254 the tropical agriculturist. [October i, 1890 
specimens of cinchona bark received from Mr. 
Mclvor. It looks as though the climate of Ceylon 
were less favourable than that of Ootacnmund 
for the cultivation of this plant, No. 1 in particular, 
and nest to this I'o. 3 would be considered poor 
and badly grown barks in commerce, and more- 
over they have not had the advantage of mossing 
which tends so much to increase the product of 
the alkaloids.” Time appears to have established 
the correctness of these observations. In appear- 
ance the Ceylon barks are thinner, and deficient 
in the markings which are valued in the home 
market, and although these barks are really rich 
in alkaloids, they are in this respect also a little 
inferior to the barks of the Nilgiris. 
12. On my visit to the Cinchona plantations 
of the Bengal Government in 1871, I observed di- 
sease in the plants and certain conditions of soil 
and climate, which forced on me the conviction 
that cinchona would not form a permanent and 
profitable cultivation in British Sikkim. My report 
detailing these facts was unfavourably received by 
the Government of India, the Bengal Government, 
the local authorities in charge of the plantations 
in British Sikkim, and especially condemned by 
Mr. Munro, the Superintendent of the Poomong 
plantations of the Darjeeling Cinchona Association. 
Time seems however to have led the Proprietors 
of the Darjeeling Association to acquiesce in the 
conclusions arrived at in my report of 1871, as 
I observe that referring to the Poomong plantation 
the Darjeeling News says: — “The present owners 
of this large cinchona garden, Major-General Angus 
and Mr. Lloyd have spent a large amount of 
money on the estate which was commenced some 
14 years ago, and up to date received no return. 
The Government has larger cinchona gardens 
alongside, and may be said to have swamped 
the private enterprise. Any way we learn that the 
Superintendent of the Garden has received orders 
to cut down the trees and send the bark to the 
London Market. The trees are to be destroyed so 
as to get the bark from the roots, said to be 
rich in alkaloids, and the land is then to be put 
up in small lots for public sale among the tea 
planters. In this way the owners expect to get 
back the E325,000 they have spent, though they 
will never see the interest of the money they have 
been spending all these years. It seems a pity to 
destroy what has cost so much time and money. 
One would have thought that these gardens, which 
had been made far cheaper than any others in 
India, and were a great success would have paid 
well, but it seems that cinchona is not a paying 
speculation.” I believe that the work of destruction 
has begun, and in a few months 1,800 acres of 
our Indian grown cinchona will have disappeared. 
I mention this fact as it may be worthy the con- 
sideration of Government when deciding what per- 
manent course it may be desirable to adopt in 
reference to the disposal and future management 
of our plantations. I have &c., 
(True Copy.) (Sign W. G. McIvoe. 
-MR. McIVOR ON TMA AND CINCHONA 
l.\ CKVIiON IN IS7(I. 
The following letter by Mr. G. V7. Mclvor, 
amongst the lact ho wrote, v/as addressed to Mr. 
A. M. Ferguson, senior, and will be read with 
interest, now that cinchona in Ceylon has had so 
vicissitadinous a history, and that tea has become, 
as Mclvor anticipated, a great success: 
Ootaoamund, lllh May, lo76. 
My dear Mr. Ferguson,— -1 was very much pleased 
to get j’OiAr letter of :17tb April, and although I j 
missed you in Ceylon, 1 fully expected to have the 
pleasure of seeing you here, and regret time would 
not allow you to pay us a visit. I hope however 
as you suggest you will be able to finish off our 
Indian trip, by a visit to the Neilgherries. 
Your son and nephew both showed me much 
kindness when in Ceylon, and were of great assis- 
tance to me, and I hope you will come over, so 
that I may show you what we are doing both here 
and in the Wynaad, in coffee, tea and cinchona, 
I was much pleased with the tea, I saw in 
Ceylon. It offered promise of success, and you 
have some fine varieties which, if propagated from 
cuttings, would give fine stock. The finest kinds 
I saw were on the New Forest estate, and as these 
were large trees, any number of cuttings could be 
procured from them. You will have learned a great 
deal about tea during your trip to the North. It 
is likedy to prove a profitable investment here 
also. The fact is the plant is very hardy and 
thrives best in a wet climate. 
I could not understand until I visited Ceylon 
how it was you could not grow coffee at a high 
elevation, say 6,000 feet, as we have same fine 
coffee estates at iliat elevation; but I find that 
it is the wet climate of Ceylon, which causes plants 
not to bear at high elevations, and it is the same 
on the wet side of our hills also, where plants 
above 5,000 feet bear little or nothing. 
# if * 
It rained nearly the whole time 1 was in Sikkim, 
and you were fortunate to have had fine weather 
there ; the fact is, as I stated at the time of my 
visit, Sikkim is unsuited for the growth of cin- 
chona, Ihe latitude is too high, the soil too thin 
and the climate too damp. I saw patches of 30 
acres together with scarcely a healthy plant. As 
you will see when you come over here, our plan- 
tations are quite different ; of course I do not like 
to depreciate the labours of any one, but we are 
bound to speak out, because if the conditions are 
unfavourable the results must be unfavourable, how- 
ever skilful the management. 
I am glad you have had favourable rains at 
Abbotsford and than you already have begun to 
plant. I was much pleased with the place, and es- 
pecially the fine garden and house. Dimboola 
seems to have an excellent climate. 
I have no objection to the cultivation of ledge- 
riana as it is a variety of great value, and if it was 
suited to our climate, I would cultivate it as ex- 
tensively as they are doing in Java, but here it 
is quite useless, it is unsuited to the climate and 
liable to disease. With you I fear it will be the 
same. This plant is found in Bolivia, between 
15^ and 16° south, Java is also south about 6° 
or 8°, and the plant does better there, but I am 
informed that it is even there very liable to disease. 
I Will prepare a case to send over to your son 
some of our best plants. It will be better to send them 
in a wardian case. I left with him seeds of all 
the best varieties we have. 
In Ceylon you are north of the line. The varie- 
ties which do with us are likely to do with you 
also. However, there can be no harm in trying 
the different varieties of calisaya, but all the plants 
I saw in the island are unpromising, and I fear 
it will only bo time and labour wasted. 
I am sorry to say that I have been seriously 
ill, 1 had a great deal of exposure after my re- 
turn from Ceylon, and got laid up with liver and 
dysentery from which I am but now slowly re- 
covering.* * * # — Believe me, yours very 
sincerely, W. G. McIvob. 
*■ The recovery was but temporary, a relapse ending 
in the death of this able acd useful man.—En. J'.A, 
