3^4 
Supplement  to  the  “ Tropical  AgricuUuriatT 
[Xov.  1,  1895. 
(6)  Any  channel,  watero.onrpo,  or  el:i  which 
has  been  or  may  hereafter  be  cut,  opened,  or 
constructed  for  irrigation  purposes  through,  and 
without  ])aym.-;nt  (d  crmpeusation  to  the  owner 
of  any  land  or  preinises  not  cleared  and  drained 
for  cultivation. 
7.  (1)  The  owner  or  occvipant  against  whom 
any  order  is  made  under  the  last  preceding  section 
shu  1 
(rtl  Perforin  within  the  time  specified  in  the 
order  the  act  directed  thereby  ; or 
(6)  Apply  within  ten  days  from  the  date  of 
.service  of  the  said  notice,  by  petition  to  the 
District  Judge  of  the  di.strict  in  which  such  land 
or  premises  may  be  situate,  for  an  injunction  to 
restrain  the  Government  Agent  from  enforcing 
such  order,  on  the  ground  tliat  the  same  is  con- 
trary to  law,  And  every  such  petition  shall  be 
accompanied  by  an  affidavit  containing  a state- 
ment of  the  facts  on  which  the  application  is 
based, 
(2)  Upon  receiving  such  application  tlie  Di.'-trict 
Judge  shall  forthwith  cause  copies  of  the  said 
petition  and  affidavit  to  be  served  on  1 he  Govern- 
ment Agent,  and  shall  li.v  an  early  day  for 
enquiry  into  the  matter  and  give  notice  tliereof, 
both  to  the  apjilieant  and  the  Gevernment  Agent. 
If  the  District  Judge  aftc'r  taking  evidence  wdiich 
the  parties  may  adduce,  or  he  himself  may  retpiire, 
is  satisfied  that  the  order  is  contrary  to  law,  he 
shall  issue  such  injunction  as  aforesaid,  l)iit  if 
he  is  not  so  sati.slied  he  shall  make  absolute  the 
order  of  the  Government  Agent,  and  in  either 
case  he  shall  award  such  costs  as  he  shall  deem 
meet. 
8.  If  such  owner  or  occupant  to  whom  such 
order  shall  have  been  given  shall  refuse  or  neglect 
to  comp]}’  with  the  same,  the  said  Government 
Agent  shall,  if  no  injunction  as  aforesaid  shall 
have  been  served  upon  him  within  thirty  days 
from  the  e.xpriation  of  the  time  specified  in  the 
notice,  cause  the  obstruction  by  silt,  earth,  or 
other  substance  to  be  removed,  and  shall  provide 
such  drains,  pipe.s,  and  other  works  as  may  be 
necessary  ; and  for  that  purpose  the  Government 
Agent,  shall  have  power,  and  heir  hereby  autho- 
rised to  enter  into  any  land  or  premi.ses,  and  to 
cause  to  enter  therein  sucli  persons  with  such 
instruments  and  thing.s  as  may  be  required. 
9.  (1)  The  costs  which  have  been  bona  fide 
incurred  by  the  Government  Agent  under  section 
8 shall  be  certified  under  his  hand,  and  shall  be 
a first  charge  on  such  land  or  premises,  and  on 
any  crop  or  produce  thereof,  and  on  any  movables 
thereon. 
^(2)  The  Government  Agent  shall  proceed  to 
recover  such  costs  by  seizing  and  selling  such 
land,  premises,  crop,  jmoduce,  or  movables,  in 
manner  provided  in  section  1 of  chapter  L\.,  and 
the  ])iovisions  of  that  chapter  shall  mutatis 
mutandis  apjdy  to  every  such  seizure  and 
sale. 
10.  All  the  powers,  duties,  and  obligations 
entrusted  to  or  imposed  on,  the  Government 
Agent  t)y  this  Ordinnee,  shall  and  may  lie  exe- 
cuted and  performed  by  any  Assistant  Govern- 
ment Agent  within  tlie  limits  of  this 
district. 
11.  A.  J. 
MIGROUKS. 
The  term  microbe  is  often  vaguely  understood, 
though  since  of  late  it  occurs  very  frequently  in 
our  daily  readings.  Professor  Crookshank,  one  of 
the  leading  bacteriologists  of  the  day,  has  contri- 
buted a very  interesting  paper  on  this  subject  to 
the  Journal  of  the  lloynl  Agricultural  Society  of 
England. 
