690 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [April 1, 1904. 
oz., while the weight of the cotton was 12 oz.; there- 
fore (deducting 12 pods for wastage) 50 pods pro- 
dace 1 oz. clean cotton. 
2. 4,433 seeds (American variety) weighed 1 lb. 
One acre, planted 3 ft. by 4 ft., two seeds in each 
place, requires 7,200 seeds ; therefore two pounds 
ot seed are sufficient to plant one acre. 
3. The largest number of pods counted on one 
tree was 130. The largest number of pods counted 
on two trees planted in one hole was 128 + 104=232 
4. Thirty pods are a very low and safe estimate 
of the average produce of each tree. Assuming 
that on one acre planted 3 ft. by 4 ft., two seeds 
in each hole, only one out of every two seeds grow?, 
we have 3,600 plants x .30 pods =108,000 pods=2,160 
oz. = 135 lb. clean cotton. 
Sir William Mitchell informs us that the 
experiments of 16 years ago established that 
the American (New Orleans) and Egyptian 
varieties were the best suited for the I.sland. 
A start might safely be made with tiiese. 
THE COCCID^ OF CEYLON". 
The exhaustive work, by Mr E Einest Green, 
FES, on the Coccidae of Ceylon has now reached 
Part III, which has just been published. This 
part deals exclusively with Lecaniinae, and no 
less than thirty-three species are thoroughly dealt 
with. Mr Green has evidently put in a tremen- 
dous amount of labour, working out tbe life histories 
of these plant pests and scale insects, and his 
publication will be an authoritative standard work 
of reference on the subject. Mr Green has illus- 
trated his publication with plates showing the 
various life stages and portions, etc. of the insects. 
The plates are excellently drawn by the author 
himself, most of them being coloured, and a word 
of praise for the perfect manner in which these 
are got up should be given both to Mr Ernest Green 
and the publishers Messrs Dulau & Co., London. 
« 
COTTON-GROWING FOR SOMALILAND. 
Asked by Mr Brigg if he would instruct the 
Consul at Berbera to report as speedily as possible 
on the adaptability of the district around Tokar 
for growing cotton, and the method he would sug- 
gest for inducing the inhabitants to take up its 
culture, and also report on the best means for its 
transit to England, Earl Percy replies that the 
question is engaging the attention of Lord Cromer. 
— London Times, 
A SINGAPORE PLANTER TO VISIT 
CEYLON. 
TO LEARN BEST METHOD OP MANUFACTURE 
OP COIR. 
Mr Ho Yang Peng, who not long ago 
acquired the extensive and well-known coco- 
nut plantation Siglap Estate, formerly the 
property of Mr Robert Little, contemplates 
starting a coir factory on the Estate, and 
with this view intends visiting Ceylon early 
in May, in order to gain an insight into the 
business. He is taking with him an engineer 
to obtain a knowledge of the machinery 
■ used in the turning out of coir, which is 
said to be largely carried out in the Island, 
especially at Point de Galle, from where a 
large quantity ot coir ropes, rugs, and 
matting, is exported, including to Singapore. 
There is a large amount of husk to be 
obtained in Mr Yang Peng's Estate, and as 
it is said that it is immaterial as to the 
quality of water used for soaking, sea water, 
answering just as well as fresh water, and 
with the sea almost surrounding the Estate, 
every facility is afforded for a successfu[ 
issue of the project. — S, F. Press. 
PLANTING AND OTHEE NOTES. 
A NEW West Indian Market for Tea.— Tea 
to the amount of 1,777 pounds, valued at $546, 
was shipped last year from the U. S. to Porto 
Rico. This has no precedent heretofore. 
Rubber Trees on the Simul Barie Tea Co., 
Ld. Estate— produced only 971b of rubber. It 
seems that the rubber trees are not raised from 
seed hence the yield is not anything like the 
quantity we expected. We are making arrange- 
ments to plant out a few acres with para rubber 
trees. — Englishman. 
The Local Tea Sale Avebage3 for 1904 
are given elsewhere. High Forest, we are 
glad to see, has once more regained the proud 
position it held in 1900, though the average 
(52) is 7 cents less. Its output, too, is the 
biggest recorded for black tea. Talgaswela 
and Clunes top the averages for low-grown. 
Close Season fob Whistling Teal in 
THE Southern Province.— Sportsmen will 
be interested in the further expression of 
opinion on this matter contained in Mr. 
Alderson's and another letter in our corres- 
pondence columns. Both the gentlemen 
are of opinion that an extension of the 
close season beyond August 31st is unneces- 
sary. We sliall be glad to have the opinion 
of other sportsmen in the mattsr. 
Wild Elephant in Madras. — The Government of 
Madras is considerlDgthe possibility of starting Khed- 
dah operations in the Presidency for the capture of wild 
elephants, and Mr. S. Cox, Deputy Conservator of 
Forests, has been appointed on special daty for that 
purpose. The Mysore Government, until a few years 
ago, had a regular Kheddah Department organised 
originally by the late Mr. Sanderson, bat beyond pro- 
viding amusement for touring Viceroys and Royalties 
it never paid, and the Department was abolished. 
The present system of catching elephants in Mysore is 
by the Bengal system of sarrounding them. 
Automatic Tea Packing in Ceylon.— Mr. 
Valentine Webster to whom the Ceylon tea 
trade already owes much, is about to supply 
a long felt want. He is to erect in Colombo 
a large factory equipped with machinery of 
his own invention for the purpose of pack- 
ing tea automatically in various sizes of 
packets and at the rate of 30 packets per 
minute. A considerable amount of packing 
is done at present in Ceylon but all by hand, 
and the process is laboriously tedious and 
unsatisfactory. The new venture of which 
we give full particulars will, we [have 
no doubt, be welcomed and supported by 
Merchants and Planters in Ceylon, and will, 
of course, greatly stimulate the trade in 
packet teas. As an advertising medium the 
packet tea is unparalleled, and it will be 
remembered that in the Indian Tea Asso- 
ciation minutes recently Ceylon's success in 
Australia as compared with India was 
attributed to the trade done by Ceylon in 
packet teas. We offer Mr. Webster^ our best 
wishes for the success of his undertaking. 
