fNov.  I,  1895. 
298  THE  TROPICAL 
COFFEE  PRODUCTION  IN  THE  MONTANA 
OF  PEEL. 
Pern  has  been  known  for  many  years  as  a coffee- 
producing  country,  but  the  coffee  grown  on  the  coast 
has  been  absorbed  by  domestic  consumption,  and 
Peru’s  appearance  as  an  exporter  of  this  article  is 
of  recent  date,  althongh  she  is  now  likely  to  be  a 
considerable  competitor  with  other  countries.  Coffee 
planting  began,  and  coffee  is  still  cultivated  near 
the  port  of  Pacasmayo,  with  success.  But  although 
the  cultivation  on  the  coast  could  be  somewhat 
extended,  it  must  always  remain  restricted,  as  there 
are  only  certain  favoured  localities  in  which  the 
planter  can  hope  for  a good  return.  The  acting 
British  Consul  at  Callao  says  that  the  region  which 
Peru  offers  to  the  coffee  planter  unsurpassed  in 
fertility,  and  almost  unlimited  in  extent,  is  situated 
on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Andes,  at  a height  of 
from  6,000  to  2,000  feet  above  sea  level,  among  the 
network  of  streams  and  rivulets  that  find  their  way 
Into  the  great  affluents  of  the  Amazon.  This  region, 
known  as  the  Montafia,  has  hitherto  been  shut  off 
from  the  world  by  lack  of  communications,  and, 
above  all,  by  the  diffiulty  of  crossing  the  high  ridge 
of  the  Cordillera  that  ban  it  from  the  coast.  In 
spite  of  these  difficulties,  coffee  has  been  cultivated 
both  in  the  south,  in  the  gold-bearing  di  tricts  of 
Bandia  and  Carabaya,  and  in  the  centre  of  Peru 
in  the  valleys  of  Chauchainayo,  Vitoc,  and  Huanuco. 
It  is  the  Chauchainayo  district— for  most  of  the 
Coffee  that  passes  under  the  name  of  Vitoc  or 
Huanuco  comes  from  Chauchamayo — which  is  the 
real  coffee-planting  district  of  Peru,  and  it  is  the 
production  of  this  region  that  has  elevated  Peru 
to  the  rank  of  a coffee-exporting  country.  This  is 
due  to  the  completion  of  the  Central  or  Oroya 
Railway,  by  the  Peruvian  Corporation,  to  its  presjnt 
terminus  at  Oroya,  giving  railway  carriage  over  the 
crest  of  the  Cordillera,  and  also  to  the  opening  up 
of  the  Perene  and  adjacent  valleys  which  form  its 
prolongation.  Oroya  is  about  60  miles  from  Chau- 
chamayo valley,  and  there  is  a fair  road  all  the 
way,  passing  though  the  town  of  Tarma,  the  capital 
of  a deportment  with  about  7,000  inhabitants.  The 
Chauchamayo  Valley,  itself  about  10  miles  long,  is 
now  in  the  hands  of  private  owners,  but  the  rich 
and  far  more  extensive  valleys  beyond  it  of  the 
Perend,  Paucartambo,  and  Rio  Colorado,  have  now 
been  linked  on  to  La  Merced  the  last  town  in 
Chauchamayo  by  the  extension  of  the  Tarma-Cliau- 
chamayo  road  through  a short  but  difficult  defile. 
The  output  of  coffee  for  the  whole  region  was 
about  1,500  tons  in  1893,  but  extensive  planting 
has  lately  taken  place  and  production  will  shortly, 
it  is  said,  be  trebled.  It  is  considered  that  coffee 
can  be  grown  at  the  expense  of  5 Peruvian  soles 
(sole=2s.)  per  quintal,  or  100  lb.,  the  yield  of  a tree 
after  the  third  year  being  about  3 lb.  The  average 
cost  of  clearing  may  be  taken  at  65  soles  (1!6  lOs.) 
a hectare,  or  ^£2  12s.  an  acre.  The  number  of  plants 
that  can  bo  planted  with  advantage  on  a hectare 
(2.47  acres)  is  about  1,700  to  1,800,  or,  say,  700  to 
the  acre,  although  a larger  number  is  often  put 
into  the  ground.  Young  plants  can  be  obtaiLod 
for  10s.  per  1,000. — Journal  of  the  Society  of  Artn. 
TAPPING  RUBBER  TREES. 
Mr.  D.  P.  Copeland,  Deputy  Conservator  of  Forests, 
Assam,  gives  the  following  report  on  the  methods 
of  tapping  rubber  trees  adopted  in  Assam,  and  of 
collecting  and  preparing  the  rubber  for  the  market : — 
The  mode  of  exlractini/  rubber  as  /iractised  b//  Mr> 
Martin  of  Tezinir. — Small  funnel-shaped  cane  or  bam- 
boo baskets  were  prepared  and  coated  with  caout- 
ehouc,  after  which  the  baskets  were  atta,ched  to  the  tree 
under  the  incision.  The  incision  or  cut  w&a  made 
diagonally  and  elliptical  in  shape,  being  about  3 
inches  across  the  centre  and  from  6 inches  to  afoot 
in  length.  Sometimes  the  cuts  were  made  like  an 
arrow  head,  thus  V,  the  baskets  being  nailed  with 
a bamboo  nail  just  below  the  point.  These  baskets, 
when  full,  were  emptied  into  cane  receptacles  coated 
with  caoutchouc,  and  thus  convoyed  to  the  factory 
AGRICULTURIST. 
