THE  TROPICAL 
agriculturist. 
[Jan.  t,  1896. 
45S 
in  ’73  from  R6  to  1111  per  bushel  in  the  loc.al 
market,  notwithstanding  increased  shipments 
from  Ceylon  and  clsewliere.  In  or  about  1881  the 
price  with  diminished  exports,  decreased  to  K8 
per  bushel  ! Cocoa  at  50s.  only  in  tiie  London 
market  woidt  ileter  those  desiring  a plantation, 
that  is  newer  abandoned  or  renewed  “for  nearly 
a century”  as  Sir  James  Longden  remarked  when 
he  visited  certain  cocoa  jn-operties  with  a view  to 
giving  an  impetus  to  its  cultivation.  He  sjmke 
from  his  knowledge  and  experience  ot  plantations 
in  Trinidad  as  well  as  in  Jamaica.  J-  D. 
^ 
VAllIOUS  FLANTINU  NOTES. 
Various  Oils. — Elsewhere  we  quote  e.xtracts 
from  the  semi-annual  report  of  Schimmel  Co., 
EVitzclie  Bros,  of  Leipsig  and  New  York  regarding 
the  market  for  cinnamon  and  citronella  oils  of 
which  a very  hopeful  account  is  given. 
Coffee  in  Mexico.— What  a former  Ceylon 
Planter  has  to  say  about  the  prospects  of  collee- 
*'^rowing  in  Ale.xico  will  be  found  (quoted  elsewheie. 
He  s])eaks  particularly  of  two  districts  cajjable  of 
being  con\-erted  into’ most  successful  plantations. 
Petroleu.m  as  a Fuel. -^.Vu  interesting  article 
on  this  subject  is  quoted  in  another  column.  It 
contains  the  views  of  Mr.  B.  Nelson  Boyd,  M.I.C.E., 
who  expresses  the  opinion  that  the  geueial 
.adoption  of  petroleum  as  a fmd  is  .a  m.atter  for 
the  very  distant  f\iture. 
The  SHEv.utoY  Planters’  Association.— We  {.Vadras 
Mail)  publish  in  the  annual  Report  of  the  Shevaroy 
Planters’  Association.  It  is  stated  that  there  is  a 
scarcity  of  labour  on  the  plantations  on  these  hills, 
but  considering  how  favourably  they  arc  situated  in 
regard  to  the  railway,  no  difficulty  ought  to  be  ex- 
perienced in  getting  as  many  coolies  as  are  wanted 
if  only  planters  would  combine  and  organise. 
Ladies  and  Tea  have  become  inseparably 
associated,  thanks  to  tho.se  ch.arming  afternoon 
gatherings  with  which  everybody  is  familiar. 
There  is  a new  guise  in  which  the  association 
appears,  to  which  a corresiiondent  directs  our 
attention : — , . , . , . 
“ There  is  in  London  a firm  of  lady  tea  merchants 
who  have  an  estate  in  Ceylon,  and  who  employ  mem- 
bers of  their  own  sex  exclusively  as  tasters,  blenders, 
packers  and  agents.” 
Sale  of  an  Estate  in  the  Kel.ani  Valley. — Mr- 
J.  M.  Brace  has  purchased  from  Mr.  C.  S.  Warren. 
Mapitagama  estate,  Ruanwella,  the  price  paid  for 
the  estate,  which  is  one  of  the  best  small  covers 
of  tea  in  the  K.  V.,  being  R57.500.  The  estate  con- 
sist of  1184  acres,  of  which  100  acres  are  planted 
in  tea. — Cor. 
A OuiNiNE  Factory  in  London. — A new  quinine 
factory  has  been  established  in  England— at  Stam- 
ford Hill  in  the  North  of  Loudon.  It  contains  brand- 
new  maebinerv  of  the  latest  descripUon,  and  has 
no  connection'  with  any  previous  ^iiglisl’  maini- 
facturer  of  quinine.  Its  nistitutio>|  caused  qu.te  strr 
among  the  London  druggists,  and  is  expe.:ted  to  effect 
jSgreAly.  lA  full  report  is  gwen  elschere- 
^ Colombo  Tea  ^Iarket  and  the  Ces.s  Tax. 
—Mr  Arthur  Lanipard  certainly  gnves  us  a 
thoroiigldy  original  suggestion  for  tlie  .lisuosal 
of  th?  ’Tea  Cess  m hi.s  letter  elsewhere  : 
-distribute  it  among  producers  supporting  the 
local  market!  Tl.e.e  is  niore  in  Mr. 
Lampard’s  letter  th.au  .aiq.e.ars  .at  first  sight 
Colombo  will  never  be  a great  te^a-market  unti 
it  i,s  better  siipi.orted  and  fieed  from  absurd 
Customs  shackles,  and  the  more  tea  sold'heie,  tlie 
sooner  will  we  drive  China’s  and  Japans  out  of 
i^uierica,  Russia,  and  Australia. 
