352 
THE TROPICAL AGBICtiLTURlsT. [Nov. 2, 1903. 
THE MANURIAL VALUE OF RAINWATER. 
We of a tropical climate all know the 
stifling nausea when even a flower seeras 
to thrust her perfume on the foetid 
air, and the long clean breath inhaled 
with pleasure when a shower has driven 
eartli to earth and we can snilf up 
purity in gulps. But what has the soil 
gaiiied from a planter's point of view ? 
—vegetable manure equal any day to 
Eraser's mixture— that "grand stuff" over* 
which he fingers holes in his pockets in 
very contemplation of results. It was lately 
calculated from analysis of a 3 in. fall 
of rain in London, which gives 22 
gallons of water per acre per inch, that 
this rainfall on the 74,839 acres of the county 
of London contained no less than 3,730 tons 
of solid impurities of which 330 tons consisted 
of common salt, 267 tons of sulphate of 
ammonia, and 2,000 tons of soot and suspended 
matters. Of course, a London atmosphere 
would' probably be unique in the way of 
sooty substances, and particularly in the 
quantity of sulphate of ammonia, to form 
.which would require the combustion of no less 
than 29,904 tons of coal. It would be parti- 
cularly interesting to have analysis of rain 
water from various districts of (Jeylon with 
a view to gauging'^its manurial value. The 
careful system of drainage cn Ceylon estates 
with most drains running at such a decisive 
gradient as 1 inch in 15 inches, drains cut at 
distances from each other of from 30 feet to 
35 feet, is ctilculated to carry off rain water 
without giving it much chance of liltering 
through the soil. The very careful system 
of weeding on Ceylon estates, where the 
red earth— red which attracts all the per- 
meating influence of the sun— is left absolute 
and bare to form in dry weather a burnt 
up crust, which is so non-absorbing, that 
what part of it does .become moist is 
quickly washed away from the remaining 
part of hardened crust, tends in every way 
to help the atmosphere, the aqueous and 
the chemical principles of continuous change. 
How many hundreds and thousands of tons 
of our finest organic soil are rolled in a 
great alluvial mass down the Mahaweliganga 
each monsoon? I read your interesting 
interview with Herr Von Drathen published 
last month, and his remarks on this subject- 
as to the system prevailing in India of 
allowing a growth of verdure in between 
the bushes which both protects the soil and 
retains rain water. Some further discussion 
on this subject ought to be of general interest 
and benefit. H. M. M. 
PEERMAAD NOTES. 
(From our own Correspondent.) 
Peermaad, October 15th.— Since writing my 
last notes, weather has cleared up beauti- 
fully here, and we expect to haul in leaf 
shortly, which generally means business 
when we do begin in earnest. 
Estate Yields. — This estate of 306 acres 
in bearing, has given 389 lb of made tea an 
acre all round in nine months ending Sep- 
tember, which goes to show wliat Peermaad 
is capable of doing, for the whole of the 
306 acres, say, planted in the years 1896 1900 
and in the following acreages per year : — 
150 acres in 1896, 20 acres in 1897, 103 acres in 
1898, 8 acres in 1899 and 25 acres in 1900 ; the 
planting season here falls in the months of 
June, July and August. 
Advances to Kanganis,— " Root and 
Branch" seems to be on the right track 
as regards advances to kanganis at any rate, 
for as an example I have the pleasure of 
owing my three head-kanganis R5,6o0 and 
odd between them— instead of them owing 
me anything", and I think the above yield 
per acre speaks for itself especially as it 
has only cost 18'75 cts per )b of made teaf.o.b. , 
inclusive of 18 acres of new clearing put 
out this year. 
THE LOCAL MOSQUITO PLANT. 
QUITE AS EFFECTIVE AS THE WEST AFRICAN. 
A correspondent, well-known in India as 
a botanist and horticulturist, has carried out 
some experiments with the common Tulsi 
{Ocimum sanctum), [or Maduru talx of the 
Sinhalese. — Ed T. A.\ and he writes to a con- 
temporary to say that it is quite as efficacious 
in keeping off mosquitoes as the Nigerian 
variety, Ocimum viride, to which Captain H 
D Larymore first drew attention in London. 
The correspondent crushed the leaves and 
smeared the juice over the portions of his 
body exposed to mosquitoes, and slept peace- 
fully, without mosquito net or punkah, and 
had not a mark of a bite the next morning. 
He has repeated the experiment every night 
since, with the same result ; and he therefore 
thinks that he has proved the efficacy of the 
Tulsi. He is now going to try what effect the 
mere presence of the plant around his bed 
will have.— M, Mail. 
PLANTING IN THE SEYCHELLES IN 1902. 
The report of Mr Sweet-Escott, the administrator 
of Seychelles, for the past year, gives a revenae of 
R437,465 — the highest of any previous year except 
one— and an expenditure of R497,479, which is 
enceptionally high because of the cost of new roads 
and public buildings. Nearly half the revenue is 
derived from Customs duties, and the assets at the 
end of the year were largely in excess of the liabilities. 
The imports (excluding specie) amounted to R861, 
159, and the exports to R 1,094,268, of which vanilla 
absorbed R642,330, The violent fluctuations in the 
price of this staple explain the fluctuations in tbe 
commercial statistics of Seychellee as well as in the 
revenue. Neatly a third of the imports are from the 
United Kingdom, the bulk of the remainder being 
from India and France, Mauritius sending the balance. 
Beside vanilla, the exports are tortoiseshell, ooooa, 
coconut oil, guano, and salt fish. Soap made in 
Seychelles finds its chief market in Zanzibar and 
Madagascar. The population at the end of the year 
was 19,772. The labour difSculty is being met by 
importing coolies from Madras. The Curator of 
the Botanic Station was despatched last year to 
Ceylon, Java, and other Eastern tropical Colonies to 
examine what plants and methods of cultivation 
could be introduced to Seychelles, and this, which is 
extremely interesting, is annexed to the usual lannakl 
report.— lioadoQ Times, Sept. 29. 
