 

 quiescent among the spores. The supposed proboscis 

 may possibly be the integument wherewith the 

 larv;f are attached to the leaf. The "maggots," I 

 observed, were certainly not indebted to the juices 

 of the leaf for their sustenance : their attention was 

 directed solely to the spores. But I can support 

 "Oberon" in his statement that the larva- lie in 

 their larva state on the dried blackened portion of 

 the leaf, originally a pinspot, wliich fact goes to' 

 strengthen the supposition that a living'organism and 

 not a fungus is the origin of the fell disease which 

 has blighted so many hopes and e.xpectations. 



lam: aware, Mr. Editor, that I sliall be deemed 

 foolhardy to appear to question the received opinion 

 that the propagation of leaf-disease is by means of 

 the spores, but you may remember tliat General Bray, 

 brooke, years back, was not afraid to propound the 

 theory that tlie origin of the disease was in the sap 

 of the tree, and now "Oberon" Is bold enough to 

 oome forward to support that theory Y and, if I mistake 

 not. Captain Bay ley carried on some experiments at 

 Galle which went far to show that it was iiossibk 

 the disea'^e was propagated by some means other than 

 the orange spores, so that the spores may be the 

 tffect and not the cause of the disease; and is not 

 this more probable than its propagation by a fungus 

 which beiug without the power of locomotion is yet 

 supposed to be able to find its way through the stomata 

 into the interior of the leaf ? 



If the propagation of the pest /s due to the spore 

 substance, may we not look hopefully for a rapid 

 diminution of its effects from the wholesale destruc- 

 tion of all the "shuck" coffee which is being carried 

 out in every district in the island ? For not only 

 will there be fewer spores to convey the disease, but 

 the strong healthy trees may be expected to, in a 

 measure, resist contamination. 



Though plucky enough to send you this, I should 

 be glad if I could, like the schoolboy, prepare for 

 my cnstigation by inserting a copybook inside the 

 seat of my inexpressibles. PUCK. 



P.S.—Cd.a any of your readers say whether the 

 scale-insect, and //. V. are to be found on the same 

 leaf ? 1 have examined many leaves suffering from 

 the latter, but In one instance aloDO did I discover 

 tcale-inaect and then there was only one, and he did 

 cot appear to be at all iu a flourishing state, P. 



[Mr, Dlok of Udapuseellawft some months ago ux- 

 pressed the opinion that the coffee leaf fungus was. 

 Itself, in a diaeasnd or dying condition, and that 

 he could not get n healthy, full-developed specimen 

 tuch as tilled the back of every leaf sonre years ago. 

 It is possible therefore that the epidemic may be 

 dying out, leaving life in the coffee-trees in certain 

 districts still. So mote it be.— Kd.] 



CAN THE CHEMIST PRACTICALLY AID THE 

 PLANTER IN PREPARING TEA? 



DuAfe Sir,— In your leader on the increase of Ceylon 

 te.is, yon remark that it may now be time to take the 

 advice given in several quarters lo call in the aid of 

 analytical chemists. 



I think it would be as well to consider what aid 

 they could afford us in the direction of perfect tea, 



If, for instance, they could establish a test to enable 

 us to tell when leaf was properly withered: that is, 

 let us say, by taking a pound or so of leaf and mash- 

 ing in a mortar, by adding certain chemicals, we could 

 be sure we bad withered up to the necessary point, 

 then the capacity of the oidinary planter would be 

 equal to the occasion and chemitts would be a decided 

 boon. But if the necessary process demanded either 

 ditiicult calculation or delicate filtration, then, I think 

 the majority of planters would tight shy of the method. 



Practically, too, would such tests tell us more than 

 our senses of sight and touch do at present ! The 

 same remarks apply to fermenting and firing. 



Of course, chemists could tell us whether teas aro 

 good or bad when they are made, but so can planters ; 

 aud if WB can tell what prices our teas will fetch 

 within a penny or so, we ought to be able to spot 

 anything serioufly wrong with our method of manu- 

 facture. Supposing the above remarks are correct 

 then the benefit which would accrue to us by the 

 introduction of professional analysts reduces itself to the 

 question of soil and manure. On these points, of course 

 they could give us most valuable information, but, at the 

 same time, such proved of but little practical value 

 iu the case of cotl'ee, and it's doubtful whether it 

 would be of more use in tea — in both cases the opinion 

 of experienced planters seems to have the happiest 

 commercial result. 



Then, as to making perfect tea, I am convinced 

 that what we require is not so much experiments in 

 chemistry as better arrangements for the withering 

 and further manipulation of the leaf. I am not com- 

 petent to say whether this can be done by Clerihew's 

 Blackman's, or any of the air-exhaus-t paleuts, but 

 this I am sure of, that withering is the point ou which 

 attention is needed. 



I am talking of estates that are sending home good 

 teas at present and under competent management not 

 of places where tea is just coming into bearing and 

 the superintendent has had no experience. There 

 of course, much improvement may be needed in the 



whole operation of making {vide the case of . 



whose teas doubled in value after the superintendent 

 had bad lessons from a man who knew something 

 about tea), but the good places in Ceylon at present 

 if they have to show much improvement ou their 

 present make, will do it only by more extended 

 withering arrangements, possibly assisted by hot-air 

 machinery. It may be going too far to say that a 

 good wither ensures a good tea, but most manu- 

 facturers will agree with me that a bad one generally 

 has most unhappy results. 



The most useful idea in regard to the improvement 

 in teas and spread of information as to manufacture 

 &o, , seems to me to be a series of queBtions in your 

 planting columns, answois bting solicited Irom corte. 

 spoudents in all districts, at .ill elevations, &o.,— each 

 estate to slate its metliod of plucking, average ago 

 Of Hush, ege of tea, and other particulara, 

 . WlniliiilNo. 



1. What percentage do you wither down to ? 



2. Have you triui firoccos or tulas as aids to 

 withering ? and with what results ? 



3. Is your withering liouse enclosed or open ?— 

 state average temperature. 



4. Is ttssing tiie leaf in the air, in your opinion 

 conducive to rnpid withering? have vou found itblackens 

 the kaf ? 



5. State your opinion as tithe most rapid withers vou 

 have had, with notes oii the te'i made from the same &c 



Soon,through rolling, liring, fermenting. bulking,p.ic'kJug'. 



The notes aa to plucking should be full aiid explicit' 



as, of course, line leaf will wither better than coarse 



J or mixed, You will easily find exjierienccd planters 



