426 
THE TROPICAL AGRICUl TURIST. [Oct. r, 1894. 
Supplies as delivered to tlie consumer ; but-, when 
tested by the biological test, the Lahugama water 
is found to he freer from micro-organisms than are 
the London Water Supplies from the Thames and 
Lea, even after these waters have had their zymo- 
tic power reduced by 9(5 to 99 per cent by passing 
through the filtering beds of the Water Companies. 
The case is different with the London Watet 
Supplies from the Kent wells. According to 
Dr. P. F. Frankland "The water of the Kent 
" Company leaves the well almost wholly destitute 
" of living organisms, and the few organisms 
"which it does contain are almost certainly Lin- 
" ported into it in passing' over the surfaces at tin- 
mouth of the well." Before it has reached the 
consumer, however, even the water of the Kent 
Company is more zymotic than the Labngama 
water, and sometimes more so than the filtered 
Thames and Lea waters. Of course, too much 
importance must not be attributed to tin- develop- 
ment of micro-organisms by treating water with 
culture media, as so many of these micro-organisms 
are developed from spores that are not pathogenic. 
At the same time, it is a point decidedly in favour 
of a drinking water, that it should have a low 
zymotic power, as is the ease with the Labugama 
water. According to Dr. I'. F. Frankland " the 
biological standard of purity as regards drinking 
water is of more importance than the chemical 
standard." The biological test is, at all events, 
a significant one, anil 1 mean to continue the u>e 
of it during 1892. 
Gas. 
The illuminating power of the town gas, its 
purity and the pressure at which it is supplied 
have been satisfactorily maintained. According 
to contract the gas should have an illuminating 
power of not less than 12 standard candles, and 
should not contain more than 20 grains of sulphur 
in any form, in 100 cubic feet of gas, and should 
be supplied at a pressure that will balance a 
column of water nine-tenths of an inch in height. 
The following is a tabular view of the actual 
results' obtained during 1891, as compared with 
the contract figures, and also with the results 
obtained in 1890. 
a) 
Si 
c "5 
Contracted for . . . 
Obtained in 1890 
Obtained in 1891 
12 
Max. 17-2 
Min. 15 3 
Mean. 16-1 
Max. 16 4 
Min. 15 1 
Mean. 15 9 
si -; 
32 
20 
8-6 
1-6 
3- 6 
4- 2 
26 
3 44 
— - 
11 
9 « 
9-59 
9-52 
Miscellaneous. 
The following is a list of the substances that I 
have been required to examine and report upon 
during the past year:— Well waters, stream waters, 
Kandy Water Supply, beer from the canteen, milk, 
arrack, extract of tea, native drug (supposed to con- 
tain opium), brandy and soda, lemonade, tea prun- 
ings, pods of theobroma cacao, various forms of 
desiccated coconut, coconut shells fresh and fer- 
mented, coconut poonac, crushed tallow oilcake, 
crushed castor cake, bone dust, steamed bones, 
dissolved bones, superphosphate of lime, sulphate 
of ammonia, sulnhate of potash, nitrate of potash, 
muriate of potash, fish manure, sulphate of quinine 
manufactured by the Government of India, aniline 
black, oil supply for the Ceylon and Minicoy 
Imperial Light Service, plumbago. 
A few remarks on tone of the above may be 
interesting. 
Manures. — These were nearly all genuine ; one 
sample of bone dust, however, contained 10 |wi 
cent excess of sand over the average amount, and 
8 per cent over the extreme limit that should be 
passed as legitimate. In the case of fish manure 
it is difficult to say what is adulteration ; it is 
evidently a substanee that should only be pur- 
chased on anal) sis, as the sand varies from 3 per 
cent in specially prepared kinds to 50 |«er cent. 
The castor cakes, though not adulterated with 
foreign substances, were nearly all somewhat 
deficient in nitrogen as compared with that in the 
best quality produced. 
Druqs.— Samples of the sulphate of quinine 
manufactured by the Government of India have 
been analysed for the Medical Department of the 
Ceylon Government. The results obtained by the 
analysis of different samples have been somewhat 
variable, due, no doubt, to different species of 
bark being operated upon at the factory at differ- 
ent times; thus Ledgeriana bark will yield its 
quinine in a pure state more readily than succii li- 
bra. Sulphate of quinine is regained as pure for 
medical purposes, i.e., "official" if it does not 
contain more than 5 per cent of sulphates of other 
cinchona alkaloids. The following gtvea a tabular 
view of the composition of the four samples of 
Indian Sulphate of quinine which I have analysed 
as compared with the article manufactured in 
Europe. The latter sometimes so nearly ap- 
proaches absolute purity that I give this as the 
superior limit of the Kuropean article. 
Indian. Indian. Indian. 
1890. 1891. 1891. 
Water of crystallisation 
and moisture 12-78 13 (2 9 4 
Anhydrous sulphate of 
qu'iniiij ... ... 7957 8628 85 6 
Sulphates of other cin- 
chona alkaloids ... 7 40 -fi4 5-00 
Ash ... ... ... -18 -OC trace 
100 00 100-00 100 00 
European. 
Indian. . 
1891. Officinal. Pure. 
Water of crystallisation 
and moisture ... 9'5 14 57 14'45 
Anhydrous sulphate of 
auinine ... .. 84-08 80 43 85 55 
Sulphates of other cin- 
chona alkaloids .. 628 5 00 
Ash ... ... ... -14 
100 00 100 00 100 00 
The Indian product has not such a highly- 
finished appearance as the European article. 
This is partly due to a trace of colour and partly 
to the crystals not having their full complement 
of water. I should expect it, however, to be at 
least equally efficacious as a febrifuge from its 
high percentage of anhydrous sulphate >>f quinine 
and its high total alkaloidal strength. This article 
produced by the Indian Government, is to be 
commended. A very much cruder quinine sulphate 
than that of the Indian Government we find, 
makes an excellent febrifuge. 1 refer to the 
rough sulphate obtained in the first part of the 
process in the analysis of cinchona bark. Hun- 
dreds of fever-stricken natives have been cured by 
this crude sulphate of quinine distributed and 
