18G 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
[Skpt. 1, 1898. 
not thicker than thread, hence the planter's name 
" thiend blight." The delicate white Btrands of 
mycelium run along the Murface of the bark to the 
tips of the young Khoola, branching and anasto- 
mosing irregularly ; thence they not infrequently 
pass on to the leaves, where they form a yet more 
delicate, irregularly branched pattern. Microscopic 
examination of a deceased branch .shows that the slender 
mycelium is at first most abundant in the 
cambium zone, and extends to the young wood, 
the vessels of which soon become chocked with a 
dense weft of mycelium. A slight browning of 
the tissues indicates the progress of the mycelium. 
This internal inyct'lium pa'ises through the substance 
of the bark, and gives origin to the superficial strands 
of mycelium described above, The branches are even- 
tually killed owing to the destruction of the cambium 
zone and choking of the vessels of the wood by my- 
celium. So far as can bs objtrved from an exami- 
nation of the ample .supply of material forwarded by 
Dr. Watt, the fruit of the fungus is only produced 
after the branch on which it occurs is dead, wJien 
it appears on the surface of the bark under the form 
of miniature pins ahout half a line high, and of a pale 
yellow colour. These fruits gei;erally occur in large 
numbers, giving to the branch a minutely velvety or 
hairy appearance as seen with the naked eye. 
In the absence of living material it is im- 
possible to state definitely in what manner the 
fungus first gains access to the interior of the 
living plant ; but the general habi suggests the 
idea of its being a root-fungus, first attacking the 
slender rootlets, and afterwards extending into the 
above-ground portions of the plant. It mycelium is 
found in quantity on the thicker root-branches and 
about the base of the trunk, the above supposition 
would doubtless be correct, and would imply the 
presence of strands of mycelium in the soil; such 
strands probably traversing the .soil and extending 
from one plant to another, as is known to be the 
case in other root-paraiites, a^ '' Dematophora Ne- 
catrix " and " Roselliuia radiciperda." The fungus 
described above is in all probability only the coiiidial 
phase of some higher form, which, as is usually tha 
case, only forms its fruit on thoroughly decayed 
portions of the host plant. 
PREVENTIVE MEASURES.- If examination, aa 
indicated above, shows the fungus to be a root-parasite, 
a trench should be made round the base of the 
stem, as deep as practicable without injuring the 
roots, and filled with lime, or failing this, with 
wood ashes. Deep narrow trendies should be made 
enclosing batches ol diseased trees, for the purpose 
of checking the spread of underground mycelium 
from diseased to healthy trees. Under any circum- 
stances branches killed by the disease should be 
collected and burned, otherwise the conidia formed 
on such branches will be carried by wind and 
other agencies, and infect healthy plants. Care 
should be t>ken to ascertain whether fungus is 
present on wild plants growing in the vicinity of 
the plantations, as no amount of care exercised on 
the tea plants to prevent the disease will avail 
if the fungus is present on other plants that grow 
near at hand. 
The following diagnosis will enable the fungus to 
be recognized by a mycologist :— 
Stilbum namim, " Massee " (sp. nov.). 
" Conidiophora " minutissima, vix O'S mm. alta, 
gregaria, fiavida. " Stipites " isquales, tenues. 
" Oapitula '' globosa vel obovata. " Conidia" nume- 
rosissima, minuta, hyalina, continua, elliptica, muco 
primitus obvoluta, 5 k 2'5yx. 
On living branches and leaves of " Camellia Thea." 
Fig.' 11, Branch of tea plant attacked by " thread 
blight " (." Stilbum nanum). showing the white sterile 
mycelium running over the bark, also the fruit of 
the fungus ; nat. size. Fig. 12, Fruit of the 
same ; lOU. Fig. 13, Section through a head of 
friiit, showing the conidia borne at the tips fo the 
hyphae which form the head ; x400i 
PLANTING NOTES. 
SlNGAPOKK which has been taking no much 
of our coconut oil this year is to liavc an Oil 
Mill on a big scale of its own. A former luem- 
ber of Messrs. Volkart's lirra here, is geltinj,' the 
Mill erecte<l at •Sin^'aiwre and it is expected to 
be in worklnf,' order by the end of the year. 
NoKTii Borneo.— We {L. d- C. Expresn) are 
pleaded to note that the directors of ihe Britiitb 
North Horneo Coinpan} are again able to leconi- 
nieni a dividend oi 1 per cent. It is true the 
shareholders have had to wait a long time for any 
return upon their capital, but the fact that for 
two years in succession the direcUjrs have been 
able 10 pay even a small dividend shews that a 
better linancial position is being gradually brought 
about, and that the time is arriving when those 
who have for so long put their faith in North 
JJorneo may look for substantial results. The 
company has a magniWcent territory, and the 
shareholders, we think, may rest content that it 
is being administered under the present manage- 
ment upon a thoroughly sound and statesmanlike 
basis. Much, of course, lemains to be acconi. 
plihiied yet, for it is impossible to transform ^ucli 
a country all at once, hut in pursuing a cautio-ii 
policy the directors are witiiout doubt acting 
wisely. A 1 per cent dividend is not handsome, 
but it is better than nothing at all. and must be 
taken by the shareholders as an earnest of better 
things to come. 
The Mauritius Ch.^mberof Agriculturk.— 
A series of 'iO resolutions in answer to Mr. Cham- 
berlain's refusal of the £'r>ot>,000 loan have been 
adopted. We quote a few : — 
That the Chamber regrets to see that the Secretary 
of Slate considers that part of the money raised 
under the Hurricane Loan Oidinance of J892 ha« 
been lent for purposes for which it was not intended. 
That the Chamber submits that, if the law haa 
been misinterpreted, which it is not ready to concede 
neither the Planters of the Colony nor the Lo«B 
Commission, which was purely an advising board 
can be held responsible for it, nor can the Commis^ 
sion be reproached with having overlooked the in- 
structions of the Secretary of State, contained in a 
despatch which only reached Mauritius when nearly 
all the applications made by the Planters for loaoa 
had been disposed of. 
That the Chamber firmly hopes that, on recon- 
sidering the matter, the Secretary of State will ad- 
mit that the appeal made for the aid of the credit 
of the Imperial Government is justified by the cir- 
cumstances of the Colony. 
That though the Colony may not be at its last 
extremity, yet it is a fact that the Sugar industry 
of Maurtius is in imminent danger of extinction 
because the sale price of its produce does not cover 
the costs of production. 
That our sugar, which is unprotected, cannot com- 
pete on foreign markets with bounty fed beet sugars 
or home grown sugars. 
That we have thus been driven from the English 
and the Australian markets and we are gradually 
losing the Indian markets. 
That, to be beneficial, the aid of the Government 
must be given in time before the position becomea 
worse. 
That unless the production of the island is increased 
by a larger extraction of the sugar contained in the 
cane, the Colony will ultimately become a burden on 
the Imperial Government. 
That the best proof that we are declining is that 
our public revenue is now insufficient to meet onr 
public expenditure. 
That with improved methods and machinei-y the 
cost price if sugar may be reduced so as to render 
competition possible. 
