524 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
[Feb. 1, 1900. 
frequent at slightly higher elevations, such as Nnwara 
Eliya (6,200 feet). There is, unfortunately, no accom- 
modation for visitors at present nearer than Nuwara 
Eliya, six miles away ; but it is hoped to erect a small 
laboratory in the garden, with a small living room 
attached, where workers may live and sleep. 
A fourth garden is kept up at Badulla, the capital 
of the Uva province, at an elevation of 2,200 feet, on 
the eastern side of th« mountains Ths chief bofcinical 
interest of this di.strict lies in its somewhat drier 
climate, so that it has much more patana land than 
the western side of the mountains, and in the fact 
that its dry season comes, not in the north-east but 
in the south-west monsoon, so that the periodicity 
of the vegetation is different. Fruit, which at Pera- 
deniya ripens in March and April, ripens at Badulla 
in August, and so on. 
Yet another garden is maintained at the ancient 
capital cf the island, the famous "buried city" of 
Anuradhapura, the capital of the North-Central 
province. This lies in the middle of the dry country, 
which makes up about three-fifths of the island, and 
has an Indian climate, with rain almost confined 
to the last three months of the year, and drought 
during the remainder, including the south-west 
monsoon. The flora of this district is therefore, as 
might be expected, very difierent from that of the 
rainy south-western and central provinces. 
The island can show, within an area of rather 
less than that of Ireland, a most remarkable range 
of climate and flora, rendering it very interesting 
to the traveller and naturalist; in this respect it ia 
unrivalled in the tropics. The working botanist or 
student has, further, the great, advantage of having 
at his hand the excellent flora prepared by Dr. Trimen, 
and finished after his death by Sir Joseph Hooker. 
There are doubtless many new species still to be 
found in the eastern and south-western districts, aa 
well as many unrecorded species ; but the student who 
does not desire to specialise in this department of 
botany will be grateful for the useful flora, which 
renders the identification of his collections, or of 
the plants he may be experimenting with, a matter 
of comparative ease. The vascular cryptogams and 
many of ihe mosses have been identified, but there 
is much to be done at the lower forms of vegetation. 
Peradeniya is easily reached from any part of the 
world, Colombo being one of the greatest ports of 
call. Direct lines of steamers run to Europe, China, 
Japan, Java, Queensland, Adelaide, Melbourne and 
Sydney, Mauritius, South Africa, and all Indian 
ports. Madras may be reach-d in thirty-eight hours 
by boat and rail. To England there is a very large 
choice of steamers. The favourite lines with Ceylon 
£eople are perhaps the Bibby and the Norddeutscher 
iloyd, but the P. and O., the Orient, Messageries 
Maritimes, British India, and many others, are much 
used. The first-named ia the cheapest of the large 
English lines, but is first-class only. First-clasa 
returns to Colombo, available for six months, are 
from 70Z-to 90Z. Second-class, which is very com- 
fortable on the largest lines, is from 501. to 60?. 
A few pounds are necessary on ■ the voyage for tips, 
sports, trips on shore, (fee. Banking accounts may be 
opened in Kandy, and moi.cy easily remitted to and 
from Europe. The value of the rupee is now Is. 4i., 
and seems likely to remain at that figure. 
Very little is necessary in the way of outfit. 
Drill and khaki clothes can he bought here for less 
than half their price in England; also topees 
(sun hats). At Kandy the usual dress is similar to 
that worn in England in summer; at Nuwara Eliya 
it is colder, and tweed suits are often worn. All 
articles of clothing can be bought here, and usually 
as cheaply as, or more so than, in Europe. 
The usual division of the day is as follows : Rising 
at daylight, a light early tea of eggs and toast is 
taken about 6-15, after which a walk in the garden 
is pleasant, commencing laboratory work at 7-30, and 
continuing till 11, which is the breakfast hour. After 
breakfast follows a rest indoors, but not sleep, and 
work may be resumed at about 1-30 for a couple of 
hours or .so. After tea the remaiuing two hours of 
light are given to f.tenniB,!j cycling, and other forma 
of exercise, followed by a^bath, and dinner at 7 or 
7-30. The evening is devoted to amusement. 
Travelling in Ceylon is easy in all but the most 
out-of the way or sparsely populated parts. Railway! 
and good roads intersect the greater part of the 
island, and there are coach services to a great number 
of places not served by the railways. Rest-houses 
or Government inns are found in all towns that 
have no hotels, and at intervals of 14 miles along all 
main roads. The average cost of living while on 
tour may be put down as about R7 or 8 per diem 
exclusive of fares by rail or coach. Steamers run 
round the island, calling at all the chief ports. 
There is at present no rest-house or hotel at 
Peradeniya itself, and visitors must live in :Kandy, 
where arrangements have been made with some of 
the hotels to board persoas working in the laboratory 
at from R5 to R7 per day. There is a con- 
venient service of trains, but the most satisfactory 
way is to cycle in and out. The road ia in excellent 
order, and the distance from the furthest hotel under 
five iniles. It is hoped that accommodation^ may be 
provided at Peradeniya itself before long. 
Assuming that six months are spent .from starting 
to date of arrival back in Europe, the cost of the 
trip should not much exceed 185/., made up thus : 
Fare (First return) .. £65 
Twenty weeks' board . . 66 
Travelling .. .. 20 
Sundry . . . . 12 to 20 
£191 
This might be much reduced by economy, and by 
travelling second-class from Europe, and the propor- 
tinnate cost would of course be less if the visit were of 
longer duration. If much travelling is to be done 
in the island the amount shown above will have to be 
increased, the 201 being allowed for four weeks only. 
By very close economy and reduction of travelling, 
and by travelling second-class, the total might be 
reduced to perhaps 1401. 
Trustworthy information about Ceylon may be 
obtained in various books. The most interesting are 
Sir E. Tennent's "Ceylon," which is now out of 
print; and to a botanist, Trimen's paper "On the 
Flora' of Ceylon as afiected by Climate," in the 
Journal of Botany for 1886. Ferguson's Hanflbook 
and Directory contains a vast mass of information 
and statistics, and his ".Ceylon in 1893 " is also of 
interest. 
Intending visitors should communicate some time 
in advance with the Director, mentioning what line 
of work they propose to take up, and any special 
facilities they may require. John C. Willis. 
— Nature. 
Sugar in Tirhut.— A correspondent of the 
Englishman writes: — I hear from several sources 
that on account of the disturbed state of the in- 
difjo market many men are talking of starting 
sugar, and that several men have commenced 
growing cane with the idea of testing the produce 
of crude sugar likely to be got per acre of cape. 
. . . My advice to sucli is to have nothing 
to do with growing cane themselves. Let the ryots 
do this and make crude stuff called goor and 
raub. This planters could buy from the ryots and 
refine. There are at all indigo factories engines 
used for indigo work which will be quite 
powerful enough to drive the turbines now used 
in the manufacture of sugar. When sugar was 
an industry in these districts in the early forties 
what brought it to grief was that factories grew 
their own cane, and sugar-cane, it was found, 
exhausted the soil, and though the cane grew the 
yield fell from over 40 maunds of sugar per acre 
to les3 than 2^.— Pioneer. 
