368 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Nov. 2, 1885, 



their rations, that they would like the chniate 

 ami they could work well in the climate, because 

 he and 'his brother fathers work with the spa.le 

 and hoe out at the Mission Station at Kapid Creek. 

 So certain is he that Silesians will come, and so 

 interested in it too, that he has written a letter to 

 an mtluential gentleman (Herr Heinrich Foerster, of 

 Trebnitz), fully stating the case, asking hiin to 

 ascertain whetlier his countrymen would be wilhng 

 to enter upon engagements on tlie terms specificil. 

 He, of course, only puts it as a hypothesis, and 

 requests an immediate reply. I have endorsed his 

 letter witlt the following sentence :— ' I should be 

 glad if the information asked for by tlie Rev. 

 Father Christian can be obtained and coiiimunicated 

 as early as possible, with the fiew of bringing 

 the subject under the notice of the Uovernment of 

 Soutli Australia.' " Great praise is due to the 

 Hon. Mr. Parsons for the interest he is taking 

 in endeavouring to provide suitable labour for our 

 Northern Territory, and I think the shareholders 

 of this Companv "should take steps to bring the 

 question prominently before the Government and 

 urge upon them tlie desirability of immediately 

 taking action to induce a number of Silesian emi- 

 grants to settle ill the Northern Territory. Pro- 

 vided cheap labour is procurable, I am convinced 

 that the Territory has a gi-eat agricultural future 

 before it, as from a personal inspection of the (iov- 

 ernment Gardens at Palmerston and from convers- 

 ations I have had witli the talented gardner, Mr. 

 Holtz, there is no doubt in my mind that a large 

 variety of tropical products may be successfully 

 cultivated. Messrs. Gardiner and Boult were elected 

 Auditors. Mr. Solomon, refering to Mr. Moule's 

 motion in the House of Assembly re the exten- 

 sion of time for the bonus of sugar-growing m the 

 Northern Territory, said they ought to be thank- 

 ful to hiin for introducing it. In the interests of 

 their Company, however, it was desirable that 

 the period sliould be three years instead of two. 

 It was resolved that a deputation should wait upon 

 the Minister of Education the following day, and 

 request the Government to extend the time for the 

 bonus, three years. — Adelaide Ri'iiinlc'i-. 



Aloe Fibre in Cevlon.— We are glad to hear from 

 Mr Alfred Payne that he has exported about :^U 

 cwts of aloe fibre with fairly satisfactory results. 

 The best quality realized at the rate of £ IS per ton, 

 the second ilCi,' and third, or refuse fibre ili per 

 ton The latter was really tlie most profitable quality, 

 as it required less liandling than the better sorts. 

 The fibre was cleaned with a machme oi Mr. Payne s 

 oven construction, but as he has a large acreage un- 

 der cultivation he is strongly of opinion that special 

 machinery would enable liuii to realize handsome re- 

 sults Mr. H. Brown of Matale is, we believe, also 

 successfully growing and exporting two or three dif- 

 ferent kinds of fibre. ■ -r a, j 



OvsTEus —Edible oysters are numerous m JafTna and 

 easily procurable. At tbe rainy season you cau have 

 them for the trouble of picking. The nioormen here, 

 look upon it as a luxury and under the name of MatUe, 

 TOU find the little tambies carr.\ing bundles of them 

 At Bentota while tbe little oysters stewed or pickled 

 or raw with a pincli of pepper and few drops of vinegar 

 are delicacies to please the most fastidious taste, the 

 oysters here seem to be too heavy and chuusy ami cert- 

 ainly hard to .ligest. Perhaps we are getting old and 

 our digestive organ-; are not strong as when we roosted 

 at Bentota. At Mullaifivu at tbe r.duy se;,.son the 

 women go with pots to Cbinaar and gather oystcr.s (Mat- 

 tee) and also pluck tlu' leaves of a plant called M„-=,Ulu. 

 These are both b.'ilrd tn-ether, and make <|Uite a 

 breakfast in their p .verty. In the evemng tbey return 

 home- and the Mu^i^ftn leaves make a chii.Htnl or nnnced 

 leaf g'reenage while the oysters as a curry make tbe 

 vegetable diet a .leligbtCul repast.-" Oeyluii Patriot. 



