Nov.  r,  1895. J 
tHE  TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
329 
$otir0spona6nco. 
To  the  Editor, 
PLANTING  AND  LITE  IN  NYASSALAND. 
Lamlerdale,  Britisli  Central  Africa. 
July  loth,  1895. 
My  DRar  Sir,— I have  just  received  your 
Trop  cal  Agriculturist,  a valuable  Magazine  I 
have  taken  (w'ith  a break)  almost  from  its  com- 
mencement. I liave  read  with  a sort  of  pitying 
amusement  the  unfavourable  account  of  British 
Central  Africa  by  a Ceylon  Planter  (Mr.  Tliorn- 
ton,  I presume.)  As  you  appeal  to  me,  I send 
a few  notes,  on  this  interesting  case.  The  Cey- 
lon Planter  matle  a bad  start,  a very  bad  start, 
seeing  Ins  fellow  passengers  began  to  “ eat  medi- 
cine ” on  the  second  day  up  the  river.  Perha[)s 
this  very  unwholesome  diet  was  washed  down 
by  even  more  hurtful  potations  of  spirits,  which 
flow  far  too  freely  now  : the  wail  of  the  C.  P. 
may  even  have  its  sources  as  far  back  as  this. 
A young  engineer,  not  a year  out  from  home, 
certainly  oied,  I am  sorrj^  to  say,  but  had  been 
seriously  ill  for  at  least  a fortnight.  Had  he 
been  better  advised  and  “eaten”  less  medicine 
with  unwholesome  accompaniments,  he  would 
probably  have  been  still  alive. 
“ Any  man  who  "oes  there  gambles  with  death,” 
so  writes  our  C.  P.  But  I have  some  figures,  carefully 
made  up  in  1891,  which  will  go  much  further 
than  bare  assertion,  one  way  or  the  other. 
These  refer  to  the  employes  of  the  African 
Lakes  Company,  which  was  started  by  my 
brother  and  myself  in  1878.  Up  to  1891  there 
had  been  engaged  in  all  64  men.  Three  how* 
ever,  had  only  served  a few  months  each  in 
Africa,  four  had  been  dismissed,  and  one  had 
been  drowned  on  tlie  coast,  all  of  whom  I ex- 
clude though  their  aggregate  service  would  have 
added  several  years  to  my  figures  i — 
25  of  the  rest  were  either  in  our  em* 
ploy  or  had  completed  their  engage- 
ments with  about.. 
Average  service  and  a total  of 
22  meii  had  been  a shorter  time  in 
all  
5 were  invalided,  but  two  of  these  were 
consumptive,  one  of  whom  would  pro- 
bably have  lived  even  a shorter  time 
at  home  ; the  other  recovered.  These 
had  an  aggregate  service  of  . . . . 
4 had  died,  after  serving 
But,  and  I think  it  accounts  for  the  difl’ercncc 
betw'een  my  figures,  and  the  impre.ssions  carried 
aw'ay  by  your  Ceylon  Planter,  we  only  employed 
teetotallers  in  those  early  day.s.  If  a man  ^oill 
indulge  in  promiscuous  drinking,  ho  is  not 
“ gambling  with  death,”  he  is  selling  his  life  at 
a price.  We  w'ant  none  .such. 
I say  no  more,  but  shall  detain  this  letter 
a few  days,  till  I can  send  you  my  second  year’s 
meteorological  record,  wdiich  has  an  answer  also 
to  the  fore-mentioned  Ceylon  Planter. — I remain, 
dear  sir,  yours  sincerely,  JOHN  W.  MOIR. 
P.  S. — 29th  July,  1895, — Since  writing  the  fore- 
going an  old  Capital!  or  Kangany  came  up  to  see 
me,  and  volunteered  the  statement,  “in the  old 
time  no  drinking,  no  one  died;  how  every  one 
drinks  and  many  die.” 
I trust  you  wall  understand  my  Registers.  The 
large  ones  are  for  3 periods  of  6 months  each;  the 
smaller  for  the  last  6 months. 
Each  6 months  is  added  and  averaged,  as  also 
each  12  months. 
