loo 
THE TROPICAL AQRIOULTUmST 
[August r, 1890, 
will be difficult to send butter if it sells for less 
than El’50 per lb. in Colombo, for not only is 
the price here high but the bottles in which it is 
packed are expensive, and the rate of exchange 
iS also against the exporters. You will find the 
butter to be superior to, and the bacon and cheese 
equal to, the best now in use in Colombo. The 
farmers in the district have taken a great interest 
in this venture, and if it pays it will certainly 
be repeated. As the nett proceeds of these goods 
will be invested in Ceylon tea for the Indian 
market, planters and tea merchants should do their 
best to encourage the sale of Australian produce 
sent from Milton.” 
— — 
LIBEEIAN COFFEE IN JAYA, 
A gentleman who has just returned from Java 
has presented us with two magnificent Liberian 
coffee leaves plucked from trees two years old. 
They are 16 by 7 inches, and are larger than any 
ever seen in Ceylon we believe of their age. Our 
visitor reports quite a revival of interest in cofiee 
planting in certain districts in Java. Both the 
Arabian and Liberian kinds are being freely 
cultivated and there is some talk of a Hybrid, of 
which he saw four plants said to bear a much 
more marketable bean than the Liberian tree. 
Dr. Treub of the Botanic Garden without disputing 
the fact of hybridization, refused to pass an 
opinion until the experiments were further advanced. 
Meantime, the coffee planters especially in East 
Java find that planting in shade, their bushes of 
Arabica do not suffer appreciably from the once 
dreaded fungus, while returns of 12 to 15 cwt. an 
acre are spoken of from the rich volcanic soil. 
While Government has retired very much from 
cofiee culture, private planters are likely to make 
up the deficiency. The Liberian coffee is also very 
free of the fungus although some planters have 
considerable areas under cultivation, the trees 
growing to 20, 25 and even 30 feet high, a prun- 
ing knife never touching them. They go on 
bearing all the year round and the Java planters 
profess themselves well pleased with their harvests 
which average 10 to 12 cwt. clean coffee per annum. 
One great advantage of the Liberian kind to the 
Java cultivator is [ that it grows readily on old 
coffee land — land abandoned during the height of the 
fungus panic. The only enemy at present dreaded 
by the cinchona and tea planters in Java is the 
Helopeltis antonii which does not trouble their cacao, 
but revels in their tea especially. Our present 
visitor heard of tea crops being greatly affected by 
the ravages of this insect. In cinchona, he also 
saw and beard of great mortality through a fungus 
attacking the roots, to check which the planters 
were using a dilute solution of corrosive sublimate. 
How the coffee exports have run, may be seen 
from the following extract from a recent authentic 
report on the Export Trade of Java 
Coffee. — The export of coffee, which amounted in 1889 
to 24,281,000 kilos., contrasts not unfavourably with the 
last tour years, when this export amounted to : — 1885' 
14 040,000 kilos ; 1880, 10,668,000 kilos’ ; 1887,13,377,000 
kilos. ; 1888, 22,012,000 kilos.; but in the preceding 
year, tl c e.xnort figures amounted to — 1881, 23,093,000 
kdoK,; 1882, 24.135,000 kilos. ; 1883, 32,369,000 kilos; 
1884, 24,400,000 kilos. Under the above figures 
;,re imduded an amount of 100,000 piculs, or 
0,170,000 kilos. Government coffee, sold every year 
at .lava, which amount, therefore, must be deducted 
from the figure of the export to obtain the export 
figure of the coffee grown on private account. Re- 
garuing the productiuu, the following statements are 
given lu the yearly colonial reports. (A shows the 
fcbtattB on grounds Itu^ed by Government to private 
persons; B, the private estates west of the Tjimanok, 
and C, the estates on leased grounds in both the 
Vorstenlandec, Soerakarta, and Djokjakarta); — 
A 
B 
c 
Totel 
piculs. 
1879 .. 
. 93,000 .. 
. 27,000 .. 
, 90,000 .. 
. 210.000 
1880 .. 
. 72,000 .. 
,. 9,000 .. 
