Fkbruary r, 1882.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
the fact may be quoted as a favourable angury by 
the projectors of the Brewery in Nuwara Bliya. With 
reference to tho probable success of this enterprise, 
a planter close by in Udapussellawa is trying an 
experiment in the growth of hops, having, we believe, 
obtained plants from Australia, probably from the 
Bushcy Park hop grounds in Tasmania. My visit 
to the extensive orchards and grounds there was un- 
fortunately in the winter. Still I saw the mode of 
cultivation and carried away one curious and important 
fact, established by long experience. From the stools 
a considerable number of "bines" sprouted, just as 
suckers rise from a copiced cinchona tree. But instead 
of preserving the most robust stems, as the cinchona 
plnater does, the intelligent hop grower, taught by 
experience, sacrifices the thicker shoots in favour of 
tho more slender, knowing that the fatter will yield 
the sense of smell, as much as tea is. Appearance, 
too, goes a long way, however, specimens of well pre- 
pared hops constituting ornaments worthy of [a lady's 
drawing room. There is a Ceylon shrub, plentiful 
in the lowcountry and lowef hill ranges, with masses 
of curious bracts or seed vessels, which resemble tuf s 
of hops, and in crossing a piece of forest between 
Nuwara Rliya Plain, proper, and "the Barrack Plain," 
in order to get to tho Brewery buildings, I could not 
but be struck with the resemblance to hops of the 
developing blossoms of a species of nilu, large white 
blossomed. I do not suppose that cither plant has 
any of the qualities of the hop blossoms. If any 
substitute is ever tried, Messrs. Bremer and do Bavay 
will doubtless resort to the bark of some of our 
cinchonas. One thing is certain, they will avoid the 
error committed on tho Nilgiris of using malt made 
from Indian barley. They will import the best 
English or Australian malt and hops (unless the 
latter are locally grown) in air-tight vessels. The 
climate is favourable and the water everything that 
could be desired : ever eool in t-mperature and 
■0 pare in quality that the nitrate of silver test shews 
no precipitate. The proprietors of the Brewery have 
secured ten acres of land in elongated strips on each 
'side of the stream ■which forms the locally famous 
waterfall of "tho Lover's Leap." The water has its 
source in the top of a forest-covered mountain, so that 
pollution above is impossible, and fears of pollution 
below tho Brewery may bo dismissed, because it will 
bo tho interest of tho Company to utilize all the "bye 
products," and these are such as to be eagerly competed 
for in the local market. Indeed, a couple of planters, 
whose cattle establishment costs them 1115,000 per 
annum, have already made an oiler for all the "grains" 
which can be supplied ; while the market for yeast 
may be estimated by the fact that one baker in Nuwara 
Eliya uses coconut palm toddy, got up from Colombo, 
to tho value of B 1,500 per annum. There will, we 
suppose, bo some demand for hospital purposes. The 
great desideratum is that the Company produce good 
beer, ami on this head Messrs. Bremer and do Bavay 
are .confident,— the latter being an experienced brewer 
ami a good chemist. In the face of considerable diffi- 
eulties, tho necessary buildings are advancing to com- 
pletion, and a striking contrast they nro to tho specially 
dilapidated and wretched Government pioneer lines close 
by. Tho brewing plant, wo understood, had reached 
Colombo, and, although too largo a proportion of tho 
shareholders had failed to respond to calls, operations 
will soon bo commenced. There is a duty or. malt, 
imposed wln n the I'.m'hi rs Baker attempted a previous 
experiment, and of which tlioy grievously complained. 
We understood that the direotora of the present enter- 
prise do not so much complain of tbe duty on malt 
as of the refusal of tho local Government to promise 
that, for such a period as will bo necessary to settle 
the question of tlio buccchs of the experiment, an e\, iso 
shall not be imposed upon the beer brewed and sold. 
We certainly think that a period of three years, at 
least, should be allowed for the encouragement of 
the local enterprise. We were much interested in all 
we saw and heard, and not least, of course, in the 
intimation that a few sample bottles of Nuwara Eliya ale, 
brewed some eight months ago, are lying at a bungalow 
three miles away waiting for our presence to be opened 
and tasted ! Wc were not able to try and judge 
on the present occasion, but all in good time, and as 
people will drink beer, and the Ceylon Brewery Com- 
pany Limited promise to supply good stuff, our 
readers generally will join us in wishing them success. 
COFFEE LEAF DISEASE: MR. SCHROTTKY'S 
EXPERIMENTS 
The following report by the Chairman of the Plant- 
ers' Association, and extracts from reports by the visit- 
ing agent and manager of Gangapitiya estate, have 
been placed at our disposal for publication :— 
* I. 
Kaudy, oth December 1SS1. 
At Mr. Schrottky's request, I accompanied him with 
Mr. Munton and Mr. C. Young, on the 2nd hist., 
to inspect Gangapitiya, for the purpose of observing 
the condition of the estate as regards leaf-disease, 
and noting what efl'ect (if any) had been produced 
by the treatment of carbolic powder, since the be- 
ginning of April last. 
On our way to the estate, we passed through part 
of Pallckelle, Ambacotta, and Lower Rajawella, making 
frequent observations of the coffee as we went along. 
There was more or less of the disease in the condi- 
tion of mature, and healthy fungus, and also "pin- 
spots," on all these estates, especially on Ambacotta, 
where it was abundant, on every tree we examined, 
and almost on every leaf. There was less on the 
young coffee on Lower Rajawella, but even there, 
whole branches on some trees were covered with 
the disease and, though the trees presented, at first 
sight, a luxuriant appearance, there was no difficulty 
in finding diseased leaves on raising the branches, 
and I should think that 50 per cent of the trees were 
more or less affected. 
On reaching Gangapitiya, a most marked difference 
presented itself. The 30 acre flat looked luxuriant 
and healthy, and it was only after considerable search 
that one tree, hero and there, could be found at 
all affected by tho disease, which was confined to 
one leaf on a branch with generally ouly one spot 
on each leaf, and no " pinspots. " On ten or fif- 
teen acres, where the powder had not been applied 
since July, there was rather more disease to be 
found, but even there it had to be looked for, and 
the trees affected were quite the exception. The 
only portion of the estate, where the disease existed to 
any serious extent, was about 10 acres close to the 
river.* I should mention that this field is situated to 
leeward of a native garden. 
Without venturing to express a decided opinion on 
the general merits of Mr. Schrottky's system, I must 
\ say that I was considerably impressed by what I saw, 
! and am bound to believe is the result of his treat- 
; ment on this estate. • 
The prevalence of the discaso on all the estates in 
tho immediate neighbourhood — (we passed through Uaj.i- 
welln, No 2 and No. 1, on our return,)— and tho 
almost total absence of it on this estate, seem to 
indicate that its immunity i» duo solely to tho remedy 
• This part has been specially treated and the dij. 
ease bus been success fully got umUr. and this field was 
fmnd by in.' on my hut examination of the rutato 
(12th January 1882), not to have suffered to any ap- 
preciable extent.-— E. 0. Si 