The Trade in Carol with Tka. — It may not be 

 generally known that there is a fairly good trade be- 

 tween the North- west and Cabul in tea. tbe figuies 

 for 1884-.T showing supplies sent forward of 8,S26 nids. 

 This trade is capable, however, no doubt, of much 

 further expansion. — Iialian Tea (Jazette. 



Coffee in Cookg.— Mercara, Sept. 25th.— Our 

 labour supply has again been very short, work has 

 been delayed, and the coffee has suffered from being 

 so long buried in weeds. There are estates which have 

 had no coolies upon them for six months, ami are, 

 only, at this prescut time securing their labourers no 

 plauiiug has been done, consequently a year's delay 

 is incurred. Tamil coolies were plentiful for two or 

 three years, some coming trom Salem, and others from 

 Vellore. Of these maistries who had contracted to 

 supply coolies, upon the estates, not 10 per cent have 

 come in. Crop promises were brilliant, and the wages 

 for men were then lU) against Efli per mouth iu 

 Coorg, so no people could be got to come. Tumkoor 

 labor has also failed, various reasons are given for it, 

 but our demand was so greit during June, July and 

 August that 10,000 coolies at RB a month could have 

 found employment, and steady work: our Mysore labour 

 is only now coming in, aud the dry season is fast 

 approaching on. This year seems to have b'sen most 

 unusual in suprises. A steady monsoon from the 2dc1 

 of Juue, continuing rain without intermission until 

 the 'ind of August : again it poured without ceasing 

 from the 10th until the 2'iud of August. 

 After which no rain has fallen- ceasing as suddenly 

 as it began. Such weather has not occurred before. 

 in any man's experience. Rice was suceessf ally trans- 

 planted before the present drought cinieon, and as two- 

 thirds of the fields are watered by irrigation, it will 

 not suffer much. Cardamom picking commenced about 

 the first week in September, the capsules are large, and 

 well-favoured, there should be a good harvest this 

 season as the drying weather, always so showery, has 

 been all that could be desired, and tbe coloring of the 

 pods, so important an item at selling time, will as- 

 suredly be a certainty. Prices were very low last year, 

 and hardly paying for the gathering, curing, and hire 

 or rent of the cardamom jungles. — Madr.is Staiulard. 

 The QoiNiNE Manufactory at Milan.— AV^e have 

 learnt several interesting particulars concerning this 

 well-known quiniue factory from Mr. 0. E. H. Symons, 

 who took the opportunity when in Jlilau the other day 

 to visit it. It is not strictly correct, however, to design, 

 ate it as a "Quinine Factory:" it is iu reality a 

 manufactory where a great variety of alkaloids are pro- 

 duced. Amongst other cbcmieals in;ule here is that 

 deadly narcotic "strycbninc ", but, without doubt, quin- 

 ine is tbe chief article turned out, and just now they 

 I are producing about 130 kilos daily, ec|ual to 2{)0 lbs. 

 I weight. Our readers will doubtless remember the circ- 

 I umstance which some time ago caused the firm work- 

 ing this fad ory to pass into liquidation. They are still 

 winding up the aff.iirs of the old concern, but are 

 allowed, during that process, to carry on the manufact- 

 ure, on the uudcrstanding flat tbey make only in 

 execution of actual orilers ; consequently, they cannot 

 put themselves in stock. They are, therefore, ouly 

 buyers to a limited extent, buying merely from hand 

 to mouth. Our informant, who has just returned from 

 ! Italy, after paying a visit to tbe factory, de.scril-es tbe 

 premises and the proceedings therein as highly interest- 

 ing ; and, though he was not of cour.se inducted into 

 the'mysteries of quiuinc-making, he came away widi 

 the knowledge of a simpl-r and more perfect mode 

 of analyzing cinchona, which he intends turning to 

 ' good account iu Colombo. So soon as the affairs of 

 the late firm are closed, a Oonipaiiy will be floated to 

 carry on the manufacture, when they will at once enter 

 the market as active buyers. No doubt the eptry of 

 tbo new Company, when formed, on the cinchona 

 market will help to impart .strength to quotations, and 

 it is a noteworthy feature that the managers of this 

 l:irge concern use 'little else than Ceylon cinchona, with 

 just a modest admixture of cuprca, but tbey do not 

 i appe;rr to care about South American bark.— Local 

 ■ "Times," 



