March r, 1888] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 621 
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prevailing currents of wind. The damage douo by 
tho last hurricane wag evident, hut it is in no way 
connected with the disease. 
The effect of the disease is to cause the lower 
leaves, and tin n the upper, to turn brown, and even- 
tually drop off. In time the terminal bud, (the 
"heart") is also attacked, and as tho growth of 
Palms is confined to this portion of the plant, the 
whole coconut tree dies. 
The scale insects (the females, which constitute the 
disease) do uot fly, but are transferred from one 
plant to another by various agencies : birds, insects, 
spiders, dead leaves or twigs, to all of which they 
may be attached. Wind acts in a secondary wuy, 
not boing able to detach the scale insects the.nselves 
but carrying spiders, &o., to which they adhere. The 
young larva) are active iu running about, hut this 
method of spreading cannot affect tall palm trees. 
In the preseut case the scale insects appear to have 
been brought from a distance by some such agency 
as insects or birds, and then to have been spread 
through the coconut walk by means of tho wind. 
Mr. Donaldson told me that he had frequently 
noticed the scale insects on sugar canes in tho 
plains during dry weather, but that they disappear 
during the rains. He observed that at Ardsheil there 
had been no want of rain during the present year. 
A remedy agaiust scale insects is published in 
number 3 of the Bulletin, which it is advisable to 
use when they attack orange trees. The expense 
of applying the solution is euormously increased in 
the case of a lofty Palm, i would suggest that 
owners of coconut palms should carefully watch their 
trees, and as soon as the disease appears, lop off 
the leaves affected and burn them. — (siguedj W. F. 
[The disease seems to be spreading fast, and will 
probably soou appear m the Liguauea plains, and 
elsewhere. Au effectual remedy is the Kerosene 
emulsion a Ivised in the l ist Bulletin, and the only 
question about its application is the practical ouo 
of expense.] 
Amongst Plants in Flower or Fruit, we find the 
following noticed : — 
The Ohanipaca (MirlitUa Cham puca) is auother Ea<it 
Indian tree, 30 feet high which flowers of a rich 
orange coluur, ami exquisite porfume. It is sacred 
to Vishnu, and is planted round the tomplos. The 
hitter, aromatic bark is used iu Mauritius as a febrifuge. 
The wood is fragrant, and is useful for cabinet-work, 
and for house-building. The Ohanipaca is a near 
relation of the Magnolia. 
Oolvilloa (C. ruccnwsa) is a Madagascar tree named 
after a former Governor of Mauritius, Sir Charles 
Colville. It is a beautiful tree growing to a height 
of 10 or 50 feet, with scarlet llowers growing in 
dense clusters. It is allied to tho Flamboyant j ( Poittci- 
,/»,( I'fifiu), also a .Madagascar tree. 
Caryota {urens) is an Indian Palm 50 or 60 feet 
high. It is so valuable to tho natives of India and 
Ceylon that it is largely cultivated. The inner portion 
of tho stem is soft, and contains large quantities of 
starch which is made into au excellent sago. Tho 
natives mnko bread of this, and also a kind of thick 
gruel. During the hut season it yields an abundanco 
of toddy or palm wine, tho best trees giving accord- 
ing to ttaxburgb, as much as 100 pints in 21 hours. 
This toddy is used, not only «s a drink, hut more 
important still, to uinko a kind of sugar, called 
jaggery. The leaves and leaf-stalks afford tho Kittul 
J bi -i , the Indian Gut of the English market, which 
is very strong, and made iuto ropes, fishing-nets, lines, 
brusheo, brooms, baskets, ice. It is said to be also 
Useful in the manufacture of paper. The ropes used 
lor capturing and tyiug wild elephants aro made of 
this fibre. 
