2^8 
Supplement to the "Tropical AgricuUurisl." [Oct. 1, 1900. 
The common method of branding cattle in 
this country — by which a grt^at part of the body 
is covered with letters, figure*, designs and 
diagrams — tends, fO to speak, t^i deaden the tkin, 
so that its physiological functions are seriously 
interfered with. What our village cattle keepers 
have to be taught is that it is not the im- 
moderate use of the iiring iron, or even of 
drugs, that iuduce's cattle to develope and put 
on flesh, or impart strength to them ; but that 
it is the food and the care bestowed on them. 
I shall now go on to consider the second division 
of my subject, viz., branding for identiiication. 
In Ceylon there is no system adopted by cattla- 
owuers, nor are there any regulations specified 
by the State, in regard to branding for iden- 
tification. As a rule, the letters branded for 
identification are of unnecessarily large size, and 
it is not uncommonly the case that the initials 
of the owner's name practically cover the entire 
side of the animal's body. In some countries 
there are special regulations as to the places 
•where branding for identification might be done. 
I am inclined to think that the best places 
for marking is the croop or the thigh, and 
that no letters need occupy more than three 
square inches, I have heard it suggested that ani- 
mals should be branded on the neck, close behind 
the ear, as this does least injury to the hides. 
But 1 am not inclined to sanction this, par- 
ticularly when the branding is done by the ordi- 
nary village hand, as the spot indicated is too 
delicate — I almost said vital — to be subjected 
to the action of a hot-iron, particularly when 
this instrument is carelessly handled. I quite 
see the force of the remark that hides are 
damaged by branding, but at the same time 
I cannot abandon my recommendation made 
from a veterinary point of view to suit commer- 
cial ideas, 1 would, however, avail myself of 
these ideas to enforce my objection against 
indiscriminate and immoderate use of the firing 
iron, since the more it is used the greater is 
the damage done to hides and the lower the 
prices they fetch. Many other devices have 
been conceived for superceding the firing iron 
in marking for identification, such as ear-marking, 
tatooing, and branding with chemical solutions, 
but when we consider the circumstances of the 
mass of the Island population, it is not to be 
hoped that any of these devices can either be 
recommended or enforced. I do not think that 
branding with the hot iron could be superceded 
as a convenient and satisfactory method of 
marking for identification, but what is necessary 
is that such branding should be limited by certain 
regulations, which should be enforced tnrough 
the ordinary administrative channels, so that 
■while the cattle-owner marks his cattle in a 
manner and to a degree suflicient for purposes 
of identification he does not cause unnecessary 
suffering to the beast, nor damage the prospective 
■value of its hide. 
A. CHIN N I AH. 
{To be concluded.) 
[Erratum. — For " opening parotid," in line 19 of 
the first part appearing iu the Si^ptember mimb<?r, 
j-ead " open parotid."] 
RAINFALL TAKEN AT THE SCHOOL OP 
AGRICULTURE DURING THE MONTH 
OF SFPTEJIBER, 1900. 
M.mday . . Nil 
Tuesday . . Nil 
Wednesday... Nil 
Thursday ' . . -I'i 
Friday . . Nil 
Saturday . . Nil 
Sunday . . Nil 
Monday . . Nil 
Tuetday . . Nil 
Wednesday... Nil 
Thursday' . . Nil 
J'riday . . Nil 
Saturday . . Nil 
Sunday . . Nil 
Monday ... '57 
1 
Saturday . . 
3-87 
]7 
2 
Sunday 
•45 
18 
o 
Monday 
•42 
19 
4 
ruesday 
•45 
20 
.5 
■\yi;dne,sday .. 
•03 
21 
6 
Thursday 
•50 
•J2 
7 
Friday 
•45 
2a 
8 
Saturdiiy 
Nil 
'j'i 
9 
Sunday 
•04 
25 
10 
iloiiday 
.Nil 
■2fy 
11 
Tue.-day 
>)1 
il 
12 
Wedne.^day .. 
. -y? 
28 
13 
Thursday . 
•07 
29 
14 
Friday 
•65 
15 
Saturday 
Nil 
1 
16 
Sunday 
Nil 
Greatest amount of rainf 
on tlie 1st Sept., 3-87 inche 
Recorded by 
Total. 
Mean. 
7^12 
•22 
all in any 24 hours 
Mr. C. Dkiebehg. 
OCCASIONAL NOTES. 
A correspondent, who is evidently interested 
in tropical drug plants, for which we know 
there is some enquiry from Europe, sends us a 
list of plants and asks us for the Sinhalese names. 
We give below a note on each of the plants 
named : 1. Michelia champaca, Champak, Sapu. 
2. Sweet Basil, Ocinium basilicum, Suvandatala. 
3. Tinosporae. There are three indigenous species 
of Tinospora : T. malabarica. var. Tomentosa, 
Bukinda, Walkinda ; T. crispa, Tittakinda ; T. 
cordifolia, Rasakinda. 4. Wrightia antidysen- 
terica, now Hollarrhena antidysenterica is Kenchi 
a Conessi bark of commerce. It is not indigenous 
and has no native name. A close ally is ^oif/a/r- 
hena mitts, Kiriwalla or Eirimawara, is found 
native, and the bark is much used medicinally for 
fever and dysentry. Dr. Trimen states that the 
bark is sold under the name of "Kalinda." 
5. Emblica officinalis, now Phyllanthus e^nblica, 
the Emblic myrobalan, Nt-lli. 6. Saraca indica, 
Diyatalmal or Diyaratambala. 7. Abroma augusta, 
" abrome," not indigenous and no native name. 
8. Nigella indica, now Nigella sativa, small fennel 
or black cummin, Kaluduru. 9. Trapabispinosa, 
Ikiliya. 10. Aloes, the drug is the product chiefly 
of Aloe vulgaris, not indigenous, no native name. 
H. Neem, Margosa or Kohomba, Azadirachta 
indica. 12. Sepalika, this is the native name 
of Nyctayithes arbortristis. 
A correspondent signing himself Robert Thomp- 
son has addressed a lecter to the Secretary of State 
for India on the subject of Cacao Cultivation, 
which from the writer's experience of cacao he is 
led to believe will succeed in certain parts of the 
Empire. Mr. Thompson has seen cacao grown 
successfully under irrigation on vast areas where 
the rainfall is very meagre, and he is sanguine that 
the same can be done in parts of India if the 
trees are grown under " shade." Refering to past 