Microbes  are  now  divided  into  four  classes  i 
Bacteria,  yeasts,  moulds  and  protozoa.  The  first 
three  classes  are  of  vegetable  origin  and  the  last 
includes  animal  organi.sms. 
Bacteria  are  such  minute  objects  that  when 
magnified  under  powerful  microscopes,  a thousand 
times,  often  appear  as  mere  commas  or  dots  in 
an  ordinary  printed  page.  The  different  cla.«ses 
of  bacteria,  vary  greatly  in  size  and  appearance. 
Some  are  egg-shaped  and  found  singly,  in  pairs  or 
in  the  form  of  chains,  other.?  are  rod  shaped  and 
some  others  spiral.  Prom  these  different  shapes 
bacteria  are  divided  into  three  classes,  viz., 
micrococci  or  spherical  form.s,  tvacilli  or  rod  forms, 
spirilla  or  spiral  forms.  Bacteiia  pos.sess  tlie 
power  of  motion,  and  under  the  microscope  tlii'y 
are  observed  to  move  to  and  fro  and  often  tii’m 
round  and  round.  Tliey  reproduce  tiy  division.  A 
bacterium  inc  eases  in  size,  constricts  in  the  middle 
and  is  divided  into  two.  There  is  nnottier  mode 
of  rejirodiictioii  where  distinct  spores  are  formed 
and  shed  from  the  mother  bacterium.  It  is  said 
tliat  abic'eriiim  polucei  twi  njw  individuals 
in  nnhiu’’;  this  is  a form  dable  process  of  repro- 
duction, a.s  at  this  rale  a .single  ti.acterium  is  cap- 
able of  giving  iDe  to  a crop  of  nearly  sixteen  and 
a half  million  b.ute  ia  in  a day.  These  b cteria, 
however,  require  suitable  nourishment  for  their 
growth,  and  when  this  is  not  foUiid  they  perish. 
If  not  for  this  jirovifion  the  multiplication  of 
bacteria  would  take  place  to  such  an  extent  as 
to  exclude  all  other  living  things  from  the  surface 
of  the  earth.  B.icteria  must  be  supplied  with 
food,  they  require  oxygen,  nitrogen,  ci.bon,  water 
and  certain  miner.il  salts.  They  cinnot  thrive 
at  all  temperatures — high  temperatures  and  very 
low  temperatures  easily  kill  them.  They  produce 
certain  ch.inges  in  the  mediums  in  which  they 
grow,  and  according  to  tlie.se  changes  they  are 
cla,s.sed  as  pigment  bacteria  (producing  colour 
stuffs),  ferment  bacteria  (setting  up  fermentation), 
putrefactive  bacteria  (producing  decomposition;, 
pathogenic  bacteria  (causing  disease). 
Micrococcus  prodif/iosus  is  given  as  an  example 
of  a bacteria  that  produces  colour  stuffs,  it  pro- 
duces a red  colour  similar  in  appearance  to  blood, 
and  is  the  origin  of  Iilood-rain  which  we  often 
hear.  It  has  even  been  suggest-  d that  this  micro- 
organism was  respon.'.iible  for  one  of  the  plagues 
of  Egypt,  for  it  sometimes  appears  ns  a blood-red 
growth  covering  the  surface  of  jiools  and  ponds 
in  mnr.shy  districts.  Instances  are  given  of  its 
appearance  on  the.  bread  of  a miiit'iry  bakehouse 
in  Paris,  and  in  some  jilaces  in  Italy.  Even  in 
Ceylon  we  hear  of  blood-rains.  Tlie  blood  milk 
which  milkmen  here  sometimes  complain  of  and 
attribute  to  “ evil  eye  ” may  be  traced  to  the 
presence  of  this  organism.  There  is  also  another 
organism,  liacillus  si/ncyanus,  which  spoil  milk  by 
turning  it  a bluish  colour.  There  are  certain  bac- 
teria which  causes  iihosphorescence.  Pish  thrown 
up  on  the  shores  of  some  coasts  become  luminous 
at  night  owing  to  the  growth  of  these  bacteria, 
