47n 



THE TROPICAL AGmcULTUSJST. Ummm t, 



i88S. 



AGEIGULTUEE IN BRITISH IJUBMA. 

 \X(i have received a mass of papers from Mr. 'Watsoii, 

 who l.ituself obtained them from the Government of 

 British Burma, from which we extract the Chief 

 ComiuiHsioiier's order on two reports ou experimental 

 cnltivation at Paletwa and Kyaukpandaung in tlie 

 Araknn Ifill Tracts dnring the past year. The Cliief 

 Cumtni.ssioner has read the reports with interest, and 

 I ani^ to ask you to convey Mr. Bernard's thanks to 

 Mr. Fanshawe for tlie care and trouble he has taken 

 to make this e.xperimental cultivation successful. At 

 Kyaukpandaung the cultivation of tea has been 

 successful, but coffee, jiotatoes, and the English fruit 

 trees do not appear to thrive, with the exception of 

 the raspberry trees. At Paletwa the cultivation of 

 tea, pepper-vine, cinnamon, Liberian coffee, Manilla 

 hemj) has been successful; potatoes, however, have 

 failed here as well as at Kyaukpandaung, 'anil it 

 would appear useless to plant again potatoes with which 

 the climate or the soil does not agree. BIi-. Fanshawe's 

 suggestion that sugarcane-cultivation should be attempt- 

 ed may be adopted, and cane-cuttings from Bilin can 

 be sent forexperimi-nt during the present rainy season. 

 Tobacco seed of different kinds, as well as cotton seed 

 will also be supplied immedintely. The cxperimenlal 

 cultivation has shown that it is possible to grow 

 varied products in the Hill Tracts, but there is no 

 hope of attracting there for the present European 

 settlers, as the labour difficidty and the climate are 

 obstacles to any successful plaaiting enterprizc ; the 

 hillmeu may, however, be induced to grow staples 

 which are useful and necessary to them, such as 

 sugarcane, tobacco, and cotton ; and if the result of 

 these experiments is to introduce the permanent 

 cultivation of these products among the wild tribes of 

 these hills, the money expended on these grants will 

 not have been uselessly spent. The Chief l.'ommissioner 

 agrees to coutiuue tor another year the grant of 

 Bl.OOO for expeiimental cultivation on the Kyaukpan- i 

 daung and I'aletwa gardens, but he trusts that the 

 grant will be expended ou the introduction of products 

 which are of immediate use to the hill people. 



From Col. Sladen's report we take the following 

 extracts: — At Kyaukpandaung, or rather the spur 

 known as Alicetaung, it may be generally taken for 

 granted that tea and cinchona thrive well, and may 

 be cultivated with success. The tea-garden is already 

 assuming large proportions, and the time is coming 

 when, with a little .skilled labour for curing processes, 

 the trees will yield a returu which ought to make the 

 garden more than self-supporting. The number of trees 

 and young plants exceeds 13,(IIMI, and this number is 

 capable of large extension, so as to form the nucleus 

 of a fairly good tea-estate, which would pay well in 

 any part of the country where labour was procurable 

 at ordinary low rates. The fact, too, that we have 

 over -ttX) cinchona plants or trees at Kyaukpaudaimg, 

 all doing well, particularly the larger ones, seems to 

 prove that the locality is favourable to the growth 

 of this very important vegetable product. I am not 

 in favour of spending money ou an ICnglish vegetable 

 garden, or on coffee, but I shall ask the Deputy 

 Commissioner, after tea and cinchona, to give his 

 attention more to the cultivation of betel-palms and 

 pepper-vines, both of which should grow abundantly 

 nnd, possibly, in time yield good results. I will also 

 endorse Mr. F.inshawc's suggestion that ho may be 

 supplied with varieties of tobacco and cotton seed. 

 The ttibacco already produced is very good of its kind 

 nnd fetches a good price in the local market. JJut 

 unfortunately, owing to si)arsity of population, the 

 production both of cotton and tobacco is very limited, j 

 ami there is none available for foreign export, for I 

 which, otherwi.se, these jirodvicts are well suited, j 

 Mr. V. ('. F.inshawe reported: — The ciiuiamon trees j 

 are getting on excellently. Any number could be 

 brought .lown from Kyaukpandaung. where there is ' 

 a small forest ot them. The young coffee i)lants put 

 in last year are doing fairly well. About half of them 

 were put in inider the shade of plantain trees and 

 nbout half (near, and partly shaded by a kamauug 



tree; about half ot the latter and about three-fom-ths 



11 Jv"'™",", "'■"'' ''"'"» *"'' "^<*" 'o "JC getting on 

 well. The old trees have grown and look healthy 

 The experimental cultivation in the Arakan Hill Tracts 

 has done little or nothing, I am sorry to say to 

 induce the peasantry to try new products, and I am 

 atraiJ that, as long aa theyjive the life that thev do 

 at present they will never attempt anything new. 

