May ], 1S99.J THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
trust Governor llidgeway may empower 
Mr. Green to visit Washington and consult 
w ith Dr. Howard, the leading Entomologist, 
with whom he has already heen in corre- 
spondence. Much henefit to future work in 
Ceylon might well be anticipated. In any 
case we hope Mr. Gi-een may have a plea- 
sant and profitable holiday and return in- 
vigorated to enter on his special duties out 
here. 

DRYING CLOVES IN PEMBA. 
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE SHAMCA ] 
friend's INDUSTRIAL MISSION, PEMBA ZANZIBAR 
Oct. 27, 1898. 
Dear Sir, — I am just in receipt of yours of ihe lotli 
inst. After various experiments in drying cloves 
nncler glass and otherwise, I am of opinion that, for 
the present we shall do best to try and improve the 
present syetem without iutroduoing any radical 
changes which the average planter would not be able 
to carry out. The old method of drying our cloves 
in the open sunshine is not far wrong; but some im- 
provements are needed all through tlie process. 
Greater cave must be taken in ih- gathering of the 
buds to get lliem as near the pink of perfection 
as possible, and not to damage the trees. In the 
' stalking ' constant watching is needed to see that 
all stalks, leaves and sticks are removed. This wotk 
is usually done in the evening, and the buds are then 
left in baskets or heaps until morning by v/hich time 
they have become heated and brown. 1 believe this is a 
great mistake; those which get heated are apt to become 
dark coloured in drying, they should be spread out 
Ihinly on mats during the night. To issue good cloves 
planters need better stores which .should be roomy, 
clean, light and airy ; the piesent dark hovals a'-e 
fatal to the production of good sample?. Laige open 
sheds adjoining ilie stores are also much needed, so 
that wlicn a shower comes on the cloves can quickly 
be put under cover when they will have air and be 
spread out to prevent heating and discolouring. 
Wlierever possible a large concrete floor should be 
provided instead of tl e bare ground to s))read the 
mats on ; as the damp ground in showei y weather 
injures both the mats and the cloves. Even if all 
these things are done, and a good sample produced 
it is liable to be ruined before it reaches Zmzibar. 
So long as cloves have to be exported in dhows they 
will get wet and damaged. Exporters are compelled 
to itse dhows and run the risk of damnging the cloves. 
It is scarcely likely that tlie bulk of the yeai's crop 
can be got as good as small experimental samples 
which have been dried entirely under Europi^an 
supervision. Much of the crop has of necessity 
to be dried under native miinagemeiit. This 
year there will be many small cloves and 
some over ripe ones amongst the bulk, as, 
owing to the drought the bunches contain 
cloves in all thiee stages of development. Some 
simple machine needs constructing to screen out 
sand and small fiiignients of stalks, and to blow out 
dust and bits of leaves before the cloves aro finally 
bagged for exportation. — Yours, etc , 
TuEonoiiE Bt'RTT. 
TVe agree with Mr. Burtt in thinking tliat the 
Arab method of heaping up green cloves is injurious. 
In rainy weatlier, when drying cannot proceed, these 
heaps rcmnin in Ih? go downs for sr-veral days, 
glowing d.iily laiger, till .a high stato of fmineuttitiou 
is set up. These chives will subseqnuritly turn black. 
The desirable rich brown colour can bo securidonly 
if the clove buds are spread out as ihey are brought 
in, and nc\ei- al owi-d o be heaped. Colour how- 
ever depends as much, it not more, upon the picking 
than upon tlie drying, and nule.ss tha buds are picked 
in the pre per pink condition no amount of .subsequent 
manngemcut will produce a good samp'e. — i^liiiniliti, 
Febiuiiry. 
PLANTING IN NORTH TRAVANCORE. 
(From our Correspondent. ) 
April 1899. 
Grand i-ains after the long spell of drought 
we have had, the little driblets during the 
month of .January", February and INIarch, only 
amounting to 0-28 of an inch : How is this for 
a drought? On 31st March we had a nice 
shower : on 1st April a gi'and down-pour ; 
and today, Sunday, another nice wetting rain, 
commencing at dark and still going on as 
I now write at 9 p.m. I note by" the 0?;.se/7'er 
that Ceylon has also i^assed through a severe 
spell of dry weather ; but I do not think so 
severe as the above, and still our tea does 
not seem to have suffered very much. In 
not one instance, have I seen a dead bush. 
Our soils are deeper perhaps, and the tea roots 
get away down further into the damp sub- 
soil. On some of the lower-lying estates, the 
)>ushes had pretty well closed up ; but away 
higher \\]} on the hills, the shoots continued 
to come imtil the last, and I have no doubt 
would have gone on sometime longer. But 
these rains were very welcome nevertheless, 
and have cooled the air, and made it much 
more bearable for man and beast. 
A noteworthy featiu^e of the dry season was 
the number and variety of 
WILD ANIMALS 
which were evidently driven do-mi from the 
higher hills in ctuest of water, — elephants and 
quantities of sanibur foot-prints being found 
all over the estates, along roads, through tea, 
upsetting nursery pandals and passing, in 
some instances, within 150 yards of bungalows; 
but all evidently making for the much- 
prized water. The hills all about I need 
hardly say are all of the colour of dirty 
dusty roads, except those which had beeii 
set fire to, and they are still black as the 
old boy himself. The rains, however, will be 
the means of making these to be clothed 
with a coat of emerald hue, and so provide 
good grazing for the numerous animals about. 
The streams had gone down to a very low 
ebb, and in fact, a gi^eat many of the smaller 
ones had gone dry altogether ; dust driven 
by the wind, and ashes from numerous 
clearings which had been lately burnt oflf 
have been rampant for weeks past : — 
Away before, and give a whirlwind room. 
Or I will blow you up like dust ! Avaunt ; 
Madness but meanly represents my toil 
Eternal Discord ! 
Fury ! Revenge ! Diadaiii and indignation 
Tear my swol'n lireast, make way for fire and 
tempest. 
My brain is burst, debate and rea.son quenched ; 
Tlie storm is up, and my hot bleeding lieart 
Splits witli the rack, while passions like tlie wind, 
Rise up to Heav'n, and put out all tlie stars. 
Clearing wcnk being the order of the day, 
we are all btisy in this quarter. Coolies are 
fairly plentiful, and (juite sufficient for all 
requii'ements at jn-esent : glad to see tea has 
taken a ttuMi for the better again. Long may 
it r-emain and bring more grist to tlie mill, 
although a good many companies have done 
no that bad consiilering the hard times. 
K. D. 
Tka Blkuit. — It i.s rcassurin;i to learn from 
INIr. E. E. tireeti that, .so far as lie lias seen, 
only one of the '' blights," described by Dr. CJji)ij,'e 
\Valts a.s adecting lea in A.ssaiii, is to be louiid 
in Ceylon. 
