Miscellaneous, 



528 



[Junk, 1910 



use as fodder crops, and special papers 

 were prepared and published by the then 

 Superintendent on these matters, as 

 well as another on the growth of Caro- 

 lina paddy. Maize continued to demand 

 attention, and the reports show that 

 Italian rye grass, German beet-root and 

 mangel-wurzel were grown — but con- 

 demned ; it is also worth noting that 

 Mr. Robertson alludes, amongst other 

 crops which he tried for fodder, to the 

 wild indigo (Tephrosia purpurea) of 

 which he remarked that the sheep were 

 very fond, and said that he had selected 

 some seed from wild plants, " and hoped 

 that by cultivation after two or three 

 generations, it will become a useful 

 plant" 



It was also about this time that atten- 

 tion was first given to the raising of 

 fodder crops, and this was a necessity 

 from the fact that a considerable flock 

 of sheep was maintained on the farm. 

 It had been started at the opening of 

 the farm, on a basis of Coimbatore and 

 Salem ewes which were crossed with a 

 half-bred Coimbatore- Merino ram, whilst 

 at the same date two Southdown rams 

 were purchased in England, only one 

 of which reached Madras alive. In the 

 next year, Mysore sheep were added to 

 the flock, and some Patna rams were 

 obtained and used, but in 1869, Mr. 

 Robertson pointed out that the flock, 

 although His Excellency the Governor 

 allowed free grazing in his park- at 

 Guindy, was far too large, and contain- 

 ed only a comparatively small propor- 

 tion of sheep that were worth keeping. 

 He then began a system of breeding 

 after selection. In the previous year, 

 some attention was given to the fatten- 

 ing of sheep, and in 1869 several experi- 

 ments in this line were begun ; whilst 

 in 1869-70 there were experiments in 

 feeding cattle also. Pigs had been kept 

 from the first, and though the Commit- 

 tee at one time doubted the advisability 

 of continuing to breed them, they after- 

 wards changed their minds and increased 

 the stock with a view to the sale of 

 sucking pigs and young porkers. Rab- 

 bits and poultry were also kept, and of 

 the latter for many years there were 

 continual new importations of good 

 stock from Australia and England. 

 Much of this work was altogether be- 

 side the question and was only rendered 



Possible by the peculiar situation of 

 aidapeth close to a large town like 

 Madras ; but the experiments in feeding 

 cattle, though primarily intended to test 

 the fattening value of fodders, etc., 

 are of some interest, as they are, I 

 believe, the only tests that have been 

 made in India of the feeding value of 

 local produce. 



It should be mentioned al90 that at a 

 very early date the feasibility and utility 

 of the " box system " of housing cattle 

 was clearly demonstrated there and, as 

 Mr. Robertson remarked in 1870, " there 

 can be no reason why working and 

 young cattle should not be kept in loose 

 boxes at night, and there is no better 

 or more economical way of making 

 manure than under the loose box system. 

 On sanitary grounds alone, the system is 

 worth general adoption." Further ex- 

 perience has only confirmed the justness 

 of these conclusions. 



In 1871 a new departure was made by 

 dissolving the Committee. In submitting 

 the last report its President, Mr. (after- 

 wards Sir William) Robinson, whose in- 

 fluence in later developments was very 

 great, fully reviewed the work in a 

 letter worthy of study. Prom this time 

 onwards the work of the farm was 

 greatly concerned with implements, 

 especially ploughs and with fodder 

 crops. 



When the scheme for district farms 

 was formulated by Government in 1871, 

 the primary difficulty was the provision 

 of competent Superintendents, and a 

 class of apprentices was formed to 

 supply these. For training such men 

 the Agricultural College was eventually 

 established on the Saidapeth Farm. 

 Meanwhile the superintendent wa9 pro- 

 vided with two Assistants. Of the 

 latter I was one, and the other was 

 recruited direct from Germany by Sir 

 William Robinson. We were intended to 

 relieve Mr. Robertson at head-quarters, 

 but before this was possible the Agri- 

 cultural College had commenced work 

 in October, 1876. The scheme of train- 

 ing was far too complicated and elabor- 

 ate, whilst no proper provision was 

 made for the teaching staff— though Mr. 

 Robertson proposed the appointment to 

 the staff of an Agricultural Chemist, a 

 Botanist aui a Veterinary Surgeon, both 

 for scientific investigation and for pro- 

 fessorial duties — the idea being that in- 

 struction in veterinary science should be 

 given at the College. And though the 

 idea under which the College was started 

 was undoubtedly correct— it is now 

 being given effect to in all Provinces — 

 the fact that provision for experimen- 

 tal enquiry in all parts of the country 

 dropped largely out of sight was, per- 

 haps, the real cause of the failure of 

 the institution. 



A few years later, there came the 

 establishment of the Agricultural De- 

 partments (or Land Records Depart- 

 ments), and there Mr. Robertson was 

 not provided with a post. The College 

 was handed over to the Educational 



