June i, 1889.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
835 
of the colony. When one considers the difficulties 
under which rice is made to pay in other places, it 
seems likely that it would succeed here on the low 
lands that have a supply of water for irrigation. Hav- 
ing seen the disappointment caused by the want of a 
sufficient .supply of water, I should always be particular 
in ascertaining before giving out land for rice cultiva- 
tion, that it was below the lowest level of the canal from 
which it is to be supplied with water. 
Whether or not the cultivation of rice in this colony 
will ever stand as an industry by itself, there is no doubt 
whatever that it is a very desirable adjunct to cane cul- 
tivation. Now that there is a tendency to concentrate 
the season for reaping canes into a few months at the 
end of the year, there is some difficulty in finding employ- 
ment for the gangs in the slack season. Rice-growing 
seems to be the very thing meets the difficulty, since a 
crop can be taken off in such a short time. As I have 
shewn, a good crop of rice can pay a heavy rent and 
give remunerative and congenial employment to the 
labourer ; and the profit which is made on a good 
crop is quite sufficient to counterbalance the chance of 
a bad one. 
Steam cultivation, and reaping and threshing mach- 
ines, may be enlisted in the development of the indus- 
try, and it may some day become the great industry 
of the colony. The formation of the coast lands is 
emiuently suited for it, and the only thing that is 
required is a constant supply of water for irrigation — 
Timehri. 
THE COCOA INDUSTRY AND INSECT 
PESTS. 
One of the most pleasing and promising features in 
connection with the minor industries of the colony, has 
been the rapid development of, and advance in, an 
export trade in Oocoa. In 1886, which was the first 
year of export, the quantity amounted to less than 
2,000 lb., while in 1887, it has amounted to more than 
13,000 lb. The markedly high appreciation, by English 
experts, of the British Guiana cocoa and the prices 
realisable, give promise not only of a continuous success- 
ful development, but of a chance of ousting the hitherto 
more successlul competitors from the first place in the 
market, when the best methods of preparation, on 
which its appreciation will really depend, have been 
adopted and become normally recognised. The Govern- 
ment Botanist has already, in his annual report, pointed 
out the special adaptability of this colony for the 
successful growth of cocoa— an opinion fully borne out 
by the quality of that which has been already pro- 
duced and reported upon— and the special suitability 
of the industry for agriculturists of limited means ; 
and it is to be hoped that the iudustry which has 
received such and impstus at its start will attract the 
attention which it deserves iu the colony. That the 
cocoa plants are preyed upon by certain pests, is doubt- 
less already well-known. Mr. Jeuman, in the report 
referred to above, mentions a fungous disease, as 
occurring on plants from the Demerara river, though 
he was inclined to believe that the fungous growth was 
the result rather than the cause of the unhealthy con- 
dition of the trees. Some time ago Mr. R. J. Kelly 
shewed me a pod which had been eaten through on one 
side, and was infested within with flies, producing quite 
an unpleasant odour; but from the nature of the 
opening it seemed that some other being had eaten 
away a portion of the pod, and that the flies had 
but taken advantage of the opening to make them- 
selves at home. A really serious pest to the cocoa 
plants, however, exists in certain forms of beetles, the 
young grubs or " worms " of which bite into the young 
shoots and bore along the pithy centre of theplauts, 
gradually causing them to wither away until the tree is 
killed. This "disease" is, I have heard, extremely 
prevalent iu the cocoa plantations iu Surinam, and 
during this last year has been found, though not to any 
serious extent, in the Es-equebo cocoa plantation be- 
longing to Mr. William Smith. Through the kindness 
of Mr. Bosch-Reitz, through whom the matter was 
first brought under my notice, I have been supplied with 
the three stages of the insects which thus attack these 
plants in Surinam, and from the resemblance of 
their grub-forms to those obtained from the Esse- 
quebo plantation, it is most probable that the adult 
forms are identical iu the two cases; though as I 
have not yet been able to obtain adult forms 
from Essequebo, I cannot express any certainty in 
the matter. The method of operation in the two 
cases is at any rate the same. The young shoots 
or branches are primarily attacked ; these wither 
away, and the death of the tree follows unless steps 
are taken to chop off the infected parts. When 
these damaged shoots are examined, it is found that 
the grubs, which are yellowish- brown or whitish, thick, 
maggot-like worms, from one to two inches in 
length, and with extremely strong biting jaws, have 
bored through the central delicate tissue, the point 
of access being generally situated towards the basal 
part of the shoot, where a scarcely visible gummy 
exudation indicates the puncture or perforation made. 
The adult forms brought for me by Mr. Bosch-Retiz 
from Surinam, belong to two species, and specimens 
of each of these have been exhibited before the 
Royal Agricultural and Commercial Society and are 
now exhibited in the Museum. They are both Longi- 
corn beetles ; that is, they possess long, jointed 
feelers or antenna on the head, and these are carried 
like horns. One form, the smaller, is black, rather 
short and broad, aud with longitudinal lines or strice, 
like small ridges; the other is rather long, smooth, 
nearly black, but abundantly yellow-spotted, aud pro- 
vided with lateral spines on the thorax. They have 
been examined for me by Mr. C. O. Waterhousp, 
the Coleopterist of the British Museum of Natural 
History; and the smaller black specimens beloug to 
the species Stirastoma depreasa; while the yellow- 
spotted forms belong to the species Tceniotes farinosus . 
So far I have had no opportunity of tracing out 
the earlier stages iu the life history of these forms ; 
and until this is done it will be impossible to sug- 
gest any remedies that are likely to be really effectual. 
It is probable that the beetles deposit their eggs in 
the young bark bored out for the purpose or in 
the inequalities of the old bark, though it is possible 
that they may be placed about the roots of the 
tree. In allot' these cases, the "kerosene emulsion" 
is likely to be advantageous. This insect-destroyer is 
prepared by dissolving § lb soap in one gallon of water 
and adding the mixture boiling-hot to two gallons 
of kerosene oil. The whole snould be well churned 
by a force-pump, so as to ensure a perfect admixture, 
otherwise the constituents separate on cooling, and 
the stuff becomes unsuitable for application. Eich 
gallon of the perfect admixture should then be diluted 
with nine gallons of water ; and this strength is 
that which is generally applied to plants infected 
with blight and scale-disease or insect pests 
generally. The great recommendation of this mixture 
is found in the fact that while it is a most bene- 
ficial insect-destroyer, it has no deleterious influence 
on the tree, if the ingredients are thoroughly mixed. 
All parts of the tree on which eggs or young grubs 
are detected should be thoroughly syringed ; though 
it would be advisable to test first the strength of 
the mixture, in case further dilution be necessary 
for the treatment of the tender shoot of cocoa 
plants. 
It is obvious that, as the adult beetles are the 
real offenders since the grubs hatch out from the eggs 
deposited by them, they must be ruthlessly destroyed 
where possible; in fact the trees should be carpfully 
watched so as to prevent as many of the insects as 
possible from Lying. All affected young shoots which 
shew signs of withering, should be cut off below the 
point at which the central perforation is visible ; and 
these shoo'S should be burnt, not buried — so as to 
ensure the destruction of ti e grubs aud pupse. It is 
very advisable tuat those who have charge of cocoa 
plantations should observe carefully the method of 
egg-laying, and the incipient stages of the work of 
these insects ; for not until this knowledge is at hand, 
will it be possible to kuow what is the most efficacious 
and advantageous method of warfare that can be 
adopted. — Timehri. 
