430 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
i Dec.  2,  1895. 
similar  Ordinance  ■'ftas  often  threatened  in  re- 
ference to  white  weed.  But  certainly,  still  more 
important  should  it  be  to  have  a measure 
to  compel  attenlioji  to  the  chief  enemy  of  tlie 
coconut  palm.  Tlie  plan  ado])ted  l)y  Mr.  Wright 
i.s,  however,  an  ellectual  one  and  very  [ileasing 
to  Ids  native  neighbours.  For,  as  .soon  as  lie 
hears  of  a jialm  attacked  by  red-beetle  in  bis 
neiglibourhood,  tliough  outside  Ids  own  projicrty, 
he  hurries  oil'  with  kangani  and  cooly,  ami 
pays  the  owner  dO  cents  for  the  ]>rivilege  of  being- 
allowed  to  cut  down  and  burn  it  out.  At  lirst, 
of  course,  this  practice  kept  him  busy  enough  : 
but  now  ho  has  his  reward  in  atl'ected  trees 
being  few  and  far  between,  in  the  neighbourhood. 
M e have,  however,  run  too  far  abeatl  in  dis- 
cu.ssing  one  branch  of  the  planter’s  work,  sug- 
gested by  the  name  of  the  estate.  Ivandangomuwa 
is  about  three  miles  from  Mirigama  station  which 
is  fast  becoming  a busy  centre  of  tratlic.  The 
thriving  continuous  village  along  the  roadside 
and  a great  extension  of  cultivation  in  jdantations, 
fruit  and  vegetable  gardens  owe  very  much  to  the 
establishment  of  this  railway  station,  some  years 
after  the  lino  was  ojiened  to  Kandy.  The  ex- 
jieriment  has  been  a highly  successful  one  and 
it  suggests  the  (piestion  as  to  whether  one  or  more 
statioiis  with  enually  good  results  might  nut  be  es- 
tablished at  otlier  points  on  the  line.  That  is  a 
matter  for  the  ( ieneral  Manager  and  (iovernment 
.Vgents  to  decide.  Mr.  M’riglit  had  undoubtedly 
very  fa\  ourable  land  on  which  to  plant  at  Ivamlan- 
goi'nuwa.  It  is  of  that  slightly  undulating  character 
in  which  the  jialm  jilanter  delights;  while  the  soil 
— much  of  it  a sandy  loam — is  such  as  palms 
luxuriate  in. 
(To  be  continued.) 
PLANTING  AND  PRODUCE. 
Investors  and  Tea  Shakes.— There  is  one  point  in 
connection  with  investment  in  tea  shares  that  should 
be  noted.  At  one  time  the  lists  of  shareholders  in 
tea  companies  -were  composed  mainly  of  people  hav- 
ing some  connection  with  Anglo-India  and  the  plant- 
ing interest.  Now  the  general  public  are  investing 
in  tea  shares,  attracted  by  the  stability  of  the  in- 
dustry. Both  for  Indian  and  Ceylon  shares  of  the 
better  class  there  is  a steady  inquiry,  and  there  is 
no  reason  why  tea  shares  should  not  increase 
in  public  favorr'r.  1 Investors  require  some  reason- 
able security,  with  a probability  of  steady  dividends. 
Mines  and  ventrrres  of  the  lightning-change  sort  suit 
speculators,  but  the  investor  likes  something  that 
does  not  distrrrb  his  rest.  Four  or  live  per  cent 
with  comparative  safety  is  a boon  to  the  small 
capitalist,  who  wearies  equally  of  the  small  re- 
tirrirs  upon  consols  and  gilt-edged  securi- 
ties ami  the  risks  he  has  to  accept  if  he  trusts 
his  money  in  the  ordinary  joint-stock  project. 
Under  these  circumstances  tea  shares  are  at- 
tractive. In  this  connection  we  may  mention  that 
Messrs.  Gow,  Wilson,  and  Stanton,  who  devote 
special  attention  to  the  purchase  and  sale  of  tea 
shares,  issue  a useful  list  of  prices  and  other  par- 
ticulars, and  a quotation  fronr  this  list  will  be  found 
irr  airother  column. 
Indian  Tea  and  the  Society  of  Arts. — We 
understand  that  arrangements  are  being  made 
by  the  Indian  Tea  Association,  in  consultation 
w'ith  the  Society  of  Arts  (Indian  Section),  to  have 
a vei y interesting  paper  read  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  session  in  January  next  on  the  prac- 
tical side  of  Indian  tea  planting,  dealing  par- 
ticulai’ly  with  tho  improved  methods  of  ina- 
nufacture  since  the  introduction  of  machinery, 
the  increased  attention  paid  to  sanitation,  and 
care  taken  of  the  labour  force  in  sup- 
plying them  with  good  water,  food,  Ac., 
Ithp  advantage  of  railway  communication,  illus- 
trated by  mimerous  slides  showing  the  gardens  build- 
ings, and  various  other  details  of  an  interesting 
nature.  The  reader  of  the  paper  will  be  Mr.  G W 
Christison,  who  has  practically  devoted  the  w'hole 
of  his  life  to  this  subject.  We  hope  to  give  further 
details  later  on  when  the  date  of  the  lecture  is  fixed. 
