March i, 1882.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
745 
CINCHONA CULTIVATION IN CEYLON. 
At a time when a good deal of despondency prevails 
in reference to the market for our chief staple, coffee, 
it is more than usually satisfactory to have cheerful 
accounts of the prospects before the cultivators of 
cinchona. There are few planters in Ceylon who 
cannot be counted among that body, and notwith- 
standing all the drawbacks of unexpected supplies 
of bark from South America, variable quotations, and 
still worse the largo proportion of failures in local 
plantations, the financial success of the cultivation 
has beeu proved beyond all doubt. We may be told 
that the case of the fortunate proprietors of Frotoft 
estate, Ramboda, to which we are about to refer, 
is an exceptional one ; but we do not see why it 
should be so regarded save in respect of their fort- 
unately early commencement of work in the formation 
of a regular cinchona plantation. Frotoft and Tymawr 
consist of 250 acres fully planted with cinchona 
officinalis, and the result last year of cutting down 
40 acres, when the trees were from 4£ to 5 years 
old, has been a gross return of £8,000, a sum sufficient 
to cover the whole outlay, so far, on the properties. 
These properties cannot now be valued at less than 
£15,000, and we feel sure the owners "would not 
part with them for less, so that we have a profit 
of 200 per cent within half-a-dozen years. The 
average yield of bark in the case of the Frotoft 
clearing was 1 lb. per tree, including root bark, and 
planted 4 by 4 feet, there were fully 2,700 trees per acre 
harvested. The trees, it will be noted, were rooted 
out, and it is particularly satisfactory to learn that 
young plants put down on this once-cropped land 
are flourishing, shewing no such signs of failure as 
huve beeu observed to be the case in clearings twice 
planted in some other districts. Mr. Traill,' to whose 
care and intelligence, the success of Frotoft is so largely 
due, was trained in a good school under Mr. Taylor 
of Ljolecondera, and he had the advantage of watching 
the profitable result of the firH experiments made 
by Messrs. Keir, Dundas & Co., when, from 15 acres 
on Stellenberg alone, no less than £0,000 worth of 
bark was taken. The prices secured for the Frotoft 
bark were on the whole goo 1, but not higher prob- 
ably—the bulk being at 3s rising to 5s per lb. — 
than cau always be got for good Ceylon crown bark. 
On other clearings .in the Ramboda district, we hear 
that there are, perhnps, more failures thau on the 
plantation • we have particularized; but in the early 
days Frotoft had large patches of failures ; 4 and 5 
acres going out at a time. We are porry to learn that 
tho supposed exemption of Uva from canker ami 
failure of cinchonas has been rudely shaken by ex- 
perionco on SOmo of tho Haputale estates, although 
one current report makes the case much worse than 
it really is. The • net is that no extensive continuous 
clearing of cinchona can bo free from a considerable 
proportion of losses, varying with the character of 
th« soil and olimate. The Kandapola and Odapuuellawa 
districts are porhapa i\i highly favoured as any in 
fhfl country, and " Lover'l Leap 1 ' with its intersecting 
belts of blue-gums — the cupful design and work of 
Mr. •lames tyayloi may probably be regarded as the 
model cinchona plantation of tho country for its 
170 
size and age. A discouraging piece of experience from 
the younger districts is that cinchonas do not seem 
to prosper on "grubbed" land. Again, one of the 
most interesting experiments in the country is that 
carried oh under the energetic direction of Mr. R. P. 
Hart on Great Valley estate, Hewaheta. Here the 
forest has been cleared in small fields of five or six 
acres surrounded by belts of the natural vegetation, 
so that the cinchona is growing up in detached groves 
very much after the fashion in which it is found, 
according to Markham, in its natural habitat on the 
Andes. So far this experiment gives promise of being 
a complete success, and we have hsre as well as on 
Lover's Leap the key probably to the remedy for canker, 
namely, small fields well protected and well drained 
of superfluous moisture. 
The great activity now manifested in the propag- 
ation of the best (Ledgeriana) cinchona adds a further 
feature of interest iu connection with the enterprise. 
The fortunat« possessors of clearings, plants, or even 
nurseries of this rich species may well be congratulated, 
and now there come reports of the success of grafting 
far beyond even Mr. Moens' achievements. Of this 
experiment and of other important facts in connection 
with the Ceylon and Java enterprise, our readers will 
hear in good time. 
TEA AND COFFEE FOR AUSTRALASIA. 
{North China Herald.) 
Some of the Indian papers have lately been discussing 
the trade with the colonies and various official and other 
suggestions which have been made for its extension. 
The assistant secretary to the Indian Department of 
Agriculture and Commerce has made a report on the 
subject, in which he says that he believes the Aus- 
tralians will, in a short time, take live million pounds of 
Indian teas. He recommends coffee-growers to look to 
the colonial markets, and seems to think that a trade in 
indigo, shell lac, cinchona, fibres for rope making, and 
even gram might be initiated and carried on success- 
fully. But to foster this enterprise, he proposes, first 
that Indian exhibitors at Australian Exhibitions, and 
other di alers as well, should be represented on the spot 
by an agent whose duly it would be to explain to the 
colonists the quality of the products, the places of their 
growth, the modes of shipping and packing them, and 
so forth. Indian dealers and exhibitors might associate 
themselves for the maintenance of such agencies. 
Secondly, an agent of the Indian Government should 
also be on the spot to assist the agents, and make him- 
self generally useful. Thirdly, tho agents should in- 
quire iuto, and report upon, the products and resources 
of the Australasian countries, with a view to fostering 
an import trade iuto India, from the colonies. Ana 
fourthly, a Company, availing itself of the information 
thus collected, should establish itself in Calcutta or Bom- 
bay, for the purpose of carrying on a general busiDessa 
with the colonies. Theso suggestions soom to have been 
favourably received in India, and whether they aro 
carried into effeot or not tlioy aro an evidence of the 
energy with which the official and commercial public 
in ludia are trying to extend their trade. As regards 
tho articles with which Australia could supply India 
loss information is forthcoming. At present the 
colonial export to India is represented, one paper says, 
I principally by " Walers " ami a few thousand ton* of 
1 eoal, and at present then- does not seem a pr >cct 
I of the list boiug greatly extend d, though Austr.-lian 
commodities are to bo sent to Calcutta for quarterly 
salo, and wools aro for conversion iuto matting in tho 
