LIGHT RAILWAYS ON COCOA ESTATES 25 



tree counting from a particular direction. The size of 

 the blocks may be varied from 5, 15, to 20 acres by 

 fixing points on the lines running at right angles to the 

 base at 5, 15, or 20 chains apart respectively. 



A uniformly laid-out estate will then be obtained, 

 which will considerably facilitate allotting and con- 

 trolling task-work. 



It is advisable to mark the blocks with their respective 

 numbers on the estate plan. 



Roads. A proper system of well-maintained roads is 

 necessary on every cocoa estate. When possible they 

 should be demarcated before planting operations com- 

 mence. On estates where no steep lands occur the main 

 roads might with advantage form the divisions of the 

 10-acre blocks, with intermediate paths to serve as feeders. 

 This system of communication is of course not practic- 

 able where steep lands are planted, for it is advisable 

 to take roads alongside such slopes, both to prevent 

 excessive washing of the soil by heavy rains and to 

 facilitate transport. As transport on such areas is more 

 difficult than on moderately level lands more roads are 

 desirable, and their distance apart ought not to exceed 

 5 chains. Light railways could be employed with ad- 

 vantage more generally on cocoa estates. Light four- 

 wheeled trolleys, furnished with safe-brakes, can be run 

 on rails at more than double the speed and with less than 

 half the power required for the haulage of ordinary 

 estate carts or wagons. The necessity for expediting 

 the conveyance of shelled cocoa-beans to the fermenting- 

 house will be dealt with subsequently. 



Drainage. It must not be inferred that drainage is 

 unnecessary because the cocoa tree flourishes in a humid 

 soil, for its roots are quite as susceptible to injury from 

 stagnant water as from drought. Water drains away 

 far more rapidly from a loose soil than from a compact 

 one. Land with a heavy clay sub-soil requires particular 

 care in the matter of drainage, but the surface-soil often 

 exhibits no indication of the stagnant water below. 

 The trees in such situations carry sickly, yellowish 

 foliage, for the air is unable to circulate and promote 

 the hygienic conditions so essential for healthy root 

 development. Tiled or closed drains of any description 

 are impracticable on a cocoa estate, as they rapidly become 



