July  r,  1395. J 
THE  TROPICAL 
$oi]i]Cspondonco. 
To  the  Editor. 
MANV-HKADEl)  PALMS  IN  THE 
.lAEENA  I’ENINSri.A. 
Dear  Sir,— The  followiiiji  additions  to  your  list  of 
many-hcaded  palms  mav  be  iuterestinf,'.  There  ex- 
ists at  a temple  near  Manipay  a coconut  tree  with 
two  heads  branching  at  a height  of  about  twenty- 
five  feet  and  both  are  very  fruitful.  The  only 
other  instance,  winch  I know  of,  is  a young  tree 
near  Kankesanturai  with  two  heads.  The  en- 
closed photograph  represents  wonderful  fruitfulness 
in  the  coconut  plant,  which  I saw  last  week 
at  Punnalai,  at  the  extreme  western  point  of  the 
.Jaffna  peninsula.  From  the  man  in  charge  of  the 
garden  which  belongs  to  the  Magistrate  of  Kayts, 
I ascertained  that  the  plant  had  only  one  shoot  in 
an  abnormally  big  nut  when  brought  with  othei's 
from  the  plant  rfferings  of  the  Temple  of  the  Ser- 
pent at  Aynativoe  18  years  ago.  Very  soon  it  began 
to  put  forth  different  shoots  which  at  one  time  num- 
bered 2().  I counted  about  10  at  the  time  of  my 
visit,  some  vigorous  and  others  as  small  as  plants 
a few  months  old.  The  man  told  mo  that  a Cobra 
has  been  taking  its  abode  in  it.  which  those  in  the 
garden  hold  in  sacred  awe.  About  two  miles  from 
this  spot  near  the  Jaffna  College,  I saw,  many  years 
ago.  in  a small  garden,  several  palmyra  trees  some 
with  two  and  some  with  as  many  as  five  lieads. — 
I am,  yours  truly,  L. 
[Tlio  iiltotograpli  shows  (|uito  a grove  of  foli- 
age and  hranches  all  ai>parontly  belonging  to  the 
one  young  palm. — En.  T.A.] 
HYHUin  COEEEE. 
Sir, — It  is  a pity  no  endeavours  were  made  to  secure 
a hybrid  coffee  several  years  ago.  Owing  to  the 
present  and  future  high  prices  of  any  variety  of 
coffee,  the  cultivation  of  a good  hybrid  would  have 
found  much  favour  just  now.  The  Maragogipe 
coffee  sent  by  Mr.  Munton  to  Andella  Estate  in 
Kegalle  is  thriving.  There  are  besides  on  that  estate 
about  2 doj!.  Arabian  trees  grafted  on  Liberian  stumps 
with  a first  crop  on  them.  Liberian  coffee  is  also 
planted  amongst  them,  the  object  being  by  the  aid 
of  ants  and  oees  to  secure  fruit,  a percentage  of 
which  may  possibly  give  hybrid  plants.  I send  you 
a dead'“  grafted  tree”  (cause  of  death  unknown)  for 
inspection.  On  the  living  trees  the  peculiar  darh  bark 
of  the  Jjiberian  appears  in  the  Arabian  grafts  in 
streaks.  In  other  respects  there  is  nothing  different 
in  them  from  ordinary  Arabian.  W.  P.  F. 
l\S. — Of  course  there  are  distinctive  types  in  the 
Liberian,  as  regards  shape  and  size  of  leaf  and  fruit 
and  bean.  In  a very  large  nursery  of  Liberian  plants, 
in  ,8  different  spots,  J plants  have  come  up,  quite 
Ai’abian  in  type  so  far.  They  will  be  looked  after,  as 
the  Liberian  seed  in  cherry  came  from  a place  where 
Arabian  also  grew.  When  cleaning  the  cherry,  not 
a single  Arabian  cherry  was  found,  and  all  small 
cherries  were  rejected. 
rUp  to  the  time  of  the  advent  of  leaf-disease 
planters  were  so  satisfied  with  the  Arabian  trees 
that  experimenting  in  grafting  never  occurred  to 
them  any  more  than  painting  the  lily.  Hut  after 
the  visitation  of  that  scourge  it  would  have  been  well, 
as  “ W.  P.  F.”  remarks,  if  some  experiments  had  been 
made  in  scientific  grafting.  We  very  much  question, 
however,  that  coffee  will  naturally  hybridize  as  tea  does, 
as  Liberian  coffee  has  been  long  enough  cultivated 
with  and  near  Arabian,  to  have  produced  some  results. 
The  dead  specimen  sent  to  us  shows  a successful  graft 
of  Arabian  on  a short  Liberian  stump,  very  close 
to  the  roots,  and,  our  corr  ispondent  says,  “ those  still 
living  have  a first  crop  on  them,”  wliich  is  a very 
encouraging  circumstance.  But  being  mules  them- 
selves, and  the  hybridization  of  coffee  beipg  appa- 
rently difficult  through  the  blossom  only,  it  may 
he  feared  that  they  will  not  readily  hybridise  with 
the  Liberian  trees  growing  near  them,  We  shall, 
however,  be  glad  to  hear  further  on  this  interesting 
subject  from  W.  P.  F.— En.  T..I.J 
G 
AGRICUI/rURIST.  41 
THE  LAnoVR  (QUESTION. 
