158 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Sept. 1, 1900. 
IMPEESSIONS OF iSOUTHERN INDIA. 
[By a Ceylo^t Flanteu.] 
irrigation 
and ploughing are allied aoiiciillnral operations, 
and the Indian is as systematic in tlie one as in 
the other. With the exception of cotton, which, 
(as far as I could observe in a passing train) is not 
irrigated, every other product, even the young coco- 
nut plantation, (!) is regularly irrigated. Irri- 
gation does not mean tlie free and easy letting 
ont of water stored in tanks. No, it means the 
laborious and toilsome well-irrigation which is 
practised by the allied race of Tamils m tiie 
North of Ceylon. Agriculturists, who have given 
the subject of irrigation some though. I and study, 
a«sert that well-irrigation is more benelicial than 
taiik-irrigatioT), as the water of the former con- 
tain salts and other soluble nianurial ingre- 
dients not to be found in the latter. How- 
ever, the 
PATIENT INDUSTRY OF THE TAMIL 
was a cheering sight to one accustomed to the 
sloth and apathy of the Sinhalese generally. My 
condemnation of the Sinhalese is not sweeping. 
Nothing can excel the systematic toil and 
industry involved in tobacco cultivation (borrowed 
from the Tamil, I suppose) nor the attention ho 
pays to his rice lields in the interval between 
ploughing and reaping. But at the best his 
ao-ricultural industry is spasmodic, not continu- 
ous. Perhaps the fairness of his wants and the 
ease with which they can be met, have induced 
■ his proverbial apathy. In regard to irrigation, I 
noticed 
TWO SYSTEMS OF RAISING WATER. 
One by bullock power and other by means of 
the sweep or lift so familiar to the residents of 
old Colombo, who indulged in the luxury of 
baths in public bathing places. The former is a 
very interesting process. One side of a well is 
built up about three feet high. In this is fixed 
a beam with two curved uprights bending irto 
the well. These support a grooved wheel in 
which runs the rope used in raising the rt ater. 
From the top of the wall of the well a sloped em- 
bankment runs tor a short distance into a scooped 
hollow in the ground. A laige cow- bide stitched 
up is used as a bucket. One end of the rope 
is 'lixed to it and the other to the yoke of a 
pair of oxen. These stand on the top of the 
; slope with their back to the well and the bucket 
is hlled. They are driven at a trot to the bot- 
tom of tlie slope and the bucket reaches the 
surface and is emptied into a trough by drawing 
la a piece of rope attached to the bottom of 
of the bucket. By pulling the reins, the bullocks 
are backed to the top of the slope, and the pro- 
cess of hliing the bucket and emptying it is 
repeated with machine-like regularity. In the 
Western and other parts of Ceylon, except the 
North, the " lift " is worked by a single man, 
who dips the bucket into tiie well and drg-ws 
it out with comparative ease, owing to the weight 
attached to the other end of the " lift." 
In India the lift is notched by having steps or 
V 'indentations cut into it. On it are five or six 
« ! men witli long balancing poles, who move up 
i,fl,nd down it to fill tiie bucket and draw it up. 
• - .A big cauldron takes the place of a bucket. 
" The treshness and the dark green of all 
cultivated products were a refreshing sight 
and in contrast willi the avidity around. 
Water is led into the cultivated patches by 
means of drains. Plantain gwrtiens, and as 
I said before, coconut gardens, are also watered 
by drains running between the row.s. 
PLANTAIN GARDENS 
are so different to what one sees here. Tney are 
carefully tended. All the withered branches a.e 
cut and used to mulch the ground. The leaves are 
all dark green. 
What a pity it is that no one .seems interested 
in teaching the Indian ryot how to grow 
COCONUTS. 
The plants are put down six, eight or ten feet 
apart. From the railway one c<juiii .-iCe large trees 
in the villages and some only of these seemed to 
be bearing well. The nuts for sak; at the railway 
stations were little larger in size than the Mal- 
dive coconut. On the lower jiortion of the 
line, 
COTTON 
is met with. The shrubs are two or three feet 
high. The great cotton district is, of courte, 
Tinneveily. The branch line to it diverts from 
the main-line at a place called Manniachi, two 
stations out of Tuticorin. Along the main line 
the centre of a cotton district is Niridunpatti, 
there can be seen large, stone-built cotton mills 
and the manager's residence on the top of an 
adjoining barren hill — by the way all the hills 
meD with in the neighbourhood of the railway 
seemed to be barren. 
The Indian ryot has not much to learn in the 
way of agriculture. His dry ploughing, involving 
as it does the thorough aeration and pulveris- 
ing of the soil, the thoroughne.><s of the opera- 
tion as is seen by every bit of his land, being 
broken up and his systematic irrigation do not 
leave much to he desired. His methods are some- 
what primitive and crude, but their results are 
satisfactory. 
It will be remembered that some years ago, 
after the great famine, there was an attempt made 
at a revival of agriculture. It was argued that one 
of the causes ot famine was defective methods 
of agriculture. Amateur Agriculturists condemned 
the Indian system as radically bad. Professor 
V^oelcker was comniissoned to study the system 
on the spot and to suggest improvements. He 
studied it and the result was that the Agent had 
VERY LITTLE TO BE TAUGHT. 
His conclusions were that his methods were not in 
agreeniuiit with those in European countries, but 
the conditions of both were dissimilar. His sys- 
tem was the result of the traditional experience 
of many generations and should not be lightly or 
hastily disturbed. Like the Prophet of old he 
was sent to curse, but he blessed instead. On 
the railway journey till Madura is reached, I 
did not notice any rice fields ; all was high and 
dry land cultivation. 
THE ETCE-FIELDS 
are very like our own, with ridges and water. 
Of course, as is well-known, the Indian sy-teni 
of paddy cultivation is different for our sloven 
and wasteful system of broad-cast sowing. They 
sow in seed-beds and perform the laborious work 
of transplan tins'. Three-fourths of seed paddy is 
saved by this, a very large item in the aggregatp. 
The benefits accruing from the mode involved in 
transplanting and from more room for the plants, 
