8i4 
i 
nepeotion of one of these engiDea in motion, as 
also has been the further fear of their liability 
to foul. Although both these objections are 
largely present in the case of most oil engines, 
Messrs. Ptiestman's improvements seem to have 
wholly overcome them. 
TAKING UP LAND IN SELANGOR. 
Sir, — I notice in the Singapore Jfree Press, of the 
5th instant, under the beidmg "Taking upland 
in Selangor," a letter of Mr. G.A. Talbot, of Nawara 
Elija, dated March 24th, reprinted from the" Times 
of Ceylou" in which he states " with regard to timber 
being a Government mouopoly, the timber belongs to 
the oocopier solely and absolutely, the Government 
not even having the right to cat the planter's timber 
for its own requirements. There have been many 
instances of prcsecatioDS ending in favour of the 
planter in this connection." 
The foUoffiog is an extract from a recent decision 
of the chief magistrate of Selangor id a case in which 
I sued two Chinamen for damages done to land, part 
of a coffee estate) in respect of which I bold a permit 
from tbe Government. The defendants etatted mining 
on the land in question, and cut down trees and other 
jungle prcdoce, and brought within their operations 
an area of 10 or 15 acres : — 
The question, then, is whether the plaintiff's permit 
enables him to maintain an action againxt the defend- 
ants for the damage done by theni. The important 
conditions of the permit are that the plaintiff is to have 
the right, for five years subsequent to its issue, to 
occupy for the purposes of cofiee-plantiDg any of the 
land in the area specified in it except such land as 
may be found to be held under other titles, and that if 
and when within the five years he cultivates one 
quarter of the whole area included in the permit, the 
Government will give him a grant of the whole subject 
to conditions, and there are further two clauses which 
both expreaaly provide that, until this grant is executed, 
the permit-holder shall have no right over the land 
v^hich be does not occupy for the purposes of cofTee- 
plauting, except the right of so occupying it. The 
vlaotiff has argued that he has the same rights 
over the unoccupied land as he would have under 
the anticipated grant, but I am unable to agree 
with him. 
This land, then which the defendants have been 
working has not been occupied by the plaintiff f r 
coffee-planting purposesi and he lias no rights over it 
except the right of so occupying it within the re- 
mainder of the five years' term. The timber and other 
natural products upon it are not his, but he may 
maintain his right to occupy it, and therefore his 
right to have it left in a condition lit to occupy for 
coffee-planting, against anyone who has not a good 
title of his own. 
This decision appeas to me to be very directly 
opposed to Mr. Talbot's statement. — Yours &c. 
F. A. TOTNBEB. 
[Note by Ed.— What has Mr. Talbot to say to 
this ?]— Local " TimeB." 
_ . — ^ ^ » 
A JAMAICA PERFUMERY INDUSTRY. 
The perfumery trade is a large and growing one. 
There will always be a demand for scents, perfumed 
soaps, and cosmei iqaes, and the means of supplying 
the demand must expand in proportion. Within 
recent years this necessity has led to the production 
of an imitation article, the resnlt of chemical mani- 
pulation. These crystal scents, as they are called, are 
largely manufactured in Germany an! are being 
bought in the abrecce of the pure materia'. Many 
trade lists of " floral products" are simply catalogues of 
Cb iQ)itatio}i8. They are not by aoy means so 
pleasant or so harmless as the genuine ■rtiole, 
and one who habitually uses the latter can tell 
at once the difference, A compariaoo can be 
drawn between any natural fcent and its tr 
tificial prototype always to the disadvantage of 
the chemical product with its reminiacences of the 
mineral basis. The public in this icstance prefer the 
real to the artificial. If the pure article were placed 
on the market in sufficient quantitit-s to fix their 
tiste the crystal scents would soon find themselves 
boycotted. There is thus an opening for the pro- 
duction o( ths legitimate article which might be taken 
advantage of by mjioy of the colonies to supply 
the wants of the United Kingdom. We think 
the suggestion is worthy the consicferation of our 
email capitalists or cultivators whose means ar« not 
folly employed or invested and who are desirous of 
adding to their ordinary sonrces of income. 
Jamaica could produce perfumei both of an ordi- 
nary and special character in abundance. The condi- 
tions of cultivation are exceptionally favourable and 
the establishment of a flower farm would, we 
believe, be a profitable undertaking. Col. Talbot, 
we understand, demonstrated the fact that flower- 
farming in Jamaica was feasible bat we are unwsie 
of the results of his efforts in the direction of stad- 
inii an industry. The enterprise might very well 
form an adjunct to some of our lariter Poor-booeee. 
In the neighbourhood of Grasee in France there are 
hundreds of acres where the old, the ailing, and the 
children, earn a livelihood by picking roses for the 
scent market. The only obstacle in the way of em- 
barking cn the indastrv is the preliminary expense. 
To make perfume from flowers requirss a somewhat 
costly plant. Bat admittiog that difficulty, any one 
with a fair capital could easily start a farm and 
confidently, calculate on a handsnme return for bi« 
capital and labour. In India a flower grower started 
in 1890 in the industry and is now doing a pros- 
perous business and employing over ninety hands. 
If this result can be achieved in the Ejst, it ought 
to be duplicated in the West Indies. 
Flower farming in Europe for perfumery purposes 
is engaged in almost exclusively at Var, France , it 
is here that the jasmine, tuberose, cassia, rose, and 
violet, grow to great perfection and where the sub- 
sequent processes of manufacture are commercially 
worked. Of orango blossoms alone as many as 1,900 
tons are used annually, and nearly 1,000 tons of roses. 
In the Grasse district and buyer is always ready to 
purchase as small a quantity se a kilo of roses from tbe 
small proprictaire. This fact furniebea • hint upon 
which we might improve. A central factory system 
might be organised. The plant-holder would buy the 
modest crops from the settlers and others, in addition 
to being a farmer himself, and utilise them for 
the various purposes of the scent market. An 
entire family could engage in flower growing, or 
the firm might be the special care of one 
member while the remainder are o"herwise occupied. 
There are mavy odoriferous and other vegetable sub- 
staccis in the colony which the floral chemist might 
find a profitable use for, acd the culture of which 
might add to the resources of the people. Such 
ininor products should not be overlookpd in the cul- 
tivation ol more familiar articles. It should be kept 
in mind that the agricultural possibilities of the 
country are rot exhausted. It has always been an 
article of our faith that there is potential wealth 
lying in the soil as yet undreamt ofi We do not 
think it is an exaggerated belief. Tbe desiderata 
required to realize that wealth are, an insight into 
the capabilities of the soil; enterprise, patience, and 
a moderate capital. With these a man ought to be 
able both to enrich himself and to contribute to the 
prosperous development of the country.— (JZe««er 
Packet. 
Sandalwood OtL.=-Mr, Petrie Hay, of Hnnsur, 
has been regranted the exclusive right to mann- 
faoture sandalwood oil within the Mysore State ioi 
a further period of 10 years.— i'loreeer, 
