June  i,  1893.]  THE  fROPlCAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
^39 
SALT  IN  THE  HOUSEHOLD. 
A little  rubbed  on  the  cups  will  take  off  tea 
stains,  says  Hall's  Journal  of  Health.  Put  into 
whitewash,  it  will  make  it  stick  better.  As  a 
tooth  powder  it  will  keep  the  teeth  white  and 
the  gums  hard  and  rosy.  It  is  one  of  the 
best  gargles  for  sore  throat,  and  a preventive 
of  diphtheria;  if  taken  in  time.  Use  salt  and 
water  to  clean  willow  furniture;  apply  with 
brush,  and  rub  dry.  Salt  and  water  held  in  tJie 
mouth  after  having  a tooth  pulled  will  stop  the 
bleeding.  Prints  rinsed  with  it  in  the  water 
will  hold  their  colour  and  look  brighter.  Two 
teaspoonfuls  in  half  a pint  of  tepid  water  is 
an  emetic  always  on  hand,  and  is  an  antidote 
for  poisoning  from  nitrate  of  silver.  Neuralgia 
of  the  feet  and  limbs  can  be  cured  by  bathing 
night  and  morning  with  salt  and  water  as  hot 
as  can  be  borne.  When  taken  out  rub  the  feet 
briskly  with  a coarse  towel.  Salt  and  water  is 
one  of  the  best  remedies  for  sore  eyes,  and  if 
applied  in  time  will  scatter  the  inflammation. 
Silk  handkerchiefs  and  ribbons  should  be  washed 
in  salt  and  water,  and  ironed  wet,  to  obtain  the 
best  results.  Food  would  be  insipid  and  tasteless 
without  it.  Hemorrhages  of  the  lungs  or  stomach 
are  promptly  checked  by  small  doses  of  salt. — 
Sydney  Mail. 
PARA  INDIARUBBER. 
Owing  to  the  great  fluctuation  in  the  price  of  india- 
rubber,  the  trade  is  described  as  being  very  uncertain. 
According  to  the  last  official  report,  two-thirds  of  the 
State  revenue  of  Para  are  derived  from  the  export 
duty  on  indiarubber,  which  is  said  to  contribute  25 
p6r  cent,  of  its  value.  Owing  to  the  faot  that  Para 
possesses  almost  a monopoly  of  this  valuable  article, 
the  report  alleges  that  this  high  rate  of  duty  may  be 
maintained  for  many  years  to  come  without  destroy- 
ing the  trade.  Favours  are,  however,  conceded  to  the 
indiarubber  produced  in  the  State,  bb  also  to  that 
coming  from  the  entire  Amazon  region  if  exported 
from  Para  (Consular  Report,  1136,  1892.)— Pharma- 
oeutieed  Journal,  March  25. 
ZANZIBAR  ARROWROOT. 
A variety  of  arrowroot  is  to  be  found  in  most  native 
gardens  in  Zanzibar,  and  named  “uwanga,”  but  do 
Hot  think  it  is  the  true  arrowroot  ( Maranta  arundi - 
nacea),  the  Bhape  of  the  leaves  differing,  though  the 
preparation  of  the  roots  appears  to  be  the  same ; 
“uwanga”  bearing  a fleshy  knotty  root,  which  is 
ground  and  washed  in  repeated  waters,  and  finally 
sun-dried.  This  preparation,  mixed  with  sugar,  forms 
ft  favourite  sweetmeat  with  the  Arabs.  I see  no  reason 
why  arrowroot  should  not  be  more  extensively  culti- 
va*ed  on  the  island,  and  form  an  article  of  export. 
The  cultivation  is  easy,  and  immediate  returns  are 
obtained  : — “ The  plants  are  propagated  by  parting  the 
roots.  A light  loamy  soil  is  the  most  favourable  for 
their  growth.  When  they  are  a year  old  the  roots  are 
in  a fit  state  for  U6e”  ( Consular  Report,  266,  1892). — 
Pharmaceutical  Journal,  March  25. 
4 
NOTES  ON  PRODUCE  AND  FINANCE. 
The  Tea  Industry  in  1891. — The  Government  of 
India  has  issued  a statement  from  which  it  appears 
that  the  total  number  of  tea  gardens  throughout 
British  India  in  the  year  1891  was  4,293,  with  an 
aggregate  of  362,130  acres  aotually  under  tea.  Besides 
this  area,  some  450,000  acres  had  been  taken  up,  but 
had  not,  up  to  date,  been  planted.  The  total 
approximate  yield  was  123,712,825  lb.,  of  which  by  fai- 
th e greater  part  was  black  tea.  The  average  yield 
per  acre  of  mature  plants  was  399  lb.  In  future 
returns,  the  total  number  of  labourers  employed  will 
lie  shown, 
Indian  Tea  Garden  at  the  Crystal  Palaci.— 
The  following  is  taken  from  the  “ Crystal  Palace 
Hand-book  ” — “A  model  of  a tea  garden  in  Assam — 
which  was  appropriately  called  ‘ the  Eden  of  India  ’ 
by  the  late  Lord  Napier  of  Magdala— has  been  ar- 
ranged in  a building  on  the  North  Lawns.  Indian 
tea  plants  may  here  be  seen  in  a healthy  state  of 
growth,  and  the  preparation  of  the  tea  is  carried  on 
in  all  its  stages  of  withering,  fermenting,  rolling, 
drying,  &c„  by  natives  of  India.  The  model  has 
been  arranged  by  Mr.  Patrick  Macgregor,  an  old 
tea  planter  of  Assam.” 