Salf.  of  Land  at  Batticaloa. — We  hoar  that 
some  Dikoya  jilanters  are  going  to  bid  for  the 
lands,  suitable  for  coconut  cultivation,  to  be  put 
up  on  the  19th  instant,  at  the  Batticaloa  kachcheri, 
and  that  prices  arc  likely  to  go  high.  This  interest 
of  Europeans  in  coconut  cultivation  is  a good  sign, 
especially  whed  it  leads  to  fresh  land  being 
opened  up. 
Sir  John  Muir’s  Movements. — Mr.  W.  Milne  from 
the  Sylhet  Company’s  Travancore  property,  met  Sir 
John  Muir  at  Madras  as  arranged,  but  the  latter 
decided  to  go  on  with  his  family  to  Calcutta,  and 
returned  in  February  to  visit  Travancore.  The 
weather  will  then  be  less  rainy,  and  the  surveying 
and  other  work  more  advanced.  Mr.  Milne  came 
down  to  Colombo,  where  he  is  now.  He  leaves  for 
South  India  for  good  next  w'eek. 
The  Quinine  E’.-actory  wdiicli  has  just  been 
ojiened  at  Stamford  Hill  is  the  subject  of  an 
article  which  we  quote  in  another  column  from 
the  Chemist  and  Druggist  dealing  with  the 
effect  which  its  existence  is  likely  to  have 
upon  the  market-position  of  tlie  drug.  Onr 
contemporary  does  not  think  that  the  effect  will 
be  .at  all  serious. 
Cardamom  Cultivation  in  Bangalore. — We  un- 
derstand that  the  reports  of  the  Deputy  Com- 
missioner of  Hassan  and  Kadur  have  been 
forwarded  to  the  Superintendent  of  Mysore  Re- 
venue Survey  ou  the  subject  of  the  reduc- 
tion of  assessments  on  estates  cultivated  with 
cardamoms  in  exposed  situations  of  excessive  rainfall 
with  certain  instructions  for  reclassifying  and  reasses- 
ing  all  such  estates  in  the  situations  unfit  for 
coffee  owing  to  either  excessive  rainfall  or  exposure, 
with  a request  that  definite  proposals  maybe  submitted 
so  as  to  enable  the  Government  to  sanction  the  revised 
settlement  being  brought  into  effect  during  the  cur- 
rent year. — Daih/  Post. 
Growth  of  Trees. — The  following  interesting  results 
of  experiments  relating  to  the  growth  of  trees  at 
different  times  of  the  day  have  been  sent  to  ns  by  Mr. 
E.  H.  Thompson,  the  Government  entomologist  of 
Tasmania.  Measurements  were  taken  as  far  as 
possible  every  three  hours,  with  the  following  results : 
— From  6 a.m.  to  9 a.m.,  8§  per  cent,  of  growth  ; 
from  9 a.m.  to  noon,  1§  per  cent,  of  growth ; from 
noon  to  8 p.m.,  no  growth;  from  3 p.m.  to  Gp.m.,no 
growth  ; from  6 p.m.  to  9 p.m.,  IJ  per  cent,  of  growth; 
from  9 p.m.  to  12  p.m.,  3|  per  cent,  of  growth  ; from 
12  p.m.  to  6 a.m.,  85  per  cent,  of  growth.  Tlie  greatest 
growths  in  twenty-four  hours  were  banksia  rose,  6.^ 
inches  ; geranium,  5^  inches  ; wattle,  inches ; apple, 
2J  inches  ; pear,  IJ  inch. — Public  Opinion. 
The  Ceylon  Coolie. — An  experienced  planter  in 
Ceylon,  writing  to  a 1 'cal  paper  on  the  much  vexed 
labour  question,  thus  sums  up  Ramasamy  : “ Monthly, 
or  even  weekly  payments  will  not  keep  Ramasamy 
out  of  debt.  The  greater  his  indebtedness,  the  moie 
important  a person  he  considers  himself.  Where  lie 
paid  every  Saturday,  the  whole  in  most  cases  would 
go  on  Sunday,  and,  after  the  manner  of  the  English 
miner,  he  would  live  on  credit  till  the  next  p'.y 
day.”  And  perhaps  Ramasamy  is  not  ; Itogetn  r 
wrong,  for  there  c,u  beii.tle  doub'  that  ttie  11;  -ney 
Ion-ling  Chetty  takes  a lively  and  continuous  interc  t 
i'l  the  c '-'lie  '■vho  is  ever  on  his  books,  and  out  of 
whom  he  mak-s  a steady  income  , and  the  Ciieity 
is  .'"I  in<iii''nt'f'I  m in.  Pioneer. 
Scientific  Enquiry  Into  Tea  Culti- 
vation.— Elsewhere  we  quote  from  the  Indiati 
Planters'  Gazette  the  full  text  of  coire.spoii- 
dence  between  the  Secretary  of  the  Indian 
Tea  A.ssociation  and  the  Government  of  India  on 
this  important  subject.  It  is  pleaded  that  as 
Governiiient  liad  rendered  assistance  in  investi- 
gations connected  with  silk  it  niiglit  similarly 
give  support  to  an  industry  of  such  inagnitnde 
and  iinportance  as  tea  by  equinning  a laboratory 
for  the  use  of  a chemist  of  estaolished  reputation 
who  should  be  engaged  for  a ])eriod  of  live 
years’  say. 
