748 
tHE *RlOt^lCAL AGRlCULTtJRl^T. [May i, 1894. 
experience to the experience of bundredR of othere 
in the land ol Ind, " Three acres and a cow " 
would uas, BBtve for a party cry amongHt Oriental 
peasantry ; a cow ie all they require to whom the 
aorea may belong is immaterial. "With the ex- 
ception o( Helopeltis the tea-plant is remarkably 
free from eerious enemies." So writes Dr. Trimen 
and planters should rejoice to hear it. He advocates 
the use of the name Helopeltis in preference to "tea- 
bug" which though correct is apt to mislead or 
mosquito" which is absolutely incorrect. Like 
the blessed word Mesopatamia, there is some- 
thing soothing in ^the term helopeltie to the 
planter who sees his tea-bushes shrivelling up 
beneath the soourage. Dr. Tnmen is of opinion 
that if a universal slaughter were undertaken, 
Ceylon could cope with the pest. As regards 
catcbing the insect there is little difficulty ; the 
immature ones are wingless, and the mature ones 
fly only a short distance at a time. A good eugges- 
tiou is the use of a small stick tipped with jak- 
milk or other glutinous substance, by which aoy 
inseots may be picked quickly up a broad band 
of similar substance might be smeared round the 
base of the stefms to catch any of the young ones 
that may have fallen to the ground and 
attempt to again crawl up to the leaves. The 
eggs are found not only on tea bushes but 
on cinchona and cacao and it is stated on 
some kinds of weeds, Helopeltis is said to be 
by no mgans restricted to low elevations, but as 
a pest on tea, states Dr. Trimen, there is no doubt 
that it is ehiefty to be found below 3,000 ft. " At 
higher elevations it is more of a straggler ; I have 
assurance of au attack at about 4,000 ft., but it 
was slight. There appears to be some good evidence 
that it is the inferior ' jats ' of tea especially that 
suffer and that high-class plants, even when grown 
alongside the inferior, to a large extent esoape." 
This has been observed also in Assam. Another 
experiment of interest undertaken at these gardens 
is with Indiatubber (Uevea bradliensis). There was 
a large ciop of seied last year which waB distribated 
amongs planters, but Dr. Trimen is of opinion 
that the cultivation of this tree is more suited for 
Government than for private individuals. It is 
twevlve years before a profitable return can be 
exp^6ted, bilt once in fall bearing the trees are 
said in Brazil to continue to yield for a period of 
76 to 100 years. The oultivation of nutmegs is, we 
learn from this Beport, being extended fireatly on 
the low-lying estates ol Oeylon. — M. Mail, 
COFFEE CULTURE IN BRAZIL. 
The final and premature abolitioti of slavery in 
1888, witbout any compensation to slave owners, 
caused less disturbance ecoDcmically and socially than 
in any other countrj, perhaps, in the history of blave 
emanoipatioD, and this ftcts speika volumes for the 
natural resources of Brizil. It is true that this event 
has been, to eome extent, discounted by the impoita- 
tiou of free labour before that date, and though the 
" fazendeiroB " received no compensatiou, tbey may 
be' said to hav6 received a certain eqaivtlent in the 
shape of a State-aided immigration on a large scale, 
and of loana in aid of agriculture, while tbe coffee 
planter, trofa his prepouderaiing influence in the 
Legislatore, has proved the spoiled child of sac- 
cesaive Ministers Finance, and has not been hampered 
by tbe on«roaB taxation of .land' customary in most 
old oountries. At present," says Mr. Harford, tbe 
labour question is eaid to be approaching a solution 
in the Htate of S. Paulo, though there is ample room 
for gennine oolonipation. However, the loss caused 
by tbe sbaroity of hands to pick (he coffee berry in 
the Bio de Janeiro coSee zone alone was calculated 
at DO l«ei than 900,000 bags in m2.^Cmmerce, 
INDIAN TEA COMPANIES, 
tibareboldere in Indian Tea QompanieB will be 
glad to learn that the (ff'jrts made to po^nlariee 
Indian tea in the United 8tat%s are meetini^ with 
some meat^ure of success. Tte export of Indian 
tea frcm Great Britain to the States tmonnted 
in 1892 to 600,216 lb. but last year tbe total 
loae to S18,356 lb' The consumption of tea 
ginerally has been steadily increaeiug in America 
of late years. In 1808, the total oonsamptiun 
was only 35,625.000 lb. but in 18U2 it exceeded 
89 million lb. A veiy small parentage of tba 
lasl-nanied total consisted, as it appears, ol Indian 
tea. But tbe taste is evidently developing, and 
we know from the ezperisuce ol this country 
how rapidly the liking (ur Ceylon and India tes 
spreads when once it becomes familiar to the 
tea-drinking community. Tbe United States offer 
a splendid and almost inexhau8tibl« market to 
the Indian Tea Uompanies, and no tfFort should 
be spared in cultivating it.— Financial Timet. 
INDIA AND CEYLON TEA. 
The forecast of the future of tbe tea market 
which we made uu February 6tb has been justbSed 
by events. The conEumpiion of Indian and Ceylon 
tea since Jannary 1st is b, 500,000 lb. heavier than 
last year, while the crop from India has closed 
6,0u0,000 lb or 7,000,000 Jb. short of the estimate, 
in consequtnce, an advance ol 2d to 3rd has oc- 
curred in tbe finer teas, and the quotation for 
" ty^o" on the terminal market has risen 3gd. 
Much Interest is feit in tbe forthcoming Budget, 
owiug to the rumours of a free breakfast table ; 
and It is generally aomitied that it would be agooa 
thing for ihe trace it the duty were taken vB, »e the 
restnciious and expense of working in the bonded 
waiehou&es would be avoided. The first effect of 
such a measure woula probably be shown in a large 
increase of Indian ana Ce;lon lea exported from 
London through the mtdium of the blender. 
— Financial News. 
♦ 
PICKINGS WITH AN APPLICATION. 
la an exhaustive paper on tbe claasificatiou and 
distribaiion of Eartnworms by Frank i:^. Beddatd, 
M.A., F.fi. !;'.£., F.z.s. Prosector and Daris lectaxer to 
the Zoological ISociety of London, and lecturer on 
Biology at Grey's Hospital, (pnbiished in the "Joumail 
of tbe Boyal Physical Society of Edinburgh") the 
following are given, under tne " Oriental region," 
as occurring in Ceylon : Perichoeta coerulea, P. 
Honlleti, P. Ceylonica Deodrilns Jacksoui. The 
following insufficiently known species are also given 
as from Ceylon: Perichoeta leneocycla, P. Viridis, 
P. bryacbycycla, and P. Cingolata. 
The name orange is derived from the latiu uurum, 
gold, owiug to the gold colour of the ordinary ripe 
traits. The orange is said to have originally been a 
small bitter berry not larger than a cherry, and very 
seedy. In Hindustan it has been cultivated from a 
very remote period, and was taken from that country 
to Arabia ana Persia in the eighth or ninth centuries. 
It is said to have received little or no attention from 
cultivators of fruits in any of the countries last 
named prior to the tenth century, there being a 
tradition that it was a cursed fruit sent by Mahomet 
to destroy the unfaithful. In the 10th and Uth 
centuries the cultivators of Oman and Syria began 
the cultivation of the tree in earnest, the trnit going 
under the name of " bigarada. ' By the end of the 
i2th century the crusaUers brought it with them on 
their return from Jerusalem. It was well-known but 
not extensively culrivated in Italy, iSpam, and Fiance 
before the middle of the I6th century, 400 years Bite- 
ita iatroductioQ into tbe first named country, th^ 
