SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE. 225 



or nothing to learn from others, or believe themselves in possession 

 of secrets, be at once undeceived, for this is the sure symptom of 

 an ignorance blind to its own errors and defects, or of a vanity 

 which dreads being eclipsed by contact with a superior intelli- 

 gence. It is an undoubted fact that the most skilful and best- 

 informed can, and do at times, derive profit from the experience 

 of others, even of the most ignorant. For, in agriculture, the 

 field of observation is unlimited, and what had escaped the 

 attention of the most superior mind, may have been remarked by 

 one vastly inferior in intellect ; or that which was but superficially 

 observed by one individual, may have been deeply examined by 

 another. 



I readily acknowledge that the cultivation of the sugar-cane 

 has made some progress ; that inquiries have been instituted ; 

 but a great deal more remains undone. We should follow the 

 example set us by the beet growers. Selection is now considered 

 as a necessary ingredient in the successful cultivation of plants. 



There are, as I think, several species, and many more than 

 twenty varieties, of cane, each having its peculiarities — some 

 growing better in poor soils, and resisting better the effects of 

 droughts ; others thriving in stiff lands : some richer in sugar ; 

 others containing a larger proportion of foreign matter; and 

 yet I am not aware that any series of experiments have been 

 instituted with the object of obtaining reliable data on the 

 subject. 



The Tahitee cane is universally held as the best for all pur- 

 poses, so much so that by many inquiries are considered as 

 futile ; but comparative experiments would either corroborate 

 ■ the general opinion, or might show that, under peculiar circum- 

 stances, some other variety should obtain preference, and the 

 matter would then be finally settled. It has been ascertained 

 that the cane not only grows better and more vigorous in soils 

 rich in lime salts, but yields a juice which is more easily mani- 

 pulated. The composition of the sugar-cane is pretty well 

 known at present, and that composition is far from being 

 uniform; in this respect, the variety cultivated has its influ- 

 ence ; the component parts of the juice vary not only in the 

 different varieties, but in the same variety, according to circum- 

 stances. Our knowledge of the general composition of the cane 

 should teach us the manure most suitable to its perfect growth. 



