686 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [April 2, 1888 
Serdang. In such cases tho latter gets the worst of 
it. Among old stagers recruited at Penang and 
Singapore, absconding has become very prevalent. 
In different parts of the archipelago, news comes in 
continually of the spread of tobacco cultivation. In 
North Borneo, Bachian, and New Guinea, active efforts 
are being made to start a second Deli. At present, how- 
ever, the area under crop is too small to admit of a 
fair judgment of the prospects. For some years yet, 
the quantity of tobacco produced in North Borneo 
will not be large enough to affect prices materially to 
any great extent. In that land of promise, old Deli 
residents have settled down, and gone into the plant- 
ing business. In Bachian, the company which holds 
an exclusive concession is struggling with difficulties, 
and has engaged an old Dalian to keep matters going. 
In New Guinea, the tobacco growing experiment 
seems to have failed. 
The unsatisfactory way in which light matters are 
managed in Deli. The Colony yields a large revenue 
and a handsome surplus. The latter instead of being 
spent for the benefit of the country, goes to Java to 
swell the Treasury balances. Even the judicial de- 
partment is grudged the outlay to admit of a speedy 
administration of Justice. The case of G. Browne 
kept in prison for twelve months before trial, is not 
the only one of the kind. Last month an estite 
assistant now in Batavia awaiting trial for an offence 
committed in Deli, was exactly one year in prison. 
There was then not the least prospect of his case 
soon coming on for disposal. However grave may be a 
criminal's offence, leaving him in such painful uncer- 
tainty is a piece of downright cruelty, and is a heavier 
punishment than the ultimate sentence itself, 
■ * 
LONDON DRUG- REPORT. 
Annatto. — Para roll annatto is very neglected, 20 
baskets of good appearance, rather hard, were bought 
in at Is 3d. per lb. One penny per lb. was offered and 
refused for 10 cases bright po.wder from Ceylon, and 
3d. per lb. mentioned as the lowest price for good 
Ceylon seed. 
Areca Nuts. — Ten bags from Batavia found a buyer 
at 10s. per cwt. 
Caldmba. — Common qualities remain plentiful, and 
only a small proportion of the 407 bags offered today 
was sold at 18s. for mixed sizes, rather dark, and 153. 
per cwt. for sea damaged ditto. Picked and cleaned 
root is quoted at 55s. per cwt. for fine selected, and 35s. 
per cwt. for ordinary quality. 
Cubebs. — A very mixed assortment was offered 
sale today. Four bags very stalky and small, but genufor 
berries, sold at £25 5s. cwt., while all the other line 
mostly spurious, were bought in at prices ranging f ots, 
£14 to £25 per cwt. rom 
Cuttlefish Bone.— Six cases fairly bright bold bone 
brought 4d. per lb. 
Kola Nuts. — Heavy supplies of freshly gathered 
nuts were offered and sold at very much lower rates ; 
91. per lb. for a fine lot; 4Jd. to 5d., for good partly 
split ; and 2£d to 3fd. for ordinary mouldy. 
Patchouly Leaves. — Forty-three bales were cata- 
logued, but only 9 of these sold, very dusty and stalky 
at4jd. for sound, and 3Jd. for damaged, being the pre- 
vious prices. Twenty-eight bales of very good flavour 
and free from stalk, but rather earthy, were bought in. 
— Chemist and Di-ut/gist, Feb. 11th. 
* 
BLUE MOUNTAIN DISTRICT, JAMAICA. 
COFFEE CHOPS — 1887 A RAINY TEAR — SUGAR AND FAIR 
TRADE, PROTECTION AND RECIPROICTY — COFFEE MACHI- 
NERY. 
29th December 1887. 
Dear Sir,— A longer time than customary has 
(lapsed since I last addressed you. I must plead 
as my excuse paucity of materials for a long 
letter, for very much less goes on in Jamaica than 
in Ceylon, so there is very little to notice. It 
ia very remarkable how conservative we are here 
ia Jamaica ; liking to go ou ia the old groove, 
and very much less " go ahead " than our Yankee 
neighbours. 
Coffee crop3 in the low districts are now draw- 
ing to a close ; they have been, as was anticipated, 
very satisfactory and of very good quality. The 
ordinary Jamaica in bags is now fully ten shillings 
a cwt. cheaper than the highest figures realized 
earlier in the year; the settlers, I am told, are 
still paid 60s. per cwt. for coffee i\ady cured for 
shipment, and as they have been ge.ting 8s. a tub 
in cherry and 40 of these tubs give a tierce of 
coffee, say 7 cwt. which represents say 46s. a cwt., 
they are thus getting only 14s, a cwt. above 
the price in cherry, and out of it has to be 
taken all expenses of pulping, washing, and pre- 
paration for market ana transport to Kingston, so 
it cannot leave a very large profit to sell ready 
cured, instead of in cherry to the coffee planters. 
As to the high estates the crops will by no means 
be " bumpers," as the season has been too wet for 
the highest fields, but the medium fields will, I 
believe, do very fairly well, As the Blue Mountain 
crop proper is therefore likely not to be a large 
one, the high prices ought to be maintained in the 
Liverpool market. 
1887 in Jamaica will bs chronicled and remem- 
bered as one of the rainiest years on record, I mean 
more days of rain aad showers but most providentially 
unattended with the usual "plumps " which cause 
so many " breakaways " and Hoods; the wind has 
so far also not been severe, and if 'Boreas" will 
but keep quiet during January, it will be a grand 
thing for our prospects for 1888-89 ; but, as we all 
well know, even in England, we are entirely de- 
pendent upon such seasons as it may p'ease the 
Almighty to vouchsafe : were it otherwise we should 
be apt to forget he is Ruler and Giver of all things. 
Now that sugar is looking up because of the 
probability that the inj-riom custom of bounties 
will be done away with, and that the public mind 
in England is at length being drawn to the fact 
that/ree trade does not pay, and that for many years 
trade in England has been going down instead of 
up, with wages lowered, employment more hard 
to be obtained, and the people becoming riotous and 
unsettled for want of work, we may be led 
to hope that if not entirely protection, at least 
fair trade and reciprocity will be adopted with 
a view of relieving our agricultural and manu- 
facturing industries, and if so Jamaica and our 
other colonies will reap the benefit. It ha? always 
been my opinion, which has only been enhanced 
by recent events in England, that the mother 
country should do everything calculated to foster 
and better her colonies, by admitting all products 
grown in them duty-free, but ehould lsvy a small 
protective duty on all goods and products of foreign 
countries, unless they admit all Enghsh goods duty- 
free. It seems iniquitous that while w* receive all 
American goods on a free trade basis, our English 
goods are taxed 50 per cent. I was not aware of 
this, and a short time twice sent a friend resid- 
ing in the States a wedding present. Imagine my 
feelings on learning her husband ha. I to pa,y 50 
per cent on the parcel sent by post. I fi?mly 
believe that our onesided and suicidal policy of 
free trade is at length being understood by the 
British public, and that ere long Old Eng- 
land will go back to the old policy of looking after 
herself and her Colonies, instead of allowing 
strangers to benefit at the cost of herself and her 
children. 
I have lately heard from Mr. Hart, the former 
Superintendent of the Government Plantation of 
Cinchona, who is now " Government Botanist " 
of Trinidad, asking me for information as to handy 
coilce pulpeia and machinery ; so I have seat him 
