THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [November i, 1887. 
♦ 
To the Editor of the " Ceylon Observer." 
INFORMATION RESPECTING CINCHONA. 
London, 1st Sept. 1887. 
Dear Sir, — I enclose a letter dated 27th July, 
which I was under the impression I had forwarded 
to you then, also some facts, deductions and pro- 
posals, whioh I am circulating among my friends 
in England who are interested in cinchona. I am 
ask ng them whether they would be willing to 
join such an association as I describe. 
May I ask you to be good enough to insert the 
above in the Ceylon Observer, also in the Tropical 
Agriculturist. 
May I also ask you, as one of the best friends 
the plant: rs have, to make your own remarks on 
the paper in the Observer and Agriculturist. 
I may remark that I have sounded some of the 
London merchants on the subject of an association 
and that they consider it a question for the pro- 
ducers, more especially the Ceylon planters (not 
for themselves) to take up. — I am, dear sir, yours 
faithfully, W. T. HODY COX. 
FACT8. 
1. The present low prices are caused by large pro- 
duction. 
2. An increase of Id per unit (from 3d to 4d) in 
the price would increase the profits 33 per cent, as all 
proceeds above a certain figure (say 3d per unit which 
would more than cover the cost of production) would be 
clear profit. 
S. Increase of consumption would increase demand 
and therefore price. 
4. There is an immense field for increase of con- 
sumption in malarious countries and especially in 
China. 
5. In such countries the value of quinine is begin- 
ning to be understood but the natives are poor and 
cannot afford to pay for quinine. 
6. It is generally allowed that the effects of 
" quiuetum," a preparation of the alkaloids of red bark, 
are nearly as good as of quinine. 
7. The price charged by the manufacturers in 
England for "quinetum" is Is 9d per ounce. The 
manufacture of quinetum is simple and inexpensive, it 
is understood in India; quinetum can be prepared in 
the East at less than 6d per ounce. 
8. The cinchona plantations in Ceylon and the East 
Indies consist chiefly of Cinchona Succirubra. 
9. The preparation of quinetum in the East would 
take a certain quantity of bark off the European 
market, the effect of which would be to raise the price 
in England. 
DEDUCTIONS FROM THE ABOVE FACTS. 
1. The laws of supply and demand would not within a 
reasonable time create consumption among the " mil- 
lions" as no private individuals or firms would care 
to distribute gratis. 
2. Such distrioution must be made by the producers, 
at first gratis and afterwards on payment which 
th«ugh small would, through the cheapness of manu- 
facture, bring in a handsome profit. 
PROPOSALS. 
1. That all those interested in the cultivation of 
cinchona should form an Association to manufacture 
in ins East, say at Colombo, the alkaloids of red 
bark in ths form of "quinetum." 
2. That members take shares of say £1 each in 
the following proportions :— 10 shares for every 100,000 
cinchona trees or under, which they may have grow- 
ing. This is d very small proportion but the object 
ii to get as many as possible to join. Any members 
wishing to take more Rhares can do so. 
3. That the manufactured "quinetum" be distributed: 
in India through the Government ariH its officers, 
Old:. a through the missionaries and " Medicine Men," 
A f r ca through the missionaries. 
This is merely an outline of a scheme. Planters 
have been such sufferers through the low prices, 
that I believe they would welcome and accept only 
too readily any good scheme. 
I for one should be happy to take my proportion 
of shares in such an Association as I have des- 
cribed. W. T. Hody Cox. 
August 1887. 
CEYLON TEAS IN THE MELBOURNE 
MARKET. 
Sir, — Should these few lines prove of service, 
I shall be glad in showing, that pure Ceylon 
tea, if pushed in the Melbourne market, is sale- 
able and sought for at very fair prices. It is 
but little I have been able to send, but that little 
has been sold to private individuals at very re- 
munerative prices, viz. 2s and 2s 6d per pound, 
and some few offered to purchase at 3s if they 
could always procure the pure article. Mr. Henry's 
proposal to establish agencies in Melbourne, and 
to employ canvassers to carry round samples, 
could not but succeed if thoroughly carried out. 
But care should be taken that agents in Mel- 
bourne only send round the pure article. Much 
harm is done in the sale of Ceylon tea by mix- 
ing China trash with it. 
There are in Melbourne some few ex-Ceylon 
planters, who would be thankful for the canvass- 
ing work and who would take greater interest in 
pushing Ceylon products in the market there, than 
they ? if only for the sake of " Auld lang syne." 
SPES. 
COCONUT CULTIVATION: THE MAIN ROOT 
AND FEEDING ROOTLETS. 
Hapitigam Korale, 16th Sept. 1887. 
Dear Sir, — " Try all things and hold fast that 
which is best " is a maxim formulated by one Paul 
of Tarsus, an eminently practical man in his day. 
I commend this to the notice of your Siyane Korale 
correspondent who has enclosed himself within a 
stockade of hypothetical stakes. From his fortress 
he looks out over the open country, where diligent 
workers have been searching for truth since he 
began to suck his mother. As no truth regarding 
coconut cultivation can possibly be discovered out- 
side his ring fence, he holds all such toilers to be 
silly and contemptable persons, and if any of those 
outsiders announce a fact that threatens one of his 
fence stakes, he turns on the aggressor with all the 
virus of an overteased monkey. 
Dismounting from my metaphorical charger to 
meet your correspondent on level ground, I have 
to tell him that he must free his mind from 
many of his hypothetical theories, and become a 
more accurate observer of facts before he arrives 
at the status of a good practical coconut planter. 
The letter in question affords me ample oppor- 
tunity of pointing out his errors, both in 
theory and practice. Has he ever sub- 
mitted to experiment his theory about 
the sacred character of coconut roots, and the 
terrible consequences to the trees, o£ disturbing 
them ? Has he ever visited a field where periodical 
breaking up of the soil was practised and com- 
pared it with others, where no such reckless de- 
struction was allowed ? He has evidently done 
neither of these, else nothing short of obstinate 
stupidity could have kept him true to his theory. 
Again he states as a fact, that most of the feed- 
ing rootlets are round the tree. In one sense 
this is true, but, as I understand him, he means 
that the favourite feeding ground of the roots is 
within perhaps a few feet of the stem, and on 
this assumption he builds a system of treatment 
one part of which is to cut a trench round the 
