Vol. X. No. 228. 



THE AGRICULTDKAL NEWS. 



21 



ments of a similar nature that have been undertaken recently 

 with bananas from the Canieroon.s, and from Togo. A first 

 consignment in peat, unfortunate]}- however, containing only 

 five banana fruits among several kilogrammes of fresh kola, 

 was sent in December 1 909, from the C'ameroons to Ham- 

 burg. On arrival, the fruits were found to be in good con- 

 dition, and remained in this state for several days. Equally 

 satisfactory results have been obtained by the administrator 

 of the plantations of Bibundi, in the C'ameroons, who has 

 succeeded in exporting bananas, which arrived in good condi- 

 tion for the Haml)urg market. It is estimated by one 

 authority that it will be possible to export bananas in peat, 

 on a commercial scale, from the Cameroons and Togo to 

 Hamburg, at a net profit of between hi. and Id. per fruit. 



The same article finally points out that, according to the 

 Natal Agricultural Journal for March 1910, in Natal, where 

 methodical experiments in connexion with the export of 

 bananas have been conducted for several years, it is consid- 

 ered that well-dried maize husks are superior to peat as 

 a medium for transporting bananas to Europe. Consignments 

 of the fruit, large enough to be of commercial importance, 

 made during last season, confirm the results of the experi- 

 ments. It seems that the insulating and absorbing qualities 

 of maize husLs, together with efficient ventilation of the fruits 

 during the voyage, assure better conditions of transport than 

 those which arise from the employment of cool storage. 



THE CERTIFICATION OF MILK. 



A movement was l.iegun some time ago, and is gradually 

 assuminga definite and e.stablished form, for placing on the mar- 

 ket milk certified by an outside authority to be free from all 

 impurities, disease germs, and other risks to the consumer. 

 Pasteurization, sterilization, and other methods of artificial 

 treatment form no part in the plan. The scheme consists of 

 preventive and not of curative measures. It insists upon 

 such provisions as will ensure wholesome milk at the outset 

 and avoid risk of contamination in the cour.se of its circuitous 

 passage from the cow to the consumer's table. 



The iloundsmere ilanor Farm in Hampshire, on which 

 the practicability of the .system is being demonstrated, is an 

 important object-lesson. The ordinary cowsheds are clean 

 and well ventilated, but are in no way more elaborate than 

 those on an average farm. The distinguishing feature con- 

 sists in the provision of a milking shed. This building is 

 kept absolutely free from litter and every kind of material 

 that would generate dust or harbour disease germs. The 

 cows are placed in the shed half an hour or an hour before 

 milking, and turned out either to the field or to the ordinary 

 shed.s, as the case may lie, when milking is finished. Every 

 cow has the udder and hindquarters thoroughly cleaned 

 before lieing milked, as a safeguard against the contamina- 

 tion of the milk. The same scrupulous care is taken as to 

 the cleanlmess of the milkers, who wear overalls and wash 

 their hands before starting to milk, and are strictly forbid- 

 den to place their hea<ls against the flanks of the cows while 

 milking — wise precautions against the risk of contamination 

 which are well understood and now observed in the manage- 

 ment of many herds. The milk is removed without delay to 

 the adjoining dairy, where it is strained, cooled, bottled and 

 sealed, the whole period of exposure not exceeding twenty min- 

 utes. The bottles are sent up to town in cases by train and deliv- 

 ered to the consumers, so that there is no risk of contamination 

 after the milk is bottled. The eftect of handling the milk in 

 this pure atmosphere is shown in the quantity of bacteria in 

 the milk. Certified milk must not contain more than 10,000 



bacteria per cubic centimetre, whereas the bacteria in ordinary 

 milk may be anything up to or over a million. . The tuber- 

 culine test is rigidly employed; the animals are tested twice 

 a year, and those that react are removed from the farm. 



It may be thought at first sight that such a scheme 

 would present many difiiculties, but there is little doubt 

 that these will be overcome in time. There is, of course, 

 the initial outlay on the farm buildings and the apparatus 

 necessary for the cooling and bottling of the milk and for the 

 transit of the bottles, and there is also the additional expense 

 of the certification, which is borne liy the producer. For 

 these reasons it will not be possible to sell the milk at the 

 usual price. The price retail will be Sd. per quart, to start 

 with, and less if fairly large quantities be taken daily, so 

 that at present it will only be within the means of the fairly 

 well-to-do classes. The introduction of the system need 

 occasion no alarm either in producing or consuming centres. 

 It is not conceiv.^ble that any Government would impose 

 conditions that would deprive the poorer classes of their mUk 

 supply. On the other hand, it is a public duty to see that 

 the milk is distributed as free from impurities and disease 

 germs as possible, and the system promulgated points a useful 

 lesson in the direction in which the authorities should aim in 

 improving the conditions of production and distribution. 

 {The Times Weekly Edition, November 18, 1910.) 



DEPARTMENT NEWS. 



The Imperial Commi.ssioner of Agriculture, accomp- 

 anied by Mr. A. G. Howell, Chief Clerk, left Barbados 

 on January 16, by the S.S. ' Parima', for Antigua, in 

 order to confer with His Excellency the Governor of the 

 Leeward Islands on official matters. It is expected 

 that Dr. Watts and Mr. Howell will return by the 

 S.S. 'Sobo' on February .5, 1911. 



Camphor in German East Atrica.— In a recent 



number of Der Pflanier (1910, fi6) some information is given 

 regarding the results of a long series of distillation trials 

 carried out at the Biological Agricultural Institute at Amani 

 with cuttings from the camphor trees grown in that district. 

 The total number of trees available is about 3,-500, mostly three- 

 and-a-half years old with a few one year older. These were 

 cut back to the extent of about one-third of their growth. 

 This cutting back produced no ill eflFects, and at the end of 

 the ensuing rainy season the trees had regained their original 

 size when cut. 



The results of the distillation trials are of interest as con- 

 firming experience in Ceylon and elsewhere that the leaves are 

 richer in camphor than the wood. In the jDresent e.\periments 

 young twigs and leaves yielded, on the average, about r2per 

 cent, of distillate, of which 0'8 to 09 per cent, was camphor, 

 and 0'3 to O--! per cent. oil. The latter still retained camphor 

 which could be recovered in working on a large scale, so that 

 the yield of camphor in these experiments is estimated at 1 per 

 cent. Woody branches,on the contrary, yielded only 0'15S per 

 cent, of distillate, consisting of 0061 per cent, camphor and 

 0"097 per cent. oil. In growing camphor trees, therefore, it is 

 pointed out that the planter's main object should be to encour- 

 age leaf formation. It was found advantageous to carry on 

 the distillation in dry weather, as then the raw material was 

 drier to start with and the actual distillation could be carried 

 out more quickly. No certain difterence could be detected in 

 the yield of camphor obtained from leaves and twigs collected 

 from trees grown at diff"erent altitudes. {Bulletin of the Im- 

 perial Institute, Vol. VIII, No. 3.) 



