312 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Nov.  I,  1895. 
LIBERIAN  COFFEE  IN  WYNAAD, 
Kadur  Dist.,  Sept.  10th. 
Sir,— May  I hope  for  a reply  to  the  following 
queries  from  some  of  your  numerous  readers  ? About 
what  should  be  considered  “a  good  maiden  crop” 
per  acre  from  Liberian  coffee  growing  at  an  elevation 
of  1,000  feet  and  planted  10  ft.  apart — and  also  at 
what  age  may  the  first  crop  be  expected  ? — ExQUinKu. 
U. 
Vayitri,  Sept.  20th. 
Sir, — As  promised  in  my  letter  appearing  in  your 
issue  of  the  4th  instant,  I have  now  to  inform  “ Toda,” 
that  the  first  shipment  of  Liberian  coffee  from  this 
district  was  sold  in  London  on  the  ISth  ultimo  and 
realised  84s  per  cwt.  The  consignment  being  a small 
one,  the  price  is,  I think,  fairly  satisfactory,  and 
just  lOs  more  than  that  secured  for  the  coffee  (grown 
in  the  loweountry  and  erroneously  marked  Wynaad) 
referred  to  by  “ Toda  ” in  his  letter  of  the  3rd  August 
last.  It  may  interest  “ Toda  ” also  to  learn,  that  the 
outer  husk  or  pulp,  if  carefully  dried,  finds  a ready 
sale  on  the  coast,  and  adds  very  materially  to  the 
value  of  a Liberian  Crop.  R.  Lamb. 
III. 
What’s  all  this  pother  about  the  elevation  of 
Nellacota  ? There  is  little  doubt  but  that  “ Libei'ica  ” 
would  grow  at  the  top  of  Needle  Rock  if  it  could 
only  find  a footing  there.  The  question  we  would 
like  to  have  settled  is,  as  to  whether  the  said 
■“  Liberica  ” would  bear  paying  crops  of  coffee  at 
4,600  feet  or  so  above  sea-level  ? That  the  tree 
has  borne  heavily  and  given  half  a ton  and  more  of 
high-priced  coffee  per  acre  at  about  2,600  feet  ele- 
vation in  Wynaad,  seems  to  have  been  conclusively 
E roved.  It  would  now  be  very  interesting  to  know 
ow  much  coffee  per  acre  may  be  expected  from 
trees  growing  at  4,600  feet  and  over,  or,  well,  let’s 
say  in  the  clouds  or  somewhere  near  the  frosty 
regions  I in  a locality  rather  foreign  to  the  habitat  of 
“Liberica,”  which  loves  rather  the  hotter  and  more 
forcing  climate  to  be  found  at  a comparatively  low 
elevation.  I trust,  however,  that  the  “ Liberica  ” at 
Nellacota  may  reward  the  enterprise  of  its  planters 
by  proving  highly  successful  and  remunerative. 
Manantoddy  Club,  23rd  Sept.  Excelsiou. 
IV. 
As  the  elevation  at  which  Liberian  coffee  will 
grow  and  crop  well  is,  I believe,  of  much  interest 
to  many,  kindly  allow  me  a word  in  reply  to 
“ Nilgiri  Wynaad,”  whose  letter  appears  in  your 
issue  of  the  19th.  He  impugns  my  recorded  tests 
by  aneroid  on  the  ground  that  such  tests  can  be 
comparative  only  ; but  having  found  out  by  a reference 
to  Mr.  Borough  Smyth’s  map,  that  the  highest  point  of 
Needle  Rock  is  there  given  at  4,600  feet,  he  takes  it  for 
granted  that  is  the  highest  point  of  the  range,  and 
at  once  draws  an  imaginary  line  from  thence  to 
where  he  supposes  “Toda’s”  Liberians’  to  be  growing; 
and  another  imaginary  line  to  Avondale  Bungalow, 
which  he  supposes  to  be  the  highest  point  of  Avon- 
dale estate.  Against  liis  imagination,  I think  my 
aneroid  tests  can  be  fairly  x^laced.  Such  tests,  I 
believe,  are  generally  accepted  as  good  enough  fox- 
practical  purposes — admitting  their  variations  are 
understood,  aud  allowed  for.  There  is  a trig- 
nometricsl  survey  point  at  either  Needle  Rock 
Peak,  or  Rockwood  Peak.  Aneroids  set  at  sea  level, 
I should  think,  would  be  found  to  agree  very 
closely  to  that  determined  point  ; but  I have  not, 
though  it  is  necessary  to  climb  to  the  top  of  either  Peak, 
in  order  to  be  able  to  rectify,  possibly,  a difference 
of  a few  feet.  I leave  that  for  “ Nilgiri  Wynaad”  to 
do.  As  he  says,  no  one  will  deny  that  Needle  Rock 
Peak  (or  the  highest  point  of  the  Needle,  to  be 
absolutely  correct)  is  the  highest  pointy  of  the  Range, 
ke  may  be  muqirised  to  learn  that  it  is  not,  but  that 
Ifockwood  Peak  is.  Nor  is  Avondale  Bungalow  the 
highest  point  Of  Avondale  Estate  to  which  I 
alluded.  “ Toda”  has  admitted  to  me  that  b« 
ought  to  have  written  4,000  instead  of  5,000  feet, 
as  being  the  elevation  his  Liberians  are  doing 
so  well,  and  I understand  him  to  be  of  opinion 
that  Liberian  might  even  be  found  to  crop  at 
5000  feet.  I agree  with  him  that  his  Liberians  are 
cropping  at  about  4,000  feet.  We  have  the  testi- 
mony of  Mr.f.W.  C.  Dawson  that  they  are  doing 
ditto  on  the  Bramagherries  at  4,100;  and  it  would 
be  interesting  to  know  whether  other  testimony  of 
this  variety  cropping  at  even  higher  elevations  could 
be  adduced.  I am  inclined  to  the  opinion  of  “Toda," 
without  fixing  so  high  a limit  as  5,000  feet,  but 
they  might  be  found  to  crop  well  at  over  4,000  feet. 
