Description of ihi 



[No. 





Population, 





III 3 







s U 1 ^ 



For 1831.. 

 1839., 

 1S44.. 



140: 2131 353 

 234 237 1 471 

 2631 2391 522 



except scanty crops of a plant called teermj on the roots of which 

 a small ball about the size of a pea grows, after the plant has with- 

 ered — these are gathered from among the loose sand, and used by 

 the Islanders. Dry cultivation on this island is very insignificant. 

 The native returns of population show a considerable increase 

 since 1831, but I am not inclined to place 

 much confidence in them. The inhabitants are 

 all poor, but quiet and w-ell behaved and devote 

 most of their time to fishing, as the returns 

 from plantation are not sufficiently large to 

 induce them to take much pains with it. 

 The returns of plantation in this island are very inaccurate, 



as must be seen on comparing the 

 returns of 1831 with those of the 

 other 3 years. In 1839 and 44 the 

 young and still unproductive trees 

 are entered as upw^ards of double the 

 number of the productive. Eight 

 thousand is certainly far short of 

 the number of the latter, and the 

 progress of plantation is not nearly 

 in this^sta?emeS^"'' ^""'^""^'^ SO active in this island as the former 



would indicate. I think that at least two-fifths or a half of these 

 young trees'' should have been brought under the class " produc- 

 tive," which should show from 13,000 to 14,000. This conjecture may 

 be verified by calculations of the probable number of nuts necessary 

 for the support of the population, and the number of trees that 

 would be required to produce the coir annually exported ; trees in 

 Chetlat are very poor, and their average annual produce should not 

 be taken higher than 50 nuts per tree, at which rate the produce of 

 14,000 trees would be required to support a population of 500 

 persons consuming four nuts per diem (an average below that stated 

 by the islanders). The exports at the average of 7 years have 

 been upwards of 80 candies, which with 10 candies added for home 

 consumption would be the produce of 10,000 trees if the rate assum- 

 ed for other islands of 5,600 nuts per candy of coir be retained. 

 As in Kiltan a considerable quantity of the husks are wasted, to 

 which must further be added the number of trees which are cut for 

 the juice. All things considered, it is probable that the return of 

 productive trees should be double what now appears. 





Cocoa Plantation- 





a> 



% 



sop 

 o ^ 



ViMmf; Trees 



Total produc- 

 tive 'I'roos. 



For 1827.. 

 1831.. 

 1839.. 

 1844.. 



21,336 

 24,899 

 27.501 

 25,655 



483 

 541 

 1,695 

 1,399 



]4,465i 6,388 

 4,246' 20,112 

 1 8,523 j 7,283 

 16,520 7,746 



1 