. 85,000 ., 
,. 166,000 
1881 .. 
. 164,000 ., 
11,000 .. 
. 101,000 ., 
,. 266,000 
1882 .. 
. 172.000 ., 
,. 30,000 .. 
. 71,000 ., 
,. 273,000 
1883 ., 
,. 203,000 .. 
.. 14,000 .. 
121,000 ., 
,. 338,000 
1884 ., 
,. 199,000 
.. 24,000 .. 
36,000 
.. 259,000 
1885 .. 
,. 167,000 ., 
.. 15,000 ,. 
,. 37,000 ., 
,. 219,000 
1880 .. 
,. 225,000 . 
.. 27,000 ., 
,. 21,000 
.. 273,000 
1887 .. 
,. 126,000 , 
.. 9,000 ., 
,. 23,000 ., 
.. 158,000 
1888 
238,000 , 
,. 13,000 .. 
„ 30,000 . 
„ 341,000 
♦ 
— 
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS: PAHANG NEWS. 
{By an ex-Ceylon Besident.) 
Fekan, June 21st. 
The meeting of Pahang State Council was held 
some time back at the Sthana Rvpa (in Malay, 
the Palace of the sultan). The meeting was opened 
at 5 p.m. It consisted of His Highness the Sultan, 
Ahmad Muatham Shah Ebni el Marhom Ally, who 
took the chair, Tunku Mohamed, the Regent of 
Pahang (son of Sultan), Raja Muda, the Sultan’s younger 
brother, Orang Kaia Cheno-Unku Andab, Tuan Hitam- 
Tuan Hakim, the native magistrate, Orang Kaia 
Bakti, the late Treasurer of tte State, Unku Banda- 
hara and a few of the native Rajas and leading 
headmen, and Mr. J. P. Rodger, the British Resident. 
Amongst the subjects that were brought before the 
meeting for consideration, the question of slave trade 
was one of importance. After a long debate it re. 
suited in the modification of the very stringent rules 
which are in force now. Having been approved and 
passed by the Council many suggestions made by the 
Resident lor the improvement of the country, the 
proceedings were brought to a close at midnight. 
Though the country was only brought under British 
protection in July last year, it is rapidly progressing, 
due to the immigration of foreigners, specially Chinese 
from China, Canton, Hongkong, Singapore &c. 
The “ Pahang Coepoeation,” a Tin Mining Co. at 
Knantan, have already commenced operations in 
opening ap a railway line from Knantan to Temerloh, 
and then to Lipis (a distance of some scores of 
miles inland), and then connect this line to that of 
Kwala Lompor, thus having one line of railway right 
straight up, from the western to the eastern shores 
of the Peninsula. This, in all probability, will answer 
for the better development of the gold, &c., mines 
at Lipis, and save large amounts of money whicR 
other mining Co.’s expend, for transport of mate, 
rials, produce, &c., from, and to the mines owing 
to the present inaccessibility to certain parts of the 
country, as the River (the only way open for com , 
mnnication) when going higher and higher in the 
mountain districts, is not open to navigation — thus 
necessitating all passengers who go to the remote 
mines make the best of it through forests at great 
risk to health and sometimes to life itself. 
Many Concessions op Land (within the State) 
some extending over 100 square miles, have been 
granted by His Highness the Sultan, for working 
of gold, silver, lead, tin, &o. mines, both to Euro- 
pean and native capitalists. Blost of these lands 
were untouched by the grantees, perhaps taking 
advantage of His Highness’ inexperience regarding 
the development of a patch of ground for mining 
purposes, when the time toon approached in July 
last, on the most unexpected arrival of a British 
Resident in the State, for, every such grantee to put 
his respective patch of ground in proper working order 
and to have on the spot necessary machinery for 
crushing, smelting, washiuf; of all minerals that 
may be found on such land, and much more when the 
“ Pahang State Mining Regulations” came to force at 
the sanction and approval of Sir Clement! Smith, 
Governor of the Straits, in February last, which were 
most ably drafted out at the approval of the British 
Resident, by Mr. W, P. Townson, in an Australian 