♦ 
Asoiitni Minou Indi'stbx.— ■The cultivation and 
preparation of the Af/QM A mericum. Th • following 
is the opinion uf the expeit recommending this last 
easy road to wealth and fortune: — M \ 91 d l.irt 
sajs that according to his long < xp.-riciicu in 
Yucatan, the cultivation of the Agave or Sizitl 
II ni|> will giro a returu of 7'> per co it "ii tho 
c ipitul invested. Thii is promising to begiu With. Tho 
,; p'atit " (not the vegetable, but tho machinery, etc.) 
is not expensive and a small capital is necessary. 
The market for the fibre, when properly prepared, 
is already established and the demand is almost un- 
limited. No ploughing or m muring is required for tho 
establishment of the plantation. No drought can des- 
troy the produce, no hurricane can blow the plants 
down, no animal can injure them, for none will ex 1 ; 
them, and they aro not subject to the attack of insect 
or disease. Onco established no further planting is 
required and little or no attention, except a little care 
in cutting, and this work once begun, there is per- 
petual work all the yeir round. Mr. Stoddart says 
"The plant lasts according to the best authorities 
for at least 25 years in cutting state." At the most, 
3 years are required to develop the newly-planted 
Agaves, after this period, the more it is cut the more 
it seems to thrive and the more leaves it throws 
out. Neglect of cutting, however, will cause it to 
throw out a centre pod or flower stem, and this deter- 
mines the death of the plant. The soil never seems 
to become exhausted, but on the contrary, old, 
worked lands give the best yield. Here is a chance 
for the owners of Grand Savannah.— Dominica Dial. 
Torucco. — From Messrs. E. Jonas and Brothers' 
Circular : — The year just at an end has been a very 
eventful one in the tobacco markets throughout tho 
world. A year ago we ventured to assert that tho 
growers and handlers in the Straits could be trusted 
to adopt a course which would tend to place the 
market in a healthier position, and the subsequent 
course of events has fully justified our confidence 
in their common sense. As matters stand here now, 
prices continue to advance in the face of stocks of 
almost u lprecedented magnitude, but we are not 
able to rjport that sales have been at all propor- 
tionate either to the bulk of the holdings or the 
needs o c our manufacturers. The delay in samp- 
ling and the general outcry against the rough aud 
bony character of the now strips have combined to 
restrict transactions very largely to old tobaccos, 
and holders will start the year almost entirely with 
their stocks of the new. For ourselves we arc dis- 
posed to think more favourably of the last import 
than do most of our neighbours ; we find it on the 
whole of good length and colour, somewhat drier 
than usual, and fairly serviceable; it is, however, 
lacking in body, and this deficiency has helped to 
make tho want of good old style leaf more keenly felt 
than ever. Everything would seem to indicate that 
with tho turn of the year we shall not only 
experience an increased demand, but also a cor- 
responding rise in values. The shipments to this 
side for the next twolvc months cannot at best 
be moro than nominal, and as our stocks begiu 
to shrink to something like their normal size buyers 
must needs become more anxious and less inde- 
pendent than we have known them during tho past 
few years. At the same time we have little doubt 
that the very remunerative prices being ourrently 
paid in tho West, together with the probable aboli- 
tion of the tobacco tax, will prove a strong incentive 
to farmers everywhere to raise a crop of unexampled 
size, aud will specially tend to largely increase ths 
area planted in barley, thus paving the way to a 
relapse into the unsatisfactory condition of tho 
past. In Virginia leaf and strips some large sales 
have taken place at prices which should bo fairly 
remunerative to shippers. Really lino bright leaf 
and strips meet with a ready salo at rates which 
wo oan quote as firm, if not advancing ; as usual, 
the unwieldy stocks of nondescripts aro the most 
depressing feature in tho market, and we would 
strongly urge intending shippers to confine thoir 
attention to thoso grades which aro dcsirablo and 
can bo promptly realize 1. Wostcrn leaf occupios 
a strong position, but tho stocks in first hands aro 
not of su'liciont importance to interest handlers. — 
London Tim-.s, Jan. 21st. 
