THP TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [October r, 1889. 
Improved Sugarcane. — The Queensland Govern- 
ment have secured supplies of plant cane from 
Baron De Lissa's plantation in British North Borneo. 
These were originally from Queensland, but theNorth 
Borneo climate had vastly changed the canes for 
the better. — Straits Times, Sept. 4th. 
Cinchona Prospects. — We print on page 257 
another long letter from Baron von Rosenberg 
on the need for a Syndicate of Cinchona planters ; 
but it will be observed that not only have the 
Uva, but also the Wynaad planters decided that 
it is impossible to work a Syndicate to check the 
harvesting and shipment of bark now-a-days from 
the East. We observe that several of the South 
of India Planting Companies now bemoan the posi- 
tion of bark in the home markets very bitterly. 
The Tambracherry Estates Co. Ltd. has had the 
disappointment of a very short coffee crop owing 
to drought, and while they got of bark Jrd more 
than the estimate or 128,000 lb. , the price is so miser- 
ably low, that they have determined to hold their stock 
some time longer. This is the Company for which 
Mr. Jowett, well-known in Ceylon is manager, and 
the expectation being of a steady rise in bark — 
soon, this is what the Directors write : — 
" The intrinsic value of the company's property will 
naturally augment concurrently with the price of bark 
and, should a steady rise take place from now, the 
company will be exactly in a position to profit by it, 
as none of the regular fields of cinchona have yet been 
touched, and the first harvest from any of these will 
occur this year, the estimated shipments being 175,000 
to 200,000 lb., without including any of the more valu- 
able varieties. The manager, Mr. Jowett, advises that 
he will not be in a position to make an estimate of 
the probable coffee crop until September. The drought 
lasted up to the period of first blossom, and unfa- 
vourably affected it on some estates ; but the second 
blossom has apparently been more fruitful, than usual 
though to what extent cannot yet be stated with any 
degree of certainty." 
" The Wentworth Cold Company " has, it seems, for 
some time expected more from cinchona than from 
gold, but, alas, the long-expected rise in price seems 
as if it would never come. We read: — 
"The new chairman, Mr. Robert Ewing, says it is 
conceded that the price is now so low that it does 
not cover the cost of production, and it is unrea- 
sonable to suppose that such a condition can long 
continue ; and with a falling off in supply it is 
natural to expect a rebound in values. Taking 
these circumstances into account, the board con- 
sider it would be a mistake to force the stock they 
hold upon the market ; so to put them in funds to 
carry on the work of the estate, they have made a 
call of Is per share upon the uncalled capital. It 
has alBO been decided not to bring home any large 
quantity of bark this season. The stock in hand 
costs comparatively little to hold, and a rise of Id 
per unit Would make a difference on it of over £2,001. 
This company has 571 acres under cinchona, 156 acres 
under coffee and cinchona combined, and 15 acres under 
coffee alone, making 742 acres out of 1,300 acres. As 
soon as cinchona goes up in price, the managers will 
liberate the coffee and cut down the cinchona to give 
the coffee a chance." 
So, Ceylon planters will be able to judge that there 
are considerable stocks of Indian bark held ready 
to go on the market, apart from what may remain in 
local estate stores or in Colombo. During the last 
few weeks, it is said, Colombo stores have been pretty 
well cleared : consequently as regards the current 
season, Ceylon estimates are likely to be out again 
considerably, for we are in a fair way to see 10 or 
even 10^ millions lb. shipped before the end of Sep- 
tember 1 Everyone is quite sure " this cannot go 
on : it is impossible ; the country is wellnigh 
cleared of all bark; there is no more to come; 
there will be a sudden collapse in shipments" — and 
ao on. But meantime, the bark somthow comes to the 
front ! — Mr. Bell's news from Java is not re-assuring. 
Johore 31st Aug.Johore has just been visited byMr. 
Thurburn of Shanghai, who has been to visit his coffee 
Estate "Drum Duan " on Gunong Pulai. He is firmly 
convinced of the future of coffee ; and for my part 
I would rather own coffee than any other tropical 
product at the present time. The future production 
of Java will never materially affect the market. 
Ceylon is exporting barely one tenth of what she 
did ten years ago ; and the manumission of slaves 
must be a severe blow to the coffee trade of the 
Brazils. Mr. Editor, can you not give us some 
figures as regards last year's and this year's crops ; 
and next year's prospects in the last-named country ? 
—Cor., S. W. Press. 
Johore Notes, 21st Aug. — After goodness knows 
how many months of rain, we have actually had ten 
consecutive days of fine weather. Rain however, 
again fell this morning ; but the general appearance 
of the weather encourages us to hope for more sun- 
shine. As may be imagined with such continual wet, 
weeds have flourished ; and I know of more than one 
estate that a fortnight ago looked more like a homely 
old hay-field than a tea or coffee estate ! However 
the last few days sunshine have done us yeoman's 
service; and the area just cut presents a very differ- 
ent appearance to that weeded previously, where the 
grass simply laughed at us ; and what we pulled up 
today was growing tomorrow ! Besides giving trouble 
as regards weeds, the weather has been very 
detrimental to the process of drying coffee : and as 
the crop season has been in some parts, at its, 
height, the inconvenience experienced has been very 
great. — Cor., S. F. Press. 
Consumption or Rice in Mauritius. — The Cham- 
ber of Commerce and the Brokers of Port 
Louis have b^ca considering the demand of the co- 
lony for rice, and they have reported as follows : — 
That the quantity found by both Chambers, viz 252,533 
bags should be adopted as the approximate Stock 
of Rice in the Colony on the 10th June 1889 ; and that 
this figure should be taken as a basis for future Ketums. 
That the quantity of 2,400 bags should be main- 
tained as being approximately the daily consumption 
for Mauritius and its dependencies, except Seychelles, 
the Committee seeing no reason to alter this figure, a«, 
had the daily consumption been in excess of this esti- 
mate since 1878, when this figure was adopted, there 
would at present be nothing like the Stock actually 
existing, 
That the exports of Seychelles should no longer 
be included in the stock on hand, Mahe being now 
an independent port having a Custom House of its own. 
Java (Cinchona) and the Straits (Old 
Friends). — Mr. G. D. T. Bell of Newton returned 
by the " Yang-Tse " after his brief visit to the 
Straits and Java. He speaks very favourably of 
the comforts of the voyage in the M. M. steamers 
both ways ; he had ten days to spare at Batavia 
and ran upcountry, visiting Mr. Mundt and one 
cinchona plantation recommended by him. This 
was an extensive Ledger plantation of some hun- 
dred of acres, trees perhaps 8 to 10 years old, 
yielding bark of a splendid analysis and no sign of 
canker or dying out. Moreover, and this surely is 
very important, Java planters are able to plant 
up in place of the trees they thin out and the 
supplies put in this way, invariably grow! Mr. Bell 
noticed too how the grass and weeds were allowed 
to grow between the cinchona: to cut them down 
two or three times a year being sufficient. Alto- 
gether he concluded Java is especially the country 
for a permanent cinchona-growing industry. He 
inspected one of the Government Gardens, but it 
was of Succirubra. Coming back, Mr. Bell met 
in Singapore, Mr. Parrinton, looking well, only 
three days before his death from hydrophobia: 
Mr. Milne had succeeded him in Johore ; Mr. Turing 
Mackenzie is flourishing in the same district, very 
busy and pleased with his prospects. Mr. Fischer 
of the Hotel looked well and flourishing. 
