890 
Supplement to the " Tropkal Aqi ktdtumL" 
[JuXK 1, 1899. 
" Well uo," was the answer. " So far as the 
profits were concerned, there never were any. 
His Highness supplied European ioaplements, and 
all manner of improvements were made, but these, 
in addition to the cost of labour, ate up all surplus 
results, and the conclusion I came to was that tlie 
system of labour employment was wronji. The 
people might have been worked in the way they 
■work to pay Government rent." 
"And that is"?— "Well, the ryots are very 
poor. They know nothing of leaving land to he 
fallow or the varation of crops. They live as fur 
as possible on what the ground brings forth, 
and during the time they can grow no crop in 
particular, they bring up opium to pay the rent. 
They count their labour us nothing, and the labour 
of their oxen, which during tlie monsoon would 
otherwise be idle, as a necessary exercise. So 
the crop in the market is sold very low, and none 
can compete. It was after making all manner of 
calculations that I realised the possibility of 
making agriculture pay in this way. Provide the 
people with good impUments, good seed and 
manure, help them with information, and work the 
business on rent lines.'' 
" How did you drift into dairy work.* " 
"That was a considerable l\ca^ afterwards. 
When in Central India, the Central India Agency 
took great interest in my experiments, tlie re*ults 
of which were entered in the bUie-books. So I 
came to be known in England, where they had start- 
ed a big company for the cultivation of opium in 
Africa. Their secretary was sent to me, and my 
services were engaged for the new undertaking. I 
took scventy-rtve opium manipulators and cultiva- 
tors with me and started off on 
the course which Livingstone took by the Kiver 
Qiiaqua to Mopia, where the work lay. I was 
there for some time, and desired to work the crops 
in the same way that experience told me the 
Indian crops ought to have been worked. But 
the secretary disagreed, and after six months 1 came 
away. We should have made tlie natives the 
cultivators, giving them tools, helping them to sink 
wells and tlien buying the crops from them." 
' ' "How did the company get on afterwards?" 
,i' " It turned its attention from opium to sugar, 
,'iut what finally became of it I do not kuow." 
" And you, yourself P " "I being of a roving 
turn of mind went off to see how European agri- 
culture compared with agriculture in India, and 
since that time I have bsen on several occasions 
to the West. The first time I went I got out at 
Suez to study Egyptian methods. I found Nature 
most favourable to luxurious crops, the laud being 
03 enriched by the Nile inundations. They used 
rude implements similar to those to be found in 
this country, but got better results with the 
exception perhaps of the districts watered imme- 
diately by the Ganges and other such rivers. Oa 
to Russia I went, theuce through Servia and ilou- 
mania to Italy, France, Norway, Sweden and 
England As 1 went on I found greater and 
creater improvements. Italy I found somewhat 
■ primitive, and the cultivators in method seemed to 
resemble the Indians." 
" Aud what iufereuce did you dtAW as rejarda 
- Judia from youj: observatious;"" 
This. The people being very very poor here, 
they cannot afford to purchase implumeaU &« 
are used successfully in more advanced couutrfc?*, 
and they would need to be educated up to such 
implements if they had them. It would be 
dangerous to give ryots improved implemeat* 
witliout teaching them properly." 
"And why!'" "Why? Well in the first place 
you use, sa}', in England a plough that turns 
tt good deep furrow. Here in India they only 
scratch the ground, and bit by bit the 8ub>oil 
comes up. It would be disastrous to bring it 
up from any depth, because while lliere i« 
plenty of nourishment in the earth, it is only 
affective after being aun-locked and that process 
takes time. To plough in India to good purpose 
would mean giving tliree inches deep the first 
year, four the next, and five the next, so the 
process is gradual." "But European implement* 
could surely be adopted to tiio work ? ' 
" Yei), I bare adopted them so that they can 
be regulated. In very small sums I liave lent 
these implemeuts with excellent results — the 
native could never buy. I look forward to seeing 
a tiui« when th^ system of lenditig will be 
increased, and, generally spixking, the ryots 
are freed from the hands of t!ie Vanuias. That 
could be a good dij* tor (ndia, and the saoaer 
it is reco^'nized the better. Yes, most certainly 
I would advocite (iivernmiint if pissibl'j l>etng 
the lenders of implemdiits as they are the 
providers of wells; Government, too, might pro- 
vide manure. lu'lian soil is never manured, 
and in due time the crops grow less, because 
the land is always bjing impoverished." 
"Manure is one of the most expensive of 
four items ? " 
" Yes, manure is wasted, absurdly wasted. 
Rain comes from the clouds to the earth, through 
the earth to the rivers, througli tlie rivers to 
the sei, and from the sea to the clouds onee 
more. So should be returned the food grown 
on the land. When I was in Central India 
there was great trouble about wliat was to be 
done with the night soil. I took it, deodorized 
it, mixed it with lime and spread it on the 
land with excellent results, Tiiis is what should 
done all over. It is a natural sequence, and 
necessary — second only to irrigation. You cannot 
take away from the land and give nothing in 
return." 
Then Mr. Patuck went on to explain how he,inhi8 
various trips to Europe brought back useful agri- 
culture machines. Six years ago butter was 
imported to Bombay froai Denmark, now Bombay 
exports butter to China, Africa and Japan, Her- 
metically sealed in casts, he thinks the day may 
come wlien India butter may compete with Danish 
and English and European markets. Meanwhile, 
he applies himself to tlie study of Indian dairy work 
and agriculture, and trusts his country may 
benefit. 
We are indebted for the above interview to 
Tea Indian AgriculturaL Mr. Patrick's career 
offers an admirable example — and one worthy of 
emulation — of what Entapure can do for tb^ 
Agi'iealtiu'ist— Ed. A- & J. 
