Vol. V. No. 120. 



THE AGKICULTUKAL NEWS. 



383 



EDUCATIONAL 



Agricultural Teaching in Grenada. 



The following is extracted from the Report on the 

 Primary Schools of Grenada for the year 1905 : — 



The requirements of the Code syllabus, so far as earning 

 the grant of 3s. for every pass on the theoretical side of the 

 subject, were, as usual, earnestly carried out by the! teachers 

 in standards VI and VII. In many schools the teaching is 

 begun in standards IV and V, with satisfactory results, ilany 

 teachers have fallen in v/ith suggestions made from time to 

 time, to include plant life in the object-lesson course 

 whenever practicable, as a stepping-stone to the teaching of 

 agriculture. Five schools were noted in my last report as 

 having kept their gardens in full working order for the whole 

 year. For 1905 the number was nine, the additional 

 schools being St. Andrew's Anglican, St. John's Anglican, 

 St. George's Wesleyan, and Woburn Wesleyan. The lack 

 of water in some districts causes the plots during the 

 ■dry season to have a most abandoned appearance, but 

 in some schools, notably the St. Paul's Anglican, under 

 the management of the Rev. Mr. Branch, the pupils are 

 ■required to keep always full the water casks and other 

 receptacles provided, and to water judiciously as a means 

 -of withstanding the effects of a prolonged drought, of 

 ■which there was an unusually severe spell towards the end 

 of the year. The plots at the two schools in the St. Paul's 

 district are those which present the best appearance, but for 

 methodical, interesting, and experimental work, the St. John's 

 Roman Catholic school, under the management of the 

 Eev. Father Tigar, leaves little to be complained of, especially 

 when the size of the plot and the difficulties of making and 

 maintaining it are considered. It might be well to make it 

 clear here, that only the continuous and persistent efforts of 

 the manager and teacher of this school could have succeeded 

 in converting what was merely an uninviting corner of their 

 school yard into a presentable little corner now covered with 

 beds, boxes, experimental nurseries, etc., etc. 



The motion standing in the name of the Hon. Mr. de 

 T'reitas for the curtailment of the grants to those schools, 

 which, having school gardens, do not proceed at once to 

 make use of them, was not proceeded with by him owing to 

 the decision of the Board to issue a new Code which would 

 embody his views. No new plots were enclosed during the 

 year. As against £13 granted for work on the practical 

 side done in 1904, the Board for ■^'ork in 1905 granted £18 

 as bonuses to the teachers of those schools that worked their 

 gardens. His Excellency the Governor intimated to the 

 Board, when approving of the grant of £18, that in the 

 proposed new Code embodying his scheme, he would insist 

 on about half of the curriculum in the schools of higher 

 instruction providing for the teaching of agriculture, sanita- 

 tion and hygiene, and technical pursuits. 



Agricultural Teaching in British Guiana. 

 At the Government Industrial School in British 

 Guiana twenty boys are usually employed in agri- 

 cultural work, that is, pruning, setting, transplanting, 

 pulping, and curing coffee and cacao, and generally 

 tending young plants. The following reference to this 

 work is made in the report on the scliool for 1905-6 : — 



The boys mentioned as ' pruning,' etc., are employed in 

 two parties under skilled workmen. One, Arthur Kortright, 

 was trained at the Botanic Gardens, where he was employed 

 for a very long time ; he is a well qualified and useful officer. 

 The other has had experience for about fourteen years as 

 a driver on cacao estates in Trinidad. Boys in these 

 parties are taught practically everything connected with the 

 cultivation of cacao and coffee, from the setting of the beans 

 to the time the product goes from the curing house into the 

 store. They have also care of the experimental cotton field 

 and economic plants sent here from time to time by the 

 Director of Science and Agriculture. 



The w-eeders, forkers, shovelmen, and wood-cutters are 

 mainly composed of the biggest boys. The task system for 

 this class of work has been introduced with the very best 

 results. There is some inducement, other than the fear of 

 punishment, for a boy to work well, as he not only pleases 

 those in authority over him, but he also knows that, on 

 satisfactorily completing his task, he is allowed to knock off 

 and come in. It moreover enables us easily to distinguish 

 between the good workers and the bad, the industrious and 

 the lazy. 



Farm boys, grass-cutters, and orderlies are selected from 

 the smaller lads, and the fatigue party, which is employed in 

 sweeping the yard and keeping the grounds in order, is 

 generally composed of convalescents. 



AGRICULTURAL SHOW AT MONTSERRAT. 



The following report on the Local Agricultural 

 Show held, under the auspices of the Imperial Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, at Harris Village, Montserrat, 

 on November 9, has been forwarded by Mr. W. Robson, 

 the Curator : — 



This show brought forth a representative collection of 

 food and other products. The number of entries was 400 ; 

 this was very satisfactory, as exhibitors were confined to 

 St. George's parish. Meals, starches, and native vegetables 

 ■were especially prominent, as well as cacao and coffee. 



Five Diplomas of Merit of the Imperial Department 

 of Agriculture were awarded, as follows : Best bunch of 

 bananas, collection of vegetables from school gardens, 

 specimen of native furniture, tanned leather, and fancy work. 



Special prizes were offered by his Honour the Com- 

 missioner and Mrs. Davidson Houston for the best-cared 

 donkeys ; also for fancy work. For the latter there was keen 

 competition. 



A few exhibits of interest were sent from the Botanic 

 Station, including broom corn, powder bellows for distributing 

 Paris green, desirable and undesirable cotton seeds for 

 planting, citrons, lemons, Paris green, London purple, sisal 

 hemp, etc. 



Superior Kind of Papaw. A new kind of papaw ha.s 

 been introduced in St. Kitt's. It is called the Guinea papaw. 

 The fruit is much superior to the common papaw or to the 

 long cucumber-like fruit, known as the Barbados papaw. 

 The pistillate flowers are white. The fruit is shorter than 

 the common papaw, precisely melon-shaped, with the five 

 ridges more distinctly marked, and of a deeper green when 

 unripe. The ripe fruit is often very large and has a thicker, 

 juicier, sweeter pulp than the other papaw.s, with a superior 

 flavour. Remembering the potent digestive qualities of papain, 

 this new papaw is worthy of a place in every West Indian 

 orchard. 



