186 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



The plumbago imported in barrels by steel 

 and other metal foundries has o5 lateusuaily- 

 corne from Germany and appears to be rela- 

 tively cbeap as it is sold wholes*! at the equi- 

 valent of 3^ cents per pound. There are no local 

 wholesale dealers or jobbers handling graphite 

 products. 



In the absence of a special travelling represen- 

 tative to look after their interests in this country 

 and an adequate stock of specialties always on 

 hand here or at Barcelona, American graphite 

 manufactures would probably meet with more 

 success in introducing their products by interest- 

 ing one of the important distributing agencies 

 and commission houses established at Barcelona 

 handling general machinery and machinery and 

 workshop supplies, belting, lubricants, etc., 

 which have travtlling salesmen for all Spain. 



The Spanish tariff on plumbago is only about 

 4 cents per 10f) kilos (220 - 46 pounds) Ther* is 

 no native source of graphite in operation in this 

 CJuntiy a present and all consume*! here is 

 imported, — New York, Oil Reporter, July 1. 



SMALL FARMING A SCEENCE. 



What Might be Done in Ceylon with Truck 

 Raising. 



Behold ! From the ancient and plodding 'man 

 with the hoe,' who once left his bed before 

 sunrise, and worked until after dark, to ' keep 

 the farm going,' and who often died in the 

 ' harness,' with little more than a few acres of 

 land and a roof over his head, we have " today 

 eolved the modern farmer of science, who arises 

 at a decent hour, eats breakfast with his family 

 rides over his domain in an automobile, and 

 returns in time for dinner to report prosperity 

 and improvement in the 'farm his father had 

 run for sixty years on the old-fashioned scale. 

 Of course, this is not universal ; but we use it in 

 comparison of the past with the present, and it 

 can be safely said that small farming has de- 

 veloped in proportion, with the same remarkable 

 prosperity, where up-to-date, scientific methods 

 have been employed. We cite as a specific 

 incident the case of a farmer, who according to 

 the World's Chrmicte, of June 22, began truck 

 farming on 12 acres of almost barren land in 

 Ohio. Ho did not understand farming when he 

 began, but he learned, aud after fertilising the 

 land, it improved. From a small beginning he 

 has developed the farm until he derives an 

 annual income of £200 per acre, meaning that he 

 makes £2,400 a year<<ffa patch of ground that 

 had previously been given up to stone heaps 

 and been a dumping-ground for everything. 

 This shows what small efforts grow into with 

 proper knowledge, industry and thrift. Some 

 months ago, when we published the results 

 of our own model farm, and small farming in 

 Ceylon, great interest was aroused, and we re- 

 ceived many letters of enquiry, some of which 

 we printed at that time. The demand for first- 

 class truck, or vegetable farming in Ceylon is 

 growing far beyond the supply. Not a week 



passes, that widespread complaints are made by 

 our hotels, European residents and the popu- 

 lation in general of Colombo and olher places, 

 that the quality of our garden produce is vory 

 poor a"d growing worse tach year. Th is chiefly 

 because next to no at entiou whatever is given 

 to the methods employed, the seeds or plants 

 used, or the condition of the soil. We are quite 

 certain that if those who are at all interested in 

 small farming, will secure the co-operation, first 

 of the Department of Agriculture, then secure a 

 few acres of land in the foothills, or upconntry, 

 where garden truck can be raised, they wdl find 

 by giving the business close and methodical at- 

 tention, it will not only yield them a good liveli- 

 hood, but considerable profit will be ultimately 

 realised, if the project is not given up, through 

 lack of enterprise, or wrong methods used. 



Referring again to the small farmer and his 

 12 acres in America, we ham that he was com- 

 pelled to use S00 tons of fertilizer on his land 

 each year. Gardening land in Ceylon wonld not 

 r<-qui'e anywhere near such an outlay id this 

 ro*peot There is not a chicken or cow on that 

 farm. He considers them too much trouble to 

 look after, an 1 they take up too much space. 

 Eggs and milu: are purchased t v om neighbours. 

 Six horses are maintained to work the farm, and 

 to do the hauling to and from the city. Here, 

 the situation might justify the keeping of a 

 cow. a few chickens, and with the required 

 pairs of bullock j , the same results could be 

 accomplished. This Ohio farmer does not be- 

 lieve in mixing his business as a truck grower 

 with that of a trnit farmer. This is an important 

 feature of small farming. Too many go in for a 

 little of this, a little of that, and the result id a 

 little of nothing. This farmer watches every 

 detail. He knows how to buy and sell, how to 

 sow and reap, aud to see that nothing is wasted 

 or lost. He works with his men, not over them, 

 and encourages them to improve constantly. In 

 the winter — a season our farmer does not have 

 to face in Ceylon — he raises tomatoes, lettuce, 

 asparagus, cucumbers, etc., in hothouses main- 

 tained tor that purpose, aud while his neigh- 

 bours' farms are under snow, he is getting big 

 prices from the city for his produce. In Ceylon 

 we can raise produce the whole year round 1 



We feel safe in predicting that if 100 or even 

 more Europeans, who were interested in farming 

 in Ceylon, would eich t-ke up 12 acres of land 

 upcountry, or the nearest land suitable for grow- 

 ing truck (vegetables of all kinds, including 

 potatoes, cabbago, lettuce, cucumbers, toma- 

 toes, turnips, parsnips, etc., etc.) thoroughly 

 familiarise themselves with the subject in 

 hand, apply the best methods, the proper 

 amount of energy, patience and thrift, Ceylon 

 farming, within three years' time, would be 

 famous throughout the E,->st. Wo have only to 

 point to what some of the industrious Chinese 

 gardeners in Burma, India, Straits Settlements, 

 and some of the Dutch gardeners in Java have 

 done, to see that what we propose is not only 

 possible, but cau be made profitable. Every 

 hotel manager in Ceylon, every resident using 

 vegetables, we are certain, would give such a 

 project their unqualified support and patro- 

 nage. 



