June i, 1886.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



85 1 



Tlie distilling is done alter a very inexpensive 

 simple fashion, the chief outlay being for firewood, 

 tlie men employed about the still being paid by 

 results while the oil passes under lock and key to 

 the store-room from the still. I was glad to meet 

 and make the actjuaintance of a 22-yeiirs Colonist 

 in Mr. Knight, 30 years away from his native Devon- 

 shire, and still full of life, good spirits and 

 good health : — 



One of uature's gentlemen, 

 as he has well been called by a member of the 

 Civil Service. Universally respected by all who 

 have met him — successive Assistant Agents and 

 Magistrates especially — Mr. Knight has laid the 

 tea-planters of the Kalutara district under a lasting 

 debt of gratitude to him, by the trust and 

 good feeling he has inspired among the 

 natives, by his uniform considerate, patient 

 and honourable treatment of the Sinhalese people 

 in his district. " The Sinhalese here will do any- 

 thing for Knight" is the opinion we found expressed 

 in successive bungalows. They all look up to him 

 and trust him far more than any Ciovernment 

 .servant or any Rajah that ever came to the place. 

 A curious illustration of this fact is found iu 

 " Knight's Paper Money" which circulates in the 

 korale and is more readily received perhaps than 

 the Government notes ! This has orignated in a very 

 simple manner. There is nothing the Sinhalese are 

 fonder of than of getting ready cash for any work 

 they choose to do. Unlike the Tamil coolies, they do 

 not at all like long accounts, or to have their money 

 kept against advances in rice in the hands of their 

 cniployers for months together. Contract jobs with 

 liberty to do the work at their own hours and 

 prompt settlement on completion, form the key to 

 the successful employment of Sinhalese on plant- 

 ations, and it is of the greatest importance to 

 tea planters in the lowcountry districts who will 

 have to depend so much on Sinhalese labour, to study 

 their character and to take the utmost pains (after 

 Mr. Knight's example) not to prejudice a people 

 who having their own bits of land in their own 

 country will not submit to treatment they deem 

 in any way unfair or even brusque, but who, if 

 humoured, are likely to afford most valuable assist- 

 ance in the tea industry. Mr. Knight's plan of 

 dealing with the Sinhalese was by means of small 

 chits or tickets, the amount whether 10, 25, 'lO 

 or 75 cents or Rl or upwards being marked on 

 eaclt with the date on which they must be presented 

 for exchange for specie. It was manifestly impossible 

 to keep a supply of money for the frequent pay- 

 ments required by Sinhalese grass and tirewood cut- 

 ters and the many other workers on Geekiyanakanda, 

 and accordingly the " tundu " system was adopted 

 and the surrrounding villagers from finding that 

 the Englishman's paper and promise to pay on 

 a given date were as certain as anything 

 within their experience, began to do business 

 among themselves with the same, the butique- 

 kcepers being quite ready to give full value for 

 the Geekiyanakande paper notes ! Had Mr. Knight 

 once failed in his promise to pay on a given day, 

 bU confidence would have been at an end ; for as 

 was well said to me by a planter in the district, 

 a Sinhalese carpenter or labourer will make a 

 dozen journeys if need be, day after day, to get 

 from you a balance of even .sd. if due — not counting 

 the time wasted as anytliing— but after any such 

 experience or a failure to pay as promised, he will 

 never except under dire necessity, trust or work 

 (or that careless offending employer again. 



Another very practical illustration of Mr. Knight's 

 inlluiiicc over the Sinhalese people about him 

 was lately afforded in his clearing with their aid 

 a large block of forest for a Colombo merchant 



at some distance across the river— felling, burning, 

 clearing ready for planting in so short a time as the 

 owner deemed wellnigh incredible. Of course Gee- 

 kiyanakande is always well supplied with Sinhalese 

 labour and the people look to the bungalow for 

 medicine and especially quinine, during the preval- 

 ence ot fever. 'The past has been one of the 

 driest seasons in Mr. Knight's experience and con- 

 sequently when the rains commenced, fever becamo 

 very preialcnt.j When Mr. Knight first erected a 

 rain-gauge and explained its purpose, an intpllig- 

 ent agriculturist thought it of little use unless it 

 brought or foretold rain when required ; but the 

 counnon people to this day believe that the weather 

 projihet lives on Geekiyanakande and when anxious 

 about tlicir fields, they arc very ready to try and 

 draw from their " prophet " when Iw looks for 

 rain ! 



It will be judged from all this, that our 

 visit to (ieekiyanakande was full of interest: the 

 property itself witli its undulating gras.sy and tea 

 (ields, or grove-like coffee and tea divisions 

 afforded much food for reflection. The main tea 

 valley opened on soil that certainly looked very 

 IVrruginons and Ambagannialike in many parts, 

 showed a most vigorous growth of the young tea 

 plants and " good strong liqnor " may be expected 

 from trees {.rowing amidst lateritc and ironstoie. 

 The best part of the forest and richest soil on Lord 

 Klpliinstone's property are said to be unopened — 

 "untouched as yet. so that thiTO is room for tlie expan- 

 ..ion of tea by perhaps 1,000 or 1,500 acres if the 250 

 acres now cultivated, warrant that operation. Mr. 

 L. W. Davidson in charge ol the tea is very 

 strong on the superiority of Sinhalese to Tamil 

 labour, more especially in tea plucking in which 

 he says Sinhalese women and children excel, and 

 this we believe is the experience of other planters 

 in the district. With an abundant Sinhalese 

 population ready to aid the planter — very much 

 owing to their experience of Mr. Kniglit who 

 ought to be made Labour Superintendent generally 

 --the KaUitara district in the struggle just ap- 

 proaching ought to have a great advantage over 

 many upcountry districts. .A.nd there are several 

 other decided advantages to which we shall refer 

 later on. 



Tea preparation is, so far, conducted after a 

 primitive fashion on nearly all the Kalutara es- 

 tates in bearing ; but we had evidence in Geekiyan- 

 kaude that there is still another Roller to com- 

 pete -with the .Jackson's, Thompson's, Barber's, 

 Kerr's and Frater's — one for which thorough rolling 

 and twisting of the leaf, with economy in first cost, 

 and cheapness in working are claimed. No moro 

 need be said until the patent is announced, although 

 it is evident from all we he;'.rd that in Mr. .7. R. 

 K. Law of the Kaluganga Works, the Kalutara district 

 has a mechanical genius inferior to none in the island. 



TIIK KAI,IITAli\ TEK ESTATES EXTENIUNO I'llOM THE 

 KAtAKlANOA TO THE BENTOTA IlIVKIl — AliUNriANOK 

 STILL OF OOOD LANn — THE OLDER OliOUP OF ESTATES 

 — MAKIXO TEA UNDEll IIIEFICULLIES-TUK nKALTU OK 

 TUK nIHTlilCT — ITS GREAT ADVANTAOEi: IN (IIKAP 

 LAIiOUH A.NI) TllANSPOnr FACILITIES — 50,000 AlKES np 



ooon ti:a laxk said to be a\ aii.ahle al'-'ooetheu. 



The Geekiyanakande property lie: . : we have 

 described, to the North of the main portion of tho 

 Kalutara Terf District; but there is one outlying 

 tea garden on a tributary of the Kaluganga still 

 farther North. It is called Ossington and belongs 

 to Mr. E. II. Koelman, 75 acres being opened 

 out ot a block of ll>2 acres. .\way again to the 

 North-east along the .Agalawatte road and in a 

 direction where, on the authority of such com 



