THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
Laid two or three deep upon the straw, the eggs 
occupy the floor of the ovens between the central 
man-holes and the fire grooves, and four or five 
times in 24 hritrs are agitated by the attendant, 
who moves them eight or ten inches at a time from 
right to left around the entire circle. This move- 
ment is made with apparent carelessness, dozens of 
eggs being changed in position by a single move of 
the hand, and yet it is said that rarely is a single 
egg among a thousand cracked in the operation. 
For three weeks this treatment continues, and 
then the contents of the oven are changed from a 
white inanimate mass to a living host ol chickens. 
Left for several days in the warm ovens 
over the floor of which food is scattered for them, 
they gain rapidly ia strength. The ovens are so 
charged with eggs as not to have them all hatch at 
the same time. Consul Cardwell soys that there are 
inenbatories in Egypt twice as large as the one des- 
cribed by him, and many smaller ones, and that to 
build one is not attended with great expense ; the 
cost of the one described was less than £200. — 
Journal of the Society of Aits. 
IN TROPICAL LANDS. 
A Loudon correspondent writes : — Mr. A. Sinclair's 
new book seems to have h»d favorable criticisms all 
round. It will be very eagerly read I am sure by 
many in Ceylon. How welt written and brilliant his 
pages are, never getting prosy or dull. The get-up 
and engi^u ings are a credit to Aberdeen where the 
whole of it was planned and put together. Page 
27 is an eloquent opening up ot a future chapter in 
earth's history. The photogravure of your Map of 
Ceylon with a halo of miniature dead and living 
acquaintances of the Author will be a permanent 
memento of i>0 ye.u-s ago. The worthy Fergusons 
are well to the front, and some nice folk are very 
nice indeed. I smiled to see my invisible puny 
self away up in the right hand corner, 
DKU G-GROWING IN BRITISH INDIA. 
Wo have recently leceived the Annual Administra- 
tion Report on the Government Botanical Gardens 
and Paiks, Nilgiri iiiils, India, for the year ending 
March 31, 1894. It contains several paragraphs of 
interest to pharmacists. The Botanical Gardens 
receive frequent inquiries for drugs and other products 
suitable for acclimatisation in India and are also 
often aske I to identify specimens. 
MA RAT HI BUDS AND MATHAN HAST. 
Thus, in January last, Mr. Omruanney, of the 
Indian Hemp Commission, sent for identification 
samples of two native drugs, known as MarathiBuds 
and Mathan Mast, which ore said to be frequently 
mixed with the hemp >old in bazaars for consump- 
tion, being reputed to increase the intoxicating 
properties of that article. The Marathi luds proved 
to be those of an Eriolasna, most probably Eriolcena 
quinqtuiloculm-is ; and the Mathan mast the pollen- 
bcaung scales of kouic Cyras, probably CycaB 
rin iimtls, but milch mailer than usually found in 
that species. IS either of these drugs is known to 
possess intoxicating properties ; the order Merculiu- 
<•", to which the Eriolnnat belong, is noted chiefly 
for its mucilaginous matters, and the Cycaa <ir- 
eiiutUa contains no alkaloid or other principle that 
would account tor its reputed narcotic action ; so that 
the introduction of these two substances into hemp 
mixtures may be regai ded as innocuous* 
liVHHKIt-YIKI.niNO TREKS. 
Ceara and Caslilloa rubber-trees have been culti- 
vated in the Barliyar Gardens for several years, 
and have been tapped moie than once, always 
with the most disappointing results so far as 
quantitative \ iold goes. though the Castilloa 
rubber. when nitrified, is of splendid quality. 
There is some doubt whether the unsatisfactory re- 
unit of the operations be not due to the want of 
skill in tupping. It is therefore, suggested, that 
Government should send an expert cubber-tapper from 
Assam to try his hand on the tree6. 
EUCALYPTUS OIL. 
Eucalyptus oil is now distilled in the Madras Presi- 
dency by private distillers in sufficient quantities to 
supply all the local requirements. One of the distillers 
has sent samples of his oil to London for examina : 
tion, and was informed that it was of good quality 
and could probably compete successfully with many 
brands of Globulus oil. The colour, however, was 
rather dark;. 
GUMS TRAOACANTII AND AMMONIACl'M. 
The Madras Government have also been asked by 
a planter at Nadivatam to procure for him, througn 
the British Consuls in Persia, seeds of the tragacanth 
and ammoniacum plants. It is not considered likely, 
however, that either of these plants would do well on 
the moist western slopes of the Nilgiri Hills, as they 
require a high elevation where the climate is hot and 
dry in summer and cold in winter. 
IPECACUANHA. 
The cultivation of ipecacuanha is continued with 
varying success. In some places it is not doing well at 
all, but two or three planters report excellent progress, 
and have asked for more seedlings, as they intend to 
increase their plantations. 
ERYTHROXYLON COCA. 
About 2,000 cuttings are now being raised in the hot- 
houses in the Government Gardens at Ootacamund, 
half of which may be expected to grow into plants fit for 
planting out in July, 1895. The coca fruits freely, and 
can be grown readily fiom cuttings, so that in a very 
few years a large area can be placed under cultivation. 
At present it is not known to be attacked by any disease. 
Mr. Hooper some years ago made a small quantity 
of the hydrochlorate of cocaine and reported that 
it could be easily manufactured in Madras. There 
can be no doubt that the Erijth-o.ajlon Coca can be 
grown in abundance on the Nilgiris ; but it is not 
likely that it would prove remunerative to planters, 
because from 000 to 400 lb. of very carefully dried 
leaves are required to produce 1 lb. of cocaine. 
JALAP. 
About 2,000 lb. of dried jalap tuber has been slip' 
plied to the Madras Medical stores Department at 
the London market rate. The ground under culti- 
vation was too small to yield so much, and the re- 
sult is that this year only 500 lb. of the dry tuber have 
been lifted. No ring disease has as yet been observed 
in the tubers, and the chief enemy to jalap, so far, 
has been the common earth-rat. Small quantities 
have also been sold to private traders. — Chemist and 
Dnmyist. 
CEYLON TEA IN AMERICA. 
New York City, Feb. 19th, 189o. 
We are in receipt of the following letter to our 
address from Mr. Elwood May : — 
My Dear Sir,— My object in writing to you at this 
time, is to inform you of the fact that the Ceylon 
Planters' Tea Company has been reorganized, and I 
have been elected the presideut. I will leave it to 
my friends to conjecture, why I was urged to again 
assume the executive in this Company, and given 
fifty per cent of its shares as an inducement to toko 
a hold of the helm, by the very person who lost 
forty thousand dollars in the old Company. My only 
reason lor again taking the matter up is' that so far 
no one has appeared lrom cither India, or Ceylon, 
in America that has made any headway that 
would keep us from getting the larger portion of the 
business it we can get a moderate amount of backing. 
Our brands have a capital reputation and in the small 
way we arc going to run the business it will be self 
sustaining. I am not without hope that Ceylon will 
see that her best interests will be served by "working 
through us. The planters may have to spend moie 
money, and send ov«r more gentlemen, who do not 
understand our peculiar methods, before they come 
to recognize the indisputable fact that it is only in 
the nature of things that a foreigner cannot grasp 
tho situation, but sooner or later the truth will 
be recognized that wo understand how to win 
tho success so much desired. Mr. MucKeuzio the 
Planters' representative I have not had the pleasure 
