THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. \.Dec. 1, 1903. 
he was, often enough, no ill consequences 
followed, and— given proper care,— he says 
people can Jive in as good health there, as 
•mywhere else m Uganda. He is of opinion, 
on the other hand, that the removal of the 
centre of operations away from the railway 
line will be a retrograde step, and a serious 
injury to the development of the country. 
Mr Whyte sent all sorts of kind messages to 
his old friends in Ceylon, and to the Observer. 
He had come across Mr. Gr Greig and Mrs 
Greig at Braemar, where he stayed for some 
time with his sister, Mrs. Miller. So far as he 
knows at present, he will be absent in 
Liberia till June of next year. I heard also 
recently of another old Ceylon Colonist, 
MR. R. B. AllTHtTR, 
who, for some time, has been working as an 
artist in London. He was, liowever, 
when I heard of him, talking of giving up 
his Studio, times not being favourable to 
pai nters at present. B. P. 
— ^ . 
NEW MAKE OP COCONUT BUTTER 
Mr. H. K. Rutherford's Company, I under- 
stand, expect shortly to put a new make of 
coconut butter on the market. I saw a 
sample at the offices in Eastcheap today 
which struck me as being a superior article 
to the ordinary varieties of the commodity. 
It was beautifully white, firm and clear, and 
quite free of the rancid odour which is pre- 
sent occasionally in coconut butter. For 
cooking purposes, I should suppose it would 
do equally as well as lard, and should com- 
mend itself to vegetarians who object to fat 
in that form. The Jews, I believe, are good 
customers in vegetable fats.— iowdon Cor. 
A KECORD IN COPRA OUTPUT. 
AT HUNUPITIYA MILLS. 
We are interested to learn that Mr. C M B 
Wilkins did a record year's desiccating at the 
Hunupitiya Mills, Negombo, for the year 
ending 30th September in turning out over 
1,250,000 lb. which is considered very good 
for the number of machines used. With the 
extra machinery just put in, he is now able 
to give an output of over 2,000,000 lb. per 
annum and with the introduction of new 
and up to date oil presses he hopes to get 
the oil department started shortly and has 
every hope of being able to cheapen his 
desiccating by making the oil mill engine 
serve the desiccating factory as well on oil- 
making days. 
PREPARATION OF RUBBER IN LAGOS- 
A rneeuing of the committee of the African 
trade section of the Liverpool Chamber of 
Commerce was held recently in the board- 
room of the chamber. Sir Alfred Jones,K C M G, 
Chairman of the section, presiding. A letter was 
received from the Lagos Stores-, Ltd, suggesting 
that the Lagos natives should be shown that 
it was more profitable for them to bring their 
rubber to market in a more finished condition 
than was the case at present, and that they be 
taught how this can be dune, as in the ueigh- 
bouring French Colonies, It was resolved to 
ofl'er prizes value £7 for the best exhibits of 
prepared rubber at the Lagos Show, and this ofl'er 
was cabled out to the Governor, Sir William Mac- 
^regor. In a subsequent communication the 
suggestions made in the letter from t!ie Lagos 
Stores, Ltd, were transmitted to Sir William 
SLCgref^or.— Journal of Commerce. 
SILK COTTON. 
According to the Journal iT Agriculture Tropiccde, of 
Paris, ten years ago there were only five plantations in 
Java, whereas at the present Any there are fifty culti- 
vating the kapok or silk-cottou tree as a secondary 
prodncfc, and some even as the principal one. The sales 
in Holland in 1901 were 35,615 bales, and at the end of 
this year there was a stock in hand of 9,000. The 
annual production in Cambodia is estimated at 60,000 
kilogra^nmes, entirely consumed by the native popula- 
tion for stuffing sofas and beds. Production is less in 
Cochin China, it might be augihented, as the tree is 
remarkably vigorous.— Gazette. 
- ♦ 
NEW PEARL SUPPLY. 
ACHIEVEMENT BY A FRENCHMAN. 
Paris, Tuesday, Oct. 20. — An exceedingly inter- 
esting communication was made to the ?.cademie 
des Sciences yesterday, when M. Raphael Dubois, 
a professor attached to the University of Lyons, 
informed that learned body tliat he had found a 
means of acclimatising the pearl oyster and 
reproducing pearls on the coast of France. Before 
the assembled scienti.^ts M Dubois exhibited 
several living specimens of the genuine pearl 
oyster cultivated in the Mediterranean. The 
pearls shown by the professor were of tlie species 
known as Margaritisera Vulgaris (Jameson), which 
is found in Ceylon waters, in the Persian Culf, 
and elsewhere. It is also foutd on the coast of 
Tunis ; but, while the proportion of pearls found 
there is only one in from 1,200 to 1,500 oysters, M. 
Dubois has succeeded in obtaining the remarkable 
result) of one in ten. The professor's pearls are of 
a very small variety, but he is hopeful that in time 
he will be able to obtain specimens of a larger 
size. The importance of this discovery at the 
present moment, when pearls are so much in 
vogue, can hardly be over-esiimated. One of the 
pearls stolen from the Marquis of Anglesey lately 
was valued at over £10,000 ; and it was remarked 
that during her recent visit to Paris the Queen of 
Italy showed a marked preference for pearls. Il; 
is, of course, possible to manufacture artificial 
pearls, but these soon lose their lustre, whereas 
the pearls shown by Professor Dubois are genuine 
and of fine quality, — Mail paper. 
PLANTING NOTES. 
Thh: Pkarl Fishery Items— quoted else- 
where—possess a retrospective interest. The 
Supplementary Estimates contain a vote for 
R3,432'97 for expenses over Mr. Dixon's oyster- 
washing experiment. 
The Malay States Com^ee Company— see 
the report elsewhere— shows improving pros- 
pects, the crop obtaining 25 per cent more 
revenue than was expected. There is there- 
fore a substantial ' carry forward ' of K2,958-37, 
while the estimate in quantity of crop is 
7 per cent ahead of last year. 
