Fbe. 1, 1901.] Supplement to the Tropical AgricuUiirist." 
579 
11. Seeding. 
Tlie best plants are set aside for seeding. Tliey 
are not topped like others, but the side shoots and 
suckers are removed from the stems, only the 
heads or tops of the plants being preserved for 
seed. The heads are tied to sticks to keep them 
straight. 
As soon as the seed is ripe, the heads of plants 
are cut off and hung in a dry and safe place. 
After a few days the seed are rubbed out of tlie 
pods by hand and stored. The seed should be 
preserved from damp and insects. 
The vitality of the seed can be tested by scatter- 
ing some on a piece of hot iron. If a sharp 
spattering sound is given out, the seed' may be 
considered to be sound. 
12. Outturn. 
A well-grown crop is expected to yield from 
20 to '2-i maunds per acre, the money value of 
wliich may be estimated at ils. 100 to 120, R^. 5 
being the average price per maund of country 
cured tobacco. 
13. Injuries. 
Tlie chief euemy of the lob icco crop is a kind 
of c.iterpillar which eats away the leaves at night 
and takes slielter in the soil by day. This cater- 
pillar cr cutworm causes serious damage to the 
young plants. They should be carefully looked 
for and killed when any injury from this source 
is noticed. Hailstorms often destroy the crop 
over large areas of the country. 
IJf. Suggestions for Improvements and Conclusion. 
— Tobacco is one of the most profitable crops 
grown in tropical and sub-tropical countries, 
India is one of the important tobacco-growing 
countries of the world ; but as regards the quality, 
Indian tobacco is very inferior. The only chemi- 
cal deficiency of the Indian tobacco, according to 
the results of several analyses, is in caiboiiate 
of potash, proving the poverty of Indian soils in 
this important plan^ food. It may, however, be 
supplied by manuring the crop with saltpetre, 
which is easily obtainable at a moderate cost. 
Another direction in which improvement is 
possible is the cultivation of acclimatised foreign 
varieties, such as Havana, Dindigul, Samatra, 
Landreth's, etc-, which grow as well as any of 
the indigenous varieties, and are certainly better 
adapted for cigar making than the latter, which 
are extremely coarse for the purpose. Seeds of 
these varieties can be had from the Agricultural 
Department, Bengal. Defective curing is, how- 
ever, held to be the chief cause of the general 
inferiority of Indian tobacco. The curing of 
tobacco is a difficult art which requires to be learnt 
by experience. The simple directions for curing 
given in paragraph 9 will, it is believed, lead to 
some improvement in the quality of the tobacco. 
They have been followed with useful results by 
Mr. B. Pal Chaudhry on his Home Farm at Natuda 
in the Nadia district. — Indian Agriculturist. 
RICE AS A FOOD STAPLE. 
Rice is becoming more and more an important 
article of alimentation, as is evidenced by its 
increased importation. It remains a favourite 
disli among sweets, is largely consumed in soups, 
and in madeup dishes, wliile being extensively 
utillized alrug with wheaten* flour to secure 
greater whiteness of the bread. It is also largely 
u^ed to make starch. The rice emanating from 
South Carolina and from British Burmah are the 
two varieties most in request. Japanese rice of 
late meets with a fair demand. Indeed, when it 
is borne in mind that rice feeds one-third of the 
human race, and that it is considerably cultivated 
in Asia — no less than 100 different varieties alon^ 
are peculiar to British India and Ceylon, and 
Nortiiern and Central America — the importance 
of the plant of its product will be much better 
appreciated. Its growth has been attempted in 
Northern France, and the experiment was tried 
with partial success of raising it south of the 
Thames, outside London. Rice exacts a warm 
climate, but above all, a humid soil; hence, wliy 
the growing crop has to be irrigated with so 
much care. Before being harvested, etc., the 
soil is freed from water, the crop duly cut with 
the sickle, and it is next threshed by means of 
the flail or by machinery ; in some cases the grain 
is simply trampled out by cattle. The rice which 
has been obtained in the latter way, in the husk, 
is called "paddy;" the grain adheres lirmly to 
the husk, so much so, that specially machinery 
has to be employed in order not to injure or break 
the grain. 
The superiority of Carolina rice is due prin- 
cipally to the extreme care taken by the American 
growers to turn out clean samples. After it is 
husked, the grain passes through a whitening 
machine, which removes the inner cuticle or red 
skin. This done, the rice is fit for sale. Like 
the potato, lice is largely employed to prepare 
starch ; it is treated with a solution of caustic 
soda, which dissolves out the nitrogenous matters ; 
the starch deposits, and is weighed and dried. 
The analysis of Chemist Payeii, and that which is 
generally accepted, gives the composition of rice 
as follows: Nitrogenous matter, 7-55; starch, 
88-65; dext'ine. etc , 100; fatty matters, O'SO; 
cellulose, 1-10; and mineral matters, 0-90. Rice 
then resembles nearly the composition of the 
potato, which contains, as will be remembered, so 
much starch and so little nitrogen, fat and mineral 
substances. It explains also why rice is not a 
complete food, and why it is necessary to supple- 
ment it with meat, vegetables or fish. But rice 
possesses the great advantage of being easily 
digested, and does not fatigue or inconvenience 
the stomach. Hence, its efficacy as a remedial 
agent in cases of diseases of that organ, and of 
the intestinal channels. It exercises no laxative 
action as other cereals are reported to do, and 
which explains the efficacy of rice in cases of 
dysentery and diarrhoea. China is able to \V2' 
cure two crops of rice every year ; the Chinese sow- 
it in March and July; the inhabitants of the 
Flowery Land pride themselves on completely 
understanding its cultivation, the whole secret 
of which is to give the plant a great deal of water. 
It may not be generally known that ilie Ameri- 
cans were indebted for his grain to a Mr. I) Ijoi-. 
who was treasurer of the East India Company, 
and who gave a small bag of the said grain to ^ 
