Oct. 1, 1899.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTUEIST. 
253 
in dispute, it seems to me a pity that the compromise 
now effected was not arrived at by a iittle more nego- 
tiation, instead of plunging into so bitter a contest 
with our best customers. 
COFFEE PRICES. 
The fall in coffee prices during the past year has 
been, I think, quite unprecedented, and I fear that 
many a one among us, who at thiis time last year 
counted on a good profit, has bearly paid his expenses 
The extraordinary variation in prices, too, is aom- 
thing new to us and shows, I think how little can be 
done on the lines suggested by Mr. G. Anderson in his 
speech lasi year on the classification of coffees. The 
fact is that when a market is glutted with a produce, 
the buyers get fanciful, and fashion rules the price. 
In former years, and even until quite recently, 'he de- 
mand was for peaberry and coloury ocffess, but this 
year it seems to have been entirely for size, and 
coffees of the same mR,rk have varied quite £40 a ton 
between the prices paid for their A and C sizes. How- 
ever, any one who has read Planter's" cogently rea- 
soned letters to the J/arf;-cis will agree with him 
that the crisis has been reached and that we shall very 
shortly begin to recover. 
CINCHONA. 
The same improvement in prospects may also be 
predicted, I think, for the small band of cinchona 
planters. As you a.-e doubtless aware, Mr. Hodgson, 
to whom our thanks are due, was intstrumental in 
getting the Madras Government to sent their director 
of cinchona gardens, Jilr. Standen, to Java to report 
on the cinchona trade of the island. Mr. Standen has 
now come back full of valuable information which 
you will doubtless find in his Report. It seems to 
me that the ball is now at the foot of the Java planters. 
If, only they will combine now and restrict their out- 
put instead of rushing it forward, as they have been 
doing during the last 12 months, they can rule the 
price in the European markets. An eventual rise is a 
cetainly and the longer it is deferred by these abnor- 
mal harvest, the greater must be the re-aotiou. 
ELECTION OP OPPICE-BEARBES. 
The meeting then proceeded to elect office-bearera 
for the ensuing j'ear. 
Mr. Sprott was unanimously elected Chairman. 
Bangalore, 15th Aug.— The delegates met to-day 
at 11 A.M. when Dr. Lehmann, Acricultural, Chemist 
to the Mysore Governinent, aud Mr. J. Cameron, the 
Mysore Government Botanist, were present by in- 
vitation. The sitting was accordingly devoted to dis- 
cussing agricultural questions. Proceedings com- 
menced by a number of subjects being added to the 
Agenda paper, after which the Chairman v/elcomed 
Dr. Lehmann ; — 
Feetiliseks. 
The Chairman asked Dr. Lehmann to address the 
meeting in connection with his experiences in re- 
regard to coffee. 
Dr. Lehmann said that he had no experience in 
regard to coffee except the little he had acquired 
during his tours. If the meeting, however, wished 
him to say anything, he would prefer to speak on 
the subject of fertilisers. 
The meeting having notified its willingness to hear 
what Dr. Lehmann had to say ou this most im- 
portant subject, he said : 1 have first of all to thank 
you most coi dially and sincerely for your kind invita- 
tion asking me to be present at this meeting to-day. I 
am but a novice aicong yon, as I have had but little 
experience in coffee, but I shall try to study the 
subject as much as I possibly can I do not want to 
lay any remarks before you that are not based on 
experience or experimeu' , and I do not want to give 
any assurance or opinion that is not ba.=<ed on know- 
ledge. I hope therefore ynu will excuse me if I do 
not touch upon coffee questions, such as leaf disease 
black rot, &o. because although I have seen some- 
thing of them, I have formed vague ideas as to 
hoYf we are to set about discovering a remedy, and 
I have as yet been unable to try them, and before 
I have tried them, I should not like to say anything 
ou the subject. I have not been long enough in 
the country to establish a library or a laboratory, and 
without these a chemist is almost as much at sea as 
a captain of an ocean vessel is without his compass 
and chart. You will understand how diffident I am 
in addressing you just now on the subject. The 
climate of Germany is totally different fiom that of 
this place aud the crops too are very different, and I 
require time to study the subject carefully before 
pronouncing an opinion. A subject, however, that 
will interest you very much is that of soil analysis. 
It has almost been looked upon as a panacea for all 
ilia that ciopa are heir to unfortunately I cannot 
quite agree witli that. Soil analysis is very valuable, 
indeed it is absolutely necessary for making experi- 
ments, but it won't tell you.eveiything. Soil analy- 
sis is not advanced enough for us to lell you what 
constituents of the soil are really directly available 
by the plant Chemists aie striving to attain that 
end, but they have not attained it yet. There are a 
large number of experiments being tried, and each 
chemist may think that he has overcome the methods 
that can be employed but unfortunately all other 
chemists think the same. The great difficulty in 
studying the soil at all depends on the mechanical 
conditions taking place in it as well as its chemical con- 
stituents. Mechanical conditions have a great deal to 
do with it, but some of the matter is such that we can't 
easily ascertain its physical attributes — as for instance 
the distribution of the plant and the fineness of the soil. 
The fineness with which the pilant food is distributed 
is an essential factor as I shall point out when I 
am talkiug of fertiliseis. Then another matter 
which affects the growth of a plant is the nature 
of the plant itself. All plants have not the same 
ability to absorb plant food. Some plants may 
be peculiarly adapted to particular forms of plant 
food. The Leguminosae always appear to be 
absorbing potash, although they contain a large 
amount of nitrogen ; still virtually what they 
require is more potash than nitrogen. In 
the same way with the Grammacise; they 
contain but little nitrogen, and yet they 
are peculiarly benefited by a nitrogen fertiliser. 
"What is the particular fertiliser that is' beneficial to 
coffee. What particular plant food coffee hag a 
tendency to absorb from the soil ia a question that 
will have to be solved and presents very considerable 
difficulty. Again, climate affects the productiveness 
of the soil to a large extent. The climate here ia 
different to that of countries in which agricultural 
chemistry has made the moat rapid advances and in 
which it has been reduced more to a science than it 
has elsewhere, so we cant apply what has been dis» 
covered there directly to onv conditions here. So 
we are placed in peculiarly tryiag circumstances. We 
arebeginning afresh to find out what can be used. What 
has been used is a guide, but it is not an infallible 
guide, and we must go carefully and cautiously. Ia 
regard to fertilisers there ia some peculiar idea — some 
want of accuracy if I may say so — in regard to the 
relative values of soluble and insoluble fertilisers. 
As regards the value of superphosphates and fine 
ground bones, I may say that the chief value of 
superphosphates over ground bones is that superphos- 
phates is soluble and percolates through the soil with 
the rain and soil water. The advantage of a soluble 
fertiliser is not that the p'ant can absorb it in a 
soluble form but that in that form it spreads and 
mixes more intimately with ihe soil and the plants 
roots can get at it better. I might iHuatrata this by, 
an example. If we take a piece of sugar candy and 
put it in water it dissolves very much more slowly. If 
however, we grind the sugar candy to a powder and 
put into water, it will dissolve very much more quickly. 
The same arguments hold good with regard to soluble 
manures, the rain and soil water dissolve them more 
rapidly and mix them more intimately with the soil. 
I wish to bring this point before you in a practical 
way in regard to the fertilising of your fields. I have 
seen in my tours in some instances, say, basic slag 
used. A little brow-pit is made near the coffee and 
