Dec. 1, 1893.] Supplement to the ^'Tropical Agriculturist.'''' 
433 
The oxaminations tliis year were conducted 
by the Inspectors of the Director's Department, 
and some of the teachers of other Colleges. 
Mr. Senevihatne, Inspector of Schools, 
Southern Circuit, who examined the boys on 
Botany wrote: "The fault, generally speaking, 
of the candidates, was a tendency to diffusiveness. 
I consider the work sent in by the first six 
candidates as -very satisfactory." 
Mr. Mendis, of the Royal College, wrote 
regarding the Chemistry : " I think the work is 
very satisfactorj-. The other examiners have not 
made any special remarks of their own, but an 
inspection of the mai-ks gained, whether in the 
general or technical subjects, will show that the 
teaching at the school has been carefully carried on. 
The accommodation available in these extensive 
buildings is now being fully utilized. A central 
training school for the training of Vernacular 
teachers has been located here. By this plan the 
.students of the training school are given an oppor- 
tunity of acquiring a knowledge of Agricultnre 
and Botany, while the agricultural students have 
the option of taking instruction in Sinhalese, 
school management and teaching. To complete 
thearrangementsfor the training of schoolmasters 
there is also provided a practising school, a day 
school attended by about 60 boys in the teaching 
of whom the training students under the direction 
of their headmaster, participate. 
The students of the School of Agriculture in 
addition to their class work, which occupies 4 
or 5 hours a day, have .'5 hours of out-door work 
on week days, with drill on Saturday. 
The time allotted for Held work is occupied in 
the preparation of the land for planting and in 
the cultivation of indigenous and introduced 
plants, useful either as food or fodder crops. 
When possible new varieties of seeds are distri- 
buted among the Agricultural Instructors. I 
would strongly recommend that some provision 
should be made for a system of regular communi- 
cariou with foreign, but especially Indian and 
Colonial .Agricultural departments and societies. 
The benefits will bo mutual. I found as the 
results of such communication carried on on my 
own account, that while Lucerne, for instance, 
failed to grow from English seed sent by Sutton 
& Sons, it thrives well wlien raised from seed 
procured in India. It was, again, a remark 
of mine contained in a letter to a gentleman 
in India that led to his getting from me some 
Mauritius grass (which he had never before heard 
of) and introducing this important fodder crop 
to the district. 
The Dairy, to which I shall refer later, owes 
its present success to the satisfactory breed of 
cows, that were imported from Sind, and there 
suitable cattle were discovered after much corre- 
spondence, and later after personal interview 
with authorities on cattle. I mention these 
facts to indicate how much benefit may be 
expected to arise from not a mere casual 
correspondence but a regular system of communi- 
cation between ourselves atid other Agricultural 
Institutions in India and the Colonies. 
There has been no increase in the number of 
Agricultural instructors within the past year, 
though there are doubtless many places, periiaps 
more remote than the present stations, which 
might advi.«edly he made centres of Agricultural 
work. I venture to think that more direct, 
communication and consultation with this central 
institution will be beneficial to the instructors ia 
their comparatively isolated and helpless condition, 
and if arrangements were sanctioned by which 
one of the oflacers of this school should periodically 
visit the Agricultural Instructors with the object 
of advising them and inspecting and reporting 
upon their work, I consider that these men could 
be made more useful than they are at present, and 
will go about their duties in a manner more 
satisfactory to themselves, the people of the 
district and the department. I doubt not if 
it be proved to his satisfaction that better results 
will be ensured by such a course, that our 
Director will, with his solicitude for the successful 
working of every branch of his department, see 
fit to recommend it. Tiie idea of establishing 
a dairy in connection with the School of 
Agriculture arose more tlum two years ago, when 
His Excellency the Governor, who favoured the 
idea, desired the question of the practicability 
of starting and successfully maintaning such an 
institution, to be well threshed out. As the 
result of much deliberation the project was finally 
launched last Julj', when Your Excellency was 
administering the affairs of the colony. At that 
time there was a good deal of adverse criticism, 
of the policy of Government in deciding upon 
such step, in some quarters, and one prominent 
Journalist delivered himself thus on the subject : — 
" We should not be surprised if, after a term, 
the Dairy, after it has taught its lesson of cleanli- 
ness, liealtli, itc, comes to be closed as the 
Model (impiously called Muddle) Farm, as a too 
expensive luxury." 
Without commenting on this to say the least 
of it, unkind opinion, I sliall now cfry shortlij 
trace the progress of the Dairy. 
During the month of June last, a herd of cows 
that were imported from India had to be 
maintained, tlie majority of them -sA-ithout giving 
any return in the form of milk. As a. 
consequence, it was found at the end of that 
month that there was a balance on the wrong, 
side of E148"40, the receipts from sales of Dairy 
produce having amounted only to R2.'37 70, while 
the cost of maintaining the Dairy was R406-5(>, 
During July the supply of milk to the General 
Hospital was taken up, and at the end of that 
month the receipts had risen to R750':^4, tiie ex- 
penses (which still included the cost of keeping 
a number of in-calf cows) stood at Ryf)4'<i0, and 
the profits were l{8(j'94. 
In August the supply of milk to the following 
institutions was also undertaken, viz., the Lunatic 
Asylum, Leper Asylum, Police Hospital, De Soyaa 
Lying-in-Home, Branch Hospital, Infectious 
Diseases Hospital. 
At the end of August the receipts were repre- 
sented by Rl,248'o2, tlie expenses stood at I{7-37'o5, 
and the profits were Roll-47. 
In September the receipts aggregated RI,245'0t>, 
the cost of working the Dairy was R7o 1-19, and 
the profits realized were R493'89. 
Last month the results were as foUow.s: — 
Receipts from sales of milk Rl,.']79-8() 
Cost of working the Dairv 708-67 
Profits . . ■ .-38113 
During the present montli 1 do not e.vpect 
tlie profits will be below R-^OO. 
