Jan. 2, 1899.] Supplement to the ''Tropical 'Agriculturists 
51^ 
'elastic, leathery, water-resisting, and cnpable of 
removing pe;icil murks.' 
According to a writer to the Indian Agriculturist, 
quoted by Dr. Watt, each fruit of the j ik yields 
about -2 Oi. of milk, from wliich 1^ drachm of 
caoutchouc-Iike substance can be obtained. 
RINDERPEciT INNOCULATION IN INDIA. 
Veterinary Capt. Raymond's further report on 
e\1.)eriments with rinderpest forms tlie subject of 
the Indian Agricultural Ledger No- 6 of the Special 
Veterinary Series. After detailing a number of 
experiments carried out by him, the writer offers 
the following remarks : — 
These experiments tend to show that this method 
might be safely used with advantage on Wards' 
Estates, etc., when rinderpest is known to be 
raging in the neighbourhood, for it would pro- 
bably confer immunity long enough for the disease 
to ditf out ill the surrouiuling villages. From the 
"Wards' Estates its use might spread as the neigh- 
bours accpiire confideucA I may add that it has 
been clearly proved that there is no danger of the 
inoculation with bile conveying rinderpest, if 
properly performed. It has also been proved that 
the operation does not interfere with the o dinary 
work of the bullocks. 
For the pre-ent the buffalo bile method is the 
simplest way of conferring temporary immunity 
on cattle lii Bengal. But it has the obvious 
drawback that a delay occurs in obtaining the 
bile in necesa a-y quantity and purity. It cannot 
be obtained from the cattle for local reasons. A 
further dehiy of about 7 days occurs while tl:e 
iiiocul.ited cattle are acquiring immunity, because 
they do no' become immune at once- Hence 1"2 
vciy important days, at least, are lost. 
I have made a lew experiments witli a view to 
testing the serun method of treating rinderpest, 
because it has been laid dow"ii as a principle that 
immunity extending over a very long period can 
only be acquired after an attack and recovery 
from rinderpest. 
Tlie preliminary dilticulty is, of course, to control 
the strength of the attack which is to confer 
. immunity, otherwise the animal may be killed. 
Though 1 am not yet prepared to offer a definite 
opinion as to whether a constant control can be 
maintained over the virulence or mildness of the 
disease, it seems probable from what 1 have done 
that my injecting virulent blood into a healthy 
animal and immediately afterwards inject-ing 
deribrinated blood taken from an immunised case, 
the*healthy animal becomes subjct to an extremsly 
mild attack of rinderpest and recovers. This is 
. what has happened in my experiments, but it 
remains to be seen if the attack is always as mild 
as lias happetied up to the pre-ent. 
Should this method become rccomuiendable for 
practical use it will have this advantage, viz., 
ilial II mild attack of rinderpest can be run 
through a iierd ( isolated for the purpose), and the 
owner's mind set a rest for, possibly, some year.s. 
1 do not think this method will commend itself 
to the raiyats of these I'r.jvinces, as it is rathnr 
too comiilicated for them to understand. Mori- 
over, the dose of detibrinatt'd blood required i- 
^lurge, which is also u drawback, 
I have been for some tirne engaged in attempt- 
ing to prepare a serum of greater immunising 
power than is obtained from animals tliat have 
reb;>vered from an ordinary attack of rinderpest. 
Siiould I succeed, it may be possible to keep a 
stock of material for distribution. 
REVOLUTION IN SOIL ANALYSIS. 
In this number we conclude Dr. Dyer's im- 
portant article on "The Analysis of Soil as a 
Guide to its Fertility,'' and those who have perused 
it (and it is worthy of perusal by all intelligent 
agriculturists) will agree with us in thinking 
tliat it is a strong impeachment ot the ordinary 
analytical chemist who professes to be able to 
tell us the proportion of " available " plant food 
in the soil and the necessity for manuring it 
with this or that fertilizer. These chemists have 
apparently been working in the dark all along, 
and like those who cannot see and attempt to guide 
others have only helped to lead their lay-brethren 
astray. For, according to Dr. Dyer, their deduc- 
tions, as shewn in the case of potash have been 
inconsistent as well as incorrect. . 'J'empora 
mutantur ! It is pretty clear that the old order 
of chemical analysis must give place to the new, 
for we cannot afford to be misled any longer 
as to the condition of our soils and the treat- 
ment they need. The hydrochloric acid bottle 
must be put on a back shelf in future, and the 
new solvent brought to the front. Who will now 
say that a study of modern chemistry is not 
essential to an enlargement of our agricultural 
knowledge 1" Liebig, the father of Agricultural 
Chemistry, himself fell into a grave error when 
he believed and taught his jNIineral Theory, as 
did de Candolle with his Excretory Theory, and 
it is no surprise that those who have mechanically 
followed the beaten track of soil analysis, without 
any original research on their own account, should 
now discover that they must abandon their old 
formulas for the new teaching, and the sooner 
this is done the better for the cultivator of 
the soil who looks to them for guidance, 
KEKUNA OIL. 
We are glad to state that what was originally 
thought to be an impossible task, namely, to meet 
large orders for kekuna oil from abroad, is now 
being accomplished. We were always struck 
with the wide distribution of the kekuna tree 
(Aleurites triloba) and the manner in which the 
nuts were allowed to run to waste, though some of 
them were used for expressing oil for lighting 
purposes in certain districts. The great difficulty 
at lirst was to find an agent in Colombo who would 
deal ill the oil. In fact it was at first reported 
that miny of the Colombo hrms who had been 
c immunicated w-ith liad never heard of such an 
oil and would not receive orders for it, while it 
was considered impracticable to procure 100 gal- 
lons, which, if by some means, wos got together, it 
was tiiougiit would exhaust all resources. We 
may mention that we did eventually find a gentle- 
man in Colombo who undertook to work up the 
busiuess iu kekuaa oil, aud wij bare (fivea biai 
