285 



experience would have some of these trees pointed cut to him (natmally in 

 answer to inquiries) growing scattered nlong in the wet margins in going up the 

 lower \mazou or tributaries, whereas the true forests of the Para Fiidian rubber 

 trees lie back on the highlands, and those commonly seen by the inquiring traveler 

 are but ill-grown trees which have sprung up from seeds brou.ht down by freshets 

 from the interior. 



As a matter of fact, the whole of the Hevea which I procured for the govern- 

 ment of India where the produce of large gr >wn trees in the forests covering the 

 broad plateaus dividing the I'apajos from the Madeira River. The soil of these 

 well-drained, wide-extendiug forest- covered table-lands is siiff, not remarkably 

 rich, but deep and uniform in character. Th^^ Hevea found growing in these un- 

 broken forests rivals all but the largest of the trees therein, attaining to a circum- 

 ference of 10 feet to 12 feet in the bole. These forest pbdns having all the character 

 of wide-spread tablelands occupy the s.ace betwixt the great arterial river systems 

 of the Amazon, and present an escarped face, which follows at greater or less 

 distance and abuts steeply on the igapo or bagas, i.e , the margitial river plains 

 subject to inundation by the annual rise of the great river. S'. thorough is the 

 drainage of this highland that the people who annually penetrate into these 

 forests for the season's working of the rubber have to utili/.e certain lianas (water- 

 bearing vines) for their water supply, since none is to be ob ained by surface-well 

 sinking, in spite of the heavy rainfall during a great part of the year.* 



(To be contimied.) 



BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



The usual monthly meeting of the Board of Agriculture was 

 held at Headquarter House on Tuesday, llth October, 1 904, at 

 I I.I 5 a.m. Present : the Hon, H. Clarence Bourne, Colonial Sec- 

 retary, in the chair, the Director of Public Gardens, the Government 

 Chemist, His Grace the Archbishop, the Hons. J. V. Calder, and 

 T. Capper, Messrs. C. A. T. Fursdon, C. E. de Mercado, J. W. 

 Middleton, and the Secretary, John Barclay. 



A letter to the Director of Public Gardens was read informing 

 the Board that His Excellency had appointed the Colonial Secretary 

 to be chairman in the room of the Hon. Sydney Olivier, C.M.G. 



Cattle Disease. — With regard to the cattle disease in St. Ann, the 

 Secretary reported that as directed he had asked Mr. Perkins to 

 send on the spleen of an animal that had died and to give him 

 full particulars of the symptoms the animals showed and the con- 

 ditions of their environment, but that Mr. Perkins had not replied. 



After discussion 'Mr. Fursdon moved that the Board ask the 

 Government to take powers, if they have not already got the same 

 similar to the powers possessed by the Imperial Government for 

 the prevention of the spread of disease in live stock, modified if 

 required to suit local circumstances, and that steps be taken to 

 procure a copy of the British law or laws on the subject. 



This was approved of. 



The Secretary was asked at the same time to get further par- 

 ticulars, if possible, of the disease under notice. 



Locked Still at Denbigh. — Mr. Cousins submitted estimates in con- 

 nection with the locked still proposed to be put in at Denbigh 

 Estate. He said that unfortunately the plans and specifications 

 had been sent to the Crown Agents and only one drawing had 



♦ Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States, September, 1902, 

 pp, 476-477. 



