?82 



NATURE 



[December ii, 19 19 



When fully organised the Department made j:»rants 

 for teachinfj science at colleges and secondary schools, 

 and for the maintenance of agricultural schools, 

 botanic gardens, and experiment stations. Special 

 attention was devoted lo research work in raising new- 

 varieties of sugar-canes and other plants, to the inves- 

 tigation of diseases affecting crops, and to the general 

 amelioration of the conditions under which they were 

 grown. .\t the end of ten vears of strenuous effort 

 it was notirc.-ihle that, owing to the expansion an-.l 

 improvement of old industries and the introduction of 

 new, the gcnirai conditions in the ^^'est Indies 

 wen- gre.ill\ inipinvrd. This may be illustrated 

 by the fact that tin- public revenue of the Colonies 

 li.id increased from 2,546,724/. in 1894 to 3,914,434/. 

 in 191 1, while the total trade during the same period 

 had increased from 16,270,474/. to 26,949,086/. There 

 was thus an increase of 65 per cent, in the total 

 revenue and of 60-5 per vcr\\. in the total trade. In 

 reviewing the situation in the West Indies, as the 

 result (if the .ictivities of the Imperial Deoartment of 

 Agriciiltur.- ,[ii(l those associated with it, the late 

 Prime Ministei- said: "The work of the Department 

 was universally and gratefullv acknowledged bv the 

 planters to be largely responsible for the improved 

 state of affairs in all branches of agriculture, <'md he 

 helieved — and he spoke with some experience — it would 

 be diflficult to find a case in which anv analogous 

 experiment made by the Home Government had 

 .ittained such speedv and satisfactorv results." 



.\ gratifying proof of the appreciation of the work 

 i)f_ the Imperial Department of .'Agriculture in the 

 'A'est Indies was the formation of several Depart- 

 ments on similar lines, first at Pusa in India in Tqo2, 

 and afterwards in all the tropical Colonies in the 

 New and Old World. Further, twenty competent 

 officers trained in the West Indies are now in charge of 

 the Departments of .\griculture in Ceylon, Mauritius, 

 the Federated Malay .States, and Fiji, and on the staft's 

 of the Imperial Department of .Xgriculture in India 

 and the several Colonies in East and West .\frica. 

 -Another interesting feature of West Indian progress 

 Avas the wider at>preciation of improxed methods of 

 lultivation and of the value of science b\- members of 

 the planting community. For instance, in rSqS the 

 aggregate amount voted by the local legislatures for 

 staffs, laboratories, and botanic and experiment 

 stations was at the rate of 14,000/. per annum. Apart 

 from the funds of the Imperial D^oartment of Agri- 

 culture, it is probable that, directly or indirectly, the 

 total amount contributed locally for scientific services 

 is now not less than 60,000/. per annum. 



There can be no doubt that" not only in the West 

 Indies, but also in all parts of the F.mnire, "enlighten- 

 ment as to the objects, methods, and conditions of 

 scientific research is proceeding at a rapid rate." 

 Perhaps the most interesting feature of the progress 

 made is in connection with the application of the laws 

 of heredity to thp improvement of such highly im- 

 portant crops as sugar, wheat, and cotton. ' The 

 problems associated with these involve both scientific 

 and economic considerations. .As regards the scientific 

 side, it is fortunate that with the beginning of the 

 twentieth century came the rediscovery of Mendel's 

 facts and the stimulating energy of the" genetic school 

 which has brought us an entirely new point of view 

 in regard to the increased production of field crops. 



Oreat importance is attached to the improvement 

 of the sugar-cane, as the prosperity of many of our 

 Possessions depends upon it. Further, the require- 

 ments of this country approach something like 

 2,000,000 tons per annum. The sugar-cane, although 

 its origin is unknown, has been cultivated in tropical 

 and sub-tropical countries from remote ages. I'o to 

 NO. 2615, VOL. 104] 



a recent date its propagation was purely vegetative, 

 as it was supposed to have lost the power of producing 

 mature seed. 



Sugar-cane seedlings were observed at Barbados in 

 1858, but it was only in 1888 that Bovell and Harrison 

 were in a position to utilise the discovery and obtain 

 thousands of self-sown seedlings for experimental pur- 

 poses. Similar seedlings were also available in Java 

 about the same time. .'\s about this period the 

 standard canes in sugar-growing countries were 

 showing signs of being severely attacked by disease, 

 the discovery of seedlings was a fortunate circum- 

 stance. In fact, in some cases it may be. regarded 

 as having probably saved the industry. In British 

 Guiana it is reported that in the crop of 1918 seedling 

 canes occupied 83 per cent, of the total areas under 

 canes. Similar results have been obtained at Bar- 

 bados, where Bovell has continued since 18S8 in 

 raising canes of great merit. 



In Indi.i there is probably a larger area under sugar- 

 cane than in any other country. Its production of 

 sugar is more than 2,000,000 tons. The larger pro- 

 portion of this consists of a low-grade quality known 

 as jaggery or "gur." Palm-sugar is also produced to 

 the extent of 500,000 tons. Speaking generally, thr 

 sugar industry in India is not in a satisfactorv con- 

 dition. In spite of the enormous area under cultiva- 

 tion, India is obliged to increase its considerable 

 imports of sugar from Java and other countries. To 

 obviate this, urgent steps are being taken to improve 

 the character of the canes and establish varieties 

 adapted to local conditions and the circumstances of 

 the sugar-growers. 



In the considerable literature of sugar-cane breeding 

 in India Barber has brought together a vast amount 

 of information of singular interest and value. In the 

 few years that have elapsed since he has been in 

 charge of the Coimbatore Research Station he has 

 laid the foundation of lines of inquiry that cannot fai' 

 to prove of great value in the permanent improvement 

 of the sugar industry in India. 



In his presidential address in 7898 Sir Williarri 

 Crookes .stated that the prime factor in wheat produc- 

 tion was a sufficient supply of nitrogen. .\s the supply 

 was then showing signs of exhaustion, he warned 

 wheat-growers of the peril awaiting them. .Sir R. H. 

 Rew has now shown that, thanks to the chemist, who 

 came to the rescue, there is practically no limit to the 

 resources of nitrogen. During recent years Biffen, by 

 his successful investigations on Mendelian lines at the 

 Plant-Breeding Institute at Cambridge, has shown that 

 the characteristics distinguishing the numerous wheats 

 can be traced, and the building up of a fresh combina- 

 tion of these characters was possible on practical lines. 

 .As the losses caused by disease were so serious, some- 

 times running to millions of quarters annually, Biffen 

 devoted special attention to the possibility of breeding 

 rust-resisting varieties. He found that the power of 

 resisting the attacks of yellow rust, for instance, was 

 an inheritable character. By crossing Gurka, a Rus- 

 sian disea.se-resisting wheat, with Square Head's 

 Master, one of the most widely cultivated wheats in 

 this country, Biffen eventually produced Little Joss, 

 which, after trials extending over a period of several 

 years, is said to vield four bu.shels per acre more than 

 any other variety. Further, it possesses distinct 

 disease-resisting qualities. 



-Another of Biffen's new wheats is Yeoman. TMs 

 was raised in order to produce what are known as 

 strong wheats. These are in great demand in this 

 country, as they produce a flour which is much 

 superior for baking purposes to the flour of English 

 wheat. In pre-war days Canadian strong wheats 

 commanded in the market 5.<r. more per quarter than 



