October i, i88 9 /| THF. TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
227 
Electric Traction.— One of the most reoent 
stock-broking circulars (says the E. T. Journal), in 
recommending investment in tramway shares as 
likely to rise, says : " Lastly, but not least, 
meohanical traction by electricity is now within the 
region of practical politics, and its effect upon net 
earnings may be such as will double the dividend 
paying capacity of all tramway properties." M. de 
Lindheim, of Vienna, who has been going very fully 
into the tramway and railway statistics of Europe, 
has come to the conclusion that electric traction is 
the best system. Taking 1 as representing the oost 
of electric traction, he represents horse traotion as 
costing 1-47. 
Tobacco in Deli. — A correspondent of the Deli Cou- 
rant, wri ing from Holland, sends word of a speculative 
stir made in the latter country by the rise iu the 
price of tobacco, resulting in new companies coming 
forwards. Two prospectussea saw the light in one week 
to attract the attention of capitalists. One of them 
deals with a concession in Assahan requiring £125,000 
to work, and another in Langkat, promoted by Mr. 
Douglas, who has it in the market for one million of 
guilders. The fact that the Deli- Assahan Company has 
raised a yearly crop of eleven piculs of tobacco of ex- 
cellent quality per field speaks volumes. Assahan, as 
a tobacco country, has iu consequence a decided ad- 
vantage over Lower Langkat, which cannot boast of 
such wonders. Dutch capitalists favour Assahan, but 
Loudon ones feel more disposed to try Langkat. Monied 
business men in that city look to Sumatra as a promis- 
ing field for investment, from the proven extent of 
its tobacco growing capabilities. 
A Corner in Quinine. — The approach of the dead 
season has been promptly utilised by a convenient 
correspondent of the Financial News for an attempt to 
"get up" a correspondence on the position of quinine. 
The correspondent, who calls himself "Common Sense," 
in his aDxiety to put the readers of the Financial 
News in the way of a good thing, trots out all the 
familiar " bull " arguments about the abnormal cheap- 
ness of quinine and the chance for a "moderate ca- 
pitalist," with, say, £100,000 to invest in the article, 
to obtain from 300 to 400 per cent on his money iu 
a very short time. It is remarkable that, within the 
last two years, we think, two similar attempts have 
been made in the journal in question to put some life 
into quinine; but on both occasions these have fallen 
quite flat. If Mr. Henry Marks, editor of the Financial 
Neivs, proprietor of the Evening News and Post, London 
County Councillor, and Conservative candidate for 
Bethnal Green, can spare some time from his multi- 
farious engagements, he might try a quiuine speculation 
himself. — Chemist and, Druggist, July 13th; 
Coffee in Uva. — It is very satisfactory to 
learn on all sides of a wonderful improvement of 
late in the appearanoe and prospects of coffee in the 
Uva district. Estates both in Haputale and Badulla 
which some time ago appeared to be permanently 
afflicted with bug, and consequently with their coffee 
going quite to the bad, are pronounced to be 
comparatively clear, with good crops or prospects 
such as have not been seen for a long time back. 
We have the assurance of Mr. James Blackett 
who inspeots periodically the fine group of Hapu- 
tale estates held by the late Mr. B. B. Downall, 
now the property of Messrs. Antony Gibbs & Sons, 
that coffee has wonderfully improved, and as the 
best practical proof of the change, arrangements 
to plant tea in supersession on some ooffee fields, 
have been suspended. Uva planters generally seem 
to think that the worst of black bug, as of leaf 
disease, is past, and there is a good ohance of 
their being able to conserve an appreciable area 
of good paying coffee— paying at the prices likely 
to prevail for a long time to oome for the fragrant 
berry in the markets of the world. We trust this 
expectation may be realized, 
Coffee Planting in Assam, — A Ceylon tea 
planter writes to us as follows :—" From all 
I can learn of Assam and its tea planters 
they want an Observer badly to stir them up 
a bit. tells me they have some coffee growing 
on the 1 garden 1 he has charge of. It bears spleru 
clidly and shows no sign of leaf disease, and yet they 
never thought of extending it 1 With ooffee growing 
and thriving on their rich soil they would make a 
fortune twice as fast as in tea, and why they do 
not give it a trial seeing coffee is so high and tea 
so low a price is one olithe' to me, unsolved mysteries. 
