THE SUPPLEMENT TO THE 



Tropical Agriculturist and Magazine of the C. A. 8. 



Compiled by A. M. & J. FERGUSON. 



No. 2,] AUGUST, 1909. [Von. V, 



TOBACCO CULTIVATION IN CEYLON, 



THE PROPOSED EXPERIMENTS. 

 The possibility of improving Tobacco culti- 

 vation in Ceylon has been brought prominently 

 before successive Governors of the Colony— more 

 particularly by administrators and residents in 

 the Jaffna Peninsula. The late Mr. R. W. 

 levers, when G. A. in the Northern Province, 

 more than once recommended in his adminis- 

 tration reports the appointment of an expert 

 to introduce among the local cultivators new 

 methods of growing and curing their leaf in 

 order to suit it to the European markets. The 

 tobacco industry at one time was a considerable 

 one. Latterly it has declined. Parts of Southern 

 India, formerly the best customers for the 

 Ceylon product, have commenced to supply 

 their own demands and naturally the Ceylon 

 growers have suffered from the competition. 

 With the decline in the trade the cry for an 

 expert has become more insistent, and there is 

 now every prospect of something being done in 

 the way of experiment to decide definitely, once 

 and for all, whether Ceylon tobacco can be im- 

 proved and whether it can be improved to such 

 an extent as will ensure a demand being created 

 for it on its merits in the East and in Europe. 

 Private enterprise in the past has been respon- 

 sible for many attempts — conducted by Eu- 

 ropeans — to improve the Ceylon product and to 

 start an industry in it, but these have all been 

 abandoned after a time, presumably as failures. 

 The reasons why these experiments failed, 

 have not been placed on record. It may have 

 been for reasons quite apart from the suita- 

 bility of Ceylon soil and climate for growing 

 a better class tobacco. Government have 

 never been persuaded to officially experi- 

 ment. The present experiment will certainly 

 be productive of much more satisfactory 

 and definite results than any experiment in 

 the past. It will be conducted systematically 



22 



and the results will be carefully recorded. The 

 experiment must be regarded as an exceedingly 

 important one. It is being conducted more or 

 less with public money and will be the crucial 

 and final test of whether Ceylon tobacco is 

 capable of being improved to a degree likely to 

 create a nourishing and remunerative industry. 

 It is well, therefore, that the Agricultural So- 

 ciety should consider well on what lines the 

 experiment is to proceed — so that full advantage 

 may ultimately be taken of it before launching 

 out on any scheme. The difficulty which faced 

 the Agricultural Society at their last meeting 

 was as to the qualifications of the "expert," 

 or rather "Superintendent of Tobacco experi- 

 ments" to be employed. The Committee appa- 

 rently are prepared to accept an officer, with 

 some knowledge of agricultural science, who 

 would spend the first year of his appointment 

 in acquiring a knowledge of the methods of cul- 

 tivating and curing tobacco employed in Ceylon, 

 India, and such other countries as the Com- 

 mittee may decide; the second and third years 

 to be spent in carrying out experiments in the 

 growing and curing of tobacco at the Ex- 

 periment Station, Maha Iluppalama. The ad- 

 vice of the expert would also be available 

 to cultivators in other parts of the island. 

 They do not regard previous experience in to- 

 bacco cultivation and curing as a sina qua non. 

 We can see no reasonable objection to this ; 

 although personally we think, if it were at 

 all possible to get the services of an 

 experienced tobacco planter from Sumatra, 

 to work out the above programme, the re- 

 sults would be infinitely more satisfactory. 

 We certainly think it would be an advantage 

 if the gentleman selected had some previous 

 knowledge of tobacco and its cultivation and 

 curing on the most up-to-date principles. 

 The meeting thought otherwise, however, and 

 finally adopted a suggestion made by Mr 

 Bernard Senior that an officer be selected to 



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