Miscellaneous. 



15C 



[August, 1910. 



" The later (Sumatra) tobacco is doing 

 very well, and should be ready for 

 picking by the end of this month. This 

 is being irrigated once a week, and I 

 think will do well, thougrh irrigation 

 does not have the same effect as rain. 

 I have now finished planting, unless rain 

 comes, as it is impossible to get the laud 

 into proper state of tilth without rain. 



" I estimate that we shall have 25 to 30 

 acres under tobacco, which should be 

 sufficient for the experiment, but I 

 should suggest that the experiment 

 should go on next year, as we have suffi- 

 cient new jungle cleared now for plant- 

 ing and the necessary sheds, which will 

 be sufficient for another year. 



" I have now one large shed and a 

 small one ready, and do not propose to 

 build any more, as these will be big 

 euough for the crop, and the cost has 

 been for the two sheds Rs. 1,850 ; one 

 will be used for curing. 



" Labour is still insufficient, and will 

 handicap us badly unless help is forth- 

 coming. The drying tobacco is looking 

 well, and the leaf is of a good quality. 

 I shall be at Maha llluppallama on 17th, 

 18th, and 19th of this month." 



There is a general feeling on the part 

 of the members of the Tobacco Commit- 

 tee that the tobacco experiment should 

 be continued for another year, provided 

 the necessary funds are available, and 

 the proposal will form the subject of a 

 resolution at to-day's meeting. 



The Jaffna cultivators are jubilant 

 over the fact that the duty on Ceylon 

 tobacco imported into Travancore State 

 will revert to the old rate, and are most 

 grateful to His Excellency the Governor 

 for his assistance in bringing this about. 

 The threatened crisis in the Jaffna to- 

 bacco trade has thus been averted. 



Sericulture. — The temporary lease of 

 the Silk Farm has been terminated, and 

 the premises for the present put in 

 charge of Mr. Molegode, Agricultural 

 Instructor, 



There is some prospect of the Farm 

 being taken over and worked by the Sal- 

 vation Army in connection with a large 

 scheme embracing the Tata Silk Farm 

 in Bangalore, the management of which 

 has been assumed by the Army. On 

 May 26 I visited the Peradeniya Farm 

 with Mr. Achaya (one of the Salvation 

 Army's silk experts) and the Command- 

 ing Officer of the Army in Ceylon. 



Commissioner Booth-Tucker, in a 

 letter dated London, June 24, writes :— « 

 " We have been continuing our inquiries 

 re mulbery and eri silk, and have got on 

 to an excellent footing with some of the 

 principal firms on the Continent and in 



England, so that the marketing of the 

 produce should offer uo serious difficulty 

 in future, as soon as we are able to 



supply in sufficient quantities 



The eri silk is said to come between 

 Tasar and Mulberry, superior to the 

 former, but of course inferior to the 

 latter. Seeing that it is so much easier 

 to domesticate and feed than the Tasar, 



this should make it of great value 



We are still gathering information, and 

 hope to be well supplied before we start 

 back for Bombay in August. We shall 

 probably visit Ceylon in November, by 

 which time you could probably for- 

 mulate some proposal for the Island and 

 ascertain what help we might expect." 



9 



Mr. Achaya, referred to above, who 

 has had his training in Japan and on the 

 Continent, writing from Ludhiana (Pun- 

 jab) on July 5, says: — "The Salvation 

 Army work in this branch (silk) is pro- 

 gressing very favourably. In fact the 

 industry will be established in all the 

 Army centres in the course of this year- 

 As you know, the industry will be ad- 

 vanced ever so much if there is co-oper- 

 ation between different institutions 



working on the same lines You 



have probably heard that the Travan- 

 core Government is about to open a silk 

 farm at Trivandrum." 



The Imperial Government Entomolo- 

 gist for India, referring to his dealings 

 with the Bombay mills for the sale of 

 cocoons, urges the improvement of the, 

 rearing so that good quality cocoons, 

 containing a high percentage of silk 

 may result and a better price maintained 

 —the price depending entirely on the 

 percentage of pure silk obtainable. 



Apiculture. — As decided at the General 

 Meeting, steps have been taken to pro- 

 cure a machine for making comb-found- 

 ation for Apis indica bees, with the 

 assistance of Mr. Herbert Campbell, late 

 of Nuwara Eliya, and now of 30, Lan- 

 caster Gate, London, who very kindly 

 writes: "You ask me if I mind being 

 troubled. Believe me it is a pleasure to 

 give what assistance I can, and I hope 

 you will always apply for help in this 

 way, making use of me as your agent 

 in England. I am still keenly interested 

 in apiculture, as you will see from the 

 length of this letter ; and I shall always 

 remember that I first began to go in for 

 it regularly in your Island." 



Inquiries for comb-foundation have 

 already been received from India. 



Mr. Campbell thinks there should be 

 nc difficulty about a supply of wax. 



Mr. J. A. Victor Perera, who has had 

 encouraging results with Ceylon bees, 

 though he has also kept Italians and 



