July I, 1890 . J 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
47 
Kashmir. It may be iuterestiug, therefore, to refer 
to some remarks on the subject by BIr. T. D, La 
Touche, of the Geological Survey of luciia. He -writes 
that in speaking of mineral wealth which might be 
brought to light by properly conducted prospecting it 
does not seem to be taken into consideration that 
the natives of the country have for ages had opportu- 
nities of discovering what minerals the hills contain. 
Even the Khasis of Assam have for years obtained 
iron from the granite of their hills, where a highly 
trained European geologist might have been scepti- 
cal about finding it. It cannot bo doubted therefore 
that if minerals exist in Kashmir they are known to 
the natives. Accident may occasionally bring rarer 
minerals to light, as in the case of the sapphires, 
but then oven an intelligent prospector might search 
for years in the mountains without making another 
such discovery.— Aforni/ir/ Post. 
4p 
THE CYCLONE IN QUEENSLAND. 
(By an ex-Ccylun Planter). 
I was at Woodlands at the beginning and at Bicton 
during the full brunt of the cyclone. Such a cra-h- 
ing and tearing up of vegetation it is almost im- 
possible to imagine. The scrub or jungle is 
thoroughly torn up by the roots or denuded of tops 
and branches ; frees two and three feet diameter 
torn up by the roots and laid flat are not unc immon. 
Earth-slips here and there on the mountains and 
creek banks washed out to sea. The following day at 
an elevation about 200 feet, and as far as the eye 
can see the ocean looks one huge mnd-hole strewn 
with wreckage from the forest. Woodlands house 
had a very narrow escape, a two-story building; 
the lower story is tilted over to nearly an angle 
of 30 degrees while the top story stands erect giving 
the house a peculiar kinkiu if; their kitchen and stove, 
also a two story building, went smash to the ground 
as also the Kanakas’ huts. No life lost or much 
injury farther thau a few scratches and a cold wet 
rough night of it out in the open. Two young ladies 
there, neither .very strong, must have Suffered keenly 
for they had to fly from the falling houses short 
of clothing and without any blankets, camping all 
night among the pineapples. At Bicton whore I 
was, the early part of the night, a continuous hur- 
ricane with rain in torrents blowing through iuto 
the house until the whole place was well saturated, 
when shortly after midnight away went the roof of 
the dwelling-house with a noise .Hupifyiiig, The 
four inmates afterwards scrambled out to the kitchen 
and dining-room and came in there fairly well clad 
and blankets ; they fearing this house would go made 
for the packing shed at the beach, and took up shelter 
there, leaving another and myself in the dining- 
room ; we stuck there until the roof and timbers were 
flying and falling a window blown out and out went 
I at it, escaping underneath the floor of the dwelling- 
house and bad to cling on to the blocks in about 
10 or 12 inches of water for about two hours, after- 
wards we scrambled on to the beach shed where we 
found the other four with a tiro and camped there 
until daylight. B- C. 
PLANTING IN QUEENSLAND. 
(By an cx-Ceylon Planter.) 
CAC.VO AND LIBEBIAN COFFEE. 
Our agri-horticulture has Buffered terribly 
through cyclone, iiiBcot pests, rats and the worst of 
the weather. I am hopeful aud able to record 
that we now have a cacao clearing in Australia 
thanks to Messrs. Darley, Butler A Co. of your 
verdant isle ; theirs were the only importation of 
cacao pods tliat seed germinated out of si.x lots. 
(This day, mail day, I expect another and final lot 
from A. il. T., Enip) I lost a good few with the 
cyclone, and the jungle rats also misbehaved by 
breaking and eating some of the seeds as tliey 
germinated. Now tho weallior is line we look for 
their rapid progress. Cacao and Liberian inter- 
mediate quincunx fashion; they are now up to a 
foot high and look fair, healthy plants. I do not 
look for this industry to be of much favour with 
the noble working man of Australia, and in fact 
would not again attempt the pioneering of this 
product for a trifle ; if I had not had enthusiasm 
it could not been carried out, for loss after loss, 
disappointment after disappointment, and your best 
and constant energy overthrown, was enough to 
turn the head of an iron man. However it is now 
a fact in the land of the noble working white man; 
query is not “ noble” misplaced? Years will tell. 
This clatter of unions, strikes and equality tends to 
degenerate the white man. I am afraid the race 
will soon be in decade, their glass of prosperity is 
running very low. Unless a change c rues soon you 
will find the colored and mixed races more pros- 
perous, honest, virtuous. God-fearing and vigorous 
than the whites ; instance the little colony, the 
Pitcairn Islanders. 
^ 
Mysore Ejifry. — S ome months ago, the Bangalore 
Spectator mentioned the fact that large quantities 
of corundum or emery were to be found in the 
Goribidnur Taluk, Tumkur Disfrict, Mysore Province, 
and that the right to collect this mineral was 
leased out to a native by the Government for quite 
a nominal sum. Our contemporary’s remarks 
attracted the attention of a Bombay firm, who 
sent home a trial shipment of Mysore emery, which 
fetched almost double the price of the best Grecian 
emery. Agents are now in Bangalore endeavouring 
to place orders for this material, so that the price in 
the local markets has gone up 50 per cent. It is 
believed that this mineral oould be profitably mined, 
and the large number of old corundum mines, near 
Banavar, in the Kadur district, is pointed to as being 
a likely spot . — Indian Engineer. [In Ceylon, also, 
corundum of no value by the gem test ought 
to be profitable as a metal-polishing substance. — ■ 
Ed. T. a.) 
Baiiley-gkowing on the Nilgiris, unlike many 
other similar experiments iu-augurated or fostered by 
Govermneut, is beginning to show a fair promise of 
future success, which must be exoeediulyg gratifying 
not only to Government but to the local Brewery 
Companies who have done so much to popularise the 
crop amongst the Badagas. Liberal prizes are being 
annually given by Government for the best samples, 
and these are further supplemented by generous con- 
tributions from the Murree and Arvanghat Brewery 
Companies. The competition for and award of the 
prizes for last season’s samples form the subject of 
an interesting report recently submitted to Govern- 
ment by the Collector of the Nilgiris. Tho total 
awards for last season’s samples amounted to 
a sum of K295, which was equally divided amongst 
the three ” nads,” namely Todanad, Merkuuad 
and Piirauginad, three prizes being given to 
each. The samples exhibited were generally of a 
most satisfactory character, the majority of the thirty- 
nine from Blerkuuad being regarded as “ of excellent 
quality and difficult to separate.” All the samples for 
which prizes were given were grown from English seed 
and during the present season only, due care having- 
been taken to exclude old samples. The good quality 
of locally grown barley is testified in a letter addressed 
by Blessrs. Leishman & Co., to the Collector of the 
Nilgiris, in which they say : — “We ore very pleased 
to have tho honor to iuform you that this season’s 
Badaga barley grown from English seed malts very 
well indeed. In fact we are so satisfied with tho barley 
that we have given instructions to our barley contrac- 
tor to purchase 2,000 (o 3,000 bushels more if it is 
obtainable. 'The barley requires a good deal of atten- 
tion during mailing aud the malt gives a very high 
extract.” Such testimony as this cannot but be regarded 
as very satisfactory, and encourages the hope that 
barley cultivation on the Nilgiris has a prosprrous 
future before it.— JJ, Mail, 
