December i, 1881.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
493 
it all . 
deman 
it will 
THE GOVERNMENT OF CEYLON AND 
CINCHONA CULTIVATION. 
What iH wanted is that the gentleman who is coming 
out to take charge of the Hakgala Gardens should qualify 
himself before leaving England to analyse bark, so as to 
he able to carry out experiments pro bono publico, and to 
turn the Government Cinchona Garden to somo practical 
account. We shall bo told, that such time as Mr. Nock 
could give to analyses in London, if Government granted 
a delay, would not suffico to enable him to qualify 
himself for tho work. Here is the Madulsima Company 
getting out a special Chemist on £600 a year, and 
there are the doubts which "scientists" have for somo 
time been inclined to cast on the local analyses made 
by gentlemen who, a short time ago, were in complete 
ignorance of the process. But wc have pointed out that 
the work of local " amateurs " (so-called) have been 
substantiated more than once by the analyses of the 
Messrs. Howard, and wc may ask what great mystery 
can there be in tho matter, when Mr. Gammie, a gentle- 
man with precisely the same training as Mr. Nock, has 
not only qualified himself as Bark Analyst, but is doing 
good work as a Manufacturing Chemist. Mr. Nock, it 
will be remembered, is specially recommeuded by Mi-. 
Morris for his experience in cinchona culture; but what 
possible service can this gentleman render to the Go- 
vernment (unless they mean to go in for growing bark 
to sell) or to tho planters except ho is ablo to set a 
whole series of experiments agoing with different species, 
different modes of culture and of harvesting, for which, 
at almost evory turn, analyses will be indispensable? 
It is, wo fear, too lato now to telegraph to Mr. Nock 
to spond a few months in London, in order to 
qualify as a Bark Analyist. If this cannot he done, 
we would suggest that the Government utilizo the services 
of their Scionco Master, Mr. A. C. Dixon, to co-operate 
with Mr. Nock in his cinchona experiments. Mr. Dixon 
lute a special laboratory at his command, and would, wc 
have no doubt, take a personal interest in aid 
experiments with such analyses as Mr. Nc 
Trum-n might require. It', in addition, Mr. 
allowed to visit the different districts and take a note 
of thu results of planting experiments and experience, 
we have no doubt that his work in cinchona alono 
would bo of great value even at this late hour, to the 
Ceylon planters. 
[gala 
Dr. 
IVi'iV 
Odaoama (Sodthbrn Province, Oeyxon), Oot. 8th.— 
Good planting weather. Showers every d>iy with no., 
and then a houvy buret for a .short tune. Liberian ooff e, 
pepper, cardamom* and nutmegs on young estates 
making a g'>od start, (V:w;i rubber S"wn tin* '' .si 
weok in April uow between nine and teu feet high 
ami iteady with all. I'ooohiee do not trouble us much 
and thu am ill moose deer let u» off eabily. Cinchona 
(Oaliaaya) m* to eight inches high sown April 7th. 
124 
AUSTRALIAN FRUIT FOR ENGLAND. 
{Journal of the Society of Arts.) 
rest the information in the Journal 
778, that we may expect fruits of 
Australia. No doubt apples, pears, 
and will be shipped to advantage 
intry, because all these fruits ripen 
ed ; but I think the writer in the 
a is over sanguine as to fir^t-class 
to stand the voyage, and to arrive 
idition as to compete with home- 
grown hot house productions. Be that as it may, my 
experience of thirty years as a grape grower tenches 
me that grapes never ripen in the slightest degree 
after being gathered, but merely whither and shrivel, 
&c. I think all grape growers are agreed on this 
point. If I am wrong, I shall be glad to be corrected. 
James Fildus. 
44, Spring-gardens, Manchester, 10th September, 1881. 
I note with 
of 9th inst., 
such 
Dr. Gilbert and Mr. Lawes have received, by the 
decree of the German Emperor, the gold medal of 
merit for agriculture, in recognition of their services 
for the development of scientific agriculture. — 
Land Oot of Cultivation. — As an example of 
land permanently thrown out of cultivation we may 
cite an instance of a largo estate on the confine^ of 
Hants and Wilts, and consisting of over l,(JU > acres, 
which, after being let to a, tenant for a number of 
years for £300 a year, was at last abondohed by him, 
and ha» for some time been without an occupier. 
The owner, determined to put it to some use, has 
now resolved to make a huge rabbit-warren of it, and 
for this purpose has turned out 1,200 rabbits to popu- 
late it. Considering that of all animals, rabbits 
are among the most prolific, and that they sell for 
about Is apiece, the experiment will probably be a 
successful one, though whether the owner's neighbours 
will not before long consider they have just cause of 
complaint against him in the too frequent visits of 
these industrious borrowers remains to be seen.— Land. 
Fibres. — A Dikoya planter writes : — "I think, if you 
refer to my letter, you will b'nd I said that the fibre 
I sent you grew very freely iu the poorest soil and not 
present soil, a* you have in the Observer. I am sorry 
that it is valued at such a low figure, as it grows very 
freely and is everlasting. The more it is cut the 
better and thicker it will grow : a crop might be 
secured every year, but I have no doubt 'he fibre 
would be better for being kept longer. I think it better 
in every wav than the aloe fibre and much stronger. 
I have prepared the aloe fibre years ugo — I mean the 
common green that we used to grow by thu side 
of ditches to keep buffaloes out of coffee, not the 
Mexican slow-grossing blue variety. Th.s fibre can 
be grown in lengths of ten or twelve feet, and I 
have no doubt 1 can send you some that length. 
Perhaps I have made some mistake in the prepara- 
tion! Certainly the fibre pulled off the living tree ia 
twice as strong as the libre that I have prepared 
by cutting the sticks, and burying them iu nmd by 
tho side of a stream for twelve days and then 
washing. 1 consider this libre far suporior either to 
tho best jute, or American green aloe, both of which 
I have repeatedly tried and prepared The yield of 
fibre is much lnrger iu proportion also to auy other 
fibre producing plant. If the Rhea" is tho same 
plant as tho 'Dutch call Mthanii ' it will never do 
iu C-ylou, for I havo tried it repeatedly, but the 
Ruann I havo tried is not a grass. " _ 
* The Rhea or Chinese gra»s-cloth plant, is liohmeria 
nivca, a small shrubby plant about three or lour foot 
high — Ed. 
