August i, 1891.] 
THE TROPICAL AQR!GULTUR8STi 
GKAIN CROPS IN CEYLON. 
From the abstract of season reports for June 1891, 
published in the Gazette, of July 10th we learn that iu 
the Colombo district of the Western Prcvinca heavy rain 
and floods had injured the prospects of cropa iu low- 
lying villftges to « groat extent, but it was not ex- 
pected that there would be extensive or complete 
failure of crops in any particular locality. In the Ne- 
gombo distrios au nnusually large extent had been 
sown for yala, and crops were thriving ; very little 
damage having been done by floods. The Mahaoya valley 
dry grain crops were very small, but thriving vfell. In the 
Kalutara and Panadure totamunas prospects wore 
good ; in Bajigam korsle alight damage was caaaod 
by floods in pattaa bordering Bolgoda lake ; in Pas- 
dun korale low-lyiug lands generally were i^aaitged 
by floods. In the Kandy district of the Central Province 
the prospects of yala harvest so far were very fsvoar- 
able, there having been abundant raia. The yala 
chena oropi in Yatinnwara and Pata Dambara promised 
well. In WLatale district rains iu Matslf) south were 
avonrable to yala ; iu Matale north lands uuuer tanks 
were partly cultiva|te,d;.iu Matale east the maba crop juat | 
reaped was damaged, by rsiu ; tala and chillies were 
Buooessful iu the north ; a good crop was expected from 
the ohenas aeveraily. In Walapane paddy crops had failed. 
Coming to the Northern Provioce, we learn that the | 
prospects of various crops were on the whole good. In | 
the Southern Province the Galle and Matara districts 
had suffered considerable damage frcm heavy rain and 
floods ; but the dry grain crops iu some parts were very 
good. In the Hambautota dieti'ict the yala crop at 
Xtssa was damaged by flies ; in other parts prospects 
were good or fair, except in Tangalla, where the crops 
were greatly damaged by flaods. ladian corn how- 
ever wai ripening a good crop. Fnim the E.ssteru 
Province a cheering repnri; comes from Batticaloa 
district : — 
Early and late pinmari crops cut, and turned on^ 
excellent. Large sowings in progress for Ettalai, i: - 
cludin,'? 4,000 Kcres of pinmari lauds cultivated a se- 
cond time in consequence of la^ge supply of wa,ter in 
the big tanks and the favourable season. Paddy in 
hand largolv in excels of local rtqui; emeutf, fiud boa'sy 
sales boing made for export to Jstfcs, ac Jll'4'1 par 
bushel delivered in town and 111-2.5 on ihieehiug-floors 
in Manmunai pattu. High price due to scarcity in \ 
India. Chenai crops all over, but good supply of 
plantains in markets, and manioc being dried and 
exported to Jaffna. General condition of district pros- 
perous, Bud as money i« available for reinvestment 
there is a brisk demand tor land for paddy end coo- 
nut cultivation to be cleared before next rains. No 
cattle murrain ; foot-and-mouth disease not severe. 
In Trincomalee district the puddy prospects were 
good. In the North-Western Provice the crop were 
generally good. From tha Anuradhapnra district of 
the North-Oeatral Province the report was :— 
Nuwarakalawiya cultivation for yala, prospect good 
—somewhat restricted by want of seed paddy in some 
villages. The rain having fallen only at end of May 
there was no time to arrange for Bupply of seed paddy 
to those who wanted it. Most of the village tanks 
filled except in Koligan and Korosagalia tulanaa. 
Chenas are being reped. Gingelly crops fair. Tnvalu 
cultivation not yet commenced. Meneri and chillies 
are being reaped, fair crop. Tamankaduwa thinks are 
halt to one-fourth full. Ooudition of crops fair. No 
rain since the heavy raia on May 20lh. 
In the Province of Uva the prospects were pretty 
good on the whole, except iu Bintenua, where they 
were unsatisfactory owing to drought and flies. In 
Wellawaya potatoes were being planted. Coming to 
the Province of Sabaragamuwa, wo learn that in the 
JRatnapura district the proepects for the yala harvest 
in all korales were favourable, though some damage 
was reported from recent floods. In the Kegalla dis- 
trict also, the yala prosiieots were good, fair, or mid- 
dling; and the dry ground crops also promised well 
oa the whole. 
