439 
December i, 1890.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
THE NEW WATCH COMPASS, 
{Communicated.) 
A paragraph is going the round of the home papers to 
the effect that the watch in anyone’s pocket may 
serve to indi ate the points of the compaes, at any 
hour of the day. It was pointed out by a Yankee, that 
you have only to direct the hour-hand of a going 
watch to the sun, and midway between such hour and 
XII will be due south. For instance, the hour-hand at IV 
o’clock directed to the sun, II will mark south. This 
is new to me, and seems to be taking the world by 
surprise— even Stanley, the explorer aud American, 
never having heard of it. 
Pending the arrival of an “ authoritative" explanation, 
I submit the following : — The earth’s surface present.^ 
everywhere, to us diminutive crawlers upon it, an 
“offing,” as at sea — that is, a perfectly circular patch 
of a few mites in diameter. This patch of surface, 
however, is the same, for all celestial phenomena, as 
if it were the plain parallel to it of the full diameter 
through the earth’s centre. Neglecting this fact, and 
the variation in the sun’s north and south declination, 
we arrive at the approximate rule that ‘the sun rises 
in tlie East and sets in the West,’ occupying at the 
equinoxes twelve hours, from VI to VI, in doing so. 
But wliether the days are short or long, the sun is 
always due south at XII o’clock. This is true for all 
couniries north of the Mediterranean, but not always 
the case in Ceylon, where in Juno, at XII noon, the 
Buu is duo north ; but this en passant. 
Now if you will imagine this “ offing,” — which as 
the same on land as at sea (only the hills, bou.ses 
and trees prevent our noticing it),— to be divided 
round its southern somi-oircumference {i.e,, the south- 
ern horizon from E. to W.) into 12 equal parts, (as a 
watch whose face is marked for 24 hours is divided) 
the reason of the rule becomes sufficient obvious, — 
bearing in mind that the watch in your hand 
hoivever much you move if, or lualh about with it. 
■is practically, and actually as on a pivot, in th< 
very centre of your "ojfiny." At VI the hour-® 
hand points to the rising sun, XII is due west, and 
IX must necessarily be due south. As the sun ad- 
vances in his course, the hour hand — of a watch 
marked for 24 hours— would follow him, Lour by 
hour (XII. always being south) ; bat as the corres- 
ponding semi-circumferance of the ordinary w&tclr is 
divided into 6 hours ouly, one hour of the watch covers 
two hours of the sun. Hence the result that, by keeping 
the hour-hand to the sun, the "XI ’’ of an ordinary 
watch moves east at precisely the same rate us tlio 
hour hand moves west, till they meet at noon, both 
there indicating due astronomical south. They then 
pass on, receding from each other as they had ad- 
vanced, midway between them necessarily beiny at any 
instant of time duo south. — Q. E. D. 
The true compass indicates the magnetic north, 
while the watch can only indicate the cardinal points 
astrt nomically and approximately. Bearing this in 
mind, it is a pretty use to which to put our watches, 
and may not unfrequent ly be found useful. 
Astro. 
COFFEE PEST. 
In the oorrespondenoe on the above subject, 
which wo publish in another eoluinn, it is 
rather amusing to find Miss Ormerod refer- 
ring Mr. Thomas Dickson to such well-known 
local authorities on ooll'eo pests as Nietner, Morris 
and Green. .Viiss Ormerod, although one of the 
greatest living authorities on insect pests, admits 
that fungi are out of her line. Had Mr. Dick-on 
consulted Mr. D. Morris, that gentleman would 
have allirmed, and with truth, that ho had dis- 
covered a remedy for Jleineileia vastatrix in 
sulphurous acid, the product of a mixture of limo 
and eulphur, applied to Iho coif' e bushes, in dowy 
of dr zzly weather. Tliis acid proved fatal to alt 
the fungi it reached ; and n it only bushes but whole 
states were cleared of the post, But all in vain 
while millions of spores existed all around and 
wore ready to enter the stomata and suck the life- 
blood of every fresh coat of foliage put on by the 
unhappy trees. It was found that unless the 
whole of the coffee in Ceylon could be simul- 
taneously relieved by the entireidestruotion of every 
spore of the deadly fungus, there was no use in 
fighting a losing battle. The general principle, too, 
that the best way of fighting a plant pest is to 
strengthen the plant by means of manure, failed 
in this case, because it was found that manuring 
merely provided food, in the shape of rootlets, for 
white grubs underground, as well as for the fungus 
aboveground in the shape of fresh leaves. Finally, 
as if to lead the unhappy coffee planter to take 
up the patriarch’s cry, “ All these things are against 
mo,” preen bug made its appearance, attacking 
the juices of the coffee bush with a virulence far 
exceeding that of the old pest, the brown or 
black bug. Phenyle, which Miss Omerod re- 
commends, is not a new remedy in Ceylon, although 
we do not ' recollect hearing of it as an 
application to the roots of the bushes. Those 
who have coffee still jielding any crop miglrt 
try this radical application. There is true pbilo- 
sephy in Miss Ormevod's recommendation that 
any mixture applied fer the destruction of gree* 
bug should be of a viscid nature ; o as to acihere 
until not only the parent scale insects were killed, 
but the thousands of their piogeny hidden beneath 
them were smothered. All kinds of spraying 
applications have been tried in the United States, 
including fine sand. The danger in all such cases, 
as Miss Ormerod points out, is, that what destroys 
the p:-st may fatally injure the plant by entirely 
destroying its foliage and harming the bark. Those 
interested ought certainly to purchase and study 
the new edition of Mies Ormerod’s valuable book. 
They will there find directions for preparing and 
applying the mixtures most likely to prove effectual 
in ridding coffee bushes and fruit trees of insect 
pests. We are rather surprised that Mr. Dickson’s 
correspondent did not say anything of insects which 
are tho natural enemies of scale bugs and prey 
upon them. We observe from our exchanges that 
such insects are being introduced and largely bred 
in California, and it is stated with good effect in 
ridding orange, peach and other trees of scale in- 
sects. It is possible, though hardly probable, 
that tho coffee fungus may, with effluxion of time, 
disappear from Ceylon, and coffee be again amongst 
our staple and profitable cultures. Let us cherish 
the hope, while we cultivate our now staple, tea. 
..^ 
Making Farming PiiOFiTAiiLE. — Now, iu order that 
farming may be profitable, we must make the 
con.siunptiou of a cheap food produce a thing that 
will sell for a high price. Wbeat, barely, oats, are 
costly food ; ou the contrary, barn, clover-huy, linseed, 
ani-l cottonseed, are cheap foods. It pays’, therefore, 
tosdl grain and buy these cheap foods. Manufacture 
only a' swo-rs on the condition of haying raw materials 
cbeip, which we subser|ueinly emvert into articles 
of higii value. Fanners, like manufacturers, must buy 
cheap aud sell dear. Part of_^thefooJ the beast eats 
is converted into heat. 'The animal best must be kept 
up at any cost in every part of the body, else it will 
lose weight. The system must bi maintained at 98 
di g. Fahr. The jn-oductiou of milk is iu a great 
ra asnre deicrminetl by the quality of the food. Tlie 
best food, iu my opinion, is clover-hay and mixed 
gras'.es, clover is good; yen cannot sow too much 
of it. Bran is another goed fo d. Br.m contains 
pliospbatts and oilier elements eiileiing into the 
formation of the bones and muscles. Cottonseed; iu 
tho form of cake or meal, is a good food for milk 
making. It contains an excess of albuminoids, aud is 
one of the best things to mix with straw, hay, 
ensilage, &iC.— Facts and Conjcctuns. 
