108 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Aug. 1, 1901. 
the fall of 1900 must be reckoned short (by- 
five inches, of the average, and therefore we 
ou^ht, with two scanty years in succession, 
to have an unusually heavy rainfall for 1901. 
That does not always follow, however, for 
in the "seventies" we had four years in 
succession with an abnormally low rainfall: — 
inches. inches. 
1871 ... 65-«9 ... 1873 ... 85-62 
1872 ... 6207 .. 1874 ... 57-U3 
Total... 269-81 
Normal Annual Average ; 88.03 inches x 4= 352 12 
Deficiency in 4 years ... 82'31 
But to expect two more years — 1901-2— of 
abnormally low rainfall in Colombo, would 
be contrary to the Astronomer's declara- 
tion that " the minimum is past " (and 
we suppose that he has no fear of a 
recurrence of famine in India for some 
years at least.) So far as the present year 
has gone, the first half shows a fall well up 
to the average, and by the end of December 
the prospect may well be of a total which 
will bear out Sir Norman Lockyer's belief 
that " the mininmm is past." So mote it 
be, we say, in the interests of local paddy 
and coconut farmers ; but still more with 
reference to the vastly more important claims 
of India throughout its length and breadth. 
It only remains to be mentioned that 
taking our Colombo Rainfall returns from 
1870— the year when the late Colonel Fyers 
established the Colombo Observatory (al- 
though it remains for Governor Ridgeway 
to place it on a proper footing before he 
leaves us)— the average for the eleven years 
1870-1880 was 86-82 inches (a dry cycle com- 
paratively) and of the next series 1881-1891, 
the average was 92-16 (or 4 inches above the 
average); while for the current cycle the 
average for the nine years expired is 84-58, 
pointing to another dry period and so far 
maintaining the law of the eleven-year 
cycle and its alternations, although in the 
case of the South West division of Ceylon 
— situated in the pathway of both monsoons 
— the difference between a wet and dry 
period, as illustrated above, — 86-82, 92-16, 
84-58 inches -is comparatively slight. Never- 
theless, when we recall the fact that in 1874 
the total rainfall was so low as 57-03 inches, 
and in 1878 so high -as 139-70, we must bear 
in mind that, highly favoured as Colombo 
is, it is not beyond the influence of a try- 
ingly dry season, involving poor crops of 
coconuts, rice, vegetables and fruit generally, 
or again of a season of heavy continuous 
rainfall — with all the injury which sudden 
and persistent flooding means to thousands 
of the people in the low-lying Colombo and 
neighbouring districts. 
RAW RUBBER NOTES. 
Nicaragua. — Mr. Consul Chamber?, in his report 
of trade in Nicaragua for 1900, states: — Rubber is 
getting more scarce every year, and the planting of 
rubber trees has not been taken up to any extent, 
possibly through the long time necessary before any 
result is seen, and the dif&culty of preventing steal- 
^g. The government allows a bonus of 1 dolUr 
currency (about Is 5d'i on every rubber tree planted 
in certain di-tricce, also 5c cuneuoy (.Id) foi coSee 
trees, 20c cucren>;y (34d) for every cocoa tree, and 
iOc currency (IJd) for every poand of inditjo ex- 
p*i-ted. During the year 1900, in order to benefit 
agriculture, the Government' allowed the free tians- 
port of coffee lo Corinto on the railwav, also free 
tiausport of maize and plantains, when solicited, 
for the use of the estates. Through this concession, 
it is estimated, the Government lost 135,829 dollars 
5c currency (100,611) in freight. 
Brazil.— The report of Mr Acting-Consul Temple on 
the trade of Para and district for the year lyOO has just 
come to hand. In it he comments upon the com- 
mercial crisis which has occurred in the Amazon 
Valley during the past year, and, although many 
similar crises have occured in past years, noae has 
been experienced so diaistrous or so wide reaching 
in its effects as that which developed during the 
spring of last year. Ruboer, which still raaiu tains 
its position as ihe chief item of export from Para, 
continues to show a steady increase in the total ex- 
ported from the Amazon Valley, including Bolivia 
and Peru. In twenty years the total quantity has 
more than trebled the export in 1880 amounting to 
8,635 tons, while that for 1900 amounted to 26,693 
tons. Only in 1897 did the amount of any year 'fall 
short of the preceding one, and this was only about 
sixty tons. A con9iderd,ble stir has been cause i by the 
recent re-enactmrnt on the part of the Cougie-s at 
Manaos of a law which wa- referred to in our if^ae 
on the 1st ult, whereby all rubber produced iu the State 
of Aoiazonas must be 'liicuibai'ked in Manaos, exauia- 
ed, classified, re weiglied and bo-.ed up. ThU would 
entail a great quantity of rubber, which has huh no 
been dealt wii-h at Para, beint; treated at Mau^ios, 
and shipped direct from there wiihuut touchmt; the 
port of Para, The Consul in his report says :— Trade 
has, however, a conservative tendency ; in aOditi n 
to this, the fact that the subfluvial cable which 
connec s Manaos with Para has up to the present 
been so liable to intni ruption that no reliance could 
be placed upon it, and ha^ caused a large proportion 
of the trade, which would naturally go to Manaos, to 
remain at Para. In justification of this law, the 
Legislature states that the Revenue collectors are not 
able to calculate the export duties in a satisf.ictory 
manner, whilst the rubber is in " pelles," and that 
it is necessary, in order to secure the interests i the 
Treasury, that tine rubber should be separated 
from the inferor grades btfore leaving the Stale. 
A land cable has been suggested, but it has 
been considered almost impos^ible, owing to the 
luxuriance of the forest growth wiiich would 
cause as manny interruptions as occur to the c-ible 
in the bed of the river. As Ma aos is, therefore, not 
in such close touch with the exchange and produce 
markets, the merchanis buying ac Alanajs must 
always risk a large loss, especially with an aiticle 
like rubber, which is subject to such rapid fluc- 
tuations. 
Although the effect of the Amazonas rubber being 
handled at Manaos would deprive Para of a con- 
siderable amount of trade, yet it must not be sup- 
posed that Para would be entirely eclipsed. Taking 
the total crop to be about twenty-six thousand tons 
per annum, eleven thousand tons of up-river would 
probably be handled at Manaos, and nine thousand 
tons of island at Para. Of the remaining six thousand 
tons coming from Bolivia and Peru, a certain 
quantity vronld still be handled at Para, thu.^ bring- 
ing up the trade of the latter port to about the same 
total as the former. The probabilities of increase in 
production are about the same for both States. The 
total crop of rubber shipped from the Amazon V-fUey 
during the year was 26,881 tons, of which 12,474 
tons went to the United States, and 14,407 tons to 
Europe. Of this quantity, the State of Para produced 
5,000 tons, Amazonas 4,300 tons, Pern 123 tons 
Bpliviev 465 tons, making a total of 9>888ton8, of fine 