A New  Use  for  Tea. — While  experiments  are 
about  to  be  made  in  England  in  the  direction  of 
tobacco  growing,  there  is  a remote  prospect  that 
the  new  woman  may  use  tea  in  a manner 
scarcely  contemplated  by  tea  planters. 
house  of  a well-known  lady  where  I visit,”  so  a 
AVest-end  physician  has  informed  the  representative 
of  a weekly  journal,  “ green  tea  cigarettes  are  in- 
variably handed  round  after  dinner;  and  I know 
three  actresses  of  celebrity  who  give  ‘tea-smoking’ 
parties  twice  a week,  and  a coterie  of  literary  ladies 
in  Kensington  have  formed  a small  club, for  the 
same  baleful  indulgence.”  As  the  supply  of  green 
tea  in  this  country  is  not  huge,  dealers  must  keep 
their  eyes  on  this  new  development.  The  Ijuncet 
and  the  Jlrilish  Medical  Journal  will  no  doubt  be  ready 
with  some  suitable  thunderbolts  for  the  occasion. 
Meantime,  if  a lay  opinion  be  of  any  value,  we 
should  say  that  green-tea  cigarettes  smoked  at  short 
intervals  would  produce  an  effect  rivalling  delirium 
remens  in  variety  of  sensation  and  in  the  number 
of  reptiles  to  be  seen  at  a single  glance. 
DH.  MARSHALL  MAVRl). 
At  a meeting  of  the  electors  to  the  Professorship 
of  Botany  at  Cambridge,  held  on  November  2nd,  Dr. 
Harry  Marshall  Ward.  Sc.D.,  f.u.s.,  of  Christ’s  College, 
Professor  of  Botany  at  the  Indian  EugineeringCollege, 
Cooper's  Hill,  was  chosen  to  succeed  the  late  Pro- 
fessor Caidale  ivabington.  Dr.  Ward  graduated 
as  a member  of  Christ’s  College,  obtaining  a first- 
class  in  the  Natural  Sciences  Tripos,  187i),  with 
distinction  in  botany.  In  1888  he  was  elected  to  a 
Fellowship,  and  in  l,s88  was  elected  a Fellow  of  the 
Royal  Society. — O.  Mail. 
The  new  Cambridge  Professor  of  Botany,  Dr. 
Marshall  Ward,  may  be  briefly  described  as  a plant 
physician.  At  the  invitation  of  the  Ceylon  Govern- 
ment, he  was  successful  in  tracing  the  fungus  which 
caused  tho  coffee  disease  whereby  the  plantations 
of  the  island  were  devastated,  anil  he  followed  up 
this*  brilliant  beginning  by  studying  the  diseases  of 
the  salmon  and  the  potato,  the  lily  and  the  bean. 
His  acquaintance  with  the  ])arasitie  plant  is  more 
intimate  than  that  of  any  other  botanist  in  the  world, 
and  it  w'as  owing  to  this  special  knowledge  of  his 
that  he  was  invited  to  take  charge  of  his  special 
subject  in  the  forestry  department  at  Cooper’s-hill. 
His  xiresence  in  Cambridge  will  make  a great  change, 
because  hitherto  undue  attention  has  perhaps  been 
given  in  that  university  to  the  mere  classification 
of  xrlants. — Star,  Nov.  .5. 
-<6> 
Ckyi-on  Tka  jx  Ameiuc.v.  — It  is  indeed  very 
gratifying  to  learn  from  the  letter  of  the  ex- 
Chairinan  of  our  Chandier  of  Cominerce  which 
ha.s  been  pl.aceil  at  om  disposal  by  the  Chair- 
man of  the  Planters’  Association,  that  our  Tea 
Deleg.ate  in  Americtt  has  proceeded  to  work  on 
the  right  lines  in  endeavouring  to  popularise 
Ceylon  Tea  in  the  great  AYestern  Continent,  tuid 
that,  in  the  opinion  of  so  shrewd  and  capable  a 
business-man  as  Mr.  Renton,  the  very  best  lurs- 
sible  use  is  being  made  by  Mr.  Mackenzie  of 
the  limited  sum  placed  at  his  disjiosal.  Coming 
from  an  independent  source,  as  Mr.  White  says, 
this  informal  ion  is  not  only  interesting  but  ex- 
tremely satisfactory,  and  amply  justifies  the  ap- 
j)ointment  and  continn.ance  in  oliice  of  Mr. 
Mackenzie.  The  American  dealers  wish  to  trade 
direct  with  Ceylon,  and  tin*  points  which  .Mr. 
Renton  mentions  (about  better  packages  and 
suitable  teas)  in  this  connection  will  no  doubt 
receive  the  careful  consideration  of  all  concerned. 
Altogether,  Mr.  Renton’s  i.s  a l ery  useful  lettei. 
