45 
which for months has no rain at all. As it comes down it is 
Yous ids 
(Signed) J. V. SIGVALD MÜLLER 
The Director, 
Royal Gardens, Kew. 
DCXLV.—IMPROVEMENT OF SUGAR-CANE BY 
CHEMICAL SELECTION. 
the Kew Bulletin for 1894 (pp. 86-96), 1897 (p. 318), and 
1898 (pp. 331-334), account was given of the method pursued at 
Calumet Plantation, Louisian na, and subsequently in Queensland 
This is based on the known variability of cultivated pana and 
the consequent Ponin of enhancing any de sired character by 
the continued selection of the plants in which that ee is 
pe marked. 
As long ago as 1886 it had been pointed out in a letter to the 
Colonial Office from Kew that the saccharine contents of the 
sugar-cane could be improved by d gues selection quite 
ne of reproduction by se 
ovell’s results at Barbados nave attracted the attention of 
ation 
in East Java. He has lately favoured us with the following 
interesting letter, viduas is printed for the information of those 
working on the subject 
DIRECTOR, E TNR EXPERIMENT orice EAST JAVA, 
o ROYAL GARDENS, KEW 
Pasoeroean, March 26, 1899. 
DEAR SIR, 
IN the * Report of the results obtained on the reg 
fields at Dodd’s Reformatory, 1897,” I see that you suggested t 
Wien to try the selection of sugar-cane by chemical indi si 
of ‘the 
Nearly three years ago I proposed the same to the principals of 
the experimental station at une oean. As I myself was 
appointed Director in the same year a | commenced after my 
and of nearly the same age might show a difference in available 
sugar of from 7 to 8) per cent. I concluded therefrom that it 
necessary to select cane-clumps. When the juice of a whole 
cane-clump, except the ge has a great amount of available sugar 