 1 heir staple products are of course rice ami sessamum 

 tor home consumption, and tobacco and cotton for 

 both home consumption and export. Theu- time is 

 pretty well taken up ir. their taungy.as and tobacco 

 faelds, and the month or two in which they have 

 nothing to do they spend in a series of feasts. The 

 ground used for the cultivation of tobacco could not 

 be used tor permanent garden laud as it is all under 

 water during the rains; and it tauugyas were cut far 

 trora the water, the labour would be immi^use to keel> 

 the ground properly watered during the hot weather, 

 and that is just the time that they are all hard at 

 work cutting theh' taungyas for planting paddy, A;c 

 Ihey are too lazy and indolent to put themselves cut 

 m any way, and as long as they have enough to eat 

 and drink, with a few ruiiees to spend yearly, thev 

 are quite contented. Different kinds of tobacTo and 

 _ cotton they would willingly sow I thhik; and if Mr 

 Bridges supplies .seeds next yc™- as hehas very kindlv 

 ottered to do, I have no doubt that the experiment 

 will be a success. Even if planters were induce.l to 

 settle up here, I do not think they would find culliv. 

 ation profitable as the great difficulty of course would 

 be cooly labour. The peasantry here simply wouki 

 not work ngularly, and all the labour would have to 

 be imported; and even then I am afraid the coolies 

 would be constantly down witti fever, for the first vear 

 or two at any rate, and unless they were paid at 

 ruinously high rates, they would desert whenever thev 

 got a chance. At Kyaukpaudaung the scarcity of water 

 would be a great drawback; but coolies, if well paid 

 might be induced to live there, as the climate is good 

 all the year round, and the policemen there keep 

 wonderfully free from fever. ' 



It is curious to find Mr. Fanshawe desiderating a 

 fuller work ou Cinchona than Dr. King's Manual. 

 He should get Owen's, and as he says he knows nothing 

 of tea, there is the Tade Mucum recently published'! 

 c *"';i,^^^ Taliiier, Esq., Deputy Conservator of Forests, 

 South Tenassenm Division, reported on the Mergui 

 I lautatiuu tor the year 1884-85, dated the L'l'nd J.me 

 loSo, as lollows: — 



There are I,;ia0 be.aring Liberian trees, 708 young 

 trees and 2.1M-1 seedlings. The growth of this coffee 

 nas been very fine ; the bearing trees are 8 to 12 feet 

 in blight, age a^ years, and gave last season a heavy 

 crop. It IS not possible to give any definite quantity 

 ot coffee produced as the whole amount was collected 

 oy the plantation gauug. 



2. I gave Mr. A\'atsoii, tli<> planter at 'J'avoy fi 

 cwt., and some seeds (a note of the quai.titv was not 

 taken by plantation gaung), Ua>e been sown in the 

 plantation. The trees have flowered very well this 

 year, and I expect a bumper crop next season. Some 

 arrangement for imlping the coffee must be made 

 lext year, as there was great dirticulty in getting this 

 done this season. I am sorry to say that whiteaiits 

 are beginning to attack the coffee, though they have 

 as yet done very little harm, nor do I think they 

 will ever do much. This cofTee wants shade, thousli 

 too dense a shade seems to draw it up too quickly. 



fbi!.r , 1°?^' "*'■>'" ^"^""•■.fif^t year or twi fairly 

 thick and then thin out heavily 



:<. There are P20 bearing trees and 1,288 seedlings. 

 The produce Iroui these trees this last .season was very 

 sinall and has all been sown in the pl.aiil,iti»n. No 

 dehuite idea of the amount of seed moducid can be 

 given as the plantalinu gauug .lid not 't«ke the trouble 

 to measure the quantity. This coffee does not succeed 

 nearly as well as the I.iberi.ii. U is, however, oidv 

 •1.. years old, nnd perhaps in another two yews the 

 results may he better. 



4. There are 22 trees altogether. Several of the trtree 