“ Nilgiri  Wynaad’s  ” belief  would  probably  not  have 
found  expression,  had  he  been  better  posted  up  in 
local  knowledge.  H.  Sheldiuck. 
— M.  Mail,  Sept.  23rd. 
BRITISH  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 
VVe  liave  the  official  Gazettes  from  Nyassaland 
of  July  1st  and  15th.  The  first  is  full  of  Cus- 
toms regulations  ; but  in  a Suixpleinent  we  get 
.some  exciting  news  about  lions  : — 
It  is  stated  that  a troop  of  lions  made  a deter- 
mined attack  on  the  cow-byre  at  the  Mission  Station 
at  Blantyre  the  other  day,  and  killed  three  cows. 
The  increasing  boldness  of  those  animals  is  extra- 
ordinary and  IS  probably  due  to  the  extinction  of 
the  game  in  the  more  settled  Districts  of  the  Pro- 
tectorate. A few  days  ago  one  of  the  Zanzibari 
policemen  at  the  Ntondwe  post  on  the  Zomba  road 
met  a lion  walking  up  the  same  road  in  close 
proximity  to  the  post.  The  lion  was  between  the 
man  and  the  little  fort  and  stood  his  ground,  not 
at  all  inclined  to  give  way.  The  Zanzibari  therefore 
fired  at  and  wounded  the  lion  who  however  chaiged  him 
and  the  man  received  him  on  the  point  of  his  bayonet. 
Nevertheless,  the  lion  managed  to  free  himself,  and 
though  very  severely  wounded  made  off  into  the 
bush.  In  the  struggle  the  Zanzibai-i  had  one  of  his 
toes  torn  off  bv  the  lion’s  claws.  Otherwise  he  was 
ixuinjured,  but  tbe  nervous  shock  was  so  severe  that 
for  some  days  he  was  incapacitated  from  duty,  aud 
would  not  leave  the  fort  under  the  belief  that  the 
lion  was  lying  in  wait  for  him. 
Major  P.  W.  Forbes  ari-ived  at  Zomba  on  the 
23rd  June  to  see  H.M.  Commissioner  in  reference 
to  the  taking  over  of  the  Administration  of  the 
British  South  Africa  Company’s  Territories  north  of 
the  Zambezi.  The  transfer  of  the  Administration 
from  the  Commissioner  to  Major  Forbes  will  have 
been  completed  by  the  date  on  which  this  Gazette 
is  issued. 
Major  Forbes  proposes  to  start  in  July  on  a tour 
of  inspection  round  the  Chambezi,  Tanganyika 
Mwera  and  Luapula  Districts.  He  hopes  to  be  back 
in  Blantyre  in  about  two  and  a half  months  from 
the  date  of  starting.  Major  Forbes  proposes  to  make 
his  headquarters  at  Blantyre  for  some  time  to  come, 
as  besides  the  administration  of  the  Chartered  Com- 
pany’s sphere  he  is  charged  with  the  completion  of 
tV.e  Telegraph  line  from  Blantyre  to  Tanganyika. 
No  immediate  alteration  in  the  Administration  of 
the  Comixany’s  sphere  is  contemplated. 
The  latter  paper  has  articles  about  Angoli  Labour 
and  Coffee  and  the  following  paragraphs : — 
It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  atttention  which 
the  more  intelligent  of  the  native  chiefs  are  now 
giving  to  the  planting  of  coffee  Ac.  Coffee  planting 
has  been  started  in  the  Marimba  District  by  some 
of  Jumbe’s  old  headmen.  Magnificent  crops  of 
otatoes  are  now  being  raised  by  the  chiefs  and 
eadmen  in  the  Zomba  District,  and  those  brought 
in  for  sale  are  superior  in  size  to  the  best  that  can 
be  turned  out  in  our  European  gardens  at  this 
place.  All  these  potatoes  are  derived  from  seed  dis- 
tributed amongst  those  chiefs  by  Mr.  Whyte,  two 
and  three  years  ago.  Unfortunately,  the  experi- 
ments with  wheat  were  marred  by  the  locusts,  and 
it  is  to  be  feared  that  the  natives  are  rather  dis- 
couraged from  planting  corn  for  some  time  to  come, 