Dear  Sir,— Without  in  any  way  wishing  to  run 
down  the  planter  I think  that  he  has  in  many  in- 
stances himself  to  thank  for  the  annually  recurring 
scarcity  of  labour  in  the  spring  months,  which  is 
to  my  mind  to  a great  extent  the  result  of  his  own 
improvidence.  Those  who  have  travel!'  d about  much 
in  the  Planting  Districts  will,  I tMnk,  agree  with 
me  that  speaking  generally,  all  through  both  the 
Cinchona  and  Tea  Planting  Enterprise,  people 
seldom  had  enough  plants  in  their  own  nurseries 
for  their  requirements,  tlmiighin  many  c.ases  each 
knew  nine  or  twelve  months  before  the  planting 
season  began  what  amca  it  of  land  he  intended 
to  open.  This  is  most  strondy  evidenced  in  the  case 
of  cinchona  by  the  large  sums  of  monev  made 
by  many  who  grew  nurseries  chiefly  and  .solely  for 
the  sake  of  selling  plants.  In  the  case  of  tea,  the 
scarcity  of  p'ants  in  the  country  during  each  plautin'J 
season  has  been  less  in  evidence  owing  to  the  possi- 
bility of  planting  and  at  stake. 
In  like  manner,  every  spring  one  has  found  a 
general  scarcity  of  Factory  accommodation  £^11  over 
the  country,  save  on  such  estates  as  are  fully 
factoried,  which  I maintain  might  in  most  cases 
have  been  avoided  had  the  planter  exercised  a little 
more  forethought,  and  agitated  for  extension  at  the 
proper  time,  say  a year  before  it  was  actually 
required  instead,  of  waiting  until  lie  was  so  badly 
hurst  that  i "mediate  assistance  was  impossible. 
My  upco  intry  friends  wi  1 no  doubt  answer  this 
last  accusation  by  a (juestion : Where  is  the  much- 
abused  V.  A 'f  iiut  the  V.  A.  has  not  to  ivork  the 
factory  and  1 do  not  think  that  he  would  refuse  ti 
support  any  reasonable  application  for  extension  if 
it  were  p oved  necessary  by  the  Superintendent  who 
has  every  opportunity  of  gauging  his  own  requirei 
ments,  and  is  he  proper  person  to  agitate, 
In  the  question  of  labour,  the  planter  is  generally 
left  very  much  to  him-elf  ; yet  how  many  of  them, 
the  younger  generation  particularly,  take  any  thought 
for  the  morrow  '? 
My  experience  of  the  last  t'  ree  vears  is  this  t 
1.  A sufficiency  of  labour  from  July-Decembei' 
(inclusive). 
2 A plethora  of  labour  in  January  a d February. 
3.  A scarcity  of  labour  from  March-June. 
Instead  of  trusting  in  Providence  to  give  aheip 
coolies  during  the  pi'  ch  and  making  no  calculations 
as  to  future  requirements,  I would  advise  that 
planters  one  and  all  sho  dd  adopt  the  following 
suggestions  : — 1.  Ma  e such  coolies  as  want  to  go  to 
the  Coast  in  the  spring  give  in  their  names,  say 
in  October,  and  endiavour  with  the  assistance  of 
their  kanganies  to  m ike  Ramasamy  stick  to  his 
woid,  which  is  to  my  mind  not  an  impossibility  as 
he  is  ver,-  much  like  a school-boy. 
2.  Pay  off  all  such  coolies  as  are  going  to  the 
Coast  for  any  length  of  time  in  January  after 
Pongal. 
3.  Send  money  to  the  Coast  as  early  as  possible 
tD  get  cooli'  3 to  rep'ace  those  who  are  leaving 
and  for  any  further  requirements  as  estimated. 
I do  not  deny  that  there  are  planters  who  have 
adopted  these  suggestions  already  ; but  I do  maintain 
that  they  are  not  generally  practised  throughout 
the  country.  I do  not  guarantee  that  their  general 
adoption  would  obviate  the  present  scarcity  of  labour, 
but  I do  maintain  that  a trial  of  the  system  could 
do  no  harm  and  might  possibly  do  good  and  would 
at  any  rate  be  better  than  the  present  happy-go- 
lucky  method  of  trusting  in  Providence  and  crimping 
your  neighbours'  coolies  too  prevalent  in  some  of 
our  planting  districts. 
The  difficulties  that  I foresee  in  workii.g  on  the 
above  system  are,  first,  of  getting  the  recruiting 
kanganies  to  start  for  the  Coast  early  enough  to  be 
back  by  the  1st  March,  and  the  other  of  limiting 
the  number  of  coolies  who  really  go  to  the  Coast 
to  those  who  give  in  their  names  in  October.  If 
coolies  knew  that  having  given  in  their  names  they 
will  be  turned  adrift  in  January  they  will  qo  doubt 
refrain  from  giving  them  in  at  the  time  aud  will 
demand  to  be  paid  off  on  a month’s  notice  certain, 
and  1 admit  tbat  the  lodaence  of  the  kangani  alone 
