September i, 1881.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
261 
being made, and looking to tlio readiness with which 
private enterprise would, if permitted, undertake the 
construction of the extension so urgently needed, 
and which would so certainly conduce to the welfare 
of the entire Colony, it is much to be regretted that 
those who are in power arc not endowed with a 
clearer perception of the financial resources at their 
disposal. 
TEA. 
Australian Tea Season, 1881-18S2.— 11 Little Col- 
lins Street West, Melbourne, 1st July, 1881. Messrs. 
Jas. Henty & Co.. report as follows:— By the Steamer 
New Reason's Teas, of finest quality, consisting of 
Paklnms, Soomoos. and Sueykuts, in half-chests and 
boxes, also some Kaisow Buds in quarter-chests and 
boxes. These are all tine .TVas and carefully selected. 
The Steamer "Hungarian," advised as having left 
Poo-Chow on the 28th ultimo, brings us further supplies 
the quality ot the JNew mm 
Masters of the " Killarne; 
view at our Office. 
rjeeling, Kangra Val- 
letters inform us that 
">p is unusually fine, 
hipmcnt arc now on 
The Tropical 
MDondent write: 
AciUCULTt 
:— " It wo 
—A planting 
would surely not be 
you to group all 
ite cultivation in each 
ullurist. As at present 
h number for what one 
nounced that grouping 
ct out new type. The 
ible and expense than 
; prevents the use of 
ftcn as is usual.— Ed.] 
a separate paper, or 
pass the ordeal of the 
•3 ? I ask, for some 
brd the former paper, 
:ovo you reprinted the 
published, one has to search em 
wants." [We have already ai 
is bo adopted, so soon as wc j 
arrangement entails more tro 
outsiders can understand, as i 
tho same type over again so < 
Is the Tropical Agriculturist 
must eacli communication first 
Ceylon Observer or other pape 
men might only be able to a( 
and it might ho some time he 
reply to a letter to the Observer, while, if written 
direct to the Tropical Agricu'tuirst, the answer should 
be available in the following issue. [Whatever ap- 
pears in the Observer bearing on tropical agriculture 
will bo republished in tho monthly, but the latter 
will also contain a good deal that may be considered 
EOO long, dry and technical for a daily paper. At 
the same timo, wo do not mean to make the T. A. 
a rival to tho daily, or to encourage correspondence 
to the former only. Wo shall always try to ^ivc 
both enquiry and reply ' published in successive num- 
ber of 1 ho Observer in one and tho same monthly 
issue of the Tropical Agriculturist. What may he 
exeimld from the Observer will be long Government 
reports, or essays from Agricultural Journals published 
in India, Kurope or America, from such publications as 
Tin- Fie'd, Gardener's Chronicle, Grocer, Pharma- 
ceutical Journal, American Agriculturist, and French 
and German p riodicals. This will, wo supposo, 
savo the uccossity of planters and others looking up such 
publication* I' r themselves, ns fchoy may bo sure 
that untiling of any importance will bo left out of 
the Tropical AgricuUitntL Notico of anything 
really useful will, 113 usual, bo taken in tho Observer, 
But to bring our monthly up to tho proper standard 
will require a little time : " Home was not built in 
a day. "-Ed.] 
86 
■BENGAL CINCHONA PLANTATIONS : 
LARGE NUMBER OF VERITABLE LEDGERIANAS IN THE 
SIKHIM GARDENS. 
The most important statement in Dr. King's Report 
for the year ending 31st March last, which has duly 
reached us with all connected documents, is un- 
doubtedly that in which he confirms the belief that 
a large number of calisaya trees in Sikhim are veritable 
Ledgerianas. "During the year," he adds, "99,415 
plants of that variety of calisaya were added to the 
permanent plantation," and we read elsewhere that 
as much as R3.269 was realized through the sale of 
Ledgeriana seed and plants chi-fly to Ceylon planters. 
But when wc remember how freely calisaya seed from 
Sikhim was obtained from Dr. King some years ago 
for Ceylon, our belief is strengthened that as Dr. 
Trimen has found one and another of the Kmelina 
and Annlield trees turning out to be pure Ledgeriana, 
so it may be found that a considerable number of 
the trees there, and on other estates raised from 
their seed, or from seed got some time ago from 
Calcutta, may prove to be of the variety which is 
surpassingly rich in quinine. It is quite evident at 
least that Dr. King and Mr. Gammie are determined 
not to be behind Mr. Moens in their propagation and 
cultivation of this species, and if success attend their 
efforts in Northern India, how much more may we 
expect to see the Ledgeriana enterprise flourish in the 
geuial climate of our Central Province. The total 
number of calisaya trees now in the Sikhim plantations 
is 412,000, but there is a nursery stock of an equal 
number ready to plant out. Mr. Gammie and his 
assistants have been busy uprooting all th* bad kinds 
in the permanent plantation, Mr. Wood's analysis 
having enabled them to distinguish the Ledgerianas 
by their leaves. Of inferior and doubtful sorts of 
calisaya which were uprooted, the crop has made up 
no less than 81,225 of yellow against 296,000 of red 
bark harvested during the year, and this policy of 
uprooting inferior ealisayas is to be continued until 
the yellow bark plantation is one of pure Ledgeriana. 
At the same time that the inferior yellow bark was 
sent to the English market— -being the first con-igument 
of this kind from India— Dr. King included a 
small quantity of really good Ledgeriana bark so as 
to get some idea of its commercial value. The result 
was most satisfactory : G25 lb. fetching at auction lOi 
lOd per lb. Of the inferior Calisaya, one lot of 
2.G55 lb. sold for 7s 6d, and others brought from 
58 Id to 2s 9d per lb. There is, however, no in- 
tcntion of continuing to sell bark from Northern India : 
all the crop is to be retained and used for tho pro- 
duction of febrifuge or of quinine for the nso of tho 
people of India,. The febrifuge is made from red bark, 
of which there are now over four millions of trees 
011 the two plantations— Mungpoo and Sittong— and 
these aro capable of producing a much larger quantity 
of this preparation, th>ui has bien issued to fur, tho 
demaud in 1879-80 having been 8,104 lb. There is 
still however a prejudice against tho cheaper febrifuge 
in sontu quarters, and accordingly a good deal of quiuino 
is henceforward to be locally manufactured and supplied" 
The total caving to tho Indian Government so far 
through the local manufacture of the febrifuge is 
