THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST.  [Uioc.  2,  1895. 
404 
to  tvithstand  long  droughts,  while  it  will  bear  anv 
amount  of  feeding.  There  it  is  huown  as  “ Pitted 
bluegrass.  The  ^lunt l u/iait  Gaxttte  for  Pebruai’y  1893 
contains  a description  with  plate  of  this  grass  which 
it  recommends  as  a lawn-grass  especially  in  dry  dis- 
tiiuts.  Dr.  Watt  in  his  Dictionary  quotes  Dr.  S’-ewart 
as  saying  that  it  is  an  “ excellent  fodder  for  bullocks, 
&c.,  and  for  horses  when  green.” 
AGllICULTUIlIST. 
wantp:d-thr  experiencr  of  plan- 
ters WHO  PAY  THEIR  COOLIES 
MONTHLY. 
Glencairn,  Oct.  23. 
Dk.vr  Sir, — A’r  the  jiresent  discus.sion  on  the 
labour  (juestion, — there  must  be  many  Planters  in 
tlie  Island  who  pay  tlieir  coolies  monthly  ; will 
they  kindly  come  forward  and  give  their  o])inion 
pro  boao  publico.  Ry  monthly  payments  is  meant, 
1 presume,  paying  for  Octol)er  say  on  the  3Uth 
November.  If  such  he  the  case,  I think  a large 
majority  of  estates  do  this  already. — Yours  faith- 
fully, “ TEA.” 
THE  PAMPHLET  UPON  “ THE  L.AP.OUR 
OUESTION.” 
Dk.\i;  Slit, — The  writer  on  “ The  Labour 
(Question”  begins  by  a complaint  that  the  writers 
and  speakers  ui)on  the  question  have  hitherto 
taken  the  views  only  of  Pro))iietors  and  Superin- 
tendents, and  reju'esented  the  labourers  as  having 
become  demoralized  and  dill'erent  to  what  they 
used  to  be.  Almost  the  whole  of  his  paper  con- 
firms this  great  difference,  and  in  one  ]>art  he 
actually  traces  a cause  of  it.  as  far  as  the 
Government  action  in  imposing  a medical  ordi- 
nance and  altering  relations  between  employers 
and  employed.  It  does  seem  pre|tosterous  that  a 
writer  who  virtually  condemns  Government  action 
and  interference  in  one  direction  should  seek  for 
more  of  it  in  another.  He  is  equally  inconsis- 
tent when  he  says  that  individual  jilanters  may 
quote  their  own  and  other  cases  to  jirove  his 
conclusions  iucoirect,  but  that  ho  is  not  dcalin.if 
with  intliridual  ca.ncs.  Yet  his  whole  argument 
for  monthly  payment  is  supported  by  his  re- 
ference to  his  one  “ friend  of  great  experience.” 
He  must  have  more  faith  than  is  visible,  if  he 
supposes  that  the  advance  system  stops  at  the 
estate,  and  does  not  enter  into  the  Bazaar.  It 
would  be  extremely  interesting  to  know  how  his 
one  friend’s  coolies  shifted  off  their  original  and 
••  immortal  ” debts,  and  what  monthly  payments 
enable  them  to  do  it. 
It  appears  to  me  that  the  reckle.ss  issue  of 
advances  by  young  and  inexperienced  Europeans 
in  new  districts  in  former  times,  as  well  as  now, 
someliow  left  the  entanglement  ami  embarrass- 
ment, if  it  be  such,  (o  the  present  Proprietors, 
ami  that  as  far  as  I can  judgeq  Ramasamy  is 
the  only  one  who  has  increaseil  in  independence 
and  not  the  Proiu'ictors  nor  the  Superintendents, 
He  makes  far  too  much  of  the  i>oint  of  inhcriteil 
debt.  To  whom  are  the  orjihans  liable  for  the 
debts  of  dead  parents?  Do  they  inherit 
.any  rights  or  advantages  as  well  as  oblig.ations  ? 
anil  how  is  the  tenqiorary  pro|nietor  to  stej)  in 
and  control  relations  Itetweeu  kanganies  and 
c)olies  when  everyone  knows  it  is  an  affair  of 
their  own  ancient  custom  and  selectioii. 
He  says,  howe\’i'r,  that  it  has  of  late  years 
been  fou'ml  impracticable  to  recover  the  money 
from  those  who  are  siipjiosed  to  eve  it,  but  the 
debt  is  pas.sed  from  (‘state  to  esial-e.  Where, 
then,  is  the  hardshi])?  The  cooly  is  absolutely 
free.'  He  passes  on  where  he  wislies  ; incresxses 
lii-s  debt^  by  the  furtlicr  mortgage  of  his  security, 
but  doesn't  pny  it  off,  so  the  writer  says,  on 
account  of  his  iidierited  woe.s.  Why,  surely,  the 
orphan’s  inheritance  of  debt  has  enabled  him  to 
recover  twice  its  amount  ere  this!  At  least  on 
tluj  writer’s  show’ing.  For  the  kangany  also,  the 
writer  expresses  great  sympathy — for  he  is  said  to 
have  neither  money  nor  security  (only  an  umbrella). 
