ATO, 1, 1901.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
85 
roand and into the old stool would have quite a, 
rejuvenating effect. If anybody vjould place his nose 
near to the heart of an old stool, when one or two 
old roots are decaying surrounded by ratooua, the 
Bour smell would soon convince him of the good a 
sweetener like lime could do. — Journal of the Jamaica 
Agricultural Society. 
COFFEE-TEA. 
To the Editor Queensland Agricultural Journal. 
As you invited experiences re coffee-tea in the 
Queensland Agricultural Journal of March last, I am 
▼ery pleased to send you mine. I acquired it 
■when on a selection, on the road to Emu Park 
from Bockhamton. Having then an experimental 
plot of about twenty coffee-trees growing, and readmg 
that tea made from ccffee-leaves dried was very 
highly esteemed in some coffee countries, 1 deter- 
mined trying it for myself. First, 1 nried leaves 
in the sun, but the product was disagreeably 
tasted when tried. Finally, I drieds some leaves in 
a camp-oven, slung so as to swing over a iice, keep- 
ing them constantly stirred until they were dry and 
fairly crisp. Tea made from them was much enjoyed 
by all who tasie-l it; and one who did was the 
sditor of the Bockhampton Bulletin at that time, but 
dead now for yeirs past. He greatly enjoyed 
it, and my wife and I liked it better than any tea 
we could purchase. I intend growing a few coffee- 
trees for the leaves only where I am now, as I am 
sure if it be only dried properly we conld dispense with 
tea provided we had suthcient coffee leaves to make 
•ur own tea from. To dry it properly is everything. 
It must be done quickly, and done to a turn ; then 
it has an aroma and flavour that any lover of tea 
would enjoy. ^ 
Theodore Wright. 
Wellington Point, Ist May, 1901.— Queeinland Agri- 
cultural Journal. 
DURABILITY OF AUSTRALIAN TIMBER, 
The durability of timber in a structure will depend 
very largely upon the season when the trees are 
felled. As matters stand in Queensland, timber of 
all sorts is felled and hauled to the mills during 
the whole year round. Now, it stands to reason that 
•ome of this timber, when worked up, will not stand 
»g long as others, for the simple reason that, at one 
period of the year, the tree is in full growing vigour, 
and the sap in full flow. In such a case it is easy 
to understand that, in the necessary proc. ss of sea- 
soning, timber cut in this condition will shrink con- 
siderably, and will be weaker than it would have 
been had it been cut when at rest, i. c, when the 
sap is down and the growth diminished. We see 
railway bridges and culverts built of timber often 
felled close to the line, and squared on the spot. 
Directly afterwards, this dressed timber is built into 
the structure. Then it is tarred or painted. Now, 
what is the result ? The timber is full of moisture. 
This moisture is confined by the tar or paint, and 
fungoid diseases are provided with an excellent breed- 
ing ground at every joint. Then begins dry-rot. 
Instead of .the logs, after or before dressing, being 
allowed to season and shrink by evaporation of the 
moisture contained in them, the shrinking goes on 
after the beams have been fitted in their places. 
Hence they warp and twist and open their joints, 
and the element of danger to the structure comes in. 
Mr. James Mann, assistant to the Professor of En- 
gineering at the University of Melbourne in hia 
excellent work on Australian timber, says on this 
point : — 
A slightly better condition is that of putting into 
the structure timber which has been felled during 
its dormant condition. It then contaiua the minimum 
moisture a live tree can contain ; but it is only 
better in that it has completed its cycle of structural 
work, and is in the best condition for felling. It 
contains far too much moisture to admit of being 
placed in any important position. 
Partly seasoned lies mid-way between unseasoned 
and well-seasoned timber. The latter, of course, is 
less likely to encourage fungus growth than any. 
But there are other advantages to be gained : — 
1. There is little or no shrinkage. If green timber 
be used the amount of shrinkage is enormous, 
requiring the constant attention of a man to 
put in wedges and screw up bolts. This is 
almost unnecessary when seasoned timber is 
used. 
2. The whole may be finished, tarred, or painted, 
without incurring the danger of dry-rot. 
3. The timber also may be stronger. 
The same authority says that one of the peculiarities 
of Australian timber is the great oxidizing effect it 
has upon iron. Place an iron bolt through a piece of 
partially seasoned eucalyptus, and in a few days there 
will be a very considerable coating of rast, while the 
bolt-hole will be blackened all round. 
It is only natural that one should ask the question : 
How shall we prevent this decay ? In the first place, 
use seasoned timber ; it lengthens the life of the timber 
100 per cent. Where seasoned timber cannot be used, 
protect those points where decaij mill, first appear, and use 
every precaution in order to allow the timber to dry 
while in position. 
CortZ^ac rt«f^^(a'/ii, while preventing the water from 
soaking into the wood, also repel the attacks of insects. 
Hence, a coating at the joints when dry will retard 
decaij. Do not paint unsedboned timber except at 
the joints. 
If trees cannot ba felled at the proper time, they 
may be ring-baiked, and allowed tj drain naturally. 
When felled ihey will be better than green timber. 
As the<:e seems to be a great diversity of opinion 
as to the necessity for .tarring deck^;, beams, and piles, 
it may be stated that all the reports received of 
timbers that have been so treated confirm the opinion 
that tarrinq increases the life oj a structure. — Qatens- 
land Agricultural Journal. 
COST OP PRODUCTION OF COFFEE. 
The following correspondence has appeared in the 
Neio York Journal of Commerce, in which the cost of 
production in Mexico and Brazil is compared : 
" According to the owners' statements the cost of 
producing Santos coffee on the Ptizendas Schmidt and 
Dumont, wnich probably have more coffee trees than 
any other plantations in the world, is four cents per 
pound bagged, ready for shipment on the plantation ; ' 
five cents per pound in Santos ; six cents per pound 
in warehouse in New York. At this price nobody 
makes any money except the brokers, railway com- 
panies and steamship lines. These figures are based 
on the average product of the plantation, which would 
probably be somewhere between numbers five and 
six. New York exchange standards. 
" Of course, the smaller plantations cannot pro- 
duce at the same price as the larger ones and the 
question of the survival of the coffee planter is getting 
to be largely a matter of transportation. Undoubt- 
edly many coffee planters will be forced out of 
business from mere inability to pay their labourers 
for the picking of the coffee and the care of the 
plantation. Probably the first decrease in production 
will come from this reason. The ■ planter whose 
shipping facilities are close to a railroad can perhaps 
make expenses at the above figures, bat the one who 
must cart his product fi/e or twenty-five miles to a 
railroad station must go to the wall. Of course 
this applies with greater force to tho.^e planters in 
Mexico, Venezuela and Columbia, who must put a 
couple of bags of coffee on a " burro " and take any- 
where from one day to five days' journey before they 
can reach a shipping point. All of them are at 
present losing money largely and it is only a question 
of time when they must stop. 
