CULTIVATIOK ITT CEYLON. 97 



facts yet known to me, and also with the present state of physi- 

 ology. In seedlings, the cotyledons especially become yellow, 

 and in older plants the lower leaves usually suffer first ; on wind- 

 blown ridges, quartz patches, and dry soil generally, bad attacks 

 of rust are conspicuous when more sheltered and moist portions 

 of the estate do not appear to be suffering ; in sudden dry weather 

 ' an attack ' commonly comes over an estate, while during the last 

 stages of crop ' leaf disease ' is often very bad. 



"Now, if the mycelium, ramifying among the loose cells of 

 the leaf, is absorbing its food from those cells, as is well known 

 to be the habit of such parasites, we can see how so much more 

 work is thrown upon the plant. Whereas, a leaf normally sup- 

 plies a certain quantity of elaborated food for the tree in a given 

 time, we have here the same leaf compelled to provide food for 

 tree amdfwngus — its cells must work the harder and its life be 

 the shorter. 



" Until we fail to account for the ravages of leaf disease ac- 

 cording to known principles we have no right to seek an explana- 

 tion elsewhere. Many, and in some cases elaborate, experiments 

 are being planned to establish the important point as to what 

 actually occurs between the fall of the leaf, with its ' rust ' and 

 mycelium, and the reappearance of the yellow ' pin-spots ' ; I have 

 already indicated the direction in which these are leading, and it 

 only remains to patiently carry on research. "When it is remem- 

 bered that these germinating spores have to be kept under ob- 

 servation during the night as well as day, that all kinds of minute 

 organisms have to be guarded against, and hence that out of many 

 attempts few succeed, I hope that the importance of this plan 

 will be admitted." 



While the Ceylon planter is fighting his enemy with sulphur 

 and lime, or trying other remedies, the Ceylon Observer takes 

 r''ather a hopeful view of the coffee industry, as the following, 

 from its columns, wiU show : 



" If we refer to the past history of the staple exports of the 

 colony, we shall find much reason to congratulate ourselves on a 

 record of steady progress. Even in the case of coffee, although 

 there has been a check, there is no reason to anticipate more than 

 temporary depression. Our largest shipment of plantation coffee 

 7 