Now  really  it  becomes  au  interesting  question  : 
the  kangani  has  nothing,  the  cooly  only  debts, 
and  the  orphans  an  incubus  of  responsibility 
enough  to  bring  tears  to  one’s  eyes,  if  only  one 
wasn’t  wondering  again  about  the  money  itself  ! 
^V  ho  g(^t  it?  Where  is  it?  All  consumed  by 
tho.se  dead  coolies.  At  this  jjoint  I thought  I 
had  solved  tjic  problem  in  the  manner  desired 
by  the  authoi-,  but  alas!  he  says  “in  olden  d.ays 
their  debts  were  never  more  than  could  easily 
be  rcjiaid.”  So  now',  indeed,  the  writer  on  the 
“Lal)our  (luestion  ” has  complicated  matters  and 
certainly  cleared  up  no  mj'stery. 
Formerly  the  .system  was  one  of  “Coast Ad- 
vances”; it  underwent  changes  by  reason  of  the 
needs  of  new  distri(;ts  .and  inexperienced  jdanters 
and  it  became  sim])ly  adv.amies,  and  the  wily 
and  “able  lin.ancier,”  the  Tamil  kangany,  limance'd 
his  cash  to  his  native  village  and  his  debit  bal- 
ance .and  obligations  to  his  fortipi  occupation, 
and  therefore,  according  to  the  sentimental  author, 
the  poor  orph.au  di  uTt  p.ay  his  debts  but  only 
incre.ased  them,  ,atid  therefore  he  should  be  re- 
lieved of  them  altogether  ! SIC. 
NO.  II. 
October  2.3rd. 
SiH, — Surely  the  present  Labour  Ordinance  binds 
Planters  down  enough  without  .asking  Govern- 
ment for  further  legisl.ation.  Superintendents 
can  now  pay  their  coolies  monthly  or  fortnightly 
if  they  think  it  is  for  the  beiiclit  of  tlie  estate. 
It  seems  that  the  cry  for  a new  Ordinance, 
comes  inincipally  from  men  who  have  only  been 
working  habour  since  tea  took  the  place  of  coffee, 
.and  who  are  not  in  touch  with  their  coolies  .ami 
cannot  manage  them  ; these  men  must  have  some 
excuse  for  a short  labour  force  and  so  they  call 
for  a new  Ordinance  to  make  co<dies’  monthly 
]iay  cnm|iulsory,  fcaiing  their  labour  might  go 
to  another  (islate  when  coolies  are  paid  every 
other  month. 
Look  at  the  scheme  in  another  way  ; if  a .Su- 
)>erintendent  likes,  he  can  lind  out  ex.'U'tly  how 
much  c.ach  conly  owes  for  (loast  ,\d\  anees  to  hi.s 
Kangany,  and  each  p.ayday  could  hand  over  a 
jiroportion  of  his  pay,  taking  the  balance  for  his 
monthly  e.xpcnses  ; a cooly  can  easily  live  on  R5 
a month  and  ])ay  for  his  rice  out  of  this. 
If  the  coolies  arc  ))aid  every  month  and  there 
is  nothing  owdng  them,  who  is  to  be  responsible 
for  the  Coast  Alliances,  is  each  cooly  to  have  a 
seiiarate  stain peil  advance  .account  ? The  Kangany 
now  keeps  the  coolies  in  <a  gang  .and  sees  that 
they  are  not  crimped  ; why  should  he  do  this,  or 
bring  coolies,  if  he  does  not  derii  c any  licneflt  ? 
Another  item  to  be  considered  is  the  Tamil  cus- 
tom  of  heredit.ary  debts,  ;ilways  practised  on  the 
Co.ast.  would  it  be  advisable  for  Ceylon  to  al- 
ter this  ; why  not  India  lirst?  — Yours  faithfullv, 
“TAKE  carl.” 
LIBERIAN  COFFEE  .\NI).  COCOA, 
RU 15BER  v'ic. 
Dedana  Etta,  Oct.  2.'>. 
Dkai;  Sir,  — It  is  au  iuerediblestatement  appear- 
ing in  one  of  the  Madras  papers,  that  Ceylon  plan- 
ters dissatislied  with  the  prolits  of  te.a  planting, 
weie  running  all  over  Southern  I ndia  to  scU'ct  land 
to  plant  their  old  love,  Arabian  Coffee.  Not  ten 
