326 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Nov. 2, 1885; 



The Soma Plant of Hindu Mttholoov. — The 

 naturalist with the Boundary Commission has, he 

 believes, found the Soma plant, the e^dstence of 

 which has for so long remained a mystery. The 

 plant grows like a weed near Herat ; and is a most 

 insignificant specimen of the botanical world. There 

 are two kinds found there, one with a large reddish 

 brown fruit, and the other bearing a smaller fruit. 

 The plant has no leaves, but consists of a number 

 of jointed twigs like the fingers of a hand starting 

 from a stumpy stem. It answers the various descrip- 

 tions given of it very closely, and is still used by 

 the fire worshippers in Persia and Bornbay for their 

 tire worship. The Pathans make an infusion of it, 

 which is extensively used as a tonic and stimulant ; 

 and it is also dried and afterwards pounded for use 

 as snuff. — Madras Mail. 



Coffee Consumption in Amemca goes on in- 

 creasing after a fashion which leaves Europe en- 

 tirely behind. The American Grocer states: — 

 Wliile the consumption for the first third of the 

 year shows a gain of over 28 per cent, the de- 

 crease in May and -June has reduced it to a gain 

 over the first half of 188-1 of 16-07 per cent. We 

 will not be surprised if the movement for the next 

 six months cuts down the increase to 10 or 12 

 per cent. We recognize, however, elements at work 

 that must result in heavier gains in consumption 

 than could be expected six to eight years ago. 

 Fifty years ago there was not a complete appar- 

 atus for roasting coffee in this country. The first 

 was brought over from England in 18.33 or 1834, prior 

 to which time a machine operated by band fiUed 

 all the requirements of this great city. Now we 

 have giant estabUshments, one of which employs 

 dozens of large cylinder roasters and turns out 

 1,000 bags of roasted coffee daily. In every city 

 of respectable size one finds the large cylinder 

 roaster in operation. This is the work of the past 

 twenty years, and the result is a slow revolution in 

 changing the demand of consumers, especially in 

 the South and Southwest, from green to roasted 

 coffee. This has made the berry a greater favorite, 

 because the professional roaster has given the con- 

 sumers a better and more uniform roasted berry 

 than they could secure at home by means of 

 skillet or frying pan. The result has been the in- 

 fusion is more pleasing to the palate, and therefore 

 more generously used. Within a few years it has 

 become the fashion to liave cofl'ee served at lunch 

 counters and soda water fountains, it being a pop- 

 ular beverage with tens of thousands wlio have taken 

 to its use in lieu of spirits or malt liquors. It seems 

 to be a pleasant and powerful stimulant, and as 

 its good qualities become more widely known, it 

 grows in favor as a beverage, and is supplanting 

 other articles of drink in and out of the household. 

 While the consumption advances here it has not 

 gained much, if any, in Europe. The May de- 

 liveries were 54,247 tons, against 53,503 for the same 

 month in 1884, and 30,630 in 1883. For the first 

 five months of 1885 they were 159,157 on the 

 Continent, and with the deliveries in the United 

 Kingdom added they foot up 173,901 tons, against 

 148,992 in 1884, 200,("l50 tons in 1883. The European 

 trade' fell off heavily in 1884 as compared with 

 1883, and thus far the loss has not been recovered, 

 the ' deliveries for the first five months being 

 sli"htly below the average yearly distribntion for 

 five years. Messrs. James Cook & Co. of London 

 report the deliveries for Europe and the United 

 States to Mav 31st at 273,134 tons, against 227.272 

 in 1884, 279,115 in 1883. If the consumption in 

 Europe ' had increased as rapidly as it has in 

 this country prices would undoubtedly range 

 higher. 



A Grave Mistake. — The following is from the 

 American Exporter : — " We get coconut oil from 

 India and Ceylon at gi'eat cost for freight, etc., 

 each tree being taxed one rupee by the Govern- 

 ment, while right under our noses the coasts of 

 Honduras are fringed for miles and miles with 

 coconut palms which pay no tax and cost not a 

 cent to anybody for creature. The '• cohoon " 

 palm or the " coroso," as the Spanish call it, 

 is absolutely unknown to our commerce, and yet 

 the oil produced in the comparatively small kernel 

 of the adamantine, marble like nut is as delicate 

 as the finest olive oil, and with American machinery 

 could be made an important adjunct to our wealth." 

 Coconut palms in Ceylon pay no tax, unless 

 they are devoted to supplying juice which fer- 

 ments as toddy and is distilled into arrack. Trees 

 producing nuts, used as food or expressed into oil, 

 pay not a cent. — " American papers please copy." 



SwMjips. — Our swamps produce abundance of veget- 

 ation — white papeiy-barked melaleucas and other 

 aromatic plants — which may account for their non- 

 malarious nature. Supposing, by circumstances, that 

 these swamps lost their coating of vegetation, an un- 

 healthy atmosphere would most likely be generated 

 and malarious fevers be produced. Probably the paper- 

 barked melaleucas would be better in warm countries 

 than Encali/pti. Their leaves give off much oil of the 

 Cajepiit quality, and they will live with their roots for 

 long periods submerged in water. When, however, 

 permanent water forms over their roots, a quantity 

 of fresh rootlets are thrown out at the surface of 

 the water, so that such roots can respire the air 

 necessary for the vitality of the submerged roots. 

 These submerged roots are never water-logged, and 

 small sections of them made will even float from 

 the quantity of air they have circulating through 

 them, and such roots no doubt tend to aerate water- 

 logged soil and ameliorate its exhalations. — Queens- 

 lanter land Pand Farmer. 



The Pkoposed Loans to Planters. — At a recent 

 meeting of the Trinidad Legislative Council, Sir 

 Arthur Havelock, tlie Governor, said : — " I have 

 to communicate to the Council a telegraphic 

 message which was received by me from the 

 Secretary of State on .July 4th. At the time of its 

 receipt I communicated it to one or two of the 

 unofficial members of Council, and the message 

 became a matter of public notoriety. l!ut before 

 taking further action on this telegraphic message 

 I thought it would be as well to await the poss- 

 ibility of receiving further expression of opinion from 

 the Secretary of State, but by the mail which 

 arrived on July 31st I have merely received from 

 the Secretary of State a duplicate of the telegraphic 

 dispatch that he sent me on the 4th, without any 

 further explanation. I think it probably useless 

 for me to await further information, and I will 

 therefore bring it before the Council. (His Ex- 

 cellency after reading the telegi'am, which had already 

 been published, continued.) This matter seems, in 

 the opinion of the Secretary of State, to rest with 

 the Legislative Council, and it seems to me that 

 perhaps the best plan for arriving at some definite 

 idea of what is wanted would be to ask a com- 

 mittee of the Council to consider the terms of this 

 despatch, and to lay the result of their delibci- 

 ations before the Council for lurther consideration. 

 I would therefore ask the Colonial Secretary. Mr. 

 Fenwick, and Mr. P'inlayson to be kind enough 

 to form a Committee to consider tliis dispatch, 

 and report whether there is any matter arising 

 out of it which they can recommend for the 

 consideration of the Secretary of State." The 

 ■uggeetion was agreed to. — Colonies and India, 



