February, 1910.J 



145 



Miscellaneous. 



and have been the means of indicating 

 the commercial possibilities of a number 

 of minerals, preliminary surveys were 

 in progress during the year in Uganda 

 and in British East Africa, and these 

 have already afforded evidence that 

 these countries contain deposits which 

 deserve full investigation. The results 

 which have followed from the operations 

 of these surveys clearly demonstrate 

 the advantage of such work being con- 

 ducted by Government on these lines, 

 by which systematic search for minerals 

 is made in the Colonies, and material 

 collected for research work at the 

 Imperial Institute in the communication 

 with technical experts and manufac- 

 turers. In Ceylon, where striking results 

 of commercial importance have already 

 been secured, it is clear that much still 

 remains to be done in following up indi- 

 cations obtained of the existence of 

 valuable minerals, and in the technical 

 development of certain deposits by 

 modern methods which have hitherto 

 not been adopted.^ 



In Southern Nigeria attention has been 

 chiefly directed to the occurrence of 

 lignite and its possibilities as a fuel. 

 The mineral surveyors have made a 

 thorough exploration of the deposits 

 and the value of the material and the 

 best modes of utilising it are being very 

 fully investigated at the Imperial 

 Institute. In view of the observations 

 which have been made so far, it seems 

 not improbable that the lignite deposits 

 of Southern Nigeria may prove a valu- 

 able asset not merely for the Colony, 

 but as a source of fuel for the whole of 

 West Africa, A series of clays from 

 Southern Nigeria has also been fully 

 examined to ascertain their value for 

 the local manufacture of pottery by the 

 natives. 



In Northern Nigeria the mineral 

 surveyors have, in addition to other 

 work, located and explored new or 

 littl e-kuown deposits of tinstone, which 

 proved on examination at the Imperial 

 Institute to be of excellent quality. 

 There can now be little doubt that tin 

 mining will become in the future one of 

 the principal industries of this country. 



In Nyasaland the location of deposits 

 of excellent coal and also of graphite are 

 among the more important results of 

 the work of the mineral survey. One 

 of the deposits of graphite is now being 

 opened cut by a firm of manufacturers 

 with the advice of the Imperial Institute, 



A detailed examination and a series of 

 technical trials have been made of a 

 large series of clays specially collected 

 10 



in India with a view to ascertaining 

 their value for the local manufacture of 

 pottery. 



A most interesting series of specimens 

 of tin ores were received for examination 

 from the Federated Malay States, in 

 which the tinstone was deposited in 

 limestone ; the latter proved sufficiently 

 phosphatic to be of value as an arti- 

 ficial manure. 



Reports on the results of the mineral 

 surveys in Northern Nigeria and in 

 Nyasaland have been issued as Parlia- 

 mentary Papers during the year. 



GENERAL IMPRESSIONS OF A VISIT: 

 to Ceylon, Singapore, and Federated 

 Malay States in Relation 

 to the Fruit Trade. 



By Mr. A. H. Benson. 



(From the Annual Report of the Depart- 

 ment of A griculture and Stock, Bris- 

 bane, Queensland.) 

 Having received instructions to break 

 my return journey to Brisbane and 

 proceed to Singapore to enquire into 

 the pineapple canning industry, I left 

 England on 16th October, and pro- 

 ceeded to Colombo, where I arrived 

 on 9th November and remained to 

 12th November, when 1 continued my 

 journey to Singapore, which was reached 

 on 18th November. The primary object 

 of my visit was to obtain full particulars 

 respecting the pineapple canning in- 

 dustry ; and to obtain this information 

 I visited all the canneries that were 

 working at the time of my visit, as well 

 as all the most important of the pine- 

 apple plantations in the Island of 

 Singapore. 



The result of my enquiries have been 

 submitted to you in two reports, one 

 dealing with the matter from a general 

 standpoint, and the other more of a 

 private nature, in that it dealt with 

 matters of interest only to the trade. 

 A copy of this latter report has been 

 sent to all who are engaged in this 

 industry, and the information I was 

 able to give has been appreciated, 



Although the main object of my visit 

 was to find out all I could about the 

 pineapple industry, I missed no oppor- 

 tunity of acquiring information respect- 

 ing the growing of tropical crops, and it 

 is with such of these crops as may be 

 suitable for growing in the more tropical 

 parts of the State that 1 purpose dealing 

 in this report. 



