Oct. 1, 
THE TROPICAL AC^RtOtTLTURlST. 
and will give eaoagh oattinga to plant about two 
acres, which within a year, will again p -idaoe enoagh 
to plant 50 acres. Before, however, sp iinens of each 
variety were secured by the Governuieiat o£ India 
auJ by Dr. Morris for the iinpjriul Daj><,rtmtiuii 
of Agricalture, aud by the Hope Gordons here. 
Some of the roots are still left iu the ground and 
will grow up, so that there may yet be more uuolinga 
available of these valuable varieties. More recently 
Cassava roots grown at Hope (Jardem on analysis 
have proved to be quite as rich in starch as the best 
of the Colombian, but containing a m ich larger pro- 
portion of hydrooyanii; acid. Liter Ml-. T. H 3h irp 
had some roots of different kinds of Sweet and Biiter 
Cassava from his property at Inverness, analysed and 
two of the Bitter have given no less than 39'10 per 
cent, of starch while one variety of Sweet is given at 
35'14 or a little below the Colombian. Of oourse. 
there may be great differences in the qualities of the 
soils for growing Cassava. The true test is to grow 
both native and Colombian side by side in the same 
soil tind under the sauie oouditioas. This is now 
being done at Hope. Bven if equalled in starch 
contents by native kinds the new Oolombitin varieties 
are of such undoubted value as a safe food product, 
free of prusio acid that such Cassava should come into 
more gener.il use for the table. — Journal of the 
Jamaica Agricultural Soaieiy.— Indian Planting and 
Gardening, 
OUR TEA ESTATES AND 
VANISHING INSECTIVOROUS 
BIRDS- 
Dr. A Willey, f.r.s., Director of the Colombo 
Museum, who has just retimed after an extended 
collecting tour, has given some information to a 
contemporary. 
THE LESSER BVIL iiND THE GREATER GOOD. 
— " ROGUE " BIRDS. 
Looking into the memorandum, in the summary of 
suggestions received by Messrs. Geo, Steuart& Co., 
the protection of lizards and the destruction of hawks, 
jungle-crows aud jiys, is recommended. As regards, 
the jungle-crow, if the oouoal (Centropus rufipennis) 
is meant, or the black crow [Corvus levaillanti), it 
might be pointed out that they are both more or less 
insectivorous though they occasionally pilfer nests. 
The coucal, the Ettikukula of the Sinhalese, levies 
heavy contribution on all creeping things— centipedes, 
slugs, scorpions, lizards, beetles, and ail insects, and 
it is also said to raid the nests of birds. Dr. Willey 
thought it would be a great pity to destroy the 
Centropus -called by some jangle crow — which was 
one of tbe prettiest birds in Ceylon. " If the planters 
establish sanctuaries for birds, what they should do is 
to pay attention to the depreditions of individual 
birds and destroy them," said Di, Willey, '' and not 
destroy the whole race. Those birds which cause 
damage to nests, are ' rogue ' birds, like our ' rogue 
elephants,' and surely for the sake of a few individuals 
you are not going to exterminate the whole lot." 
The pilfering of nests by occasional birds, he thought, 
did not compare with the good services performed by 
the whole race in destroying all kinds of insects. 
The blaok crow, though it robs nests occasionally, 
and eggs and chickens from the planters' poultry yard, 
is a great hand at picking up caterpillars. Daring the 
recent severe visitation of the lobster citerpilUr in the 
Kalutara district it will b J reuismbarad that cro^vs in 
thousands Hooked to the iulestei tialds an J gorged 
themselves with tha insects Hera again Dr. Willey did 
not think it advisable to destroy the blaik crow. He 
had opaned the atomwhs of a large numbsr of these 
birds and had taken out a variety of insects from tham. 
The blaok crow occasionally raided a neat bat it was 
pot the rale. 