If we could replace tea with coffee in Assam it would 
be a splendid thing for the planter, and not a bad 
thing for us 1" This is quite new to us about coffee 
flourishing. The only coffee we ever heard of in 
Assam was that planted by Mr. Anderson, who, failing 
to persuade his brother (Mr, T. C. Anderson) and 
friends in Ceylon to go in for tea some 15 (?) years ago 
when they oould have made their fortune, wsb 
over-persuaded by them to try ooffee in Assam I 
The plants grew well for a time ; but unfortunately 
leaf-disease appeared before the first blossoms and 
raged so fiercely that we understood the clearing 
was abandoned. Could it be a part of this field of 
coffee, however, to which our present correspondent's 
informant refers ? 
Tobacco in Ceylon.— The result of sale of Ceylon 
Tobacco ex " Telamon " is not satisfactory, but we 
can only Kiippoiso.'jn the absence of any information 
to the contrary that the leaf sent home was of 
native growth and manufacture. Several experiments 
have been made with the ordinary Jaffna-cured to- 
bacco, but in every case only loss has resulted. In 
one instance, we have been told, a small parcel pur- 
chased locally and shipped to Bremen was purchased 
for 5 pfennigs a lb. — a jjlittle less than Id. — but the 
purchaser a few days after taking delivery came to 
the conclusion that the best thing he could do was 
to throw it away, and accordingly did so. Whether 
the tobacco sold by Messrs. Grant, Chalmers k Co 
was similar stuff we cannot say, but should think it 
very probable. Experts say that the ordinary tobacco 
cultivated by the villagers is too coarse, not only in 
texture but in the rib for use as covering for cigars, 
and that its value as ordinary tobacco ranges from 2d. 
to 4d. a lb. in Europe. Planters on this side must 
distinctly understand that the high prices paid occa- 
sionally for tobacco is only realized by leaf suitable 
for use as cigar wrappers, and that ordinary tobacco will 
fetch locally 7d. a lb. In the catalogue sent to us 
no less than 12 varieties of tobacco are offered for 
sale as follows : — 353 bales Japan tobacco, 20 bales 
China tobacco, 29 bales Ceylon tobacco, 3 bales 
Sumatra tobacco, 8 bales Java tobacco, 3 bales Borneo 
tobacco, 9 bales Turkey tobacco, 2 bales Dubek 
tobacco, 17 bales Carmen tobacco, 1 bale Mexican 
tobacco; 6 hhds. Kentucky tobacco; 2 lihds. Virginia. 
Prices range from 2Jd paid for the Ceylon leaf to 
2s 8d paid for the Sumatra leaf. The following is a 
copy of the catalogue showing prices realized for 
Japan tobacco : — 
50 Bales Japan Tobacco. 
Ex " Carmarthenshire " at Japan. 
Cwt. qr. lb. 
m. c. (iudia.) c. a.j. 2 Bales 2 2 0 each 6id 
10 „ do 6d 
7 „ do 6jd 
1 „ do 6}d 
Compare this with the rates paid for the fine 
quality Sumatra leaf : — 
3 Bales Sumatea Leaf Tobacco. 
Cwt. qr. lb. 
ASA 1 Bale ... 1 1 15 2s 6d 
1 „ ... do 2s 8d 
btb 1 „ ... 0 3 5 2s 
Similar prices appear to be realized for the Borneo 
tobacco, but how long these will be maintained in 
face of increasing supplies of such leaf we have not 
sufficient information before us to say. — Local " Times," 
