344 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Nov. 2, 1885. 



THE WHEAT SUPPLY OP THE WOELD. 

 A very comprehensive revieiv of the probable require- 

 nieiits and supplies of wheat throughout the greater part 

 of the world during the new cereal year has appeared 

 in IJeerhohiji'g List, and as last year's estimates by this 

 authority have turned out remarkably near the truth, 

 the pre.'eut calculations are entitled to some amount 

 of coufidence. The details of the estimates are fully 

 worked out aud explained in the article ; but we can 

 give only the summary, as tollows : — 



Probable re- Probable ex- 

 quirements port surplus 

 qrs. qrs. 



United States and Canada — 9,000,000 



United Kingdom 17,500,000 — 



France ... O,.'if}0,000 — 



Belgium ... 2,00n,ii00 — 



Germany ... 2,000,000 — 



Holland ... 1,000,000 — 



Austria-Hungary _ 1,000,000 



Bussia and Roumania — 6,500,000 



Switzerland ... 1,500,000 — 



Italy ... 1,500,000 — 



Spain and Portugal 1,000,000 — 



India ... — 6,500,000 



Australia aud Chili — 2,000,000 



West Indies and China 2,500,000 — 



Greece ... SOO.COO 



Egypt and sundries — 1,000,000 



Totals ... 35,000,000 26,000,000 

 These quantities, which i'lclude flour reckoned on 

 wheat equivalents, show a probable deficiency of 9,000,000 

 quarters, whereas last year the quantities about balanced. 

 The conclusion is that, although the deficiency will be 

 .somehow made up, it can only be by drawing upon 

 reserve stacks all over the world, the effect of which 

 upon prices can scarcely fail to be great and gradu.illy 

 increasing. As to reserve .'-tocks, it is jjossible that they 

 may have been over-rated. At any rate, many persons 

 will learn with surprise that returns of wheat and tiour 

 held in seven of the eight principal grain ports of the 

 United Kingdom, with the estimated quantitv for London 

 added, show a surplus equivalent to only 220,000 quart- 

 ers of wheat over last year's stocks; and Beerhohm 

 puts the total reserves of the United Kingdom at only 

 500,000 quarters in excess of last year's total. A simil- 

 ar calculation for the extra reserve stocks in the United 

 States is 6,000,000 quarters, to which is added 2,000,000 

 quarters of the new American crop and 1,000,000 

 for quarters Canada, to make the total quantity available 

 for export in the two countries. 



An AfiKicci.TUEAL Catechisji. — Mr. M. Bhavani 

 Shenker Eao, Local Cattle Disease Inspector, Coim- 

 batore, has jitiblished " A Catechism on soil and their 

 improvements. Embracing Soils, Manuring, Tillage 

 Operations and Irrigation." He says in his preface: — 

 " This country being purely agricultural, the ex- 

 hausted condition of our soils, and the deterioration 

 of the agricultural produce, claim our attention to a 

 knowledge of the principles of rational agriculture, 

 the study of which is second to none in importance. 

 The object, therefore, in publishing this pamphlet is 

 to aid in diffusing a sound and precise knowledge of 

 the elementary principles that underlie the success- 

 ful cultivation of soil. It is intended to follow it up 

 by two other similar pamphlets, one on the Staph' 

 Product!^ of the Presidency, and another on the Live 

 Stock and its iiiaiinfiemriit, should this find favour 

 with the public." Mr. W. E. Eobertson, the Principal 

 of the Madras Agricultural College, states that he has 

 read the Catechism witli much interest and pleasure. 

 " It contains much useful practical information, and 

 should prove of great use to persons beginning the 

 study of agriculture in this country." — Mail rax Mail. 

 [Query : if the Ceylon Director of I'ublio Instruction 

 should not introduce some copies of this Catechism 

 into our schools? — Ed.] 



Pepper Cpi.tivation at Poxdichekrt.— Monsieur 

 Eeynaud, Professor of Agi-onomy at Pondicherry, 

 has demonstrated the fact that pepper can be 

 grown with profit on the East coast. He has 

 lately gathered a good crop from a small plant- 

 ing, and the quality is said to be equal to good 

 Tellicherry. The chief considerations seem to be 

 I soil and suitable trees for climbing. — Madras Mail. 



I CocounT Fibre. — We believe that many of our 

 I readers are not aware of the many uses to which 

 coconut tibre can he brought. Among others, it 

 ; has been found most useful in planting coffee and 

 tea seedlings. A correspondent, who has tried the 

 experiment, says that not only is the fibre a very 

 good protection for the tender rootlets of these 

 plants, but that it acts as a capital manure. Tea 

 and coffee planters should take note of this. — 

 Indian Ai/ricaltiirist. [The fact has been long known 

 and acted on, but the substance is ccconut refuse, 

 not fibre. — Ed.] 



Teas.— Fault is still found with the quality 

 of some of the Indian tea now offered. The 

 G)-occc says :— " As the season is a month later 

 than usual, the quantities coming forward are on 

 a very moderate scale. At the same time, the 

 general quality of the teas is poor, and inferior 

 to the average run for eai-ly arrivals, and oilers 

 little inducement for the" trade to purchase. 

 There is also the increasing attractivenes of 

 Ceylon teas to contend with, as to buy these' 

 the dealers more frequently turn from the Assam 

 kmds than they were wont to do a year or two 

 ago, and this withdrawal of support often leads to 

 some weakness in prices. This is more plainly 

 apparent in the commoner sorts than any other, 

 especially as they are most plentiful just now, 

 and are saleable only at and under Is. per lb., 

 whereas at this period last year the same grades 

 were being disposed of at and about Is. 2d." — Home 

 and Colonial Mail. 



A Copr.A-curTiNG Machine.— Messrs. F. R. Yarte 

 and Co., of Fiji, write as follows iu a recent issue of 

 the Scientific Americnn:— "'We ioMc the liberty of ad- 

 dressing you with respect to a which is greatly felt 

 by the owners of coconut plantations in Fiji ; and as 

 iu your coinitry inventions for the economy of labour 

 are of daily occurrence, we feel assured you might, 

 through the medium of your valuable jourual, induce 

 some of your many inventors to endeavour to make a 

 machine that will assist in the manufacture of cobera 

 {i.e., the cutting out of the kernel) aud saving of la- 

 bour. At present the cutting out of the nut is done 

 entirely by hand with a C-inch knife, wliich is very 

 slow process; and as the co.st of labour is very liigli, 

 steadily increasing, and supply limited, it would 

 be of the greatest importance if such a machine 

 could be made satisfacttorily. The machine would 

 be required to cut out the kernel of the nut just 

 as it falls from the tree, but with the outer husk 

 on. We could .split tliem open as we do now, 

 with an axe (at present we have no use for either 

 husk or shell, except for fuel). It must be adapted 

 to cut nuts of variable sizes, as coconuts vary very 

 much in size and shape, some being quite round and 

 others of oval shape and all .sizes, simple in construction 

 and strong without being heavy, as it would be worked 

 by black labour. The motive power could be either 

 hand or foot. It would not matler what .size or shape 

 it cut the kernel out, as long as it cuts it iu ' solid ' 

 pieces ; tbo size we cut out by hand is about three- 

 quarters of ai\ inch thick by about three-inclios long. 

 If such a machine could be made a large immber would 

 be orclered. if not too expensive as our principal product 

 of export is dried coconut (called cobera or copra), and 

 every planter woidd liavo some."' Austr;ili:in genius 

 has ])roduoed a superior water auger, and it may be 

 hoped thut it will anticipate American genius in prc- 

 duciug a oopra-cutting mttcldne.— Sydney Mail. 



