39 
A paper on the subject by the Director of the 
Agricultural Department of the Gold Coast is to be 
read at one of the sectional meetings of the Congress, 
when we shall have the advantage of the presence of 
Sir Hugh Clifford, the Governor of the Colony which 
looks, under his guidance, to other developments in 
agriculture, in which he is known to take so great an 
interest. 
If, in concluding tnis review, I refer to tobacco and 
sugar, it is only to draw attention to a community of 
interests in temperate and tropical agriculture, which 
it was another object of the organizers of this Congress 
to foster. We are glad to welcome on our General 
Committee and at our meetings a number of distin- 
guished representatives of agriculture in this country. 
Tobacco is one of several crops which have taken their 
place in temperate as wel! as in tropical regions. It 
has, of course, been known for long that the tobacco 
plant could be grown in sub-tropical and temperate 
regions, but recent developments indicate that certain 
kinds of tobacco may not only be grown, but success- 
fully cured of satisfactory quality in a number of new 
areas, among which may be mentioned Canada, South 
Africa, including Rhodesia, and Ireland, whilst pro- 
mising trials are being made in this country. The 
subject is one which needs increased attention in the 
tropics, especially in relation to the growth of cigar 
tobacco. 
In the short period under review great strides 
have been made in the region of tropical medicine and 
hygiene. Our knowledge of several important tropical 
diseases is now sufficiently complete to enable remedial 
and preventive measures to be taken with so great a 
success that, provided certain precautions are taken, 
life in the tropics is deprived of many of its dangers. 
THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE A CENTRE FOR INFORMATION. 
As we are assembled for our Congress in the Imperial 
Institute, I may draw attention to the necessity for 
a sort of central clearing house for collecting and 
supplying trustworthy information on all subjects 
connected with tropical agriculture, and especially with 
