CEYLON COCOA ESTATE 107 



there are machines for doing this, but the 

 natives have a primitive way of effecting the 

 same result. They put the cocoons of cotton 

 in a cask, and shake it about with a home- 

 made instrument, similar to the toy windmills 

 dear to the heart oflittle children who run holding 

 the cross pieces of stick to face the wind. These 

 sticks tear the cotton apart and the seeds fall to 

 the bottom of the cask, care being taken not to 

 raise them when the fluffy mass is removed to 

 another receptacle. It makes delightfullly soft 

 elastic stuffing for mattresses and cushions ; 

 the only drawback being that unless they are 

 stuffed lightly, the contents have a tendency to 

 become lumpy. A Ceylon friend of mine who 

 went home lately tells me he bought a cushion 

 in Aberdeen supposed to be stuffed with down, 

 his suspicions were aroused, he opened it and 

 found Ceylon Kapok. 



