Oct.  I,  1895.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
22Q 
process  of  pruning  or  manui'ing  the  coffee  tree  may 
m time  give  secondary  branches  which  would  rapidly 
increase  the  profits.  The  Nyassaland  coffee,  strange 
to  say)  was  introduced  into  the  country  from  Scot- 
land by  Mr.  Buchanan,  c.  m.  g.,  who  brought  a small 
plant  from  the  Botanical  gardens  at  Edinburgh. 
From  this  plant,  which  is  still  in  existence  in  the 
mission  grounds  at  Blantyre,  all  the  trees  in  Nyas- 
salaud  are  descended. 
I'here  itre,  of  course,  at  present  very  few  so-called 
tbwn-ships  in  Nyassaland.  These  are  (Jhiromo,  on 
the  Shire,  Blantyre,  the  capital  of  the  Shire  High- 
lands Fort  Herald,  Fort  Johnston,  and  Fort  Lister. 
Of  these  Blantyre  is  the  most  advanced.  It  is  a 
picturesque  little  settlement  of  some  thirty  European 
houses,  in  the  centre  of  the  coffee-planting  district, 
siirroUnded  by  plantations,  beautifully  situated  be- 
neath the  hills  in  a well-wooded  country.  The 
climate  is  remarkably  healthy. 
DI.SEA.SKS  OF  CATTLE. 
There  are  difficulties  which  seriously  impede  the 
progress  of  colonisation  in  Nyassaland.  First  and 
foremost  among  these  is  the  unhealthiness  of  portions 
of  the  country  for  cattle  and  horses.  Horses  dieff 
the  fatal  lung  tickuess,  which  often  clears  off  number.s 
of  them,  and  they  and  the  cattle  die  from  eating 
certain  poisonous  plants  that  spring  up  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  rains.  Then  there  is  the  belt  of 
tsetse-fly,  fatal  to  all  quadrupeds  which  come  from 
without.  It  is  a small  grey  fly,  like  an  ordinary 
horse-fly,  with  crossed  wings.  It  is  the  curse  of 
the  country.  Were  it  not  for  the  tsetse-fly  the  diffi- 
culties of  colonisation  and  of  extirpating  the  slave 
trade  would  be  lightened  a thousandfold.  Were 
it  not  for  this  pest  the  whole  country  could  be 
kept  under  control  by  a few  troops  of  mounted 
police.  Fortunately  the  tsetse-fly  never  appears  in 
the  hills  or  near  the  rivers,  so  that  horses  can 
be  brought  by  boat  up  to  Katunga.  The  following 
belt  of  country  is  also  free  from  them,  so  that 
the  horses  can  be  taken  in  safety  to  the  Shire 
Highlands. — Times  of  India. 
AVHAT  WILL  NORTH  BORNEO'S  CHIEF 
EXPORT  RE  V 
The  cultivations  from  which  we  have  to  choose 
in  seeking  an  answer  to  this  question  are  coconuts, 
coffee,  cotton.  Manila  hamp,  rattans,  sago,  sugar 
and  tapioca.  To  commence  with  : 
Coconuts. — The  demand  for  coconuts  an  1 their  pro- 
ducts is  little  understood  in  England  where  when 
an  intention  is  announced  of  planting  up  say  20,000 
fresh  trees,  people  ask  “•  are  you  not  afraid  of  over- 
doing the  supply?"  it  being  supposed  that  the  chief 
destiny  of  the  coconut  is  to  be  sold  in  half  penny 
slic  s to  little  boys  with  strong  digestions,  or  to  be 
given  as  a prize  at  Aunt  Sally. 
Coconuts  are  a large  article  of  diet  throughout 
the  Tropical  East,  constituting  the  main  ingredient 
for  giving  extra  flavour  to  rice  and  curry  ; coconut 
oil  is  largely  used  as  a luminant;  while  in  the  form 
of  copr-i  Europe  imports  enormous  quantities  of  the 
dried  kerne!  ; the  number  of  the  nuts  require  ! for 
affording  fresh  oil  for  women’s  hair  is  very  large, 
and  coconuts  or  their  products  are  in  request  for 
a dozen  other  minor  purposes.  Some  hint  of  tho 
demand  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  Europe 
last  year  took  from  Singapore  alone  ca7.  1,000.893  oi 
copra  besides  the  quantity  shipped  from  Java,  iho 
Philippines,  t’eylon*,  ff-c. ; the  rice-eating  people  of 
the  tropical  East  increase  in  a manner  diilicult  if 
not  impossible  to  esti'nate,  all  of  them  with  a fotid 
ness  f r coconuts,  while  as  a luminant  it  uiay  be 
I ote  1 that  when  the  price  of  kerosiue  oil  rose  the 
other  day  the  retail  price  of  coconut  oil  rose,  too, 
several  cents  a-  botUe  in  Singapore.  It  is  i.ow  re- 
cognized that  the  oil  fields  of  America  are  exhaustible, 
* By  reference  to  another  column  it  will  be  seen 
that  Ceylon’s  export  of  coconuts  and  their  products 
totals,  over  50,000  tons  a year  on  the  average  of 
late  years. —Editor. 
what  will  the  effect  on  coconut  cultivation  be'when 
this  begins  to  be  felt  ? But  as  it  is,  the’  present 
always  enlargeniug  demand  for  the  various  purposes 
mentioned  caused  by  an  increase  of  some  millions 
of  consumers  yearly,  most  of  whom  live  in  districts 
where  coconuts  do  not  grow,  calls  for  a supply 
that  is  barely  met  by  the  number  of  fresh  trees 
planted  yearly  as  is  testified  to  by  the  fact,  that 
copra  has  stood  f r months  past  at  a price  nearly 
per  picul  higher  than  it  commanded  up  to  some 
three  years  ago. 
