200 
THF TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [September i, 1890. 
The Impebial Beitish East African Company 
have appointed Mr. J. E. Dudley McAllister their 
engineer to carry out the construction of the 
railway to which Mr. Stanley alluded in his speech 
at Newastle, extending from Mombasa on the 
coast to Lake Victoria Nyanza, a distance of about 
400 miles. Mr. McAllister has left London for 
this object. — Public Opinion, July 18th. 
Ceylon Hale-chests of Tea. — The question of 
the absurdly small contents of Ceylon “ half-chests " 
continues to exercise the minds of both dealers and 
grocers. As has been frequently p>ointed out, when 
ordering a half-chest, the buyer expects to obtain 
not about 301b., but from 50 to 601b. of tea, and 
makes his purchase accordingly. From the im- 
porter’s point of view, the dock rate of charges 
makes the half-chest of 60 to 70 lb. by far the 
cheapest package to handle ; and from the grower’s, 
there is to be remembered that the larger the package 
the less wood is of course required to hold the 
same amount of tea. It is, therefore, everyone’s 
interest to maintain packages of reasonable size, and 
although this has often been pointed out, no steps 
have apparently been taken to meet the wishes of 
the trade. — Produce Markets' Review. 
The Netheelands India Sdmatea Tobacco Com- 
pany have issued a circular to iheir shareholders 
stating that the total of the 1889 crop is somewhat 
smaller than originally calculated upon, as in the 
process of fermentation the tobacco lost a higher 
percentage in weight than was expected. The prices 
realised for the parcels already sold are highly 
favourable ; and, although the quality of the tobacco 
not yet arrived is not quite so good as that of the 
portion already sold, tne directors feel confident 
that the result of the company’s first year’s opera- 
tions will prove satisfactory, and an interim dividend 
will be declared as soon as possible after the sale of 
further parcels, Eeports about the 1890 crop con- 
tinue to be of a favourable nature. By last mail 
advices, dated May 15th, 2,497,300 trees had already 
been planted, and the head administrator states 
that unless anything very unforeseen should happen a 
much larger crop can be expected for the current 
season. — O. Mail. 
Some Palm Trees furnish a sweetening juice. The 
most famous of these is probably the Areng, or 
sugar palm of Amboyna (Arenga saccharifera) 
which grows in the Indian Archipelago. * It is 
a superb tree, with pinnate leaves twenty-five feet 
long and is as handsome as it is useful. A num- 
her of species belonging to the different genera 
furnish a kind of hair of finer or coarser texture. 
It is found in the fibrous sheaths of the leafstalk 
and in the jagged edges of the leaves. Cables made 
of the black tough fibres of the Areng are pre- 
ferred by the coasting sailors of the Spanish colo- 
nies on account of their elasticity and durability: 
and they are, moreover, very fine. The hemp palm 
of Japan and (Chamerops excelsa) is ^available in 
the hands of the industrious people of those coun- 
tries for making the finer brooms, light strings 
and a thousand articles of daily use. Palms of 
coarser fibre, like the Piagaba of Brazil (Leopoldinia 
viassaba), furnish material for blinds, brushes, 
■Jjjtpoms, and the rollers of mechanical sweepers, 
whic.h are much more durable than rollers fitted 
with St‘’6l teeth. — Indian Agriculturist, 
* Specimens of great sugar palm of Java 
are growing nea’ the banyan tree close to Muirburn, 
i.oloinbo. It is closely allied to our kitul palm, but 
thero is the difference that the fruits of the arenga 
are edible, while those of the kitui are not. Old 
trees in the Peradeniya Gardens have borne fruit. 
For ornament as well as utility the arenga. ought to 
be extensively cultivate fi in Ceylon.— E d. T.A, 
The Tempeeatuee of the Geound. — At Calcutta 
the soil is, on the average, 2'7° hotter than the 
air, at Allahabad 2'4° hotter, at Jeypore (where 
the soil on which the instrument is placed is almost 
pure sand) 5-8° hotter, at Lahore 6’6° hotter. — 
Indian Meteorological Report. 
Maskeliya, July 20th. — Paper lining will never do> 
however cheap, for tea boxes ; tea must be herme- 
tically sealed to keep. A voyage from the estate to 
London now-a-days is no test. Look at the sample 
tins sent by post. All open, and yet for the short 
time the tea keeps fairly well. Navy and Army 
contractors have to guarantee the tea to keep for 
2 years ! — Heavy rain here for last 3 days. 
Quinine. — According to the annual report of the 
directors of the Amsterdam Quinine Works, the 
results of the year 1889 were satisfactory. The 
deliveries of quinine sulphate (irrespective of other 
quinine salts) from the works during the past year 
have been about 400,000 ounces, and the accounts 
show a profit sufficiently large to admit of the pay- 
ment of a dividend of 6 l-5th per cent. — Paramatical 
Era, June 15th. 
Tea in Japan. — The Japan Weekly Mail of 24th May 
says: — “The Tea Trade has been large — nearly 23,000 
piculs of leaf having been taken during the week. 
It is estimated that first crop pickings will be all 
in hand by the end of the first week in June, and 
then show a shortage of production as compared 
with last year of 20 per cent. Another week, however, 
must elapse before anything like a trustworthy 
statement can be made as to the probable first crops 
outturn.” 
Cocoa Adulteeation. — Mr. T. A. Pooley, the county 
analyst for Essex, reported to the Essex County 
Council, on Tuesday, that the only sample of cocoa 
examined was also adulterated. Butter came next 
to milk in number of adulterations, but most of 
the cases are offences against the Margarine Act. 
Flour was added to the mustard, and starch and sugar 
to the cocoa. In the cocoa case no proceedings 
were taken, as it is doubtful whether to use the 
constituents found really constitutes adulteration, 
since commercial "cocoa” is a compound article, 
and is never made in a state of absolute purity. The 
value of this article as a food, however, is greatly 
reduced when more than half of it is made up of 
starch and sugar, as was the case in this instance. 
— London Grocer. 
Manufactures in Malabar. — There are a variety 
of manufactures carried on in the Malabar District. 
The Basel Mission has four cotton weaving estab- 
lishments, which turned out during the year 1889- 
90 about 150,000 yards, valued at E80,000. It has 
also a tile factory at Calicut, the value of the out- 
turn being estimated at B40,000. It employs 200 
workmen. There is also a tile factory at Ferok, 
owned by an enterprising Parses Firm, Messrs. 
Maneokji & Co., employing 100 individuals. Messrs. 
Volkart Brothers and Messrs. Pierce, Leslie & Co., 
have extensive coir manufactories at Cochin and 
Calicut respectively. Messrs. Volkart Brothers' 
out-turn is about B20.000 annually. There is a 
cotton mill in Calicut taluk established in 1888-89 
under the name of the “ Malabar Spinning and 
Weaving Company.” It has not yet commenced 
weaving but it employs 400 individuals and turns 
out annually 1,185,900 lb. of yarn estimated at 
B487,790. Messrs. Henke & Co., have a cigar fac- 
tory which turn out cigars valued at B5,000 per 
annum. Palghat is noted for its fine mats, the 
best kind fetching very high prices, and brass 
vessels are manufactured at Kunhimangalam in 
Chirakal and Oherpoloheri, in the Walawanad 
Taluk.— ill. Mail, 22 ad. July. 