Ceylon  Tea  in  America. — We  continue  to  receive 
topics  of  pnpers  referring  to  Ceylon  tea  in  America, 
and  these  show  that  Mr.  Elwood  May  and  those  in- 
terested with  him  in  Ceylon  tea  are  very  busily 
engaged  in  pushing  the  sale,  and  that  they  know  how 
to  do  it. 
Tea  and  Cocoa. — The  croakers  maintain  that  tea 
has  had  its  day,  although,  when  they  read  statistics 
on  the  subject,  they  find  it  difficult  to  prove 
this.  They  pertiff,  however,  and  point  to  coffee  by 
way  of  moral.  It  is  quite  true  that  the  medical 
faculty  have,  as  a rule,  objected  to  the  increasing  con- 
sumption of  tea,  although  if  it  leads,  as  they  say,  to  so 
much  indigestion,  and,  consequently,  more  frequent 
consultations,  it  is  remarkable  that  they  regard  it  as 
an  evil.  There  is  no  sign  that  we  can  see  of  the  de- 
creasing popularity  of  tea,  although  it  may  be  noted 
that  cocoa  and  chocolate  are  now  introduced  at  nu- 
merous functions  where  tea  and  coffee  only  were  ad- 
mitted. Even  after  dinner  coooa  is  frequently  taken, 
and  in  America  this  is  more  common  than  on  this  side. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  cocoa  is  received  with  favour  by 
dietetio  and  medical  authorities,  which  helps  its  popu- 
larity.— H.  and  C.  Mail,  March  31. 
COFFEE  AND  TEA  PILFERING. 
A leading  article,  signed  P.  H.,”  appears  in  the 
Indian  Planters'  Gazette , under  the  above  beading. 
The  writer  supports  the  memorial  of  the  Ntlgiri 
planters  upon  the  disadvantageous  working  of  the 
Coffee  Stealing  Prevention  Act,  XIII.  of  1878,  and 
the  suggestion  that  Tea  should  be  protected  as  well 
as  Coffee.  It  is  undoubtedly  the  case  that  petty 
thefts  of  Tea  and  Coffee  are  numerous,  and  there 
are  circumstances  quite  diBtinot  from  considerations 
of  the  intrinsic  value  of  the  plunder  whioh  give 
importance  to  the  demand  of  planters  that  these 
pilferings  should  be  put  a stop  to.  In  Assam  as 
well  a«  on  the  Nilgiris  planters  suffer  from  depre- 
dations of  'his  sort.  It  is  well  known  to  all  Managers, 
says  our  Calcutta  contemporary,  that  most  garden 
coolies  drink  tea  as  regularly  as  any  Europeans. 
RamaBWami  in  our  homes  prefers  Coffee,  but  he  takes 
tea  if  he  cannot  get  anything  else  ; and  the  planters’ 
oooly  probably  makes  a similar  virtue  of  necessity 
and  practioally  gives  a preference  to  that  whioh  can 
be  obtained  most  easily.  Our  contemporary  remarks, 
rightly  enough,  as  regards  tea  thefts,  that  “ it  is 
oftea  less  in  actual  dried  tea  that  the  Joss  is  suffered, 
than  in  green  leaf,  which  the  women  pluck  on  the 
garden,  carry  to  their  houses  in  their  aprons,  to  be 
hand  rolled,  and  dried  over  the  chula Calcutta 
experience  coincides  with  that  of  Southern  India 
in  regard  to  convictions,  too,  for  we  read  : — “ We 
have  known  many  instances  of  oases,  instituted  by  Tea 
planters  against  Natives,  in  which  there  was  no  moral 
doubt  of  the  accused’s  guilt,  fall  through,  to  the  loss 
of  European  prestige  which  a court  defeat  always 
inflicts,  simply  on  account  of  the  absence  of  such  a 
provision  as  the  Neilgherry  planters  are  now- 
trying  to  obtain.”  And  the  objections  that  have 
been  raised  in  the  North  are  similar  to  those  that 
have  been  put  forward  in  the  South  when  the  planter 
has  urged  his  claim  to  protection.  Our  Calcutta  contem- 
porary has  heard  it  said,  “ Imprison  a poor  cooly 
for  faking  a few  tea  leaves  to  his  house  ! Why, 
you  will  want  to  put  coolies  in  prison  for  bad  pluck- 
ing next and  has  reasoned  in  vaiu  that  a practice 
wbiah  makes  a difference  on  the  wrong  side  of  many 
