Jan.  2,  1893.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
447 
cent,  having  been  paid  each  year  since  1887. 
The  £10  shares  stand  at  15,  and  yield  a return  of 
10  per  cent. ; while  the  Scottish  Ceylon  Tea  Company 
distributed  15  per  cent,  in  1890.  18  per  cent,  in 
1691,  and  has  paid  an  interim  dividend  of  10  per  cent, 
for  the  current  year,  the  £10  shares  being  quo‘ed  16 
to  17,  and  giviog  a return  at  that  price  of  £11  5s. 
per  cent.  The  results  given  above  are  good  enough 
to  tempt  investors  in  this  kind  of  security,  bur,  it  must 
be  borne  in  mind  that  Booner  or  later  the  supply  may 
and  probably  will,  exoeed  the  demand  ; and  if  tne 
market  price  of  tea  gets  down  below  a oertain  level 
many  estates  not  only  oannot  be  advantageously  worked 
but  dividends  will  fall  off.  Anyone,  therefore,  elect- 
ing to  buy  shares  in  tea  companies  should  be  espe- 
cially careful  to  select  those  which  are  of  the 
highest  class,  and  whose  tea  is  thoroughly  appreciated 
in  the  Mincing-lane  market. 
We  have  received  the  following  letter  on  the 
subject  of  “ Shares  as  Payment  ” which  will  be 
of  interest  both  to  our  correspondent  “ Con- 
tract” aod  also  to  others: — “Sir, — Your  financial 
correspondent  appears  to  me  to  be  hardlv  correct  in 
his  answer  to  ‘Contract’  in  today’s  Echo.  I con- 
sider that  he  ought  to  bave  advised  that  ‘Contract’ 
would  be  quite  safe  in  accepting  folly-paid  shares  as 
remuneration  for  services  to  be  rendered  to  a company 
about  to  be  formed,  provided  that  such  shares  were  the 
subject  of  an  agreement  between  ‘ Contract  ’ (or  the 
party  from  whom  he  had  to  receive  them ) and 
a trustee  acting  on  behalf  of  the  proposed  com- 
pany, and  that  such  agreement  was  lodged  with 
the  Registrar  of  Joint  S'ock  Companies  before 
the  issue  of  the  shares.  If  that  were  done,  the 
shares  would  be  held  as  in  every  way  fully  paid, 
and  nc  liquidator  would  be  able  to  justify  any 
oUim  on  * Contract  ' in  respect  of  them. — Yonrs  &c., 
“ Nov.  21st."  “ S.” 
QUININE  FOR  THE  MILLION  IN  INDIA. 
Good  news  for  cinchona  planters  (and  there  are 
still  some  left  among  us)  is  contained  in  the  follow- 
ing telegram  in  the  Madras  Mail  ■ 
QUININE  FOR  THE  MILLION. 
Calcutta,  8th  Dec. — Yesterday’s  Calcutta  Gazette 
contains  the  Government  scheme  for  promoting  the 
use  of  quinine  among  the  millions  of  Bengal.  It  has 
been  arranged  that  the  drug  shall  be  supplied  of  the 
finest  quality  from  the  Government  Factory  in  packets 
of  5 grs.  each,  to  be  sold  at  one  pice  each.  These 
packets  will  be  sold  at  all  public  offices  in  the  interior 
of  the  Districts  such  as  the  Police  Stations,  Out- 
posts, Dispensaries  and  Post  Offices.  Pending  the 
elaboration  of  the  scheme,  the  packets  will  at  present 
be  sold  at  the  Post  Offices  only,  and  the  Postmasters 
will  be  paid  a small  commission  on  the  sale. 
Private  employers  desirous  of  utilising  this  method 
of  distributing  the  quinine  will  be  supplied  with 
packets. 
We  should  press  on  the  Ceylon  authorities  to 
follow  this  good  example  for  the  benefit  of  our 
natives  in  many  feverish  districts ; the  packets 
would  no  doubt  be  supplied  by  the  Government 
of  India  for  such  a purpose  at  cost  price.  The 
benefit  to  planters  will  be  found  in  the  great 
stimulus  to  consumption,  when  the  people  of  India 
realize  the  full  benefit  of  the  febrifuge,  and  their 
example  is  followed  by  the  Burmese,  Siamese 
and  Chinese.  All  the  bark  as  yet  grown  in  the 
world  would  not  then  suffioe  for  one-tenth  of  the 
demand.  The  Mail  has  the  following  editorial 
remarks  : — 
The  experience  of  planters  has  proved  that  it  does 
not  require  many  doses  before  the  coolie  becomes 
fully  cognisant  of  the  benefit  he  derives  from  this 
fedrifuge.  There  is  but  little  doubt  that  if  only 
subordinate  officials  were  for  a year  or  two  to  exert 
th  emselyes  in  effecting  the  sales  of  these  small  packe  is 
ofquinine,  the  demand  would  mcreabe  wicn  astounding 
jajpidity.  We  believe  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say 
that  India  does  not  produce  sufficient  cinchona  bark 
for  the  manufacture  of  the  quini  ne  necessary  forthe 
proper  treatment  of  the  malaria  that  prevails  in  this 
country.  Up  to  the  present  time  only  a minute 
fraction  of  the  people  suffering  from  this  malaria 
has  been  either  a*  are  of  the  existence  of  this 
febrifuge  or  able  to  purchase  it.  There  should  be 
an  enormous  demand  in  Bengal,  where  hitherto 
practically  none  has  existed.  We  trust  that  success 
may  attend  this  new  scheme,  but  this  will  only  be 
when  District  officials  take  a direct  interest  in  the 
sale  of  the  quinine.  The  small  commission  to  post- 
masters may  prove  an  incentive,  but  the  direct 
interest  of  the  officials  is  what  is  chiefly  required. 
