THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Mat i, 1890.. 
receive by mail all the year round circulars and printed 
post-cards, as well as business cards in envelopes, con- 
taining requests for shipments of fruit from commission 
merchants in nil the Northern large cities, and it has 
been recently found out that some of these so-called 
eommission men are mere kerbstone brokers, whose 
furniture and office fixtures are not worth half-a-crown. 
Of course substantial respectable business men doing 
a large trade with retail fruit stores as well as street 
vendors, also communicate in th6 manner indicated 
with the growers. But many a hard-working culti- 
vator who has bought or budded his trees, and grown 
them on for five or six years, working early and late, 
watching bis trees with the greatest anxiety and 
interest, and delighted to see them covered with bloom, 
and still more so to see them perfect a good crop of 
fine fruit, and who sorts and packs and ships it to 
some of these commission men, who have so mysteri- 
ously procured his Christian and surname and address 
with such exactness, finds himself, as the Yankees say, 
badly left." Perhaps he gets a post-card saying the 
fruit was reoeived in bad condition, and was sold to 
pay freight ; or perhaps he gets Is. per box, containing 
from 198 to 250 Oranges, with the advice to be sure 
and send his Oranges all the way by rail in future, 
remarking that those received "heated on steamer," 
having been put on steamer at Savanah for New York. 
Honest commission merohants — and there are such — 
do not do this kind of unprincipled work, they usually 
return 7s. 6<£. per box clear, after all expenses are paid. 
Some Oranges of course sell better, and fetoh better 
net prices than others, notably the Tangierines, but 
any Orange grower in Florida who gets an average of 
7s. 6d. to 8s. per box clear is perfectly satisfied, and 
there is money in the business at these prices. An 
Orange grower who anticipates shipping a crop of 
Oranges should make enquiries months previously res- 
pecting the commission house he purposes to ship his 
fruit to ; and it is much the best policy to make ex- 
haustive inquiries at first to try and find a good 
reliable man, and having found such a man, to stick 
to him altogether, even if first returns are not so good 
as might be expect- d. 
Oranges require careful picking, sorting, and packing. 
A carelesB man in paoking the fruit allows the long 
thorns on the tree to penetrate the small sack usually 
worn over the shoulder and hanging under the opposite 
shoulder; and when this occurs, and is not detected 
in packing, the Oranges so pricked usually rot; and 
if the box or boxes containing these and other Oranges 
happens to be in the commission man's store for some 
time, the previously sound ones soon become affected 
by reason of their contact with the rotten fruit. 
Sufficient care is not generally exercised in this respect. 
Orange growers are now agitating for two things — 
one is to ship fruit to the Florida Fruit Exohange at 
Jacksonville, which is endeavouring to ship fruit, and 
place it in distant markets, with a view to preventing 
a glut, and ultimately this Florida Fruit Exchange aims 
at establishing an Orange Auction at Jacksonville, so 
that the fruit can be sold there, and paid for, without 
further risk by the growers. The hard nut to crack 
is how to get Northern fruit merchants to attend the 
sales. The other question agitated is to sell the fruit 
on the trees when ripe. If the Orange auction with 
the Northern buyers on the spot can be accomplished, 
the second is a certainty, Florida Orange growers 
have such confidence in the quality, juiciness, and 
flavour of thoir Oranges, that they quite believe that 
the time is not far distant when buyers will call to 
purchase their fruit at the groves, and I think their 
confidence is not by any means misplaced. 
Grapes, Strawberries, and Peaches, about whioh I 
shall have somelhir.ff to say in another paper, also 
do >.-h, and pay we'll for growing in Florida. It is 
verj eertain that When Florida becomes better known 
ihere will bo a greater rush of immigrants thither 
than bas taken place to any of the other States of 
;h i'nion, ami land now selling at from 2 dols. to 
26 dole, an acre will bo worth ten times more. I may 
say, in conclusion, that any reader of these notes 
who contemplates trying his fortune in Florida, and 
is, therefore, desirous of gaining furthor additional 
information, can obtain it by addressing a letter to 
Box, 147, Waldo, Alachua County, Florida, and that 
such information will be cheerfully and truthfully 
given. — W. — Gardeners' Chronicle: 
♦ 
COFFEE IN THE NEW GALWAY DISTRICT 
I was down at New Cornwall estate in the 
New Galway district a few days ago, and it was 
quite cheering to see the coffee looking so well 
and if the weather only continues favourable it 
will give one of the largest crops it has yet 
produced. The genial proprietor, Mr. Duncan 
Mullens, deserves great oredit, for the successful 
way in whioh he has fought the green bug, and 
practically kept it from doing much harm on his 
estate. He carefully watched for its appearance 
and as soon as it is deteoted he dresses the 
inflicted trees with a solution of sulphur, kerosene 
oil, and carbolio soap, which makes short work 
of all living insects. This when only a few trees 
are attacked can easily be applied and is a very 
effectual remedy, but I am afraid would be [too 
expensive to apply to a large area. — Cor. 
ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, PERADENIYA, 
IN 1838 AND SUCCEEDING YEARS. 
{Continued from page 754.) 
The alterations and arrangements necessary 
for the improvement of the Garden Ehould be im- 
mediately commenced with, and the following are the 
leading particulars that ehould have attention :— 
1. Water properly seoured and regulated by 
drains, reservoirs, &o. 
2. The superfluous timber and other trees to 
be cut down and removed. 
3. The plants to be arranged in classical order, 
and the flower borders properly accommodated. 
4. The gravel walks and drives to be put in repair. 
6. An arrangement to be entered into for a quar- 
terly or monthly supply of seeds ; also for a collection 
of foreign plants, both to be done by exchange with 
other countries. 
6. Soils of various kinds ehould be oolleoted and 
brought together in a compost ground. 
7. A glass frame should be made, and fixed to 
assist the facility of propagation ; every means should 
be used to collect the plants of the Island not 
hitherto known. 
8. A new hortus siccus commenced, and a new 
collection of the Island seeds made. Apartments 
should be put in order for the Superintendent with 
offioers attached, specimen and seed room. 
9. The Botanical Works should be put in repair, 
and the latest ones from soientifio authors should 
be provided. 
The above work when completed, if improve- 
ment and order be kept in view and proceed with 
eaoh other, will doubtless place the Royal Botanio 
Garden on a basis, that will unable it to contend 
for preference with any Establishment of its kind 
within the Indian Territories. 
The advantages to be derived by tho publio 
and science in general, from an Establishment of 
this nature, properly conducted in this rising 
Colony, requires but little explanation ; particularly 
when it is known tbat the Island has witnessed 
but few experiments upon its vegetable productions, 
that it has also been but little explored and abounds 
