626 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. (Feb. 2, 1903. 
that fairly ptnod prices have be^n obtained in 
Qiieenslaod for the higher ernde!=, and of ihe infriiuin 
qu-ilities there has not been suiii ieut to ship a 
consignment laise enough to m; ke its export to 
80 distant a. mnrket ivo' th vt^hile. — Annual Hcport of 
the Department of Agriculture. 
PLANTING NOTES. 
A Canadian Note.— A good project is now afoot 
for exteiidir>6; R-iilway communication from Ontnrio 
to the Pacific coast of British Colnmb-'a. The length 
to the projected railw-ty is 3,00f> miles, p-nd tiada 
wiih the F(tr East will thus be grea ly ficilitated 
and encournged Canada has vp<.st stores of horti- 
cultural and agricultural prodnce to dispose of, as 
well as valuable minerals, and it says much for the 
pluck and determination of our Cinadian brethren, 
that to look at it one way — they hxve designed a 
"fall" with the combines of the United Sfstea 
with such admirable " play." — Gardeners' Chronicle 
GuAVAg, — In the Boport of the Ayricultural Experi- 
ment Station of the University of California, pH.rt i., 
published in i902, we fl id mi ar:iclt) by Mi . J. Biutt 
Dnvy on the cultivated Guavas, and their bot uiic^-l 
differences. Our coloni«l brethien will do well to 
consnlt this article The cultivated species referred 
to are: 1 Psidium guajavn, wiih three varieties, 
sapidissimnn, pyriferum, and pomifernm ; 2 P. poly- 
carpon ; 3, P. araoa :, 4 P. guianen^e ; 5, P. Cattle- 
ynnutn, the Strawberry-Gnava, with a variel;v luci )utn. 
Other less known species are mL^ntioned by name 
The distinguishing characterisucs lie in the f.ur 
angled, two angled, or cylindrical stems, as well as 
in the form and colour of tha fruit. — Ibid. 
UtIU-3Ation of Home Products,— Dr. Morris, who 
is exertinn his energies so landtibly in the promotion 
of applied botany in the Wost Indies, points out in 
the Agricidtural News (BaibidosJ that in the days 
when siTiiar-growing was very profitable, everything 
was sacrificed to D'wke way for the planting of 
Sugar-canes. Then sugar sold for £20, or even £30 
a ton; now it is only wotth as many dollars; 
nevertheless, enormous smiounts of food-stuff* and 
other articles are imported, a great part of which 
could and should be produced locally. The high 
value of molasees as a fpeding-stufE for horsed is 
pointed out, and yet molasses are sold at very low 
rates in the Islands whilst thousands of bushels of 
high-priced Oats and corns are annually imported 
from the United States, — Ibid. 
Fricnch Colonial Schools.— It is a pleasant duty 
to have to record the appoii.tment of another 
Kewite to a p^st of importance. In this instance 
the fortunate individual is Mr. H. Navel, who after 
having been educated at the National School of 
Horticulture at Versailles, and having etnved at 
Whiteley's nnrferits long enough to learn the English 
language, made a stay of twelve months at the Royal 
Gardetis, Kew, He then returned to France, and niter 
spending some months in the " Jardin Colon al " of 
Vincemes, under the direction of M. J. D\ bowski, 
has recently been appointi d Directeur des Cultures de 
V Inatitut Colonial de Nantes, a post lately created by 
the t'rench Government for the development of the 
instruction and also for the reaving of economic 
plants useful to intending planters in the French 
colonies. Onr beat wishes to the new director who, 
during part of his stay iu Eugland, occupied the 
position of Vice-President of that useful in-^titution 
the Soci6t6 Francaise d'Horticolture de Londres, 
which has done so much during the last twelve 
years on behalf of the young French garde> ers who 
have resided in this country, and the few English 
gardeners who have sought its help and support 
to ptocure for them suitable situations on the con- 
tinent. It is a society to which every English 
gardener, having oven a small knowledge of French, 
pight well belong.— 
Food tf Plants.— M Laurent in a recent nrmber of 
the Contptes I> endus shown that glucose eacch^.ro'e, 
and other sugais, as well as glycerine supply ex- 
cellent food for plants, and that humic acid in the 
form of humate of potassium modifies those inter- 
changes of gases which lead to the assimilation of 
oaibon in the plants. On reading this, ot e wonriera 
whether refuse sugar-canes, from which all the sugar 
caniiot be extracted, would be serviceable as manures. 
