[August I, 1890. 
148 Supplement to the '^Tropical Agncultunst.” 
cations for leasing crown lands for mining pur- 
poses (including applications for special gold 
leases) for 1889 falls short of that for 1888, which, 
however, was quite an exceptional year. The 
minerals to be mined for comxirise gold, silver, 
copper, lead, tin, antimony, cinnabar, iron, cobalt, 
bismuth, crome, ochre, plumbago, diamonds, 
coal, marble, slate, manganese, kerosine, and 
alum. The geological survey of the Colony is pro- 
gressing rapidly under the two geological 
surveyors, Messrs. David and Anderson, and by 
their work not only are the hidden stores of 
coal and the wealth of minerals being reached, 
but a knowledge of the geological history and 
formation of the Colony is being gathered, while 
most useful palaeontological work is being pro- 
secuted under Mr. Etheridge. 
The report of the Director of Botanical Gardens 
for 1889 was published in June, and the accounts 
of the Gardens at Peradeniya, Hakgala, Badulla, 
Henaratgoda and Anuradhapura show how much 
is being done by Dr. Trimen for the improvement 
of these places, and the highly satisfactory con- 
dition to which he has brought them. The 
foundation of a Museum in the Peradeniya 
Gardens will supply a long felt want ; and al- 
ready a good start has been made with a splendid 
collection of Ceylon woods. It is a great consi- 
deration that lovers of gardening are able to 
secure such plants as are available in the nursery 
at a very moderate price, but it is very desirable 
that some responsible person should be stationed 
at the lodge by the gateway, who can receive 
payments for plants purchased. As it is, the 
coolies who carry the plants are authorised to 
receive money, and it has liappened on more than 
one occasion that they have disputed about prices 
which had been previously arranged, and endea- 
voured to extort more than the value of the plants. 
Neither these men nor the gatekeeper it appears 
can be commended for their civility to visitors, 
and this, as occurring in a public resort so largely 
frequented by foreigners, is a matter of regret, 
and calls for redress. 
A caterpillar, said to cause serious damage to 
the coconut tree in Batticaloa, was sent to us with 
some affected leaves. The caterpillar appears 
to feed on the softer tissues of the coconut leaves 
which it rolls up into cylinders spun together 
by its threads. It feeds within these cylinders, 
leaving the epidermis intact, which give to the 
leaves that scorched iii) appearance which is char- 
acteristic of trees attacked by the caterpillar. 
The caterpillar is about half an inch long, of 
a slightly greenish colour when young, but 
becomes rosy when full grown. It has a dark 
red line along the back and along each side, 
and a brown head. The laack of tlie segment 
b(,‘liind the head is also Inown. When full fed 
the caterpillar turns into a chrysalid, of a deep 
brown colour, in 11 h“ folded leaf. 
The jairent of the calopillar above described 
is aljout a little moni Ilian tbrce-(|uai’ters of an 
inch in 1 he sjiread of its wings, shiny, of a jiale 
ashy colour, 1 he iijqier wings freckh'd with darker 
■;poi,". The miller wings are of a yellowish grey, 
satiny, and iringed. 'J'lie niolli iiniy be known 
by its long and narrow upper wings being laid 
flat one o\er the other when at rest, and by 
the abdomen being depressed or flat. It evi- 
dently belongs to the genus Depressaria, com- 
monly called the flat-body moths. It is not 
figured in “ Moore’s Lepidoptera of Ceylon,” and 
we shall name it temporarily Depressaria Cocos 
Nucifera (?). We hope to give an illustration 
of the moth in our next. 
WATEl^LIFTS. 
By Aba. 
The restrictions put upon clieiia cultivation 
by the authorities, and its natural decline owing 
to the scarcity of forest land to cari-y on tliis 
pernicions system of cultivation makes it desir- 
able to extend the cultivation of those crops 
which have hitherto been grown on chenas, imder 
wells in parts of the Island Avhere tanks do not 
exist. 
This liranch of husbandry is carried on exten- 
sively in India where the ryot is enabled to groAv 
his crops during the di’y Aveather or in droughty 
seasons, and indeed it has been said that “it is 
also the one jjractice in natiA'e farming to which 
most care and intellegence is devoted.” 
The invention, application and introduction of 
economical means of raising Avater from wells 
belongs more jAroperly to the subject of Mechan- 
ical Engineering, but the object of this paper is 
to lay before my readers a descrijjtion of the three 
modes of raising water from wells in general use 
in India. 
I. The Picotta or Latlia, the water-lift common 
to all Oriental countries, is a leA'er with a bucket 
at one end attached by means of a pole, and a 
counterpoise at the other. It works very Avell 
and cheaply too for lifting water under 12 feet, 
but above that height it becomes expensive. It 
is worked by tAvo men who will work at it from 6 
to 8 hours and raise about 700 cubic feet of water 
