February 2 , i8gi,] 
THE TROPICAL AQRICULTURlSt. 
545 
The Emperor’s palace, situated on a nice piciurosquO 
piece of ground overlooking the beautitul bay ut Rio 
de Janeiro, is being fitted up for the delioeraiious of 
that important body. After 'ome days spent m formal 
business tbeir duties will be to approve the Constitution, 
and to elect a President and Vice-President. It is 
said in some quarter.s, that, thi.' businesa done, the ^wo 
houses will be prorogued until May, by which time each 
province will have received its constitution iud will 
have thus consolidated the Government by a Repu' lie 
composed of Federal Statet. It ia expected that al ter 
the election of a President all the European powers, 
which have not as yet done so, will recognise the 
Estados Unidos do Brazil. The principal acts of the 
Provisional Government have been generally approved 
by the nation, but many differences of opinion have 
been expressed regarding its financial policy. Exchi-iige 
■however is now rising and the value of the milrtis is two 
shillings. All duties have now to be paid in Brilish 
sovereigns at par or 27 per milreis- 
A. SCOTT BLACKLAW. 
« 
BARK AND DRUG REPORT. 
(From the Chemist and Druggist.) 
London, Dec. 4th. 
Annatto. — There have been larger arrivals of seed from 
Ceylon this week, two vessels bringing 278 packages. 
Cinchona.— The bark supply offered at Tuesday’s auctions 
was a very moderate one, consisting of : — 
Packages Packages 
Ceylon bark 
East Indian bark ... 
Java Bark 
Mouth American bark 
West Coast African 
1,064 of which 
684 do 
75 do 
2.34 do 
221 do 
971 were sold 
623 do 
75 do 
171 do 
156 do 
Total ... 2,278 do 1,996 do 
The osBortment was not remarkable in any way, except 
for the unusually large consignment of bark from the 
African West Coast included in it. There was a small 
quantity of good Ledgeriana bark from the Wentworth 
plantations in India, and also a few lots of fine renewed 
Succirubra, but most of the bark was of ordinary or 
medium quality. Competition was brisk, and the im- 
proved tone of the market enabled holders to realise 
a slight advance on tlie previous auctions, tlie unit for 
good barks being igd per lb., and the average fully Ijd 
per lb. 
Java Cinchona. — Original: Succirubra stem quills, bold 
and long, but damaged, 6d to 6^d : dusty stem chips 34d : 
ditto root 3d to 3-Jd per lb 
South Amebican cinchona.— Of 230 packages of culti- 
vated Bolivian Calisaya, 171 pkgs. sold at fall prices. Quilly 
chips, 4d to 4Jd ; medium to long fairly bright stem 
quill 5|d to lid per lb. Pour cases (416 lb.) red tiuill, 
thin, damaged and colourless, imported via Hamburg, 
were withdrawn. 
West Coast African Cinchona, — No less than 221 bales 
(28,269 lb.) of bark grown in the Island of Sao Thome 
were offered. The bark was imported in two consign- 
ments, via Lisbon, and 156 bales of it (19.169 lb.) sold at 
comparatively good prices to German quinine makers 
and French druggists. Calisaya and succirubra hybrid 
medium quill, fairly bright, but damaged 4|d to 5d ; chips 
and shavings^ 3^d to 4|d per lb. The greater part of this 
parcel was slightly damaged. The exports of cinchona 
from Java during the three mouths from July 1st ta 
September 30tb, have been as follows ;— 
1890 1889 
lb lb 
Govt, plantations, Amst. 64,2o8 18,264 
Private ,, 1,595,818 9871641 
1888 
lb 
148,719 
986,363 
1887 
lb 
170,295 
864,391 
Total 1,660,026 1,170,283 1,065,112 1,034,686 
Cocoa Butter. At the monthly auctions, which took 
place here on ■ ecember 2nd, 300 2-cwt cases of 
Cadbury’s brand sold at prices ranging from 13Jd down 
to 12gil, closing at about 13d, tlie result being a decline 
of about IJd per lb as compared with the November 
auctions. On the same day 70,000 kilos of Von Houteii's 
cocoa butter (AJ were sold by auctions in Amsterdam. 
They realised from 68i to 70.'( cents per \ kilo, equal to about 
12,id to 12id per ib., or rather less than the prices paid in 
London. 