Now  tho  coconut  is  a particularly  easy  tree  to 
grow  requiring  little  up-keep  after  30  months  of  age 
except  from  cattle  (which  also  are  profitable  to  raise) 
and  the  amount  of  coconut  land,  particularly  in 
the  district  of  which  Sandakan  is  the  place  of  ex- 
po  t,  is  very  large,  capable  of  growing  some  millions 
of  tree.s. 
I think  it  may  fairly  be  prognosticated  that  some 
time  in  the  future  the  coconut  oil  making  industry 
will  assume  enoimous  proportions  in  Sandkan  Bay. 
A few  coconuts  have  been  put  in  in  different  places 
round  the  Bay,  though  not  really  many  but  it  is 
at  all  events  satisfactory  to  know  that  planting  is 
always  in  progress. 
Cqfee  (Liberian). — The  amount  of  Coffee  land  in 
North  Borneo  is  very  extensive  ; if  millions  is  rather 
a large  word  to  use,  at  all  events  commencing 
from  ihe  rich  soiled  hills  of  the  Segama  and  pro- 
ceeding north-wards  there  are  several  hundreds  of 
thousands.  A start  has  been  made  in  coffee  planting 
in  the  country  though  on  a comparatively  small  scale 
so  far,  but  in  two  or  three  places  the  growing  trees 
can  be  seen,  gigantic  in  size  and  with  tbeir  branches 
bending  and  cracking  with  the  weight  of  fruit.  No 
doubt  So'ith  America  is  a strong  competitor  in  pro- 
duction, but  the  consumption  increases  yearly  (though 
not  in  England  where  the  making  of  a cup  of 
drinkable  coffee  is  amongst  the  lost  arts,  and  people 
spoil  their  digestions  with  raking  Indian  teaj  but 
Europeans  fight  shy  of  South  American,  where  at 
the  worst  you  get  your  throat  cut  or  are  bombarded, 
while  at  the  best  your  coolies  are  all  liable  to  be 
called  out  for  military  service  and  the  estate  left  to 
take  care  of  itself,  and  let  it  be  once  widely  enough 
known  that  there  is  a British  protected  State,  vir- 
tually a Briti'h  Colony,  in  which  coffee  can  bo 
successfully  grown,  and  where  wages  are  cheaper 
than  i i Brazil,  and  there  will  be  no  lack  of  intend- 
ing planters. 
Our  coffee  is  quoted  at  84s,  per  ewt.  on  the  London 
market  as  against  68s.  the  price  of  fair  channel  RlO 
(Arabian). 
Cotton. — An  enormous  expansion  of  the  cottongooda 
making  industry  is  in  progress  in  China  and  Japan, 
and  the  suitability  of  North  Borneo  cotton  for  the 
mills  has  been  most  favourably  reported  upon,  especi- 
ally in  comparison  with  Chinese.  A large  proportion 
of  the  cotton  imported  into  Japan  comes  from 
Bombay,  but  we  are  much  nearer  Japan  than  Bombay 
is,  while  as  against  cheaper  wages  in  India  must 
be  put  the  land  tax  for  one  thing  and  the  expense 
of  bringing  the  cotton  from  up  country  to  ship's 
side  there  for  another  against  no  land  tax  and  the 
sending  of  the  rolton  bales  direct  from  the  estate 
packing  house  to  ship’s  side  here,  Ctahen  there  is  a 
cotton  I state,  at  present  there  is  not  one).  When 
this  cultivation  is  commenced  in  earnest  there  are 
tho  pro.-pects  of  a very  large  business  as  our  cotton 
possesses  several  advantages,  caring  little  if  any  thing 
for  weeds  and  lasling  for  at  least  three  years  with- 
out replanting;  one  started  in  fact  the  expence  of 
up  keep  is  very  slight  and  little  else  has  to  be  done 
but  pick  the  crop  as  it  ripens.  The  main  difficulty 
1 fore-r.ee  is  from  di  er  and  wild  cattle  which  are 
very  fond  of  the  plant,  but  at  the  worst  all  that 
would  be  require  d would  be  wire  fencing.  However, 
our  information  on  the  subject  of  cotton  is  not  yet 
complete  enough  to  allow  one  to  speak  about  it 
with  quite  the  same  certainty  as  about  other  things. 
Gambler  is  a product  which  seems  particularly 
adapted  to  North  Borneo,  owing  to  its  demanding 
large  supplies  of  firewood  in  the  vicinity  of  the  boil- 
ing house  and  to  the  need,  it  having  hitherto  been 
a low  priced  article,  of  cheap  transport  for  it. 
