834 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[June  i,  1896. 
secure  supplies  at  what,  notwithstanding  the  advance 
in  Brazil,  would  sf.ill  bo  relatively  low  gold  prices. 
Coconut  Cultuke  in  Venezueij.\. — With  reference 
to  the  development  of  coconut  cultivation  in  Ceylon 
it  may  be  pointed  out  that  in  Venezuela  the  coconut 
tree  thrives  romarkably  well.  For  hundreds  of  miles 
the  coast  presents  a narrow  Hat  surface,  in  many 
places  extending  some  distance  back;  and  the  moun- 
tainous formation  in  other  places  is  equally  well 
adapted  for  the  prolific  production  of  the  fruit.  All 
the  soap  factories  rely,  to  a great  extent,  upon  their  own 
groves  for  the  oil  from  w’hich  they  manufacture  their 
product;  but  these  groves  are  an  insignificant  patch 
when  compared  with  tha  waste  and  barren  lands, 
unfit  for  .any  other  agricultural  purpose,  and  to  be 
obtained  at  a very  cheap  rate.  The  Venezuela  palm 
requires  four  years  to  attain  the  fruit-bearing  period, 
after  whicli  time  its  producing  power  is  enhanced  year 
by  year,  until  its  full  maturity  is  reached,  about  its 
eighth  year;  it  then  produces  for  forty  years.  From 
75  to  100  trees  are  planted  to  the  acre,  yielding 
fully  ,300  to  350  coconuts  per  annum.  The  proho  of 
the  small  producer  is  not  loss  than  about  4s  per  tree 
per  annum.  The  large  gower,  handling  and  shipping 
his  fruit,  would,  it  is  said,  double  that  figure.  The 
palm,  while  a tree  of  exquisite  beauty,  yields  one  of 
the  most  nutritious  and  useful  fruits  known ; as  an 
article  of  food,  it  is  greatly  relished ; industrially, 
its  principal  use  is  in  the  manufacture  of  an  excellent 
quality  of  soap,  the  coconut  oii  being  preferred  to 
fat  because  of  its  ability  to  absorb  much  more  water 
than  the  latter.  The  husk  of  the  fruit  is  now  used 
as  fuel;  and  on  this  point  the  United  States  Consul 
says  it  would  seem  that,  in  countries  such  as  Vene- 
zuela, where  carpets  or  other  woollen  or  cotton  floor 
coverings  are  discarded,  and  nothing  but  imported 
mattiug.s  used,  'he  manufacture  of  the  fibre  of  the 
husk  into  cocoa  matting  on  the  spot  would  prove 
profitable. — II.  and  C.  Mail,  April  17. 
o-  — — 
BRITISH  RULE  CENTENARY  IN  CEYLON. 
( E.diacf^/rom jVr.  Judkc  Clarence's  Paper.) 
TUE  l>L,VNTIN(j  INDUSXUY. 
I pass  to  the  rise  and  development  of  the  planting 
enterprise,  which  the  opening  up  of  the  country  icn- 
dored  possible. 
Coffee  had  been  cultivated  to  a small  extent  under 
the  Dutch,  and  then  allowed  to  decline  in  conse- 
quence of  Java  producing  more  than  was  thought 
needful.  A little  lingered  on  to  our  own  times,  and 
when  the  country  had  been  opened  up  it  attracted 
the  attention  of  Ecglishmeu  with  money  to  invest. 
In  1824  the  first  Euroxiean  coffee  estate  was  opened. 
The  enterprise  grew,  and  about  1837-40  there  was  a 
great  rush  into  coffee.  The  planting  extended  rapidly, 
l)assing  through  periods  of  inflation  and  depression, 
until  much  of  the  hill  jungles  had  been  transformed 
into  trim  plauiations. 
The  land  once  cleared  by  Sinhalese  axe-men,  the 
actual  coolie  labour  for  cultivutiou  was  drawn  from 
the  Tamil  districts  of  Southern  India,  and  without 
this  singularly  oouvenieut  labour  supply,  cheap,  docile 
and  ready  to  hand,  the  enterprise  could  never  have 
attained  such  success.  Mistakes  were  sometimes 
made  in  opening  land  which  proved  unsuitable,  but 
in  the  main  the  enterprise  prospered,  and  the  clear- 
ings climbed  higher  and  higher  up  the  roof  of  the 
island.  The  railway  materially  aided  the  planters. 
About  1873  coffee-planting  attained  its  real  zenith, 
and  then  followed  a period  of  mmatiu'al  inflation. 
A wild  gambling  speculation  set  in.  Then  disease 
attacked  the  coffee,  and  the  uniuiturul  inflation 
rei  dered  the  downfall  all  the  more  disastrous.  About 
187')  the  fall  was  headlong.  In  1882  the  export  had 
sunk  from  over  1,000,000  cwd.  to  about  one-fourth. 
The  planters  and  their  creditors  were  at  their  wits’ 
cuds.  The  Courts  were  crowded  \v’ith  creditors, 
including  mortgugocs  vainly  seeking  to  realise. 
Estates  went  for  nominal  prices.  Superintendents 
lost  their  salaries,  and  even  coolies  their  arear 
of  wages  at  oightpence  or  ninepcnce  a ilay. 
