276 
THE TROPICAL 
AGEICULTTJEIST. [Oct 1, 1903. 
WANAEAJAH TEA CO., OP C YLON, LTD. 
REPOKT OF THE DIRECTORS. 
DinECTOBS, — Mr J O Dnnbar, Chairman ; Messrs R 
David?!on, J W Vancler8tro,aten, Fred Wernham. 
AcREASE : — Tea in bearing, 1,040 lores' Planted in 
1898. 20 do ; 1,060 acres in Tea ; Timb-^r Trees, 20 do ; 
Forest, 27 do, Grass not available 27 do. Total 1,134 
acres. 
The Directors have the pleasure of presenting; to the 
Shareholders the report, balance sheet, and profit and 
loss account for the year ending .30th June, 1903. The 
crop harvested amounted to 437,783 lb against an 
estimate of 4.'>0,000 lb. The slight shortage, being due 
to inclement weather early in the season. Of the 
above, 350.8241b have been sold to date at an average 
of cents 48'23, against cent 44 70 to same date last year. 
Manure. — The eBtiraa,te provided for 360 acres. The 
acreage completed was 357, at a cost of R12,509'13. 
After jraying an interim dividend f 5 per cent and 
allowing 5 per cent depreciation on buildings and 10 
per spnt on michinery, there remains the sum of 
R91,386'27, including the balance brought forward, 
R39,776'!j6, which the Directors recommend be applied 
as iollows : — 
To a final dividend of 12 per cent, mak- 
ing a total of 17 per cent for the year R4.5,360'00 
To be carried forward 46,026-27 
Total 91,386'27 
b 
The estimated crop for season 1908/04 is 450.000 1 
of made tea. The visiting Agent's reports cm be seen 
by Shareholders at the Company's Office. Mr R 
Davidson retires from the Board by rotation, bat is 
eligible for re-election. The election of an Auditor for 
the current season rests with the Shareholders. 
IMPORTANT COCONUT ESTATE 
COMPANY. 
CAPITAL, RoOO.OOO- 
We learn that the rich Kirinietiyana 
Coconut Estate in the Marawila district, 
belonging; to the heirs of the late P. Sehrader, 
is to be taken up by a Limited Company 
with a nominal capital of about R500,00D, 
Feeding and Doctoring Trees.— A new 
method of feeding tiees and plants without the 
agency of the roots has been discovered by the 
well-known eni-oniolosi 't, MSA Mokr^hezki, who 
has explained his discovery in a lecture before the 
Imperial Botanical Society of India. He his 
invented an apparatus by wliich he can iniro'luce 
into the stems of Apple and Pear treei salts of 
iron, either in the form of a solid or in soluoion. 
The effect of the chemicals is, on the one hand, 
completely to cure the tree of chlorose, and, on the 
other, to stimulate its growth in an important 
degree. Among other extensive researches the 
scientist has applied his theory to 800 fruit trees 
growing on the southern shore of the Crimea. By 
introducing dry sulphate of copper into the stems 
he produced an unusual development of the trees, 
as many photographs testified. M Mokrshezki 
considers that in this way the size of a fruit tree 
can be increased, its colour improved and varied, 
audits diseases removed. The discovery opens up 
a wiile^ifield of practical utility, and is regarded 
as most important.— /oMmai of Horticulture, 
PLANTING NOTES. 
Remkdyfor Mo.SQUiTo BtTEs;— Year by year we 
learn m ire of tiu ap le i ranee of that vile insect 
the mo«qiiito. B it why not chet kmare the owner 
of the boring proboscis? The Entomologist for 
the State of New Jersey has placeil on record 
how to do it. The oil of eitronella, distilled 
from Andropoffon nardus, is the thing : the odour 
is not unpleasant, and the oil may be lightly 
applied to the skin of those parts of the body ex- 
posed to the conscienceless marauder, keeping it 
away from the eyes. The reporting entomologist 
has slept peacefully on an exposed verandah when 
all others were driven in-doors to mosquito-curtains, 
etc. It has never failed during his collpcting 
rambles— the enemy flies before it I —Indian Plant- 
ing and Gardening, Sept. 5. 
Rubber in the Cameboons.— A despatch has been 
received through the Foreign Office, from H M Em- 
bassy at Berlin, transmitting an exfract from the 
' Cologne Gazette ' of the 11th July containing the 
following information, from its correspondent in the 
Cameroons, as to the cultivation of caontchouo in that 
Colony:— "In the district of Victoria over 200,000 small 
trees have been planted of the species of caoutchouc 
known as Kiokxia elastioa, which was discovered some 
years sgo by Dr. Preu^s at Malende, on the right bank 
of the Mungo. The caoutchouc produced is sold at 
Hamburg at the high price of 5 ra^rks a kilo. Some 
of the older trees at Malende yield over 4 kil )8 a year. 
The Plantation Company, Soppo, acquired ths land at 
Malende in order to get seeds from there, a>-'d Kickxia 
seeds are also now to be obtain- d trom the Government 
expe' imental nurseries at Victoria. Further stocks of 
Kickxia trees have la.ely bsen discovered on the lands 
of the tw ' plantations, 'Meiirija' and 'Koke,' which 
are devoting themselves to its greater cultivation. The 
plantation 'Meanj.i ' is going to raise ir.s capital for 
this purpose from half a million to one million and a 
halt marks, and negotiations are in progress with 
(jerman gnm manufacturers to obt<),in their participation 
In the undertaking." — Board of Trade Journal. 
Silk Cultivation in Ceylon— We 
direct attention to the interesting infor- 
mation given on this subject by Mr Percy 
N Braine on page 273, who has devoted 
consideriible time and attention to the 
matter and whose opinions must be re- 
garded as more or less authoritative. Mr. 
Braine is optimistic regarding the final de- 
velopment of a silk industry in Ceylon, and 
we can only hope as his experiments ad- 
vance they may justify his hopes. Dioibula 
has proved over twenty years ago that 
cocoons produced there are equal to any pro 
duced in Italy, The information contained 
in the present letter— and that promised by 
the writer, embodying the results of his ex- 
periments in domesticating our indigenous 
wild worms— will be of the utmost interest 
to many who have recently commenced to 
interest themselves, in the subject of silk 
cultivation. It should also be noted in this 
connection that the experiments of Mr, 
Rogers in silk at Quetta are said to be 
promising. When Lord Kitchener was in 
Quetta he noticed with surprise the neglect 
of sericulture in the District. The Afghans " 
there are already trained to the silk industry 
and if the cultivation of silk is successful it 
may have an important civilising influence 
on the tribes, and the women would find 
employment. 