SPONGE FISHING OFF FLORIDA. 
" The sponge is a strange beast," says an old fisher, 
who has grown gray in the chase himself. "He ain't 
a fish, or a hanimal, or Q wegetablo, an' yet he's all 
three. Nobody kuows what they grows from, or bow 
they does it. Bat sometimes we'll scrape a place 
clean and conclude that that's done for, for good. 
Next year wo goes bo^ck, an' there's just as many of 
'em as bever. An' do you know if you cuts up a 
green sponge under water an' scatters the bits, each 
bit 'il grow by hitself?" This is authentic. "Nat" 
Niles, n. local celebrity, started a " sponge farm " on 
Torch Key, thirty miles from Key West, and failed 
only for want of a cement to hold the sponges to 
the bottom under water. During the fishing the 
schooner keeps its catches in wooden pens along the 
qnay-bttftches. There the animal matter decomposes, 
and the ebb and ■ flow of the tide washes it away. 
When the end of the cruise approaches, the men 
jump into the water up to their waists at the pens 
and beit each sponge separately with sticks, rinsing 
and squeezing it until the "mO'tt" is all eliminated. 
Then they load up, run a needle through the sponges, 
string them together in bunches of ten or a dozen, and 
joyfully turn homeward- 
The largest vessels of course, can make the biggest 
hauls, since they can send out the most men in 
dingies. But the crawa all share in the same pro- 
portion, A tive-toQ boat, carryiog five hands, in- 
oladinij the oapt5in, will perhaps bring back from a 
three weeks' trip 300 bunches of sponge. These are 
spread out on the wharf at Key West and sold to the 
highest bidder, the skippers often agreeing together 
informally to take nothing below a fixed price. 
Two hundred good bunche>i should t)rinK 400 dola. ' Of 
this sum the vessel receives a third, and the captain 
and crew divide the balance equally. The vessel costs 
aliout 150 dols. a year for repaifs. Where the mer- 
chant is the owner, the shores are graded according 
to the crew's duties. Some yi--,rr: a,?o Mr, E. 3. 
Acapian, a shrewd Greek, who hr; built up 
this trade, saaS about 12,00'J ' i o iutro- 
dnoe the Turkish stylb of , o;;;. He 
brought expert divers from tu.. .j. . o<: chftsi'd 
elabori.i.e appurcitus. But whj." . ' :. . ter 3 deep 
enough for divers, it is too <rlo ji i^i- m.ll vessels to 
manoeuvre safely. The State Government siisce pro- 
hibited divinfr, Appalachicoltt, iu Western Florida, was 
or.ce a great spange port, but the industry has iai'en 
off there considerably for lack of attrtution. 
Except in October, the "hurricane month,'! the 
sponger makes a trip of three weeks every month the 
year round, speudiag other week in harbour. " Do 
r*lik6 the life ?" says the old skipper before quoted. 
' No, indeed. It keeps us scratchin' for a liviu' an' it's 
the same thing hover and hover again. We never gets 
nowhere to see nothink, an' we're away from our 
families hall the time." The cry of "Shark ho!'^, 
is the most exciting the sponger usually hears. 
Among the " keyS;" where the water has the prismatic 
tints of emerald and sapphire that you see in Ber- 
muda and the Bahamas, " bonnet-noses" and" shovel- 
noses " are plentiful. "The shovel-nose is a little too 
fierce a foe for the peaceable spongers. But his con- 
gener they readily harpoon and " plsy " until he gets 
exhausted. Then they bnry an axe in his head, hoist 
him on board, cut out his liver and throw the carcass 
overboard, where it sinks to the bottom. JUany 
people think the sailors' use of oil for calming troubled 
waters is a device of modern science. Yet these 
spongers have been trying out sharks' livers for a 
generation to get a clearer view of the bottom in 
breezy weather. The spongers fish twice a week for 
their own larder. They are better judges of turtle 
than Cheapside aldermen. The Florida sponge is 
superior to that of Bahama, and inferior to that of 
Turkey. The best native sponge is the sheeps-wool, 
with a firm bat open texture. Tlie grass spongea 
grow in the shape of hats and pine apples. Sponges 
are used iu nearly all trades, even by curriers for 
finishing leather, and by potters for glazing their 
ware. The sponges as they come ashore are bleached 
with secret preparations (the formula elsewhere ig. 
