ToL. V. No. 107. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



173 



TABLE II. 



FEEDING STANDARDS. 



TABLE IIL 



FOOD RATIONS. 



rndeoortioated, i.e., with the hulls. 



An interesting- Animal. .V correspondent in 



Barbados has recently forwarded to the Imperial Department 

 •of Agriculture a specimen of an interesting animal known as 

 Peripatm. This is a very primitive form of animal life and 

 stands as a representative, in the present day fauna, of the 

 •ancestral types from which insects and their near relatives 

 have been developed through long ages. In general appear- 

 ance it is similar to the centipedes in having several pairs 

 •of legs along the sides of the body, while it resembles the 

 slugs in being soft-bodied. Peripatm is known to occur in 

 the West Indies, but as it lives in damp situations and 

 ■avoids the light, it is rarely seeu. 



A NEW TUBER. 



The following is extracted from a note in the 

 Journal of the Board of Agricidture (London), for 

 April, on 'A New^ Tuber' (Solanum co'iiimersoni) 

 belonging to the potato family : — 



This tuber, originally obtained from Uruguay, was 

 cultivated experimentally by M. Labergerie, and produced 

 in 1901 several distinct varieties, one of which, the violet 

 type, attracted much attention, and gave promise of proving 

 a useful edible variety, yielding heavily and being entirely 

 resistant to disease. The cultivation of the ditl'erent varieties 

 has been continued under very careful supervision, and it 

 may be noted that the varieties, as well as the original type, 

 appear very susceptible to cultivation and rapidly improve 

 when grown in fertile soils. The violet variety now 

 resembles externally the ordinary European potato, but the 

 yield appears to be from 30 per cent, to 100 per cent, 

 greater on moist or wet land. 



It is considered that the remarkable adaptation of the 

 Solaiuim commersoni (violet) to wet soils and its large yields 

 make it suitable for cultivation on marsh land.s, etc., hitherto 

 uncultivated. 



In a previous issue of the same journal (October 

 1904) it was stated : — 



A yield of about 6i tons per acre was obtained in 1902, 

 and about 4-J tons in 1903, on a fertile soil, but without any 

 manuring or cultivation beyond a single hoeing when the 

 shoots first appeared. The subsequent very abundant growth 

 was sufficient to choke all weeds 



The tubers are rich in starch and may prove valuable 

 as an industrial plant. They are much appreciated by stock. 



WEST INDIAN TRADE. 



In presiding at a meeting of the Colonial Bank 

 held in London last month, Mr. Dobree, the Chairman, 

 made the following reference to the sugar and other 

 industries in the West Indies: — 



With regard to the future of the sugar industry in the 

 West Indies, it had been conclusively proved that, with the 

 best methods of cultivation and the planting of certain canes 

 in certain soils, a better extraction of sugar was obtained, 

 and sugar from the cane could be produced at a lower cost 

 than sugar from beet-root. All the West Indies asked was 

 a fair field and no favour, and the assurance of not being 

 handicapped by bounties. The cacao industry was flourishing, 

 but the West Indies w-ere suffering from drought. Jamaica 

 was in a verj' satisfactorj' state, there being a fine crop of 

 bananas this year. 



DEPARTMENT NEWS. 



As briefly mentioned in the last issue of the 

 Agricidtural Neivs, the Imperial Commissioner of 

 Agriculture will proceed to the United Kingdom on 

 dut}' leave on .Time 5 next. During the Commissioner's 

 absence, Professor J. P. d'Albuquerque, M.A., F.I.C., 

 F.C.S., will be authorized to sign official corres- 

 pondence. 



The Hon. Sir Daniel Morris, K.C.M.G., left 

 Barbados in R.M.S. 'Eden' on Tuesday, May 1-5, on 

 a visit to Grenada. He returned to Barbados on 

 May 22. 



