Oils and Fats, 



10 



[January, 1912, 



either two or three horses, or both, can 

 be fitted if desired. The tines are car- 

 ried by hinged frames, and are free to 

 follow all irregularities of the soil. 

 When one end of the reversible steel 

 points is worn they can be turned round 

 and the other end used. The points 

 have ribs on each edge to strengthen 

 them, and require one bolt only to fix 

 them. Self-sharpening chilled cast points 

 can also be supplied, or steel hoes in. 

 wide. The patent taper spring steel 

 tines are made of the best spring steel, 

 and are strongest at- the upper end, 

 where the strain is greatest, no helpers 

 being now required. The tines are 

 tested to stand the roughest usage, 

 and the pressure is applied through 

 spiral springs instead of flat pressure- 

 bars, thus giving the tines greater play ; 

 the pressure can be varied at pleasure 

 to work fleet or deep, and the sprial 

 springs make the leverage lighter. 

 The tines can be moved sideways, 

 and can be set with more or less 

 pitch. On very foul land some of the 

 tines can- be removed to prevent 

 clogging. All the weeds are brought to 

 the surface and killed, and the soil is 

 thoroughly aired and sunned. 



In preparing the land for coconut 

 planting. Mr. L. 0. Brown, Inspector of 

 Coconut Plantations, F. M. S., in his 

 Bulletin No. 11 says, that for. the first 

 year at least it is x^referabie to keep the 

 ground free from weeds, as doing so, 

 among other advantages, causes the 

 trees to come to maturity at an earlier 

 stage, saves money in maintenance, and 

 offers greater facilities for ploughing. 

 He attaches great importance, we are 

 glad to see, to seed selection when laying 

 Out an estate. We quite agree with him, 

 and it was for that reason we call atten- 

 tion to the San Bias nuts. Mr, Brown 

 reports that the seed nuts imported from 

 Penang and Province Wellesley to some 

 of the large coconut plantations in the 

 Federated Malay States have done ex- 

 ceedingly well ; although he adds that 

 excellent nuts may be obtained from 

 Kuala Selangor, Kuala Langat, and 

 Lower Perak. Seed-nuts, we are told, 

 should be selected from well-matured 

 trees of medium size, say, from 25 to 30 

 years, showing good yield and large- 

 sized roundish nuts, either red, browu 

 or green and not oblong nuts. The seed- 

 nuts must be fully ripe, and care must 

 be taken to ascertain that they are not 

 damaged iu any way. 



In planting out the seed-nuts in the 

 nurseries prepared for them, they should 

 he buried to half their depth and placed 

 in a slightly oblique position, with the 

 acute end of the nut downwards, It is 



an advantage, concludes Mr. Brown, not 

 to plant the seed-nuts for a month or so 

 after they have been picked, so that the 

 outer skin may get thoroughly dry, and 

 the husk be allowed to harden. This 

 must be to avoid pests, otherwise we 

 should plant the nuts as quickly as 

 possible after picking:. The trees should 

 be planted 30x30 (48 to the acre), and 

 when the soil is alluvial and sufficiently 

 above sea-level, Mr. Brown strongly re- 

 commends that Robusta coffee be planted 

 7 x 7 ft. as a catch crop, at the same time 

 as the coconuts. When there is a good 

 local demand for fruit, these can be 

 planted instead of, or as well as, the 

 coffee. 



Further orders are being received by 

 the leading engineers on this side for 

 mechanical dryers for tropical produce. 

 The increased output of cacao, coprah, 

 coffee, &c, at the chief centres is causing 

 planters and shippers alike to turn to 

 artificial methods of expelling the 

 moisture expeditiously and completeiy 

 as the parcels come to hand, whether 

 they consist of only a few hundred- 

 weights or many tons. Amons the 

 orders recently received are two for 

 Messrs. David Bridge & Co., Ltd,, of 

 Manchester, for their well-known rotary 

 dryers. The first came from Fiji, the 

 machine in this instance being, we under- 

 stand, for drying cacao, whilst the other 

 is for an apparatus to be shipped to the 

 Philippines for drying coprah. Mean- 

 while the firm is quoting for these now 

 popular machines for all the chief 

 producing centres, including the West 

 Indies, Bahia, West CoKfct of Africa, 

 British and Portuguese Africa, Java, the 

 Solomon Isles, &c, and hopes before 

 very long to have one or more of their 

 rotary diyers at work at each of these 

 places. 



In answer to " F. L. J.," we should re- 

 commend " Verb. Sap." (price 2s. 10d.) as 

 the best book on outfits, cost of living 

 and travelling in West Africa* and 

 "The Maintenance of Health in the 

 Tropics," by Prof. Simpson (price 2s. 101,., 

 post free), for general information on 

 the subject. 



