THF. TROf^lGAL AGRICULTURIST. 
473 
January i, 1891 .] 
CEYLON Ul’COUNTRY rJ.ANTlNO REPORT. 
Nutmeu — Weatheb and Cooijiifj. 
Nov. 18th. 
The present concern in the culture of Nulmegs 
gives an interest in their past history. It is like 
a stale joke referring to the order which came 
out from home, when mace was at a very high 
figure, that more mace was to be grown and less nut- 
meg. But is it history ? Was such an order ever 
given, and is it not more likely that it was made 
in the East and fathered on the west ? To be sure 
it is like the mistake of a smart man at home, — these 
fellows w'ho know everything, and are prepared 
to advise the world : but this of course would only 
give it ell the morepoint. 
That the nutmeg does flourish in history, is 
undoubted, for I lighted on a reference to it whiie 
reading Leckey’s “ History of England,” the other 
day. It is instanced in illustration of the extreme 
multiplicity and complexity of duties which obtained 
in England before Pitt took the matter in hand 
and brought order out of confusion. “ It was 
noticed,” says Leckey, ” by one of Pitt’s best offioials 
that so trifling an article as a pound of nutmegs 
paid, or ought to have paid, nine different duties.” 
Growers of nutmegs may rejoice that in these days 
all this is changed. 
Our present weather is just perfection for tea flush, 
and most estates are strained to keep up with it : 
everything else too is ripening, and these months 
are certainly the big harvest of the year, and 
when a place cultivates more than one product, it 
is kept busy. 
Coolies on the whole are about enough for the 
ordinary wants— a little pressure does no one any 
harm, keeping us from going to sleep, and waking 
into life faculties which otherwise might be rusting. 
The rain however is still very short of want it 
should be, to be made up, no doubt, later on. 
Peppercoen. 
THEFT OF CACAO (AND POSSESSION OF 
SAME BY A PRIEST) FROM THE 
WARIAPOLA ESTATE. 
In the Police Court op Matale. 
No. 5,611, October 27th. 
Robert S. Fraser of the Wariapola estate vs- 
Piyadessa Unnscse of Tibbotumulla. 
A Cacao Planteb’s Expubiencb. 
A. Q. K. Borron sworn, stated : That he has been 
a planter for twenty-eight years, eight of which he 
had a good deal of experience in cacao. Hestited that 
the accused begged that Court to proceed to the pan- 
sala garden, when the Magistrate promised to visit the 
spot the next morning, which he did on the 31st ult- 
with Mr. Faulkner of the Suduganga estate. This gen. 
tleman also spoke of the difference of the seeds of the 
different varieties and of the trees on the Wariapola 
estate and the pansala garden — The following is the 
Judgment. 
There can be no manner of doubt that the cacao seeds 
found in the possession of the accused were seeds of the 
I'orestero variety of cacao, 'lhat has been established 
upon evidence that is uc '•xceptionablc and satisfactory. 
Mr. Fraser's evidence an', that of Mr. Borron pi ce 
this question beyond all doubt, and it is further proved 
that tlie seeds found in the possession of the accused 
were all immature and unripe. That these were taken 
from pods stolen from Wariapola estate there can be 
no doubt, upon the evidence in this case and u|)ou what 
I myself saw on visiting that portion of the estate 
which adjoins the accused’s pansala garden. Not 
that this item of proof is necessary under the provi- 
sions of section 2 of the Ordinance No. 22 of 1886, 
which constitute the bare possession of nuripe fruit of 
the cacao lui offence, hut it is always most satisfactory 
to find that the marks of recent stripping on the trees 
from which fruit have been stolen make it all the more 
clear, that the unaccounted for poseession of the seeda ' 
is .an indication that the seeds have come from pods 
stolen from the stripped t'e^s. The prompt (ic'ion 
taken by Mr. Fraser and his nun led to the dis- 
covery of unripe seeds in the possession of the 
accused, for wliich posse.ssion the account given liy the 
accused is utterly niitruo. He sta'ed explicitly ' that 
tin so pods liad been gathered from his own trees 
that very morning. — Mr. Fraser very properly a: ked 
him to show the trees from which they had been 
gathered, and he showed to Mr. Fraser what he 
showed me when I visited the garden at bis request, — 
trees of tho criollo variety which under no circum- 
stances could have yielded seeds of the Forestero 
variety. I have had tho advantage of seeing the 
pansala garden, and it is only too obvious that tho 
seeds found in the accused’s possession could not have 
been the produce of those trees. I carefully examined 
the trees in that gardenand except three or four plants 
which had borne no fruit, aud two of which were 
only just beginning to boar, there were no other 
Forestero trees from which fruit could possibly have 
been gathered that morning. The clumsy attempt of 
the little stripling priest to show me a fruit alleged 
by him to have been laken from a tree which five 
minutes before I bad examined in his absence, and 
on which I found no such fruit or anything worthy 
the name of fruit, was soon traced to what was 
obviously a theft committed by him from one of Mr. 
Fraser’s trees, while we were walking about the 
pansala garden, — on the other side of which were 
Mr. Fraser’s trees separated from our view by a 
lautara hedge and other trees. This only indicates 
the facility with which thefts are committed of 
fruit belonging to Mr. Fraser’s estate. 
It has been urged for the defence that others may 
have committed the theft. It is notneoeasary to en- 
tertain the thought of such a contiugency, because 
the priest has not put that forward, but has stated 
that the seeds found in his possession were the produce 
of fruit picked by him from his own trees. That he 
stated to Mr. Fraser and the same statement he trade 
to me. It was further urged that he was a blind old 
decrepit man. That he was old and somewhat feeble, 
I could see easily, but he certainly was not blind, 
nor anything like decrepit. 1 daresay he has put 
on the semblance of decrepitude to avoid the ccn.se- 
quence of his guilt. No doubt his age entitles him to 
some consideration, and in meting out the punishment 
due to his case, I have laken that into consider- 
ation. Had he been a younger man I should have 
giveu him rigorous imprisonment as a substantive 
punishment. 
The enormous ravages there are being committed 
by natives in the neigbourhood of coffee and cacao 
estates indicate well organized and systematic robbery 
of produce. Not only are the fruits stolen from the 
trees, but the bearing capabilities of the trees are 
sensibly diminsbed by the ruthless stripping of the 
fruits and the tearing away of tho fruiting eyes of the 
trees. 
I find the accused guilty and sentence him to pay a 
fine of fifty rupees and in default of payment to 
be kept at rigorous imprisonment for a term of three 
months. 
(Signed) J. H. Eaton, P. M. 
Timber Trees. — Mr. A. Mendis Senanayake, 
Arachchi (he ought long ago to have been made 
Muhandiram) of Moratuwa, has been carrying on 
the list of the Principal Timber Trees in Ceylon, 
first drawn up by his father, Mudaliyar Mendis. 
The copy that has been sent us is very nicely 
printed with 156 separate trees with Sinhalese 
and botanical names (in some cases Tamil also) 
and a variety of information such as uses, average 
size of log, (S'c, Planters in need of such a list can, 
in a few days, secure copies on application to the 
Observer bookstore. It behoves Government Agent 
Dawson to look out worthy industrious Sinhalese 
men such as Mr. A. Mendis Senanayake— the 
respected son of a worthy father— for higher 
honours, 