—Ibid. 
Tub Rubber Industry.— In Ceylon, nnd in the 
Straits S.-ti lements, large plantations of Para rubber 
(Hevea biasilienfi-^) have been male by private 
enterprise. The Government of India now propose 
to plant 10,000 acres in Bui mah with the same tree, 
a proceeding viewed with dismay by the private 
growers in the colonies aforesaid. The Secretary 
for the Colonies hns been memorialised on the subject, 
but the demand for rubber is so great that it ia 
hardly likely that steps will be taken to limit the 
output in any way. — Ibid. 
Keeping Birds Out of Fruit Trees.— The birds of 
Ceylon must have difierent ideas of the value of 
material objects from Ih'ise enter'ained by our Qaeens- 
Imd felons in fea hers, the frnit-eaters. In our 
February issue we described " plan for obstructing 
their nefarious proceedings by means of looking 
glasses, as given by the Cei/lok Tropical Agriculturist 
A correspondent from Georgetown, Eiheridge, not. 
writes to eay that he his found locking glasses to 
be a complete failure. The bower biids simply danced 
round theiu with delight, and one ?ven tried to 
ca.rry cff a bit of the broken glass. Onr informant 
bought, a dozen of cracked mirmrs and hung 'hem 
by strings from sticks stuck in the ground and on 
the branches. It appeared, however, that the birds 
were rather attracted than repelled by the glitter 
of the mirrors. Those who know the habits of the 
bower bird will not be surprised at that dancing 
deivish amongst birds trying to run away with the 
glass for they seiza on anything f^hining, as well as 
shells, to scatter round their bowers, which nre often 
' l a Is of dazzling Wglat!'- Queensland Agricultural 
Journal. 
Education in tai? Netherlands.— There h'<.s jtjst 
been is^^ued, through tha Kina's printers (Eyre & 
Spottiswoode, West Harding St.. E. C, price 5), what 
may be termed a supplementary report on the system 
of education established in the Netherlands, the result 
of enquiries by a commissioner sent over for the pur* 
pose of gathering up fxcts, possibly for use by the 
House of Commons in its strnggles over the Edu. 
cation Bill, now on the legislative " stocks," and 
where it ia likely to remain some titne longer ere 
beintr launched iuto history as a fall fledged Act of 
Parliment. We can only hope that our legisl iters may 
find the lirile book of use to them, as it surely 
will be of interest, seeing that we are being assured 
that we are ever so much behiud every body else 
in the matter of education. Our Dutch friends are 
veiy earnest educators, and those who are being 
educated must .also he very earnest in the subjects 
to pass in which is necessary to matriculation. 
Amongst other things being three languages (modern) 
mathematics chemistry, theoretical and practical 
mechanics, and goodness knows how many more. 
In all " centres " these are subjects common to all; 
ill some, selections are made : agriculture is well cared 
for ; and botany, it may be said, of course, runs 
side by side ; and botany, it may be sai of course, 
runs side by side ; or is forestry forgotten. We 
are ni'dtr the impression that ihe sons of farmera 
do not sufE' iently estimate the advantnges of the edu- 
cation provided for them by State and Commune. 
Evening classes are felt to be a boon by very many, 
and compulsory attendance s t day school has resulted 
in nearly all juniors finding their way to the olasa-room. 
The'little book is well worth persual by all who 
take an interest in the proper education of the rising 
IjeneratioB.— £?flrtfe«er«' ChronicU, 
