Auq.  I,  1895.J 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
97 
But  with  the  coiiimcncctncnt  of  the  powei  of  the 
large  Companies  mentioned  above,  important  progress 
was  effected,  of  which  the  result  was,  that  notwith- 
standing gi'eat  vicissitudes.  Deli  has  remained  at  the 
head  of  the  tobacco-producing  countries,  and  its  pro- 
duce has  sustained  its  high  reputation  in  all  the 
markets  of  the  world.  A second  benefit,  rich  in  con- 
sequences to  the  future  of  Deli,  was  the  outcome  of 
the  tobacco  cultivation  falling  into  such  strong  hands. 
These  Companies,  the  sole  owners  of  the  whole  of  the 
tobacco  lands,  rightly  avoided  extending  their  culti- 
vation on  land  which  joast  experience  had  proved  to 
be  unsuitable  for  prohtable  cropping : indeed  after 
the  regulation  of  the  production,  the  Sumatra  tobacco 
regained  its  high  pi'ices ; and  the  Companies  found 
therein  such  a source  of  profit  that  they  did  not 
care,  to  embark  on  other  cultivations. 
They  left  free  hands  to  the  small  capitalists,  so 
that  they  could  obtain  big  abandoned  concessions ; 
and  now,  having  learnt  by  past  experience,  these 
gave  up  tobacco  planting  in  order  to  go  ahead  with 
New  Products. 
From  this  time  dates  the  foundation  of  the  splendid 
plantations  of  Cofi'eb,  Cacao,  and  Tea  which  make 
Upper  Deli  and  Serdaug  the  veritable  gai'den  of 
the  East. 
Conclusion. 
The  commencements  were  modest,  and  involved 
much  hard  work,  capitalists  venturing  only  cautiously 
into  enterprises  requiring  long  waiting,  especially  in 
a country  accustomed  by  so  many  years  of  unex- 
ampled prosperity,  to  rapid  strokes  of  fortune.  It 
was  necessary  at  first  to  combat  the  prejudices  of  a 
community  devoted  entirely  to  the  cultivation  of 
tobacco,  and  whose  recent  reverses  had  not  yet 
shaken  their  firm  faith.  Further,  there  had  here  and 
there  been  experiments  made  in  the  culture  of  coffee, 
nearly  all  turning  out  badly : that  was  sufficient  to 
condemn  all  new  attempts  in  this  direction.  They 
did  not  ask  themselves  if  the  previous  loss  of  the 
money  was  owing  to  the  unsuitability  of  the  soil,  or 
to  ignorance  and  to  a want  of  confidence  on  the  part 
of  those  who  had  undertaken  the  first  experiments, 
and  who,  for  the  most  part,  took  no  trouble  to  pay 
attention  to  a cultivation  the  commissions  on  which 
would  go  to  their  successors.  No ; coffee  had  not 
proved  at  the  first  stroke  that  it  could  give  50  j)er 
cent  per  annum  on  the  capital  sunk  ; and  that  was 
sufficient  to  bury  the  question  for  ever.  The  cause 
was  judged  ; and  it  was  no  good  re-opening  it.  De- 
profundis  ! 
Meantime,  some  arc  returning  to  it  : and  the  move- 
ment once  started,  will  stop  iro  more.  The  convic- 
tion ill  men’s  minds  was  growing,  little  by  little, 
contrary  to  the  prejudices  entertained  hitherto,  that 
Liberian  can  give  in  this  country  truly  surprising 
returns. 
A planter  having  taken  in  hand  the  wreck  of  a 
small  abandoned  Liberian  plantation  in  Serdang,  not 
far  from  Loba  Pakam,  will  show  what  this  cultiva- 
tion can  give  if  worked  with  determination  and  en- 
ergy. Many  of  the  trees  were  dead,  choked  by  lalang 
and'  want  of  air  : others,  left  to  themselves,  existed, 
but  barren.  In  fact,  at  this  time  it  was  but  the 
skeleton  of  a plantation.  Notwithstanding  that, 
there  were  in  September  some  1892  trees  of  really 
enormous  strength  and  whose  crop  was  as  much  as 
15  and  20  catties  of  cherry  per  tree.  These  giants 
which  had  struggled  for  life  in  deplorable  conditions 
of  abandonment  were  the  living  proof  that  the  coffee 
tree  had  found  its  real  home.  What  is  more,  the 
young  plants,  15,000  to  20,000,  put  out  in  1890-91  and 
reared  with  careful  attention  showed  incomparable 
vigour,  giving  their  first  blossom  at  20  months  which 
promised  to  ripen  at  about  2J  y^ears  old.  All  these 
small  bushes  were  healthy’  and  w'ell  grow'n,  not 
bearing  a sign  of  Ilemiliea  which  formerly  caused  so 
much  disaster  in  Ceylon.  An  eloquent  fact,  which 
itself  is  worth  a volume  of  prose  was  also  acquired, 
viz : that  compared  with  the  coffee  trees  of  the 
neighbouring  countries,  the  Straits  Settlements  for 
pxample,  where  the  cultivation  of  Ifiberian  coffee 
has  been  carried  on  for  a number  of  years,  the  tree 
pf  Sumatra  gives  not  only  a more  abundant  return, 
but  also  a heavier  fruit.  The  following  experiment 
proves  it,  Desiring  to  try  some  seed  from  outside. 