Oins (Essential).- C itionella in worth l,3-16.d por or. 
on the spot for fnir native quality, and for arrival ll^il 
per lb. 0, i. f. is asked for tin.s. hi mongrass oil on the sU'f 
is 15a per or., and for arrivals the quotation is Ijd per or. c i.o 
terms. 
Oils (Various). — Coconut Oil : Ceylon steady, at 3ls 6d 
for fine quality on the spot, while for near at hand 28s 
d, e. i. f. terms, is quoted. Cochin has advanced, and 
is new worth 33s 6d to 34 6d on the spot aceoiding to 
qualify, while for uistant delivery 32s td, c. i. f. terms, 
is asked. 
Quinine.— There has hern a fcrcewhat better feeling 
in the market this week, altboi gh the sales ri polled 
only amount to ebout 4U,C00 or.- scccnd-btnd German 
bulk at n^d to ]2d per tz., end tome Erunswick, from 
the makers’, et lid per oz. for A.pril-May delivery. 9'lier 
woul d bo further buyers at ltd per cz. fer forward deli 
very uow, and also ll|d per oz. spot, but there is noth- 
ing to be hed at those figures. The B. & S agents have 
relusfd all offers below 13d per oz.for January-Fehruary, and 
[^0 id firmly at that quotattion’ 
A PAMPERED RAILWAY COMPANY. 
Mr. Geo. W. Christison, a Darjeeling tea-planter 
and Manager of the Lebong Tea Company, Limited 
has begun a strenuous agitation against an importan 
public grievance, in regard to which some correspon 
dence has appeared in the Englishman lately. Mr 
Christiton, for the first time, tries to bring an organised 
protest, and Government pressure, if possible, against 
what has been generally known as the excessive cupidity 
of the Darjeeling-Himalajan Railway Company, fos- 
tered as it is by the indulgence of an over-lavish Go- 
vernment. Although subsidised from the public funds 
to an extent that no railway in the country Vas been, the 
public interest is the last thing it seems to look to, 
payment of a large dividend to shareholders and fat 
salaries to officers appearing to be its fole concern. 
The rolling-stock it maintains is far from adequate 
to the demands of the traffic along the line, so 
that in busy and rainy seaEons goods accum nlaie 
at the stations to the great loss of importers 
and exporters, notwithstanding that bullock carts still 
carry a good deal of the traffic. The consequence is 
tbat, in order to secure a large dividend from a com- 
paratively small traffic, the rates have been kept up from 
the beginning at exorbitant figures, though it lias b een 
amply proved that, with Eome present sacrifice by 
laying out money on rolling-stock and improving ar- 
rangements, the rates could be considerably reduced 
without any permanent loss to the income of the 
Railway. 
Passenger fares by the Darjeeling-Himalayan Rail" 
w ay tor firtt and second classes are four times as 
high as those cn the Eastern Bengal State Railway, 
and third class fares more than six times as high 
as on the lowest class of the Eastern IBengal State 
Railway, Parcel rates are higher for 5 miles of the 
Darjeeling-Himalayan Railway than for 328 miles of 
the Eastern Bengal State Railway. With regard to 
goods generally the highness of the scale will be under, 
stood when it is known that the price of coal together 
with freight from Naihati to Silligorie (305 mile) 
amounts to very much the same as the charge for 
freight alone over the 51 miles of Darjeeling-Hima- 
layan Railway from Silligoorie to Darjeeling. 
In response to strong representations for reduction 
of rates made by the Darjeeling Tea Planters’ 
Association, of which Mr. Geo. W. Christison is a 
leading member, the Darjeeling-Himalayan Railway 
has offered a rebate of 5 per cent on coal and 
per cent on all other goods. But Mr. Christison 
regards this to be utterly inadequate to meet the 
necessities of the case, and he urges upon the 
Association to press for more, and if accepting the 
terms offered by the Darjeeling-Himalayan Railway 
not to bind itself to keep quiet for the next five 
years, as is stipulated for by the former. In one 
of his circular letters addressed to the members of 
the Association through its Secretary, Major Harrison, 
Mr. Christ!, sou writes: — 
“ It is very evident from the paltry reduction 
upon coal (the moat important of all) where the 
difficulty lies. If a proper reduction were made, 
the increase of traffic would be such that the Rail- 
way could not carry it. It therefore is the duty of 
the Association to go to the root of tbo evil, and in- 
duce the Railway to increase its roiliug-stook and 
otherwise improve its arrangements in regard to 
stations, godowus, cranes, &o., and, if necessary, oven 