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CEYLON BIRD 
As regards the blue jay (Cissa oruataj this hand- 
some bird, it is known, lives on fruit, baetles, and 
lizu'ds, and Dr. Willey thought the HugL^estion to 
destroy jays a prenosterous one : " They do dam iga at 
time?, but here again they are the individual i you have 
to look to, and not the w'.i 5l6 race Tiu blue j ly is 
one of the gi-eatest characteristics of Cayloii biri life, 
and its destruction ought not to bs sanctiousd by any 
official organisation." 
MAINTAINING THE BALANCE CF NiTURE. 
Of raptorial birds frequenting up-country one or 
two species of harriers, hawk-oagles, and hawk-kites 
feed principally on large beetles, liztrds iCcilotes)^ 
commonly known as " blood suckers " — frogs, and mice 
but it is only some of the fa'coa tribe that live exclu 
sively on birds. No one would wish to see raptorial 
birds so numerous as to be a serious menace to bird 
life or poultry rearing, but when ihjy keep frogs, 
mice, lizards, and beetles down to proper limits one 
need not complain if they occasionally kill birds or 
raid the poultry yard, '' I do not believe in the 
advisability of carrying on a campaign against hawks, 
let alone ^the question of extermination," said Dr. 
Willey, ■' If you see a hawk swooping down to take 
a chicken shoot it." To destroy the whole lot of the 
winged oarnivora just beciuse certiin spesies killed 
lizards and birds. Dr. Willey thought, would not be 
just, " It is their nature, and you do not notice a 
fewer number of birds or Lz^rUs in places frequented 
by hawks. It is the existence of things like this whioh 
keeps up the balance of nature." 
The lizards fCaZaies) Dr. Willey remirked, were as 
every one knew, insectivorous ; but they lived princi- 
pally on small flies. It was probable they also fed on 
insect larvDB but he had never found any in the 
stomachs of lizards he had opened, 
PATNA AND GRASS LAND. — THE ABODE OF INSEOII- 
VOB0U8 BIRDS. 
As to the burning off of pJtna laud, contrary views 
are held in the correspondence published. Messrs, B. 
E, ii^reen, Government Entomologisl, and F. Lewis, 
Conservator of Forests, are agreed that the burning off 
of patua and grass land adjoining tei estates should bs 
absolutely put a stop to. On the other hand, reoipienta 
of Messrs, Geo. Steuart & Co.'s fitst cirjular take a 
different view. They question whether tna burning of 
such land would not be beneficial in dostroying the 
gecms of insect pasts as well as snakes, cats, and other 
vermin. Now it is well-known that a large number of 
insectivorous birds, such as certain babblers, cuctoos, 
warblers, chats, and one or two of tie robin tribe, 
effect patnas and grass lands up-oountry. All these 
birds are purely insectivorous aud feed on worms, 
caterpillars, beetles, flies, and other insects. " It 
will be a great mistake to burn off patna and grass 
land adjoining tea estates,'' said Dr. Willey. " The 
insect peats which they harbour are probably a very 
small percentage of those which attack tea, bat that 
is a point which can ba easily ascertained," He, 
however, thought that the fact thit such land shel- 
tered a great number of insectivorous birds counter- 
balanced '• the germs of inpeot pasts as well as snakes 
cats, and other vermin " which were alleged to exist 
iu such land. Snakas, which were all carnivorous, of 
course, were killed wherever they ware seen. 
The planting of suitable trees to form sanctuaries 
and for the nesting of birds is a matter that requires 
0 ireful consideration, as pests which infest our culti- 
vated trees originally came from wild jungle trees. In 
the correspondence published in one place the growing 
up of ravines in lantana is recommended and ia 
auothar place deprecatad as being subjact to 
attacks of bugs which infest adjoining vegetation. Dr. 
Willey agreed in the condemnation of lantana. The 
weed was all right in its w^y, but it grew to the 
exclusion of all othsr plants. In tha vicinity o£ planta- 
tions especially its growth shDulinot be enooucaged 
said Dr. Willey. It would simply teal to tha desok' 
tioQ of t93ii estates, 
