753 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [March i, 1882. 
have a man to be proud of. There are many open 
ings in this country for any boye who- will work, and, 
better still, people will teach work here. Plenty of 
youths all round me are doing well and respectably, 
but they are the ones who were well and wisely 
started. Granted, your son may have to work hard 
at the start and for some time afterwards ; but in that 
there iB neither disgrace nor misfortune, and the mag- 
nificent climate here pulls a man through far more 
than he could ever stand in England. — I am, sir, &c, 
California, September 1881. W, J. 
NILGIRI BEER. 
For several years past the genial climate of the 
Blue Mountains has ever and anon induced repeated 
attempts to brew beer. Most of these efforts were 
ncited and carried out entirely by private enter- 
prize. The beer brewed, however, was not such as 
to commend itself to palates accustomed to the care- 
fully-brewed and well-ripened beer of Bass, but was 
accepted by the natives of the lower classes as an 
acceptable drink, and as such largely consumed. The 
profits arising from these sales were naturally small, 
too small to be really remunerative. On the other 
hand, the appliances necessary to improve the qual- 
ity of the beer — which alone were wanted — were costly, 
too much so to allow their provision by the ordin- 
ary private capitalist. The largest of the several 
breweries was that owned by Major-General Morgan. 
The quality of its brews was remarkably good ; its 
locale unexceptionable, and its capabilities such as to 
give every reasonable prospect of considerable im- 
provement, were funds forthcoming. The question 
of converting the concern into a joint-stock property 
was accordingly mooted and readily accepted by 
a Madras firm of considerable standing — Messrs. 
Wilson and Co. Prospectuses were privately circul- 
ated, and the necessary capital speedily subscribed 
without the neccessity of a public invitation, 
certain extensions of the works are in contempla- 
tion that will enable the brewery to supply bottled 
beer of a quality that will not shirk comparison 
with the best English beer, only at very much 
lower prices. Draft ale will also be available in 
small casks — a luxury the want of which has long 
reen sorely felt. We have been at some pains to 
hace the above particulars, as we consider that 
me industry deserves every encouragement. The 
more capitalists there can be induced to sink money 
in this country, the better it will be for India. 
The history of the success of any one enterprize 
might lead to the development of others. In this 
hope and desire we have penned the above. We 
cannot, however, conclude without congratulating 
Messrs. Wilson & Co. on their careful working of 
the brewery, which must ultimately prove the truth 
of the old lexicographer's utterance at his sale of a 
brewery :- " We are not come here to sell casks 
and such like, but the potentiality "of growing 
wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice." — Madras Times. 
THE COFFEE TRADE. 
Few things have been more remarkable in the way of 
productive industry during the present century than 
the growth of coffee, in which Brazil has occupied 
more than a prominent position. In noticing this 
subject in our last number, a misprint in figures oc- 
curred. Referring to Rio coffee exports we stated that 
they amounted to no more than 10 sacks in 1880 ; 
this should have been the year 1800. In fact, the 
growth of coffee in Brazil is entirely due to the present 
century. For many years its market value was about 
£5 a cwt. whereas it has gradually fallen to an aver- 
age of say 40b., and this difference in price is a 
serious drawback to . the country, affecting both the 
Revenue and the Exchanges. 
Competition with other producing countries has of 
course been one of the causes of this fail in value. 
There has not been any decrease in consumption ; quite 
the contrary — the establishment of Coffee Taverns (as 
they are called) and the means taken to promote its 
use, all point in a different direction whether as regards 
Europe or the United States, of which latler country, 
Brazil has almost enjoyed a monoply. The fact is, the 
world produces more than is required, and has sur- 
passed the consumption. 
Under these circumstances, it is a matter of grave im- 
port to Brazil that the cost of production should be 
reduced as much as possible, whether as regards saving 
of labour, the carriage by railway, or the local taxes, 
all which weigh heavdy, and ought to be reduced in a 
corrresponding degree. Unfortunately railways exercise 
a kind of monopoly, or they charge more or less what 
they please, but it is in the power of the Goverument 
to reduce the export duty, and this ought to be done at 
once, if Brazil is to maintain her status in the consum- 
ing markets of Europe and the United States : other- 
Mise coffee-producing countries not similarly weighted 
may gain a supremacy. —South American Journal. 
WALKING STICK-PLANTATIONS IN JAMAICA. 
To the Editor of " The Colonies and India." 
Sir, — It appears to me that the article on " Um- 
brellas and Stick?," in your paper of October 22 
last, is subject to correction. 
1. I think it will be found that the number of sticks 
in a bundle should be taken as 50, not as 500 to 800. 
2. And the value of the crop of pimento, taken 
as 50.000Z. annually, is half a million for the ten 
years. The value of a stick may be taken as from 
ljd. to Sid., so that 4,500 bundles of 50 sticks each, 
say at 2\d., would be=2,0O0Z. ; while if the bundles 
had 500 sticks each, the value should have been 20,000/. 
The average crop of pimento may be taken as 
40,000 to 60,000 bags, and the value at from 20s. to 
25s. per bag; thus 50,000 bags at It. =50, 000?. an- 
nually, not 500,000Z. 
The sticks are usually shipped in small bundles, 
which are cut loose on board for stowage, but are 
made into larger bundles on arrival in the dock, 
say of 25 to 50 sticks in a bundle. 
Yours faithfully, 
Haverstock Hill, London, N.W. W. F. R. 
Dec. 14. 
[We are obliged to our correspondent for bis figures. 
It is difficult in a matter of this kind to arrive at 
an exact basis of calculation. Our "Note" was 
founded on some figures published in the Jamaica 
Gleaner, while our correspondent takes different figures 
for his calculation. According to the information at 
our disposal, the number of sticks in a bundle appears 
to vary from about 50 in the case of the larger 
selected, sticks, to over 800 in the case of smaller, 
ill-assorted sticks. The best sticks are valued in 
Jamaica at a merely nominal figure, certainly not 
exceeding that placed upon them by our correspondent, 
while the small sticks are not valued singly, but at 
twopence or threepence a dozen. 
The official returns show that the value of pimento 
exported from Jamaica was 146,000?. in 1880, and 
these returns are admitted not to include large quan- 
tities exported from some of the smaller porta, which 
would probably bring the value of the gross produce 
of pimento up to 200,000/. Our Note gave it as half 
a million — a figure nearly as much too high as our 
correspondent's estimate of 50,000/. is too low. If' 
these last-named figures were correct, it would really 
afford the strongest argument in favour of the restric- 
| tion of the "walking-stick" trade, — Ed. C. I.] 
