468 
THE TliOPlCAJ. AGIUCULTUKIST. 
[Jan. 2, \m. 
reaping paddy are four measures (liuruui) and ono 
meal a day per h.iad. The sugar mill at Udugama 
worked by four pairs of cattle turns out only brown 
sugar but ^he siij^ar mill at Na^oda, ten miles from 
Ddugama which is worked by steam makes relincJ 
BUgar also. A STRANGER. 
SPORT. 
PEAFOWL SHOUTING IN CEYLON, 
ByJ.E.S. 
It was one morning in Got ber — a very dry season, 
the rains being unusually lale— that I left my station, 
Hambantota, in the Southern Province of Ceylon, to 
ride to my frieud L.'s camp, distant about eifjhtucn 
miles, and situated on the bank of tlie largest river in 
the colony, the Mahaveliganfia. As usual, my hoi'se- 
keeper and box-coolie, cairyiug between them my 
clothing, guns, ammunition, horse requisites, and 
other things, packed in the mysterious manner known 
only to inhabitants of the" gorgeous East," had 
made an early start at daybreak for the same place. 
Having allowed them three hours' olart, by whioh 
time they would have got well over half the distance, 
I saddled my horse and having filled my game-bag 
with various little necessaries which had not been 
taken on by the coolies, I mounted, and set forth at 
about 8 a.m., followed by my faithful eld dog. Mack. 
Poor old Mack ! He died about a year after the trip to 
be now described, and lies biuied in a mangrove 
swamp near the little station of Chilaw, on the north- 
western coast. He was a good and game dog, and 
served me well for many years. Extraordinary though 
it may sound to English sportsmen, it must be ex- 
plained that he was a mongrel — a cro-^s between a 
fox-terrier and a beagle, and in appearance more like 
the former than the latter — all white, except a brown 
patch over one ear and one eye. lie possessed a rare 
nose for fur or feather, was an invaluable dog for hare 
or junglefowl, and was madly in love with the gun. 
He was, moreover, a plucky fellow ; would tight vvilli 
his owu kiud or assist in tackliug a porcupine, as orca- 
aion demanded, aud was at the sauie time an affec- 
tionate, faithful frieud. Porcupines, barkiug-deor, and 
pariah dogs, had all left their marks on old Mack's hide 
and he looked what he was— a scarred, brave old 
warrior. Well, this is a digression, but old Mack's 
memory deserves it. The horse walked, aud in places 
where ihe jungle path allowed it, cantered alon", 
and the dog followed at nis neels, while I smoke'd 
many chercots. After some three aud half hours of 
this kind of progression along the apparently in- 
terminable track, we arrived at L.'s camp at hich 
noon. We are not exhausted, for a jungle traok^is 
generally shady, aud the pace, owing to the roughness 
of the ground, can never be killing. 
L. was in charge of a gang of pioneer coolies en- 
gaged on an irrigation scheme. He was ready at his 
hut to give a hearty welcome to man, horse, and do", 
and it was not long before we were all rondo verv com- 
fortable. A swim in the river preceded such a "break- 
fast, as, it appears to mo nowadays, one can only 
get in the Ceylou jungle, aud, the meal beii g 
over, we talked about shooting and determined 
to go for peafowl that same afternoon. Old 
Mack, who thought nothing of his e ighteen-mile 
trot, would not hear of. being left behind, so, about 3 
p.m., we started for some neighbouring •' chenas." 
