Maech 1, 1904.1 THE TROPICAL 
LT.-COLONEL KENNETH MACKENZIE FOSS 
ON PEARLING AND TIN MINING. 
PROSPECTING IN BUKMA ; CEYLON'S PROSPECTS; 
CEYLON OYSTERS FOR THE NICOBARS. 
Lt. Colonel Kenneth Mackenzie Foss, who 
has been shooting and exi)loring on the 
Siamese frontier, was seen while in('olomboby 
a Tropunl Agriculturist representative. Some 
interesting notes were gleaned from him in re- 
gard to pearls and mining. The Colonel, who 
has seen service in India, his last regiment 
being the Madras Infantry, led the way to his 
room and making the interviewer comfortable, 
passed the cigarette box and started to 
give his visitor an enjoyable quart d' heure 
by chatting on his experiences in Burma, 
Siam and the Nicobars. Colonel Foss stated 
that he was here partly to study the cul- 
tivation of the pearl-oyster, and that he had 
applied to the Government of India to lease 
a certain basin with a view to transplanting 
10,000 Ceylon pearl oysters, as an experiment. 
Colonel Poss has had personal experience of 
pearling in the Mergui Archipelago, but 
latterly he has been, and now is Managing 
Director of the Golden Stream Syndicate, 
which is working gold and tin in Lower 
Burma. 
The Company has all the funds it requires ; 
and anions' the eight or nine who compose it 
are General Kitchener (brother of Lord 
Kitchener), Sir Richard Temple and Mr J D 
Kees, C I E. The mining district is near Tavoy, 
and North of Bangkok just inside the Burma- 
Siam frontier ; the exact locations the Colonel 
carefully indicated on his map. Six en- 
gineers are already there in the mines. 
CEYLON OYSTERS FOR THE NICOBARS. 
The oysters purchased from the Ceylon 
Government will be transhipped to the Nico- 
bars and planted in the harbour at Nankauri. 
These will be three-year old oysters. Mr 
Hornell, the Ceylon specialist, suggested that 
if the sea bottom is not suitable, coral and 
rocks should be laid down on which the 
"spat" will fasten and the oysters grow 
and mature. Two things are essential for 
pearls to erow in the oysters :— (1) the water 
must be of the proper specific gravity ; (2) 
the File-fish (Balistes mitis) in which the 
" oyster microbe " generates must be present. 
Both of these essentials are present at 
Nankauri, and therefore it is hoped the 
venture will be a. success. After the purchased 
oysters have been down two years they should 
be ready for fishing and contain pfarls. 
The water is some 10 to 15 fathoms deep and 
diving pumps and dress will be used. Col. 
Foss will go to Nankauri occasionally and 
an experienced man %vill always be there in 
charge of the oyster beds. 
NATIVE MANILA DIVERS, 
who are the best, will be employed. The 
oysters will be periodically examined to see 
what progress is being made, Mergui oysters, 
the Colonel explained, have shell which is 
far more valual)le than Ceylon shell ; and 
even if no pearls are found, the shell alone 
will more than pay expanses. The Mergui 
pearls taverage 6 times bigger than Ceylon 
pearls. Last year Mergui pearls were soid of 
AGRICULTURIST. 623 
.31, 30, and 21 carats respectively, about 5 
times bigger th;in the largest Ceylon pearls 
of the last fishery. Col. Foss produced a 
Ceylon oyster shell and placed it on the 
crown of his panama hat "There " he said, 
" the hat crown represents the Mergui shell 
compared to the Ceylon shell," If success- 
ful, this " pearl farm " should prove a paying 
concern, and the pearls will be sold either on 
the spot or sent to England. Col. Poss has 
eagerly perused the Report on the Ceylon 
Fishery by Prof. Herdman, a copy of which 
we were able to lend him, and gained some 
useful information from it. 
COCONUTS 
also will be planted in the Nicobars, and he 
is trying now to obtain lease for a plantation 
from the Government. 
MINERAL RESOURCES OP CEYLON. 
Colonel Poss remarked that he had only 
just time to glance over the report of the 
expert who had been investigating tha 
mineral resources of ^Ceylon, but that it 
would not in the least surprise him 'o hear 
that tin, wolfram and alluvial gold had 
been found, any day, in payable quantities 
on this island. The expert, he said, had 
merely scratched the surface without ex- 
amining the rocks below. " As well might a 
doctor examine ;i man's bones ,irom the 
outside without the help of the Rontgen 
rays," 
He showed our representative some samples 
of stream tin, got from the concession which 
his Syndicate is now working ; this was 
poured out on a sheet of paper, a magni- 
fying glass placed over it and interestedly 
examined He stated that he had 
seen nearly as rich ore here ; it was 
said to have been got from the neighbour- 
hood of Hatton. The Burma ore glistened 
with little gold nuggets, of which some 20 
ozs. went to the ton, the remainder being 
nearly all pure tin. 
WHAT IS NEEDED IN CEYLON. 
Colonel Poss observed that what appeared 
to be needed in Ceylon was a practical 
mining expert, preferably from Australia, 
with three or four borin? machines, each 
one of which could be worked on behalf of 
Government by eight coolies, and with a 
fairly light " monkey," for facility of trans- 
port, but it was doubtful whether the Gov- 
ernment of Ceylon would welcome a mining 
boom as it might accentuate the labour 
trouble, which is certainly bad enough al- 
ready—according to some of the planters' 
remarks and the letters to the Press. 
Questioned as to how he himself had 
fared. Colonel Foss said it was impossible 
to wish for more assistance and encour- 
agement than he had received froni 
the Government of Burma, as well as 
the Heads of Departments. Recently he had 
occasion to ask for a certain road to be 
made, and without any difficulcy it was car- 
ried out. The Burma Government is anxious 
for the development of the country's re- 
sources, and does not wish to be behind the 
Straits ; a new Lieut. -Governor and an enter- 
prising Financial Secretary are working won- 