where  the  milk  was  poured  into  large  wooden  boxes 
or  bins  6 feet  squ<ii\.‘,  and  partly  lined  with  water, 
tbs  caoutchouc,  alter  lim  j lloating  on  the  top.  The 
caoutohouo  (being  still  fluid^  was  then  taken  out  and 
boiled  over  a slow  lire  on  iron  pans,  which  are  still 
lying  in  Tezpur,  4 to  6 feet  in  diameter  and  2 to 
2i  feet  deep,  two  parts  of  water  being  addei  to  the 
caoutchouc,  and  the  whole  stirred  constantly.  As 
soon  as  the  rubber  coagulated  into  a mass,  it  w.is 
taken  out  with  iron  forks  and  pressed,  and  again 
boiled  and  pressed,  and  then  dried  in  the  sun,  and 
finally  washed  over  with  lime.  The  rubber  thus 
prepared  was  shipped  direct  to  the  London  market. 
The  Assamese  and  Nepalese  mode  of  extracting  rubber 
is  as  follows ; — The  men  begin  from  the  top  of  the 
tree  working  downwards,  making  incision  with  their 
daos  or  khukris  from  6 inches  to  a foot  long  and  about 
4 inches  wide  along  the  stem  of  the  tree.  The 
milk  collects  in  these  cuts,  and  also  runs  down 
the  stems,  some  of  the  overflow  falling  to  the 
ground.  After  four  or  five  days,  the  rubber  thus 
out  is  dry,  and  can  be  pulled  up  very  easily ; it  is 
then  either  wound  round  into  balls  or  left  loose. 
The  ball  rubber  fetches  a smaller  price  than  the 
loose  rubber,  as  very  often  a stone  or  other  impurity 
is  hidden  inside  the  ball  to  add  to  the  weight.  The 
tappers  try  and  get  rid  of  their  rubber  as  soon  after 
collecting  as  possible,  as  it  loses  in  weight  by  drying. 
The  traders  get  over  this  difficulty  by  keeping  it  in 
water  in  barrels  and  wetting  it  well  before  shipping. 
The  rubber  undergoes  no  preparation  in  Assam, 
and  is  shipped  to  the  Calcutta  market  in  the  same 
state  as  it  is  received  from  the  forests,  except,  of 
course,  the  wetting  with  water  already  mentioned. 
I am  informed  that  a machine  has  been  put  up  at 
Margherita  in  the  Lakliimpur  division  for  cleaning 
rubber  before  shipping ; but  as  I have  only  heard  of 
the  process,  I cannot  describe  it.  The  most  favour- 
able time  for  tapping  is  from  November  till  April, 
the  dry-weather  months.  During  the  rainy  season 
from  May  till  October,  the  richness  of  the  juice 
diminishes.  From  that  time  till  January  the  rain 
diminishes,  and  the  milk  increases  in  richness^ 
While  on  the  subject,  I beg  to  describe  a third 
mode  of  tapping  rubber  which  has  been  the  cause  of 
the  total  destruction  of  our  indigenous  rubber  forests 
in  Assam  ; this  system  crept  in  graduallv,  and  not 
having  been  suppressed  with  a strong  hand,  has 
left  us  ruined  and  killed  out  the  rubber  trees.  I 
mean  root-tapping.  The  Assamese,  being  too  lazy 
to  climb,  were  jirobably  the  first  to  find  out  tliat 
by  tapping  or  cutting  the  root,  of  the  tree  along 
the  ground  much  more  rubber  could  be  got  and 
with  far  less  trouble.  I maintain,  and  can  prove  it, 
that  stem-tapping,  however  severe  it  may  be,  unless 
it  amounts  to  down-right  girdling  the  stem,  cannot 
kill  out  or  parmanently  ruin  the  tree  ; but  root- 
tapping, as  practised  in  Assam,  kills  out  the  tree 
at  once.  The  roots  of  the  tree  are  followed  up  for 
40  or  .50  feet  a’ong  the  ground,  and  every  yard  or 
so  a hole  is  dug,  and  the  root  is  cut  clean  through 
with  an  axe,  a few  large  leaves  being  placed  over 
the  hole  to  prevent  rain  or  due  wetting  the  rubber  ; 
a week  later  the  rubber  is  removed  from  the  hole, 
being  found  in  slabs  from  half  a ])ound  to  six  pounds 
in  weight.  Stem-tapping  cannot  be  done  during  the 
wet  weather,  as  the  ruin  w ould  wash  off  the  caout- 
chouc from  the  cuts;  but  root-tapping  with  a little 
care,  provided  the  trees  arc  growing  above  flood- 
level,  can  be  done  the  whole  year  round. — Madras  Mail. 
« 
DIMINISHING  MARGINS  IN 
AGRICULTURE. 
Where  untarc  is  prodigal,  man  is  wasteful.  Waste 
has  been  the  rule  in  American  agriculture.  Ac- 
cumulated mold  of  ages  of  vegetation  was  offered 
at  §1.25  per  acre.  Afterwards  it  WiU  given  away, 
subject  to  official  fees  for  perfecting  a title,  both 
to  natives  and  immigrants.  With  land  free  to  all 
there  was  prodigality  of  fertility  and  economy  of 
labor. 
Thus  in  primitive  ngiiculture,  rotation,  cultivation 
diversification  wore  all  sacrificed,  and  fertility  w, 