" Chenas" are portions of forest laud which have 
been cleared for the cultivation of fiue graiu, and then 
after the crop has been taken, abandoned. The 
ground is only capable of producing one crop, and the 
wild jungle at onoe asserts itself, and in the course of 
a few years such lands are covered with thick scrnb 
affording the best of cover for game of all sorts, par- 
ticularly peafowl. It must be understood that we 
were in a very wild part of the island (in no civilised 
spots will peafowl ever be found) — a few small hamlets 
at long intervals, with a very scant native 
population, being all the evidence of human 
lite to be geeu £91' many miles. L. had 
been having some sport with peafowl since hi« 
arnval h»rL. and knowing the lik.liesi covers, dir- 
ectel the wH,y ace .rdingiy. Mack wissoa. l. Uvon 
hare, but the scrub was too tbi..k to iwimit of even 
snap shooiii.g, ami, &^ ►;tvor.tl peafL^wl roie out ot 
shot, we tcoi thb dog up and trampe^d the first ona 
or two chenas slowly out. e.nploying seveml msn to 
beat It well, for sometimes peaf j*l will lie very close 
At last five or six peafowl rof- ail at once, close to 
us, and we got four barrels into them, each of u« 
getting one hen. One might suppose that a flviae 
peafowl could not be nii-ssed. Nor can it be vt-rv 
easily, hut it can easily be allowed to get away To 
bag peafowl requires very steady, careful ehootin - 
ihe head and neck alone should be aimed at and a 
charge of No. 5 or even No. 7, if properly directed, u 
quite sufficient to drop a bird dead at 40 yards 
It was the largest I have ever killed out of mauv 
scores weighing 10. lb., thfi usual weight being 7 
or b lb. Ihey certainly h^ve a s iisj iciou of ij7u«k 
about them, and, in a country like < eylon, where the 
hlthy musk-rat abounds, this is objectionable, but 
If carefully garbaged, they are not bad eating, and 
I h«ve often been very glad of them. In th« course 
of the morning I collected two brace of jungle-fowj 
three Urge pigeons, one tpurfowl, three hares, and 
ft pea-hen. This letter roee out of a cheua wiihin 
fair Phot, and flew straight away from mo. The two 
barrels knocked a cloud of featiiera out of he' but 
she held on, apparently little injured. However, after 
flyinp some 150 y.vrda she suddenly rose up in the 
air and toppled over dead. This is the Kolitary 
instance of a peafowl towering which has come 
within my expeneace.-.S.'^oodny Time, aud L'riiUh 
iipoilsmaii. 
I'llODUCE AND I'LANTIXC;. 
A WoNDLRFLL TnANsFoBMATioN.-The invention of 
ft I; reuch engineer, M. Kobin Langlois, U oue upon 
w ViV "1 '"'f ested ID Ihe sugar growing induitry 
will be glaa to keep an eye. According to /.a Xal,uv 
it IS a simple and inexpensive process for trantformini: 
rapidly into cubes or square blocks, possessing 
absolutely the external appearance and properties 
of refined sugar all raw sugars made from cine or 
beet, hitherto whitened and purified by the methods 
at present in use in the factories of the world Under 
the new process the transformation of raw sugar into 
refined sugar tnkes only a few hour?, while in the 
refineries today it requires from fifteen to sixteen 
aays. M. Langlois's invention may have important 
consequences for the sagar industry, and the develon- 
^'^^"'.^f^tbe process he has discovered will be watched 
« J^'^'f 1 FiBnE.-The Imperial Institute 
authorities, v.-o learn from an evening paper are e\ 
pectiug a trial shipment of pine apple fihre from 
Assam. The rough outr-r covering of the frnit is the 
raw material from which this new material is made 
and an Asssm planter is, we are told, sendin.' over 
several tons as an experiment. The new material is 
very like hax, and may sufplaut othe- materials in 
the manufacture of twine, while it can be .softened so 
as to be available for fabrics. Its estimated value is 
from £-20 to £-2o a ton. There may be some prosT^ect of 
a new industry in the province.— jy. d- C. .Vaii. Nov. I8. 
Thk Java Cinchona controls tlie market for 
tins drug the world over— and tlis eftorts of its 
oon.sciencious experts .shoultl not be untold.— 
Fioncer. 
QuiNiXE is the cliief topic of conversation thh 
week in London (November 10th) in our uiarkeLs 
so far a.s the articles then dealt in concern us. 
Practically all the makers except the leading 
Englisli one have ceased sellin^r at last week's 
prices, but no official advance in the "combina- 
tion fiftures has been made. Cinchona Bark 
advanced over l-16d per unit at the London auctions 
ofl luesday.-jS. d,- C. Pri'.r/gist, 
