growing, and collecting rubber, has just ended his visit to one of 

 the best and most representative rubber estates, Culloden, in Neboda. 

 A description of the tapping on this estate from the pen of the 

 manager, Mr. R. W. HARRISON, appeared on the 1 2th instant, it 

 will be remembered. M. COLLET'S visit to the estate had for its 

 special object a series of 



TESTS WITH A TAPPING KNIFE 



which M. COLLET has lately invented. M. COLLET returned from 

 Culloden this morning, and a representative of the Times of Ceylon 

 elicited from him that the tests were eminently satisfactory. He is 

 under a pledge to communicate the results of his tests to the local 

 ''Tropical Agriculturist, " and was therefore reluctant to say more 

 than that he thinks that the use of his knife in Ceylon will lead to 

 a better flow of the latex, and certainly that it will result in all in- 

 jury to the tree being avoided. The knife can only penetrate the 

 bark, and the incision made is such that 



THE* WOUNDS HEAL PROMPTLY. 



M. COLLET is quite satisfied with these results and will not make 

 any more experiments with his knife in Ceylon. He is very much 

 impressed with the magnificent growth and the fine character of 

 the Para trees on Culloden; it is one of the best estates he has seen 

 in the East, he says, and he has, judging from what is done at 

 Culloden, the best anticipations for the rubber industry of the Island. 



THE SOIL IN CEYLON IS POORER 

 than in the Straits, thinks M. COLLET. "It is very fine soil for 

 rubber, of course, but the soil in the Straits is, comparatively, finer, 

 I think, " he said. One thing that die noticed interested him very 

 much, and that was the very hardy character of the Para tree. " It 

 grows amidst rocks and all sorts of unevenness, " he remarked, in 

 a tone of surprise. Culloden estate taught him that one cannot 

 hurt the Hevea tree by any force of circumstances. Where the 

 Straits are better off than Ceylon is that, their soil being much bet- 

 ter, the trees in the Straits attain in two years the girth and fine 

 appearance which in Ceylon they would take four vears (o put on. 

 M. Collet took several 



PHOTOGRAPHS 01 CULLODEN ESTATE, 

 and the typical trees there, which he was busy developing this 

 morning. These will furnish illustrations for his second volume 

 dealing with Asiatic Para Rubber. 



M. COLLET went up to Peradeniya by this afternoon's train and 

 will stay some days at the Botanical Gardens. Me will then proceed 

 to Kepitigala and other rubber estates in Matale, returning t i 

 Colombo next week. 



[From Ceylott Times, April 21 st, 1904.) 



