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think, therefore, that having these advantages, the estimate 

 of cost which Mr. Hamel Smith has quoted with regard to 

 Ceylon will be very much less in our case. As a matter of 

 fact, I think that if the salaries of two research workers be 

 provided, we shall have enough to go on with for the next 

 five years. As to the question of education, I may say that 

 in 1900 we introduced agricultural instruction into the primary 

 schools of the colony. In, two years or thereabouts we trained 

 200 teachers, and in about another year or so agriculture was 

 made a compulsory subject for children of a certain age in all 

 schools. School gardens are attached to the schools, in which 

 a certain amount of agricultural instruction and practice is 

 given to the elder students of the schools. In association 

 with all this we have school shows once a year, at which prizes 

 are given for thei best vegetables, or whatever it may be, that 

 are grown on these school plots. We have also provided a 

 system of home reading courses, by which persons who are 

 already employed in agriculture, on estates or otherwise, may 

 receive instruction by correspondence to supplement the know- 

 ledge which they obtain in practice -every day. That is a three 

 years' course, and it is working out very satisfactorily. About 

 ten years ago we introduced hig'her agricultural education 

 into the colleges, and some sixty students are examined 

 every year by the Cambridge local authorities in agriculture. 

 The 'examination papers are purposely set so as to be suit- 

 able for tropical students. You will see, then, that in Trinidad 

 we have done a great deal of the work that an agricultural 

 college is expected to do, and I sincerely hope that within 

 the next five years we shall be provided with sufficient funds 

 to add the two scientific men whom we would employ solely 

 on research. There is one point which was referred to by 

 Mr. Lyne to-day to which I would like particularly to draw 

 attention, and that is this. He said he was of opinion that it 

 was impossible to make any improvement in the methods of 

 the adult labourer. Well, I think in the West Indies we have 

 accomplished an improvement in two or three of the islands. 

 It was started many years ago in Jamaica and in Grenada, 

 where a scheme of competition amongst peasant proprietors 

 was established, and prizes given to those who were most 

 successful in their work. In Trinidad we adopted that system 

 about three years ago, and I can assure Mr. Lyne that the work 

 has been most successful. In the first year's competition 

 (which was unfortunately limited to two districts, as we have 

 not more than two agricultural instructors) there were about 

 300 competitors, and instruction was given on the holdings 

 of each competitor by the instructors, who were the best 

 co-coa planters we could obtain on the island. They go there 