There  are  some  columns  to  enable  me  better 
to  foretell  the  weather,  such  as  a “ Crater”  a,nd 
“ Chiperone  ” — the  amount  of  cloud  in  each,  wdiich 
you  w'ould  probably  leave  out. — Yours, 
J.  VV.  Mi 
[The  Meteorological  returns  which  are  elaborate 
in  detail,  will  be  found  elsewdieVe. — Ed.  T.A.'\ 
“ (iUININE”  TREE  AND  MALARIA. 
Sir, — The  Madras  Alail  is  responsible  for  the  fol- 
lowing : — 
“ It  has  been  discovered,  says  an  English  contem- 
porary, that  the  famous  tree  from  the  bark  of  which 
quinine  is  obtained  furnishes  no  quinine  except  in 
malarial  regions.  It  is  therefore  claimed  that  quinine 
is  a malarial  poison  drawn  from  the  soil  and  stored 
up  by  this  wonderful  tree.” 
It  is  indeed  wonderful  that  such  ignorance  should  be 
thus  countenanced  1 The  fact  that  the  richest  barks 
are  grown  in  regions  where  malaria  is  unknown  such 
as  in  this  Naduvatum  and  Ootacamund  district,  seems 
to  be  ignored  I 
Quinine  is  a w'aste-product  in  the  economy  of  the 
tree,  which  is  incidentally  formed  during  the  process 
of  nutrition,  but  not  being  essential  to  either  growth 
or  nourishment  is  expelled  as  far  as  possible,  namely 
to  the  circumference  or  bark  of  the  tree. — Yours  faith- 
fully, J.  McKENZIB. 
[A  fashionable  London  Doctor  in  a paper  on  “ In- 
fluenza and  its  cure”  in  the  “Nineteenth  Century” 
first  promulgated  the  error  alluded  to  above,  and  wo 
corrected  it  at  the  time  in  London. — Ed.  T.AA 
CAMPHOR  IN  SOUTHERN  INDIA. 
54  years 
130J  „ 
38 
22  „ 
94  „ 
56  men,  therefore,  had  completed  ser- 
vice of . . 200  „ 
There  wa.s,  therefore,  exactly  according  to  these 
figures  a death-rate  of  20  per  thousand  per  annum. 
But  two  of  these  died  immediately  in  conse- 
quence of  tlie  severe  and  protracted  exertions  and 
anxiety,  wdien  w'e  were  fighting  the  Arab  Slave- 
traders  at  the  North  end  of  Lake  Nyassa.  But 
for  this,  the  deathrate  would  have  been  only  half 
of  what  it  was,  or  10  jier  tliomsand,  one  per  cent. 
But  not  one  died  in  those  early  and  hardest 
years  of  all,  the  first  nine  years,  of  pioneering 
work,  of  many  privations,  of  oecasional  dangerous 
crises,  and  constant  strenuous  w'ork.  F'or  instance 
in  1882-3,  my  first  year  of  coft'ee  work  (my 
brother  planted  our  first  patcli  the  previous  season) 
my  whole  day  was  spent  in  out  door  work,  much  of 
it  at  the  coflee,  while  I did  five  niglits  of  ollice 
work  a w’eck  till  12  p.m,  vr  2 a.jii. 
Sept.  18th,  1895. 
Sir,— In  former  years  you  included  camphor  in 
your  column  of  “ Market  Rates  for  Old  and  New 
Products,”  but  for  some  time  past  that  product  has 
not  been  quoted.  May  I ask  whether  you  have  any 
objection  to  include  camphor  again  in  the  list  of 
monthly  quotation  at  the  end  of  the  I'ropical  Agri- 
culturist f It  was  the  study  of  the  progress  of 
camphor  as  formerly  quoted  every  month  in  your 
Market  Rates  for  Old  and  New  Products  that  induced 
me  to  procure  seed  all  the  way  fi-om  Japan. 
I may  take  this  opportunity  to  remark  that  to 
the  surprise  of  Mr.  Hooper  he  obtained  solid  camphor 
from  the  leaves  that  I sent  to  him.  Only  oil  of 
camphor  is  supposed  to  be  obtained  from  the  leaves 
alone. — Yours  faithfully,  J.  McKENZIE. 
[We  shall  certainly  resume  the  quotations:  we  were 
not  aware  it  was  dropped.  We  shall  be  glad  to  hear 
of  Mr.  Hooper's  experiments  : has  he  tried  the  bark  { 
-Ep. 
