584 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



Old Coffee Land. 

 The greater part of the coffeo land has been 

 put under rubber, most of the estates under- 

 going the same transformation as in Malaya; and 

 all of them were started with Swiss or German 

 capital. Their rubber is not very old and not 

 kept up to the mark, owing to lack of funds. 

 Tlie soil is not alluvial, as was most of the 

 soil under coffee in the F. M. 8., but had 

 it received proper care and attention, it 

 would show ultimately a better growth and 

 a heavier yield in rubber, judging from 

 similar soil under more fortunate circum- 

 stances. This leads me to consider the position 

 of estates belonging to companies with more 

 capital. The work done is impressive, both on 

 account of the short time allowed to managers 

 to put it through, and the large scale on which 

 it has been done. Very little of the land was 

 virgin forest ; a groat deal of it was lalar.g, and 

 much of the remainder was and is under coffee. 

 The growt h is good on lalang or old tobacco land, 

 and this is what surprises one most. Though 

 looking for the difference between the product 

 of either class of soil and virgin forost, one i6 

 almost disappointed not to find it. The only 

 rational explanation would be peihaps that 

 lalang or old tobacco land has been dug over a 

 sufficient number of times to make it as good as 

 virgin land which has not been turned over at all. 



Lalang v. Jungle. 



The money disbursed for getting the soil ready 

 for planting amounts to very much the same for 

 lalanf and virgin forest, for the following rea- 

 sons : felling is dear, whereas digging lalang or 

 blukar is cheap, the latter process being often 

 resorted to. Thus, taking all these circum- 

 stances into consideration, we are gradually 

 led to understand the following assertion of a 

 Sumatra planter : " !f I were to open again, I 

 would rather open on lalang or tobacco land. 

 Planters, who are now struggling with fungus 

 and white ants, will fully appreciate this view. 

 The hosts of virgin forest are not to be so 

 easily driven out of their abode unless 

 every stump and root is taken out and burnt. 

 Then it is no more clearing the jungle as in the 

 old days ; it is modern cleansing with all its 

 cortege of machines. The expense of opening 

 jungle land is therefore increased, but in that 

 case the earth has necessarily been turned over, 

 and the returns must prove groater than in the 

 case of previously cultivated land. There is 

 much of this latter class in Sumatra, and it will 

 be interesting to see what yields it gives. The 

 experiment was needed. 



A Good School. 



The impression one carries away is that 

 tobacco is a very good school for planting life. 

 Comparatively young men acquire great exper- 

 ience in handling large and mixed labour forces, 

 and older men, in managing the huge resources 

 placed at their disposal by their powerful com- 

 panies. English planters, from want of previous 

 experience, might encounter more difficulties in 

 dealing with such bulky concerns. The training 

 has been longer and not so chequered and in- 

 terrupted as in Ceylon and theF.M.S. It is 

 quite normal to hear of Europeans having only 

 been home twice in 20 years. The only holidays 



are the 1st and 16th of the month — no Sunday 

 rest. The work is hard and especially exacting 

 in May, June and July— everybody in the field 

 at 5-30 a.m., back at 11 a.m., and out again at 

 1 p.m. till 6 p.m. 



Standard of Living. 



Against this, living is on a. higher standard 

 than in Ceylon or the F M S., judged 

 from the point of view of food and houses. 

 It is a real pleasure to go to a far-away 

 estate and find fresh milk, fresh butter and 

 new-made bread, instead of tinned or stale 

 articles. The meat is excellent, owing to the 

 presence in the country of European butchers, 

 who cater for the other Europeans. It is a pro- 

 fitable business and not below their dignity. By 

 the way, why should it be infra cliff, to trade 

 in fresh products, and not so to deal wholesale 

 in tinned ones ? There is no objection amongst 

 Dutch people to keeping a shop or managing a 

 hotel, and consequently there are good shops 

 and good hotels. 



In Sumatra, as in Java, the houses are very 

 comfortable, being well furnished and provided 

 with all the conveniences that may be found in 

 Europe. The tobacco compauies have not be- 

 grudged the money for the grounds surrounding 

 managers' houses, with the result that the latter 

 are laid out with a certain grandeur. Sumatra 

 planters are fond of saying that assistants in 

 the F M S are sometimes put in bungalows 

 where they would not put their coolies. 



The Impression throughout is that Europeans 

 are there for a longer time than in the F M S. 

 and it is confirmed by their relations with the 

 natives and their treatment of the Eurasian 

 question. One realises that every detail of their 

 life is in accordance with the rest. The travel- 

 ler in Sumatra, as elsewhere, notes that every 

 country has stamped its colonies with the mark 

 of its own nationality.— Malay Mail, May 11. 



Malacca Rubber Plantations, Ltd,— Output 

 dry rubber for March 1'2,500 lb. Total for throe 

 months ending March 31st, 1919, 34,<J00 lb. For 

 the same peiiod 1908, 4,835 lb. Increase 

 29,165 lb.— Malay Mail, April 5. 



Yam Seng Rubber Estate.— The output for 

 March was 3,160 lb. 



Inch Kennkth Crop.— The rubber harvested 

 on Inch Kenneth Rubber Estates, Ltd., for 

 March was 3,836 lb. estimated dry. 



Ledbdry Crop.— The manager of the Ledbury 

 Rubber Estates, Ltd., reports that the rubber 

 crop harvested during the month of March was 

 4.444 lb. dry ; corresponding month last year 

 1,738 lb. dry : total for first three months of 1909, 

 12,021 lb. dry ; total for corresponding period 

 last year 5,6 1 1 1>. dry.— Ibid,, April 7 



Ragalla Rubber Co , Ltd; -A cable has boen 

 received by Messrs McAlister & Co., Singapore, 

 from the manager of the Ragalla Estate in which 

 he advises that the estimated crop for the 

 mouth of March is 940 lb.— Ibid., April 8. 



Damansara Rubber Crop.— Mr H FBrowell, 

 Manager, Damansara (Selangor) Rubber Co., 

 Ltd., sends the following crop returns :— Crop 

 secured 1st quarter, 1909, 32, 124 lb; to date last 

 year 24,587 lb.— Malay Mail. 



