i)BC. 1, 1900.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
417 
and my men, who have been with me all the 
time, have formed the same opinion. I 
heard a story about a farmer, in this neigh- 
bourhood, who pins his faith on 
ARTIFICIAL MANURES AND THE " FIVE 
COURSE SHIFT," 
and who has had the usual result, namely, 
a poor crop. He was speaking to a neighbour 
of mine, and proudly boasted that he had 
finished his harvesting in three weeks' time, 
and had his crop all safe under " thack and 
rope." My neighbour drily replied: '• I dinna 
care for they shortsome haresties, I like ain 
that taks a hantle o' wark and a laug time 
aboot it"; and these are my sentiments. 
When a man finishes his harvesting in a very 
short time, it is not a sign that he is a 
specially smart worker, but is generally proof 
of his being a mighty bad farmer and the 
grower of poor crops. I intended sending, 
this time, some peculiarly bright thoughts 
which occurred to me, in connection with 
the harvesting of the crop, but found, after 
putting these into elegant language, that 
some Shakespeare or Longfellow or Carlyle 
had anticipated me, and not unfrequently 
used my very words. If those fellows had 
never been, it had been millions in my pocket. 
INSURANCE. 
Insurance of buildings is not the only out- 
lay in that direction that farmers have to 
meet, for most of them insure everything 
about the place, not forgetting their stock 
and even their labourers, the latter being a 
very necessary item, in these days of a mas- 
ter's liability. I have had my men insured 
for many years, but only twice have I 
put forward any claim against the com- 
pany, both occasions being on account of 
Bickness, for which I received I2s 6d per 
week during. the time the sick man was off 
work. In the event of accident by which a 
labourer is permanently injured or killed, 
the Company stands between the insured and 
the claimant. Life insurance in Ceylon was 
a subjectrecei vingconsiderableattention lately 
and clear proof was produced that risks were 
less in your island than in this country ; 
but I lately read an article which proved 
that Ceylon was not the safest place in the 
world to live in, but the fields of our up to- 
date battles. Csesar, it was pointed out, 
thought very little of a fight in which 50 
per cent of the participants were not killed 
out-right. In Napoleon's time the killed in 
battle averaged 2.5 per cent, in the Ameri- 
can Civil War 20 per cent, and in our own 
little South African debate, it has been only 7 
per cent. " At this rate," the article con- 
tinues " in a few years more, the only really 
safe place for a timid man, will be in a big 
battle, and the insurance rates on the lives 
of military gentlemen in active service will 
be lower than the rates on tract distribu- 
tors or hotel porters." 
SUGARLESS TEA AND UNSALTED MUTTON. 
Referring to the war in South Africa re- 
minds me that I read in the Ohserver a 
letter from one who had been in the hands 
of De Wet as a prisoner. One sentence 
ran thus :— " For the first four days 
of our captivity we lived on nothing 
but ,meat, and I can tell you we got 
as weak as rats,"* Ivow this fact I can cor- 
roborate, for, when I was a youngster, 
living, along with a companion, in the 
terra incognita of New Zealand, we ran 
short of everything in the shape of food, 
except tea and mutton ; we had no flour, 
sugar, salt, &c., and, for four weeks, we 
existed on unsalted mutton and sugarless tea, 
and so weak did we become that we could 
scarcely walk a hundred yards, and we both 
became permanent believers in the old saying 
that " bread is the staff of life." When the 
boat, which was wont to bring provisions 
to us, ultimately did arrive, my comrade 
seemed unable to justify his appetite, and, 
after watching the truly magnificent way 
that he gorged himself, i asked if he was 
enjoying himself. "Yes, thank you," he 
replied, but what I don't like is the long 
time that is wasted between the meals ! " 
THE SWALLOWS 
left us, this year, on the 28th of September, 
the same date as they have chosen for their 
departure, 17 times out of the past 19 years. 
How they know when the day comes I'ound 
is one of those things that no fellow can 
understand. 
PLANTS AND THEIR TREATMENT IN 
AMERICA. 
We have to acknowledge with thanks receipt 
of the tollowiug from the Agricultural Depart- 
ment at Washington : — 
Progress in the treatment of Plant Diseases in th« 
United States, by B T Galloway, Chief of DiTision 
of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology. 
Progress of OommercisJ Growing of Plants Under 
Glass, by B T Galloway, Chief of Division of Vege- 
table Physiology and Pathology. 
Progress of Plant Breeding in the United States, 
by Herbert J Webber and Ernst A BsBsey, Division 
of Vegetable Phy8iolo6;y and Pathology. 
Two Diseases of Red Cedar, caused by Polyporua 
Juniperinus N Sp and Polyporus Carueus Nees, A 
Preliminary Report by Hermann von Schrenk, In- 
structor in Botany, Henry Shaw School of Botany, 
Special Agent, Division of Vegetable Physiology and 
Pathology. 
COFFEE IMPORT DUTIES IN FRANCE 
Havre, Oct. 15. — According to information ob- 
tained here, it is not correct7 as reported from 
IJombay, that Indian coffee exported to France 
will in future have to pay double the duty levied 
upon Brazilian coffee. Coffee grown in British 
possessions will, on the contrary, continue to 
enjoy the benefit of the French minimum tariff 
indefinitely. Venezuelan coffee is the only coffee 
affected, as France has no commercial treaty with 
Venezuela, and the duty on coffee from that coun- 
try will therefore be double what it is on other 
kinds. The duty fixed on Venezuelan coffee was 
at first to be applied to all cofiee coming from 
Venezuela after September 21; but since this 
decision was taken, and in consideration of the 
protests made by the different Chambers of Com- 
merce, this date has been extended until Decem- 
ber 31. Meanwhile, a treaty is likely to be con- 
cluded with Venezuela, and then the import duty 
on. coffee will be the same for all.— Home ana 
colonial Mail, Oct. 19. 
* Because there was precious little of that meat 
if we remember aright, in this case.— Ed. T,A, 
