Nov. 1, 1898.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
S4 9 
Mr A E "Wi-ighfc of Ceylon, took up 600 acres for 
coconut CQltivationand work is now being commenced 
on the land, 
COFFEE. 
Mr. Francis Welford's coffee estate at Kampong 
Nior is improving ; the whole estate will bs very soon 
completely drained, which will allow the land to be 
worked more effectively. BIr. Welford has now about 
100 acres of coffee planted. Mr. ToUemacho has 
done a good deal of draining, felled his first block, 
and has a fine nursery ready to plant out ; his bunga- 
low is now completed. Mr. Tanner, v.'ho purcha.sed 
two of Mr. Jackson's blocks, is just commencing 
work. Mr. Jackson's other block has not yet been started 
Nipah is a great heln to the natives of this district. 
The Selangor, Bernam and Tinggi Pavers are bordered 
with very fine nipiih for several miles ; those from 
Bernam are nearly all taken across to Sumatra, 
whilst the Selangor people take theirs to Klang, The 
trade on the Tinggi River has not yet been properly 
developed ; a more energetic Penghulu is required ; at 
present the ataps are all purchased by one Chinese 
trader, who gives about half a fair price for them, and 
pays the cost in rice and shop goods charged at 50 
per cent, above Kuala Selangor prices ; it is needless 
to say that his trade, though profitable, is very small. 
(^From Report on ths Ulu Sdangor District ) 
Acriculture in Ulu Selangor consists principally, 
at p?csent,of small Malay coffee gardens, inter-planted 
with fruit trees; and bearing, where an acre _ or 
two of swampy land presents a favourable opportunity, 
a small crop of " padi." Except at Ulu Yam and Ulu 
Bernam, there is no serious attempt at rice cultiva- 
tion on any considerable scale. 
The combined effects of the low price oi coffee and 
the high price of rice, generally prevalent durm" 
1897 were severely felt by the owners of these small 
plantations, and there is now little or no demand for 
coffee land. Many of the planters realise that their 
chief interest should lie in the production of a suffi- 
cient quantity of rice to tender them independent 
of the marke"t outsiae ; but it is a matter of some 
difficulty to find land lu UJ_u Selangor suitable for 
"sawah" cultivation. At Auaug there is an extent 
of perhaps, a thousand acres which I have asked 
Government to irrigate, and I have little fear of 
difficulty in getting this taken up if the irrigation is 
carried out. 
Titles for Mr. Pasqual's coffee estates at Serendah 
were prepared and issued during 1S97, and applica- 
tions were received and registered for additional blocks 
from him and from Messrs. ileikle and Glassford, who 
are planting coffee at Batang K-ali. 
The grant of a block of .500 acres at Serendah has 
been sanctioned, on special terms, to some gentlemen 
desirous of planting gutta. 
INSECT STINGS. 
[1 enclose a, cutting from the " St. Anstell Star " 
ye wasps ; they have been very plentiful here lately ; 
ha-s this pest been bad in other districts ? I was 
nearly blinded by one ot the " beasties ' last 
^veek.— iYfi« Galway Cor. Oct. 7-] 
The fact of death occasionally resulting from the 
sting of insects, such as bees and wasps, is no doubt 
largely responsible, says the Lancet for the species 
of terror which the presence of these insects brings 
nponmany persons. Only last week, for example, a 
case was reported of a labourer who piaced in hia 
mouth a gooseberry which proved to contain a wasp. 
The wasp stung him at the root of the tongue ; 
he went into his cottage and medical aid was sam- 
moned, but death ensued in five minutes." In this 
instance, of coarse, death most probably supervened 
OQ suffocation due to intense swelling in the throat, 
and was not due directly to the poison itself. Vom- 
miting, fainting, delirium, and stupor strong y suggest 
a highly viraltnt substance of the nature of a toxin. 
The precise nature of the poison of wasps and bees 
is not known. They possess a poison bag and sting 
and the fluid secreted is as clear as water, exhibits 
an acid reaction, and, in fact, contains formic acid. 
But this acid can hardly account for the severity of 
the symptoms sometimes following a sting. Fatal 
results have, indeed, occurred which could only be 
attributed directly to the toxic action of the sting. 
Some persons, however, endure the sting with im- 
punity, others develop alarming symptoms, such as 
blood-poisoning, and undoubtedly the toxicity of the 
sting depends very much upon the condition of the 
" soil " into which it is implanted. One of the old- 
fashioned remedies, and we believe a good one, is to 
apply immediately to the part stung the juice of a 
raw onion. The "rationale" of this remedy is not 
clear, the sulphur oil in the onion possib'y serving 
as a palliative. The sting, at any rate, if it remains 
in the wound, should be extracted, and the puncture 
dressed with a little weak- ammonia, and afterwards 
a little bromide of ammonia may be added, which 
frequently serves as a sedative. Judging from the 
great number of wasps which have somewhat sud- 
denly appeared in the country during the recent hot 
weather this seasonal pest promises to be of no small 
dimensions. The intense irritation caused in some 
persons by mosquitto "bites" maybe promptly re- 
lieved by the application of ipecacuanha, either the 
" vinum " or the powdered root, made into a paste 
with water or vinegar, being wieA. 
TEA AND CURRENCY. 
A well-known, veteran proprietary planter, 
Mr. G. A. Dick (who is shortly returning to 
Ceylon) maizes the followictj remark? in the 
coarse of a letter by a recent mail : — 
" There has been a great improvement in the 
quality of Ceylon tea during the last four years. 
In every village in Scotland, good, very good tea 
Is brought within the reach of everyone. Indeed 
it is quite the excejition even to be offered a 
jioor cup of tea and it is wonderfully cheap. 
Lipton's 1/8 tea has greatly improved, shew- 
ing that lie is using more and more high-grown 
tea in making up his packets which are now not 
only ordered by the artizan classes, but iu an 
increasing degree by the higlier classes in the 
community. I have been reading tlie evidence 
given before the Currency Committee 1. N. 
Ciiristie's evidence is very strong as to the in- 
jurious effect of the rise of exciiange. I don't 
know if his evidefice as to the cost of an estate 
and the average cost of production will receive 
universal approval. Some one remarked to me 
that it was giving the Colony away and miglit 
be used as an argument for the carrying out of 
tiie Goveruiuent policy which desires the fixin"' 
of a high ratio of exchange. The evidence I like 
most of all is tliat of Mi. Ralli. He is an im- 
mense exporter of all Indian produce. After all, 
tlie question will turn on the effect of high ex- 
change on the 100 millions of Indian produce. 
He more than any other seems to be in touch 
with the cultivator. His blunt way of sayin" 
'I know tlie effects of high exciiange from my 
own knowledge and experience and from livinn- 
ill touch witli his many agents in the a"ricul- 
tural provinces of the Empire' must carry great 
weiglit. The Lindsay scheme is niucli commented 
upon iu banking circles. Many people think 
that Government will adoj.'t it, e.^jjecially as he 
argues, that even if it fails it will lead up to 
what the Indian Government evidently iiopes to 
reach, — a convertible gold and silver token cur- 
rency. Ralli says that a gold currency estab- 
lished in India will require to begin with au 
enomious amuuut oi buUiuu which the Govern- 
