"Some Enemies of our Cane-fields." 113 



Dry weather, as well as wet, must at all times enter 

 into the calculations of the planter, and though nothing 

 can equal a dry season of not too long duration for pre- 

 paring a soil well tilled for rapid growth of plant life, 

 few calamities can be greater than a prolonged drought 

 in Demerara, as even with our grand Water Services 

 but very partial irrigation can be obtained. The 

 effe6ls of flooding up the drains, although no doubt 

 beneficial to the canes, has a bad effect on the land. 

 Irrigation to be corre6l must be applied from the 

 highest point and allowed to flow into the ground and 

 thence into the drains. Jamaica has a magnificent Irri- 

 gation System by which the part of the country along 

 the Rio Cobre is supplied with water high enough to 

 irrigate any part of the fields. 



Of late seasons the scarcity of reliable labour for field 

 work has been general throughout the Colony, and field 

 operations have been delayed, in consequence, until 

 almost too late to promote growth. This scarcity is 

 mainly due to operations in the interior of the Colony, 

 where the search for gold employs thousands of labourers 

 at high rates of wages besides rations. 



The only possible remedy is increased immigration 

 from India and elsewhere, and it must be the sincere 

 wish and hope of everyone who has the interest of the 

 Colony at heart, that, in the near future, good seasons 

 and prices may reward the perseverance of the Estates* 

 proprietors, who have had for many years past an uphill 

 fight against heavy odds. 



