666 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[April 2, 1894. 
of the firm won first "E. Price & Co.," taken from an 
aaot of Mr. L^iQcaator (Mr». Elizabeth Price). On 
Mr. Laaoaster retirioi; from the partnership, it was 
changed to "Edward Price & Co," being a trade 
name only , eo that it may well be described as a 
Frice-lea« buaioess. The ooconat candle», though 
much auperior to tallow, were ioauffioicut for a great 
baainesB, ao the French prooesa of making "atearine" 
candles was adopted in the works. Thn first great 
move forward was made by Mr. J. P. Wilson, a ^on 
of the founder, who ou the sudden great dem n 1 
for good cheap candles for illumin^ttioa on tie Qaea-Za 
marriage, oombineJ the pressed coconut with (ha 
tallow "fltearine," and thus made the "composite" 
Dwindles, the fir^t really (jood cheap cand'e^ in rxis- 
teuce. This was a most important invention, but 
oircamstances preventin;; its being patented, compe- 
titors, were, atter a time, able to proSer it the 
Binoerest of all forms of fiattery. The aext move was 
the iotrodnotion of more advanced ohemioal processes. 
For this Mr. George F. Wilson, F. R.3., another sjii 
of the founder, aad one of the present directoro jf 
the Company, was mainly responsible. Inventions were 
made and many patents taken out. The place be 
came known at a scientific factory, and as the hcid 
of its industry throughout ths world. A very ea ly 
improvement introduced by E. Price & Co., cousi^t 'd 
in the substitution of mats made of ooconat fibre 
for the canvas which ha 1 been, up to that time uicl 
in the pre.ising ot fats. Thia application of coconut 
fibre was made previously to its employment in ti.e 
maoufacture of floor-cloth. It may aeem to tome 
only a trifling improvement, but no n^aterial has 
been found, up to the present time, to superso le 
this fibre for many kinds of work with the hydr.mlic< 
or screw pres3. In 1831 the caudle mauufaotuie tu 
Eogland was set free from the Excise supervision 
to which it had previously been aubjected. From 
that date, thtn, its progress became possible. Aft ar 
a time E. Price & Co., found it necessary to establish 
steam mills in Ceylon for orushinK coconuts, to 
extract the oil as the raw material for the Londoa 
factory; and the basiness then requirin«r. for this and 
tor other parposea, more capital for its proper de- 
velopment than they had at their command, Mr. 
Wilaoa'a partner sold bis share, in the beginning 
of 1836, to the capitalists referred to. With these 
gentlemen as sleeping partners, and with the uid of 
two of hia eons, Mr. Wilson continued (under the 
name of "Edward Price <fe Co.") to carry on the 
concern, nntil it passed in 18:17 into the hanas of 
"Price's Patent Candle Company." Of this Coixip uy 
Mr. William Wilson became the first C hairman, and hia 
sons, Mr. James P. Wilson and Mr. George F. Wilsi n, 
the two Managing Directors. Palm oil, treated hy 
Ohevreul's process of lime saponification, was brought 
into a limited use for candle-makicg by Mes-r^. 
Blaudell & Spenoe in 1836, but the dark colour of 
the candles produced prevented their general use. 
There is another and more general application ot 
palm oil, the ways of which are better understooJ 
"on the other side," where in ao many things they 
have -given us the straight tip. But on thia it is 
not neoesaary that I shoull enlarge. 
COCONUT PLANTING IN THE PUTTALAM 
DISTRICT. 
It should chM r Mr. Lushington to learn of 
the great progress made of late years in the direc- 
tion which lie so strongly urged when Assistant 
Agent for the Puttilam district. It is clear now 
thp.t the oountry between Obilaw and Puttalam 
is dsBti^cd very soon to be the scene of as eontinu. 
0U8 coconut cultivation as that between Negombo 
and Obilaw, or even the couniry on this slue of 
Negoinbo. And the sooner the better for the health 
as well as the prosperity of the people. The traCi; 
along the West Coast; route from Colombo ; orhwaxda 
to Puttalam is simply enormoui and is bound to 
go ou growing. If a railway ia justified between 
Colombo and Galle, much more we should say is 
it a neceasity between Colombo and Puttalam and 
if made as part of the oonoecting line between 
Ceylon and India, bo much the more important 
would it beo me with its through, as well ae local, 
traffic. 
Meantime, tbe planting of caoouats on every 
acre of land that tbe Government choose to sell io 
tbe Puttalam district is a matter of special im- 
portance. Already a£ much ae RllO an acre have 
been paid for some ot the lots, and it is evident 
that the nativea are keenly alive to tbe value 
ot foreetland suited for the palm. It is not gene- 
rblly known that there ate gardens and plautaiiorLS 
of coconuts in ihj iiumediata neighbourhood of 
the town of Puttalam from 30 to 40 years old and 
that steady average crops of from 1,600 to 2,000 
nut; per acre per annum are gathered from theae 
estates, the trees comintr into bearing at a com- 
paratively early date. From the letter of an 
intelltgc-ut native gentleman, Mr. J. A. Wijesinha, 
we quote as follows: — 
"Europeans are beginning to go in freely for 
coconut planting and a few gentlemen have par- 
cliased some large blocks of land. The block near 
Santiakalli is to be opened up under European super- 
vision, Mr. Daniel, an npcountry planter, having 
coma to take, charge. Puttalam district is well 
adapted for coconut cultivation and trees come into 
bearing as soon as in Madampe, Marawila, &c. 
"People from many parts of tbe island now come 
here either to buy land or lease coconut estates, 
and good competition may be expected for all Grown 
lands which may be sold in the future." 
SALE OF ESTATES. 
The price paid by Mr. Gaddum of Gampola for 
Bukande and Ambaiawa ejtates, the sale of which 
by Mr. A, G. While's Attorney has been referred 
to by a contemporary is, we believe, over £5,000. 
Thi'se well-known Kaduganawa estates contain 
about 1,250 acres of land, of which about 350 are 
in tes. 
HOW THE LONDON TEA SALES ARE 
MANAGED. 
In a recent letter to the Mome and Colonial Mail 
on the regulation of auction tea stlet, one signing 
himself " Sigma'' directs attention of sellers to tbe 
nnwisdom ot crowding eo much into tbe catalogues 
for oue day, and leaving the other days of the week 
with but little ee!;iug.»*» 
It would be wis'^r at once to limit sales to two days 
in tbe week, and divide the guaatity eqaally between 
Monday and Wednesday. 
If this were doue, i.rjbably tbe Ceylon importers 
w luld manage their sales more cleverly than they do 
at present, and divide their ofierings between Toea- 
iJay tad Thursday, instead of prioting (as they have 
done) 23,000 packages for next Tneaday's sale, and (tso 
far) none at all for their seoood day, Thursday ! It 
18 impossible for the buyers to value 23,000 packages 
of Caylon tea, containing from 700 to 800 separate 
sa mples, carefu'ly ; and it is a matter capable of 
scientific demonstration that buyers who have b en 
sitting in t'ae heated and exbaustei atmosphere of a 
atuffy sale room for three or foor hours are so jaded 
that they have lost the sp'rit ta bid properly. 
CEYLON PLANTLRS IN PERU, 
We have nn previous occisiona called attpntion to 
the explorations osrriei out bj Oi,e ot iwo ex-planiers 
of cincbona and coSee in Ceylori, and by a trained 
bL.t»uisi iormeily eonufected with the Ceylon Botanic 
Gifdei:s in Ce tr.l Pern, on the Eastern fide of the 
AuduB. The exploiers in question were commifsiooed 
