52 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTUEIST. [July 1, 1902. 
from the very outset, ic was demonstrated that 
coffee trees would pjrow and yield ^ooA crops of 
berries. There were coffee trees growing in (jrat- 
ton, the beautiful Northern Coast Metropolis, 
upwards of 30 years ago, which yielded good crop=?, 
and at the present time several, over 25 years o d, 
healthy and productive, are to be met with. iUe 
cultivation and treatment of the trees have (siys a 
recent visitor) a great deal to do witli the P^k luc- 
tion of a berry of good (luality and flavour, llien 
in the transformation of the berries into lire brown 
powder-like substance which makes the popular 
leverage, there ate many processes, on the proper 
execution of which depends the i)reservation ott.ie 
essential qualities of the colfee in a form whic i 
readily assimilates with boiling water. I he lead- 
ing experiments in cultivation were made on a 
river Island having an area of about twenty acres, 
the coffee plant being grown with other crops. 
Last year there were about 580 trees in hearing. 
It is estimated that coffee should be pianted 8 
feet by 8 feet, which would give 680 trees to the 
acre. The average production of berries on eacli 
tree is 10 lb, from which 2 lb of njanufaeiured 
coffee is made. This, at Is per lb wholesa.e, 
would be £68. The principal cost is the picking 
of the berries, which is put down at £3 per 
acre "pulping" costs £1 10s for the pro- 
duct of an acre; fermenting, bleaching, and 
cleaning, £1 16s ; roasting, £3 ; tinning and 
labelling, 15s. Total.— £13 63 for the produce of 
e-icli acre, This leaves a profit of over £oO an acre, 
not counting cultivating expenses. These, however, 
are lifhtonce the trees have been planted and well 
grown The ground must be kept cultivated, and 
the trees pruned. The work of picking the berries 
is light, and may be done by boys and girls, one 
pjrsou being able to pick from 100 lb to 150 !b per 
day. The next operation is that of " pulping." 
This is done by means of a small wooden roller, 
with corrugations on its surface. The object of 
this operation is to crack the shell, which contains 
two beans of a bluish-white colour. The machine 
used for this operation is of the grower's own 
construction, and with it two boys can treat 2 cwt 
per liour. The beans liave also to undergo a process 
of cleaning, in which an " Enterprise " bone mill 
(costing £1 10s) is used. They liave also lo be 
fermented, diied and bleached, in the course of 
■which they must be exposed to the sun no 
stretchers, and brought under shelter at night, 
and when the weather is shovveiy. These processes 
cost £1 16^ for the produce of an acre. Tl.e roast- 
ing process is estimated at about £3 per acre. 
For grinding a newly-patented American machine 
(costing £2) is used, which puts through 201b per 
hour. The usud addition of chicory is mixed 
with' the coft'ee. Last season's coffee speedily 
established a reputation for its quality on the 
Clarence and llichmond Hivers, and has become a 
favourite with all who have used it, thus ensuring 
a ready market for all that can be raised in the 
future. From this it would appear that tho?e 
practically acquainted with the work of Coffee 
cultivation v/ould possess unlimited opportunities 
for turning their knowledge to profitable accou.. I in 
New South Wales. . 
Did you ever read anything more idiotic than 
the remarks of an Austialian Journalist on Tro- 
pical products ? I recollect in the Melbourne Ex- 
hibition seeing samples of coffee from some district 
with a descriptive pamphlet stating that the 
coffee was grown from the "finest pea-berry 
yariety Volonist.] 
TERRIERS AND A COBRA. 
Mr. C W E Cotton, 10 8, Ilosur, Salera 
writing in the Madras Mail of the 24th says — 
James" and "Dolly." two English-bred 
fox-terriers which I am looking after for Mr. 
F Grompertz (now on furlough), killed a 
large cobra measui'ing 5 ft. I in., in the com- 
pound of this bungalow this morning. " Dolly" 
found the cobra lying up in some long grass 
on a high bank and proceeded to haul it 
down bv the tail. It wjis not until it reached 
level ground that I realised she had got 
hold of a cobra, and, though I tried to cal 
her oil, she was too excited to pay any 
attention. At this point "James" joined 
issue and gave the cobra the coup de grace. 
It was a very smart piece of work, and simply 
a miracle that neither dog was bitten, as 
the cobra .showed plenty of fight and their 
•agility alone saved them. It was an e^iceed- 
ingly exciting five minutes for nij'self and 
Mr. F J Richards, I.C.S., who were the sole 
spectators. 
ACETYLENE LAMP. 
Le Fhare ^f/rico/e— Mhduse. 
TIris lamp, for the destruction of night, 
butterflies and other insects, seems worth 
noting. The price is moderate, i c, 16 francs 
(12s lOd), including packing .and delivery 
anywhere in France. Address : V. Vermores, 
Villefrance, Rhone, Prance. The lamp is 
simple and strong, and cannot blowout in the 
wind. It is easily tilled and for the intense 
light it gives is very inexpensive, costing, in 
France, only about a farthing an hour. Daz- 
zled by the light, the butterflies fall into the 
receptacle around it, which ontains water 
upon which floats some kerosine, and are 
drowned. When butterflies are numerouse 
they are caught by hundreds in a minute, 
One lamp has been known to disjiose o. 
5,000 creatures in the night. In vineyardsf 
the lamps are placed 50 yards apart, and 
only lighted on calm nights ; if it is cold 
or windy, the insects seek shelter, and are 
not flying about. We publish these parti- 
culars by particular request for the benefit 
of planters and others. 
THE DETERIORATION OF RUBBER. 
Mr, James D. Sargent, of the Scottish Vulcanite 
Company, in a letter published in our issue of March 
21st, takes exception to our statement that in the last 
20 years a considerable improvement has taken place 
respecting the loss on washing of a namber of rub- 
ber qualities, and he points out that this can refer 
to African qualities only. But Mr. Sargent must 
have overlooked that this is all we desired to call 
attention to. From the list we appended to onr re- 
marks, it is perfectly obvious that at best the high- 
grade qualities, as perhaps the American qualities as 
a whole, have only just held their ground. Therefore, 
there is hardly any difference of opinion between us 
Mr. Sargent goes a step further and asserts that the 
present loss on washing fine Para rubber is at least 
18 to 19 per cent. If this is his actual experience 
this is difficult to contradict, but this experience is 
indeed not the writer's. In a considerable number of 
lots of fine Para, washed daring the last two years 
and selecting only the top. 7 figures, the following losaea 
were ascertained 16.1, 1.5, 15.0. 14.9, 15.9 per cent, ■ 
3;he ^aautity of lesioous wattec ia these same 