At  first  prejudice  must  be  overcome,  but  when 
once  this  has  been  effected,  we  feel  confident  that 
the  millions  of  their  own  free-will  will  hasten  to 
purchase  the  febrifuge.  We  are  glad  to  see  that  the 
Government  of  Bengal  permits  employers  to  purchase 
these  packets  of  quinine  from  it  for  the  purpose  of 
distributing  them  amongst  their  employees.  This 
will  probably  be  found  in  the  end  one  of  the  most 
effective  means  of  popularising  quinine. 
A BREED  OF  FOWLS  SPOILT  BY  POULTRY 
JUDGES. 
It  is  deeply  to  be  regretted  that  in  great  measure 
the  economic  merits  of  the  true  Brahma,  as  the 
fowl  actually  was,  belong  now  to  the  past,  and  are 
not  found  in  the  same  degree  in  the  fowl  of  today. 
Probably  in  no  case  have  the  vagaries  of  judges 
done  so  much  harm  as  in  this  breed.  At  one  time 
the  two  most  prominent  arbitrators  of  the  day  (since 
deceased)  gave  prizes  so  entirely  to  a peculiar  pen- 
cilling composed  of  very  broad  dark  markings,  quite 
foreign  to  the  Brahma  fowl,  that  pullets  resem- 
bling in  shape  and  size  small  Silver-grey  Dorkings 
displaced  the  truer-bred  birds.  Then  an  excessively 
pure  “ silver  ” pencilling  was  encouraged  by  the 
same  judges  and  with  the  so, me  result.  These 
were  temporary  aberrations,  and  were  both  re- 
covered from  in  due  time,  though  not  till 
a weak  constitution  and  weedy  habit  had  been 
introduced  into  many  yards.  But  a more 
permanent  mischief  has  been  persistent  judging  and 
consequent  breeding  according  to  the  Cochin  type, 
and  including  the  encouragement  of  profuse  feather 
and  vulture-hocks.  The  change  in  these  respects  has 
been  enormous  since  the  first  edition  of  this  work ; 
as  may  be  seen  by  comparing  the  engraved  plates 
representing  Brahmas  as  shown  to-day,  with  the 
coloured  plates  prepared  for  the  original  edition  of 
this  work  in  1872.  What  we  here  desire  to  insist 
upon  is  the  fact  that  these  differences,  which  can 
be  seen  at  a glance  when  thus  represented  are  not 
matters  merely  of  personal  preference,  but  have  in- 
jured the  fowl,  which  is  no  longer  what  it  once  was. 
With  heavy  hocks  have  come  deficient  breast  and 
loss  of  constitution  ; the  Cochin  type  itself  has  fos- 
tered the  same  want  of  breast;  with  the  looser  and  more 
fluffy  plumage  are  associated  a more  or  less  yellow 
skin,  coarse  flesh,  inferior  laying  poivers  and  sluggish 
temperament ; for  it  may  be  stated  as  a general 
truth,  that  no  ‘‘  loose-feathered  ” breed  is  ever  a good 
table-fowl,  or  a first  rate  layer.  To  a great  extent, 
what  was  truly  characteristic  and  best  in  the  breed 
— its  hardiness,  its  pink  or  white  skin  and  good  flesh, 
and  its  splendid  laying  powers — have  vanished,  and 
we  have  instead  (in  reality  now,  what  was  wrongly 
affirmed  in  the  early  days),  simply  Cochins  of  another 
colour.  This  is  in  no  way  consistent  with  our 
remarks  in  Chapter  IX.  It  has  been  no  unavoidable 
result  of  “fancy”  judging,  but  a result  long  and 
persistently  foretold  by  the  present  writer,  of  fool- 
ish and  flagrantly  wrong  judging.  So  really  is  this 
the  case,  that  present  profit  and  satisfaction  from 
the  fowl  will  largely  depend  upon  simply  reversing 
the  disastrous  path  which  has  been  followed,  and 
returning  to  the  older  and  more  tight-feathered  model. 
In  keeping  the  Brahma  for  profit,  all  this  must  be 
considered.  It  will  generally  be  found,  at  present, 
that  the  light  variety  is  most  valuable,  both  a^  a 