There  were  estates  on  whicli  (excepting  the  weekly 
advances  of  rice  for  food)  the  coolies’  wogos  had  not 
Yet  the  great  mass  of  the  planters  never  lost  heart. 
Liberian  coffee  was  tried,  but  with  small  success. 
Cinchona  was  introduced  and  prospered  for  awhile, 
saving  many  from  sinking.  Then  disease  and  a 
fall  in  the  price  of  tlie  bark  attacked  that  industry. 
Even  then  the  planters  were  not  to  beaten.  They 
turned  their  attention  to  te,a.  Dead  or  dying  coffee 
was  cut  out,  and  the  land  planted  up  with  the  new 
pro  luct.  The  planters  had  to  learn,  and  then  teach 
their  employes,  and  entirely  new  industry,  a uevv 
system  of  cultivation — plus  the  new  processes 
of  plucking  the  tia-leaf  and  working  it  up  in'o 
made  tea,  a work  requiring  intelligence  and  un- 
remitting attention.  Fresh  capital  was  needed  for 
the  new  planting,  as  well  as  for  expensive  tea- 
making  machinery.  All  this  was  successfully  accom- 
plished, and  for  many  years  now  the  tea  has  been 
thriving  and  paying  its  owners  well  throughout 
great  tracts  of  laid,  including  not  merelj'  the  dis- 
tricts in  which  coffee  once  llourished,  but  others 
in  which  coffee  was  tried  unsuccessfully,  and  also 
entirely  new  disuicts  opened  in  the  lovveountry. 
It  would  be  diflicult  to  speak  too  warmly  in  praise 
of  this  remarkable  achievement.  The  success  was 
won  by  a singular  combination  of  dogged  persever- 
ance with  alert  and  adroit  enterprise  in  new  departures, 
aided  by  the  resolute  and  cordial  manner  in  which 
tho_  planters  worked  together  for  their  common 
advancement. 
That  the  stream  of  Tamil  coolie  labour  from  India 
should  have  returned  after  the  crisis  of  1879  argues 
two  thing.s.  First,  the  poverty  of  the  coolies  in  their 
Indian  home,  and  secondly,  that  on  the  whole  they 
are  fairly  treated  by  the  planters. 
Since  tea-planting  was  extended  into  the  low- 
country,  Sinhalese  villagers  have  shown  more  dis- 
position to  come  in  and  work  on  the  estates  as 
coolies,  though  in  an  intermittent  manner.  Yet  I 
doubt  if  the  Sinhalese,  who  are  attached  to  their 
own  village  life,  will  ever  furnish  a large  labour  con- 
tingent to  the  planter. 
A little  coffee  lingers  in  diminishing  amount. 
Cacao  succeeds  well  within  a restricted  area.  Tea, 
so  f.ir,  has  been  a persistent  and  increasing  success. 
Whether  this  success  will  endure,  or  whether  tea 
will  some  day  share  the  fate  of  coffee,  who  can  say  ? 
There  may  hereafter  be  diflicullies  to  surmount  in  the 
way  of  labour  supply  and  fuel ; but  the  poor  soil 
and  forcing  climate  seem  more  favourable  for  a leaf- 
product  like  tea  than  for  a fruit- product  gucli  as 
coffee.  At  present  there  are  absolutely  no  signs  of 
a falling-off  in  the  production.  More  than  300,000 
acres  are  now  under  tea. 
Excellent  and  meritorious  as  this  planting  enter- 
prise is,  its  value  to  the  native  community  may  be, 
and  often  is.  exaggerated.  It  is  essentially  a Euro- 
pean enterprise,  and  its  bonelits  in  the  main  are  for 
Europeans.  The  profits  go  to  Europie,  and  are  not 
invested  in  the  island,  and  the  larger  part,  though 
not  the  whole,  of  what  is  paid  out  by  the  planter 
goes  to  the  Indian  coolies  and  not  to  natives  of  the 
island. 
Mr.  J.  L.  Hii.iXU  * . As 
regards  tiie  development  of  the  country  by  the 
planting  cnterpri.se,  Mr.  Clarence  has  siioken 
jiretty  accurately  up  to  1873  ; then,  he  says,  the 
wild  ' gaiabling  speculation  set  in.  Now  1 was 
connected  at  th.at  time  with  the  planting  enter- 
prise, and  1 object  to  being  set  down  as  a wild, 
gambling  .speculator.  Facilities  for  expanding 
the  enterprise  by  the  aid  of  borroweil  money 
were  everywhere  opened  ni',  money  was  sent 
out  from  home,  banks  w'cre  ready  with  ad- 
vances ; what  a nii-serable  creature  a inan 
would  be,  under  these  circumstances  who 
did  not  take  advantage  of  them  ! The  enter 
prise  came  to  grief  by  "a  mysterious  fungus  which 
attacked  our  collee,  ami  that,  and  that  alone,  was 
the  sole  cause  oi  the  failure  of  the  collee  enterpri.-ie. 
I do  not  tiiink  there  was  any  gambling  or  any 
wildnir-s  in  that  speculation  at  all.  Then  ho 
draws  rather  a gruesome  jiicture  of  our  unfortu- 
nate circumstances  at  that  time  and  lays  what 
I (liiiil.-  midne  sf ri'ss  on  the  lact  that  Oil  some 
