164 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Sept. 1, 1S93. 
to show was of good quility, »Dd therefore, 
they did not despair of becoming iu time, 
and in • small way a go'd-producinf; country. To 
those who had invested their money in Bori eo it 
muBt be disjppoiQtiing to find, year after je»r, 
thut the prospects were more or le?8 good, Imt that 
diviilcnds were aWogether absent. They were unable 
to declare a dividi urt, and tbey were also unsb'e to 
promise that a dividend would bo ao eveut of the 
very near future. On the contrary tbey were financi- 
ally, in very low witer, and it was his duty to 
inform the shareboldera that, althouKh, owing to Ibe 
arrival of an uoexpectcd remitfaace, tbey were in 
a better position tban the accounts showed, yet tbe 
time might very possibly come when tbey would re- 
quire to make another call upon them to keop 
sufficient money in hand for cmtrgenciep. The 
call, however, would not extend to more 
than £1, ai.d would be ppread over Eome 
considerable timp. They had from time to time, with 
fairly PU'ioeesful result' — reeulte that promised to be 
even more sucoesaful in the future — advancfd money 
to different tradinj? conceros in Borneo. He would 
like the shareholders to study as far as pocrible the 
comparative statements and accoaots which were :ip- 
peuded to the report. They were very instractive 
beoauf e they showed the progress of the Colony more 
than could he shown by any words. They would see 
that tbe reductions and expenditure were spread 
very fairly over all itemp, ttie larjjest reductions be- 
ing in the Cocistabulary an t some of tbe Europ'an 
employee. Nothing had been more painful to the 
directiri than to be under the necessity that they 
had been during tie pi'St year of dirpeoi-ing with the 
services of men who had gone out to Borneo and served 
them nell and faithfully in a trying climate. With 
regard to the paragraph about the railway on page 4 
ot the report, there was no disparagement to the gen- 
tlemen who bad the preliminary concession. He di i not 
think it at all snrprisirg that they had not b( cn b'e to 
cirry t' e scheme to a successful iesue during the 
last year or 8o. He knew of no new enterprise during 
that peiiod which had been successfullj pccomp'i'hed, 
and It was not to be wondered Ht that this sbou'd Le 
among those that were absolutely abortive. At tbe 
Bime tiir.e thirj hadibeen an expression of fee'ing con- 
V yed to the directors from the shaiehi lJers that 
tbe scheme was on t o large a scale, and that in 
givirg away so much ttrritory as they did, they 
were buying enlerpri'e rather dearly, lie thfit as it 
might, the direciors were prepared to complete 
their share of the transaction providing the r.»ilwiv 
came into being, l;ut at the present time it se' med 
unlikely that it would be curried out. From 
fresh 6onroes, however, there were proposals lor 
smaller light railways bb throngli communication to 
open up certain r'efinile tr.icts of country. The 
directors were anxious to do all they could to open up 
the country. In conclusion he moved that the report 
and accounts he adopted. 
COFFEE AND COCOA IN JAVA. 
Ceylon has just been favoured with a few weeds' 
visit from Mr, Dorrepaal who has been twenty 
years' resident in Java without a; y ohaBge home 
to his native Holland. During that time his work 
has been on a pla:itation only about 600 feet ahovo 
sea-level, and indigo, coffee and cocoa cultivation has 
been hia chief pursuit. Our visitor he s been much 
pleased with all he has seen in Colombo, Kandy 
and Galle and a visit to the Peradeniya Gardens 
and another to Pallakelle estate, Dumbara, have 
much interested him. Cocoa planting is rapidly 
spreading in Java, and he also speaks favourably of 
Liberian cofiee which does exceedingly well in the 
plantations where leaf disease had practically killed 
out Coffea Arabica. The Liberian is usually topped 
at 6 teeli high and it th;n crops well. Mr. 
Dorrepaal has nothing good to say about oin- 
phODA Inyiew Qf the low prevalent prioee (o; 9> 
long time past and the poor proepect. In tbe 
East of Java nearly all the new plantations have 
Arabian coflo and are cropping very well. He 
speake well cf the land taken up by Mr. Fair- 
weather and other Ceylon planters and thinks coffea 
should bear very good crops upon it and that cheap 
good labour can be commanded from Javaneae 
and natives of tbe neighbouring islands. 
Our visitor has favoured us with the following 
translation ot an extract from the latest number 
of the Imlisclie Mcrcuur in confiimalion of what 
he has told U3 about Liberian CL/ffee : — 
" In many parte of Java, where tbe plantatione 
of Coffee Arabica seem to become lees profit- 
able there will be a belter future by planting 
Liberian Cofiee, because this species does not 
want such a rich soil and climate and does not 
suffer BO much from the blight. Till at present, tbe 
Goveroment has not done much in planting Liberian 
for tbcir own account, but seeing the good rasults, 
private planters were getting with Liberia GoSee, 
it proposes now to give a great extension to that 
culture. Up to present time only 2.800 acrea 
are planted by tbe Government, and tbe Java- 
nese are extending (or their own acoouct also greatly 
that species." 
On this otir visitor remarks : — " Number of coffee 
treep, Coffea Arabica and Liberian planted by order 
of the Government 88,850,iC0- 1891-92. Free 
Javanese plantations the crops of which must be 
handed to the Government (being then free from all 
taxes) for 15 fls. per pioul, 193,363,800— these 
figures speaks volumes, the Javanese would not plant 
on this condition if they did not have a fair profit. 
And the free plantations are increasing every year.'' 
In an American paper there is a long article 
on " Coffee in Java," which we have bad tbe 
privilege of submitting to our visitor and now 
append with his remarks on each paragraph : — 
THE JAVA COFFEE IKDUSTRT. 
The present system of coffee cultivation in the 
Netherlands, India, is unsatisfactory. There is a 
growing disposition to replace tbe monopoiy in cnlti- 
VAtion enjoyed by the Government by a system of free 
cultivation by planters. 
[I agree there are some parts of Java, where it 
would be bet'er to abacdon Government coffee 
culture and I am sure that the pre'ent Minister of 
Colonies and Governor-General, both very clever men, 
assisted by a most clever staff of officials, headed by 
its Vice President of the Oou"cil of N. Itdia, Mr. 
Groenweldt will manage these affairs better than 
formerly was done. It is not burdensome where the 
soil is gcod aud yielding good crops. iUany Javanese 
plant on their own risks and perils (mouos.cko) and 
are getting fair profits. In those districts where 
cofiea arabica exhausted the soil, Liberian coffee 
will yie'd a fair and paying crop to the 
Javantse planters. As regards quality 1 only refer 
to what is said in the brochure of the Indische 
Mercuur where very fine qualities are named. 
The great coneiRree of tbe Government, tbe Nedet- 
lai.dan-Handelvelly, writes— the ocffee of the Govern- 
ment sold in public auction in 1892 (crop 1891) was of 
very satisfactory quality, only a few parcels where 
somewhat inferior — Corj\ 
The present p'an is burdensome to tbe natives 
subject to compulsory coffee cultivation and fails to 
develop the highest state of the industry both as 
regards the quantity an! quality of the bean, 
Various plana have been proposed, bat none npon 
which all interests are inclined to nnite. It is also 
believed that a radical and sudden change ia im- 
prdctic ible and that reform must come gradually. 
At all events it is evident that the old system has 
serve I ii s time and purpose and that coffee cultivation 
in the Dutch East Indies must be put upon the catne 
plan it is iu Brazil, U. S. of Colombia, Central 
