578 
Supplement to the " Tropical AgricuUuriht.'' [Feb. 2, 1903. 
email ricks, in case of any heating taking place, 
for if gftiss be stacked when too green or wet, it 
will surely heat too much and go beyond the fer- 
menting process of making sugar &c., and will 
take fire. 
A little heating makes the grass sugary and 
gives a very sweet odour, the odour of hay. 
THE NEW CURE FOR MALARIA. 
The plant affording the root used as the remedy 
is a small tree from 20 to 30 feet high and having 
a trunk of 6 inches diameter at full growth. 
It has been named Cassia Beareana, and is 
tli.erefore one of the leguminoscC, As used in 
East Africa by the native.^, the root is chopped 
into piece.=, each about an inch- long, and about 
a dozen pieces are boiled in a gallon of water 
for half an hour or so. The result is a red 
coloured fluid which is partaken of by the patient, 
either hot or cold, as often as he feels thirsty. 
Under ordinary circumstances a tea cup full is 
given every couple of hours. A pamplilet of notes 
by Dr. O'Sullivau Beare, Vice-Counsul in E;ist 
Africa, gives full details of the medical virtues 
of the new drug. We have already written for 
seeds of the plant, and are also hoping to receive a 
sample of the iluid extract of the root. Anyone 
desirous of reading the i)amphlet referred to 
(a reprint from the Lancet) could have the loan 
of it on application to us- 
Mr. Thos. Christy of Old Swan Lane, writing to 
us under date 8th September, regrets that he has 
no seeds of Cassia Beareana to send us, and adds 
that he has made a consignment of the Fluid 
Extract to the Colombo Apothecaiies Company. 
This will enable local practitioners to give 
the new cure a good trial, particularly at 
places like Kurunegalle, Anuradhapura, and other 
malarious climes, 
LIME AND ITS RELATION TO AGRICULTURE. 
This is the subject of a useful paper in the 
Journal of the Department of Western Australia 
for December, by Mr. Percy Wicken. That the 
benefits of lime are little recognised in Csylon is 
well known, and of late we have been pleased to 
have enquiries as to the use of the different forms 
of lime from more than one land owner, and it is 
for their benefit and for the information of the 
rest of our readers that we would quote from the 
article referred to above, 
Lime, as most people know, is the product of 
burning various substances containing it, such as 
limestone, shells, coral, etc. 
Good limestone contains from 50 to 55 per cent, 
lime. Such limestone, when burnt, produces the 
beat quality of caustic or quicklime, containing 
from 90 to 98 per cent of the pure substance. 
Fresh lime, when removed from the kiln, will 
weigh from 00 to 95 lb. to the bushel, and when 
slaked, will make about 3 bushels in volume. 
Magnesian limestone or dolomite (which is found 
in Ceylon) varies much in composition, containing 
{rona 20 to 80 per cent of the carbonate of lime. 
The average of such limestone will produce a lim© 
which contains from 70 to 85 per cent of lime, 
and weighs 75. to 85 lb. per bushel. In slaking the 
lime will make 2 bushels for one by volume. 
Oyster shells contain from 90 to 95 per cent 
carbonate of lime, and will produce a compara- 
tively pure lime which should contain from 85 to 95 
per cent of the pure substance. Fresh burnt oyster 
shells weigh about 60 lb. per bushel, and slaked 
so to make 2\ bushels for one by volume. 
The quantity of lime taken up by a heavy crop 
may vary from 1011b. in a crop of cereals to 90 lb. 
in the case of a leguminous crop such as clover. 
This requirement is provided in a great many 
soils. But it is the chemical effect of lime that 
gives it iis value making plant food already in the 
soil readily available, through its action iu decom- 
posing the mineral matter in the soil. It also 
hastens the decomposition of organic matter and 
promotes the formation of nitrates from the humus 
present. The presence of lime is necessary for the 
life and action of the nitrifying ferments. After 
green manuring, it is specially valuable. We thus 
learn that lime is not a substitute for, but a 
reinforcement of, manure, and it should be borne 
in mind that the use of lime must be supplemented 
with fertilizers. 
Lime is of great value where land has an acid 
reaction, due to the presence of excess of decom- 
posing organic matter yielding organic acids— a 
condition most noticeable on low wet lands. 
The easiest way to determine the need for- lime 
is to get a few pieces of blue litmus paper and 
place a piece in contact with the moist soil. If 
the soil is sour it will turn led, and the degree of 
acidity will be determined by the quickness with 
which it changes colour and the density of the 
redness. 
Lime also helps to keep off fungoid and insect 
pests. Clayey soils can stand more frequent and 
heavier applications of lime than soils of a lighter 
charocter, and tends to improve the mechanical 
condition of such heavy soils. According to their 
character, soils of the lighter description are 
dressed with about 2 tons per acre, while cold 
heavy clays will take as much as 12 tons per acre 
— such applications being made at intervals of 
from 5 to 6 years. 
It is generally accepted, however, that lighter 
and more frequent dressings are preferable to 
heavy dressings at considerable intervals. The 
best way of applying lime is to make small heaps 
on the surface at regular intervals and cover these 
with earth. The moisture in the earth soon 
causes the lime to slake, and when it reaches the 
powdery condition it should be spread evenly and 
harrowed in. 
THE MEAT SUPPLY OF COLOMBO. 
Dkah, Sib,— The meat supply in this ilourishing 
city of ours is just as unsatisfactory as it could 
possibly be. The fact is that cattle in the East are 
worked iu a fashion that will not be tolerated in a 
western country, and when their work as beasts of 
burden is done they are requisitioned to supply 
the craving of the ' inner man 'I Is it not shock 