Mr.  de  (!.  secured  10,000  from  a well-known  plantation 
in  the  Straits  ; seeds  specially  picked  for  nurseries  : 
i.c.  the  biggest  and  heaviest,  and  which  were  beauti- 
fully and  carefully  invoiced  at  so  many  handsome 
dollars  per  1,000  seeds. 
My  opinion  having  been  asked  as  to  the  value  of 
these  seeds,  I advised  that  they  should  be  weighed 
by  comparison  with  the  seeds  of  the  plantation  itself. 
Herewith  are  the  figures  of  comparison : — 
1st  weighing. 
200  Singapore  selected  seeds  = 86  gr.  3 oz. 
200  Sumatra  „ „ ==  120  „ = 41  oz. 
2nd  w'eighing. 
200  Singapore  seeds,  not  selected  = 81  gr. 
200  Sumatra  ,,  ,,  1:-;  114  gr. 
3rd  weighing  to  prove  the  above. 
823  Singapore  seeds  not  selected--exactly  334  gr. 
It  w'ill  be  seen  that  these  figures  follow  and  confirm 
each  other.  Going  further  on  we  find  that 
1,754  seeds  Sumatra  1 1 1 -i  n 1 n 
2:470  „ Singapore  ) ^ lb. 
from  which 
108,748  Sumatra  seeds  1 , . 1 x.  1 x.  nn  it. 
153,140  Singapore  „ , kat.-l  cwt.  99  lb. 
That  is  to  say,  for  a given  weight  it  would  need 
about  J more  of  Singapore  seeds  than  of  Sumatra; 
or  again,  that  an  acre  which  gives  say  6 pis.  in 
Singapore,  gives  8 to  9 pis.  in  Sumatra.  These  trials 
were  made  before  witnesses,  and  in  perfect  good  faith, 
the  beans  being  counted  one  by  one : and  the  con- 
clusions I derive  from  them  appear  unassailable. 
[Quite  so  : but  the  seed  from  the  Straits  would  have 
to  be  at  least  ^ dried  to  prevent  fermenting,  sweat- 
ing or  rotting  on  the  journey : whereas  the  local 
seed  was  probably  quite  fresh,  and  only  dried  to  the 
extent  of  the  water  being  off  it — 'J'ranslator.'] 
Thus  one  goes  on : and  little  by  little  confidence 
in  the  future  of  coffee  gains  ground : then  came 
the  first  virgin  crops ; and  from  that  moment,  like 
a flash,  there  was  a rush  for  coffee.  For  who  re- 
membei's  the  Deli  of  1892  ? What  a change ! and 
what  lee-way’  it  has  made  up.  In  place  of  this 
medley  of  rough  tiacks  through  a rugged  country 
there  has  grown  up  a net  work  of  roads  v^ich  act  now 
as  arteries  to  this  emporium  of  wealth  which  Upper 
Deli  has  become. 
From  these  plateaux  formerly  almost  inaccessible 
to  European  enterprise,  come  do.vn  today  in  abun- 
dance the  thousand  and  one  products  which  help  to 
feed  the  trade  always  increasing  from  the  coast. 
It  is  with  the  introduction  of  fixed  and  permanent 
cultivations  that  the  foi’tunes  of  the  country  defini- 
tively rest  on  a solid  foundation : the  earth,  no 
more  confined  to  hysterical  productioir  onlj^,  and 
prematurely  forcing  out  some  thousands  of  piculs  of 
tobacco,  afterwards  to  be  abandoned  to  brambles : 
but  now,  the  laud,  eveiywhere  and  always  at  work, 
pours  its  unbroken  tide  of  treasure  into  the  hands 
of  man.  Behold  the  secret  of  the  upward  flight 
which  the  Deli  of  1905  has  taken! 
Following  the  general  progress  the  llailway,  which 
in  1892  ended  at  Deli  Toewa,  that  is  to  say  nowhere, 
has  now  reached  the  glorious  plateaux  of  Seblangit 
and  Betenous,  passing  lightly  over  hills  and  dale  ; 
and  who  can  predict  that,  link  by  link  some  day 
it  will  not  penetrate  even  to  the  mysterious  regions 
beyond  which  are  still  unknown.  Lake  Tobah  has 
become  a Spa  I 
And  then  what  a sicht  for  sair  een  : what  a 
dazzling  sight  those  thousands  of  coffee  trees  in 
blossom  ! This  milky  whiteness  falling  in  the  days 
of  blossom  like  a bridal  robe  upon  the  earth,  gives 
something  of  repose  to  these  lands  of  violent  con- 
trast: here  a monotonous  dulness : there  a wildness 
surpassing  in  abruptness  the  wildest  of  the  Alps. 
Another  effect  not  less  happy  than  the  lasting 
nature  of  the  cultivation  is  the  greater  attachment 
of  us  Europeans  to  the  country  in  which  we  formerly 
were,  so  to  say,  birds  of  passage.  In  those  times 
no  one  dreamt  of  spending  his  life  in  this  road' side 
caravanserai.  Ixike  a bird  on  the  branch : no  one 
cared  to  build  a nest.  The  only  wish  was  to  take 
wing  and  leave  far  behind  a land  without  charm  and 
without  gaiety'.  Aow  they  In-e  and  can  manage  to 
forget  old  Europe.  E-  Mt 
