428 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [November i, 1881. 
The Australian Tea Market.— The Calcutta 
Englishman gives a timely warning to the Indian tea 
planters, of the need of regular supplies of teas 
being sent to the Australian Colonies, if full ad- 
vantage of the promising opening there is to be taken. 
The Indian tea planters complain very much of having 
only the London market to depend on, having seriously 
suffered from panics there, which, from time to time, 
has brought down the price of their staple to a 
ruinously low figure. The advice, therefore, which 
is given below, ought to commend itself to the Beugal 
tea-growers, as well as to the tea planters of Ceylon : 
Bran or Ground Feed is best fed to cows, upon 
moistened hay, it being mixed with the hay all will 
be eaten together and raised and masticated. But if 
it is not fed with cut hay, it should be fed dry and 
in a small quantity each time, for if fed alone it is 
not raised and re-mastieated, but goes on to the third 
and fourth stomachs. If fed in slop it is swallowed 
without any mastication, and mixed with little or no 
saliva, but it fed dry it cannot be swallowed until 
it is mixed wtih saliva, and the saliva assists in di- 
gestion. When food is masticated the act of rumina- 
tion causes the saliva to flow and mix with food. 
We have experimented, and find that when fed alone 
dry ground feed is better digested that when fed wet. 
— National Live Stoch Journal. 
The Bark of Dead or Dying Cinchona Trees. — 
A planter writes : — " Can you, or any of your readers 
give me information as to whether the bark of a 
cinchona tree that dies, and is theu pulled up and 
barked, still retains its valuable properties, or is the 
bark valueless? I have heard several expressions of 
opinions on the subjects but some said it was valu- 
able, and others the exact opposite. " The following is 
from the Cinchona Planters' Mvnual on this subject :— 
" The period of approaching decay has been indicated 
as the time for coppicing or up-rooting the clearing. 
Mr. Broughton's dictum on the subject was that 
diseased trees contained little, and dead trees no alkal- 
oid. He also shewed that the larger and more 
vigorous the tree, the more valuable the bark. The 
result of some experiments in connection with this 
point, shewed bark from fine vigorous trees yielding 
6 "76 and 6'94 of total alkaloids; similar trees of the 
same age, and of mean growth, gave 4 '34 ; and trees 
of stunted growth 2 - 40 only ; the amount of quinine 
and the other alkaloids all diminishing in the same 
proportion. In spite of this, we find no difference in 
value between the bark of our dying and healthy trees. 
The reason probably is that the disease is a sudden 
one, and the tree shews signs of decay, putting on 
an unhealthy appearance, whilst only certain spots 
are affected ; the bulk of the bark being as valuable as 
on the thoroughly healthy tree. There is indeed a 
very generally held opinion, that any thing which 
arrests the growth of a cinchona tree causes it to in- 
crease the secretion of alkaloid, and the change which 
takes place when the trees mossed is accounted for. 
Whether there is any truth in the idea or not, it is 
impossible to say, suffice it, that no proof has been 
brought forward in support of the theory, whilst the 
investigations of scientific men do not favour it. Dead 
bark, that is bark that has been deprived of its juices, 
and become inert on the living tree, is valueless. 
Instances have been given of dead bark having a value. 
This can probably be accounted for by the growth of 
the tree having been suddenly arrested, by up-rooting 
for instance, and the bark allowed to dry on it. In this 
case, there ia no more reason for a loss of value in 
the bark than if it were stripped and dried in the 
usual nay. This being the case, it ia more important 
that diseased trees should be harvested at an early 
stage, before any portion entirely loses its vitality ; 
and consequently, coolies should constantly go over the 
plantation to remove such trees, and to take the bark 
from fallen branches, &c." 
Ostriches.— Twohundredostiiches from theCape have I 
been landed at Buenos Ayres, where ostrich-farming will I 
be commenced.— British Trade Journal. 
Adulteration in Paris.— The examination of 1 
samples of food at the municipal laboratory in Paris 
during July showed that of 412 samples of wine only I 
15 were good, 188 being tolerable, and 209 bad ; I 
of 13 samples of water only 1 was good, 1 being I 
tolerable and 11 bad; of 164 samples of milk 31 were J 
good, 21 tolerable, and 112 bad ; and so with other 1 
articles of food, perfumery, &c. We read that ''the I 
examinations of bread, pastry, meat and coffee gave I 
satisfactory results." Eut we suppose the analysts did I 
not reckon chicory as an adulterant, or they would I 
scarcely have been so satisfied with their samples, I 
which must have contained more or less of that J 
abomination. 
Ceylon Tea in Glasgow.— A correspondent writes : I 
— " If the enclosed cutting from the Glasgow Her- I 
aid has any interest for you, or your readers, perhaps I 
you will publish it. The figures are no doubt from I 
Ferguson's Directory " :— " Owing to short coffee crops ; : 
planters in Ceylon have of late years turned their I 
attention to the cultivation of other products, amon<> I 
which tea figures conspicuously, and the export front 
Ceylon of this article is yearly increasing. In 1877 only I 
2,1051b. were exported, while in 1S80 the export had 
increased to 140,000 lb. Last year the area of tea 1 
planted out amounted to 9,300 acres, which will pro- 
duce about 3J million pounds of tea when in full 1 
bearing; and as the planted area is yearly increasing' 1 
we may expect before long to hear a good deal 'about § 
Ceylon tea, which appears to be a successful rival of I 
Indian tea as regards its qualities as a beverage. At 1 
the Melbourne Exhibition Ceylon teas were awarded \ 
36 prizes, of which 11 were first-class, and the deci- 1 
sioii arrived at by the "Victorian Government analyst i 
was that in some important respects Ceylon tea was 
the best in the world, and that in Ceylon the best | 
quality of tea could be produced with the minimum j 
exhaustion of the fertilising matters in the soil. Re- 
gular supplies of this tea are now being received in 
Glasgow by the Strathellie Tea Estates Company of 
Ceylon, and judging from the demand it appears to be 
highly appreciated." 
Agriculture in Kegalla District.— The cultivation - 
of tea, Liberian coffee, cocoa, and other new pro- f 
ducts is becoming very popular in the district. In 
the neighbourhood of Kegalla, Liberian coffee has been 
grown successfully in native gardens, and I have no 
doubt that in the course of a few years the cultiva- 
tion of this variety by the natives will be extensive. 
The climate and soil in Three-korales seem specially 
adapted for its growth-. Mr. Molligoda has planted 
up about 50 acres of Liberian coffee in the neighbour- 
hood of Kegalla, and judging from the appearance of 
the trees, now six months old, the estate promises 
well. European enteiprize has converted the hitherto 
comparatively untried region about Ruwanwella and 
Yatiantota into thriving and industrious districts. Tea 
is chiefly cultivated, and is the most paying product. 
Next come Liberian coffee and cocoa, which thrive 
well, and will, I have no doubt, yield a handsome 
profit. The African palm also grows well. With the 
view of encouraging the cultivation of new products, 
I have requested each Ratemahatmaya to prepare a 
small nursery near his house for the planting of seed 
to be supplied to them from the Government Botanical 
Gardens. The seedlings will be given to the leading 
landowners in each village. In this way I hope that, 
under the fostering care of the chief headmen, the 
trial of new products will be within the reach of the 
poorer cultivators. Parcels of Liberian coffee, cocoa, 
and tea seed have been received from Dr. Trimen. — 
Mr. G. A. Murray's Report for 1880, 
