( 5 ) 
I The present position, with, regard to rubber cultivation, may perhaps be sunamed up as follows. 
! For those who have rubber plantations in bearing or of fair age the prospect is good, owing to the 
1 high price of rubber ; this same factor of price, however, has induced a great deal of attention to the 
1 production of substitutes for indiarubber, and though at present none of these are so good as the 
3 natural rubber for most purposes, they are always being improved, and it is extremely probable that 
3, in a few years they maj be largely used instead of rubber, and cause a drop of the price. It is there- 
e fore by no means so certain that rubber plantations now being laid out will prove so remunerative 
k as is often supposed. It is essential to their future success that only good land be chosen, and that 
the best kind of rubber be planted, and the best methods of cultivation and preparation employed, 
i. It seems pretty certain, from Mr. Parkin's observations, that the young twigs or seedlings cannot be 
used as a source of rubber of good quality ; they merely yield a glutinous substance, isomeric perhaps 
with caoutchouc, but without its elasticity and tenacity. It therefore appears almost certain that 
rubber planters will have to wait until the trees are six or more years old at any rate, and hence 
le should give close attention to anything that is being done in the introduction of substitutes for 
ig rubber. The two species which appear on all counts to be the best suited for cultivation are the 
3t Para rubber and tl e Panama rxibber (Hevea and Castilloa). Of these, the one which is better suited 
to the use of machine methods of preparation of rubber, and which also seems to give the larger yield, 
is the Castilloa, but there is every prospect that the Hevea will also prove successful, especially in 
e, swampy alluvial soil, the Castilloa needing better-drained, sloping ground. In view of the remarks 
made above, it would be unwise to recommend either species as an exclusive cultivation, but both may 
ia be recommended as adjuncts to tea or cacao, for which they appear to do pretty well as shade. 
With regard to methods of preparation, it seems probable that it will be necessary, if good 
le prices are to be obtained, to use the machines that are now being perfected, or the chemical methods 
as elaborated by Mr. Parkin ; the latter are very suitable for Hevea, the former for Castilloa.* 
to Guttapercha. — There is nothing of special interest to record with regard to this. None has 
'olibeen planted, so far as known, in the Island during 1899. 
ii' Rhea and other Fibres. — There has been no demand for rhea this year, and unless some improve- 
kii ment in machinery, or some competition between the manufacturers, causes a better price to be 
itli offered for the ribbons, there seems but little likelihood of the cultivation being taken up here. A 
asl recent number of the Indian Agricultw'al Ledger calls attention to the excellent fibre afforded by 
the " wild or ban rhea " of Assam, Villebrunea integrifolia. The fibre has been reported upon very 
ai'E favourably in England ; it resembles rhea (to which this plant is closely related), but is devoid of the 
Cti gum, and is hence much more easy to prepare. This species grows wild in Ceylon (see Trimen's 
liic Flora, IV., p. 118), in Hantane, Alagalla, Nitre Cave, Haputale, and other places from 2,000 to 5,000 ft. 
elevation, and is worth the attention of tea planters as a possible source of revenue. Being a tree of 
ilili 20 ft. high, it is perhaps scarcely to be recommended for actxial planting without further demonstra- 
uti tion of the good quality of the product, but those who have it wild upon their estates should preserve 
Ihi it, and if possible prepare specimens of the fibre and send them in for report. 
Kitul and palmyra fibres have been dealt with above, also coir. There has been some inquiry 
til during the year for Agave sisalana, Furcraea, and other similar plants. 
inf Cinchona. — The export has again decreased, being 618,921 lb., against 975,784 last year. A 
jus very small quantity of this plant appears to have been planted during the year, and it is possible that 
;Mth.e cultivation may still continue as an adjunct to tea, though not likely to be much extended. The 
demand for the alkaloids other than quinine (cinchonidine, &c.) may render the cultivation of 
sii Cinchona sticciruhra, Ledgeriana., and some of the hybrids again profitable. 
Jts Camphor. — The plants at Hakgala have done well this year. There has been but little inquiry 
jlilforthem. A fungus disease aj^peared on camphor in some districts during the year, and did some 
ffitt damage. 
beS' Tobacco. — Owing to the over-production of this product and the defective methods of curing 
■sot in use locally, and other causes, the cultivation in the north of the Island has proved less remunera- 
ilioftive, and with the view of extending, if possible, the demand from abroad for our product, experi- 
|| ments upon a comparatiA^ely large scale have been started during the year. Large quantities of the 
jo!; best kinds of seeds have been got from Cuba, the United States, Italy, and other countries, and have 
iKilbeen distributed to those who have been willing to help in the trial by cultivating and curing these 
er:, tobaccos in different parts of the Island., The tobaccos are as yet too young for curing, but seem to 
jiiiligrow well in many parts of tlie Colony, and during the approaching curing season it is intended to 
laf jtry various methods of treatment, and to prepare a large number of good samples for further report 
if! — ■ 
I * Attention may be called here to an unfortunate misprint in Mr. Parkin's paper : On p. 148, 'last paragraph, the figures 
l5liould be 0'9, 3-9, 0-25, and 8-0, respectively ; and on p. 152, paragraph 2, line 11, for 8-3 per cent, mercuric chloride read 0-83 
i per cent. 
i 
