Sept,  i,  1896.] 
THE  ['KOPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
157 
iluUftin  iJeV  /lerhier  JJois.tier);  Lc  ijenre  Microtoeiia 
(hi  the  BvUethi  de  la  Snc.ie.te  Jlota)iif/u(;  dr  l’'rtuicr) ; 
Noi'iria'  Indiav.,  IX  and  X.  some  additional  Papaver- 
aceie  and  ^ome  additional  FmiiAriAce-ja  {iu  the  Journal 
bf  the  Asiatic  Socieli/  of  1>ch'juI)\  as  well  ati  some 
minor  teratological  and  morphological  communica- 
tions to  the  same  Society,  ifinally,  in  the  Journal 
of  the  Asiatie  Societi/  of  Bengal,  I published 
the  eighth  portion  of  my  Jfateriah  for  a Flora 
of  the  3/alay  Peninsula',  and  in  the  same 
journal  appeared  descriptions  of  thirtj'-three  now 
species  of  Sikkim  orchids,  by  Mr.  R.  Pantling,  of 
the  Cinchona  Plantation,  and  myself. 
.5,  Libkauy. — A few  books  were  added  to  the  li- 
brary, both  by  purchase  and  in  exchange  for  copies 
of  the  Garden  Annals. 
(i.  Intkrchange  of  Plants  and  Sef.ds. — Full  details 
of  the  issues  and  receipts  of  these  will  be  found  in 
Appendices,  I,  II,  III,  and  IV  ; the  total  issueshaving 
been  30,898  plants  and  2,384  packets  of  seeds,  and 
the  receipts  14,342  plants  and  1,177  packets  of  seeds. 
Amongst  the  collections  of  living  plants  received 
during  the  year  the  most  interesting,  from  a botani- 
cal point  of  view,  was  that  made  in  Assam  by  Dr. 
G.  Watt,  C.I.E.,  during  a tour  which  he  made  in  that 
rovince  in  connection  with  his  researches  into  tea 
lights.  Dr.  Watt’s  collection  consisted  of  no  les% 
than  1,215  plants,  many  of  them  of  much  interest. 
7.  IJoi/d  Botanic  Garden,  Darjeelintj. — This  Garden 
was  worked  during  the  whole  year  by  the  Curator, 
Mr.  W.  A.  Kennedy,  who,  besides  his  duties  in  the 
Garden,  has  charge  of  the  Shrubbery  grounds  and 
of  the  trees  planted  in  various  parts  of  the  station. 
During  the  year  Mr.  Kennedy  carried  out  various 
improvements  on  the  roads  and  conservatories  within 
the  Garden.  A very  remarkable  x>lant  was  added  to 
the  Darjeeling  garden  during  the  ye.rr,  namely,  a 
gigantic  specimen  of  the  beautiful  Australian  fern, 
Todea  harhara.  This  plant  was  the  personal  gift  of 
the  distinguished  botanist,  Baron  Ferdinand  Von 
Miiller,  k.c.m.g.,  f.r.s.,  who  for  many  years  has 
been  the  highest  authority  on  the  botany  of  the 
Australian  Colonies.  Baron  Von  Miiller  has  in  past 
times  presented  many  valuable  plants  to  the  Calcutta 
Garden,  but  this,  his  latest  gift,  outrivals  all  his  pre- 
vious contributions.  The  Todea  which  now  adorns 
tho  Darjeeling  Garden  was  removed  by  the  Baron,  at 
his  own  expense,  from  a lonely  valley  far  distant 
from  his  residence  in  Melbourne.  It  Aveighs  upwards 
of  half  a ton,  and  ought,  when  it  has  had  sufficient 
time  to  explain  its  leaves,  to  form  a magnificent 
object. 
8.  The  budget  allotments  of  funds,  both  for  the 
Calcutta  and  Darjeeling  Gardens,  were  spent  in  full. 
The  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  surplus  plants  and  seeds, 
amounting  to  111,107-1-6  for  the  Calcutta  Garden 
and  to  111,014-8  for  the  Darjeeling  Garden,  were  paid 
into  the  Government  treasuries  as  usual. 
9.  Dr.  Train  (who  had  been  on  furlough  to  Europe) 
returned  to  duty  in  June,  and  since  then  he  has  been 
in  charge ‘of  the  Herbarium.  On  1st  July  Dr.  Train 
w'as  appointed  Trofessor  of  Botany  in  the  Calcutta 
Medical  College  in  place  of  myself,  Government  having 
allowed  me  to  retire  from  that  appointment.  During 
Dr.  Train’s  absence  the  Herbarium  work  was  carried 
on  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Gammie  (of  theChincfiona  Plantation), 
who  on  Dr.  Train’s  return  reverted  to  his  own  appoint- 
ment at  Mungpoo.  For  the  first  eleven  Tuonths  of 
the  year  Mr.  R.  L.  Proudlock  held  the  appointment 
of  Curator  of  the  Calcutta  Garden.  Towards  the 
end  of  .January  he  was  transferred  to  the  Curator- 
ship  of  the  Government  Garden  at  Ootacamund, 
and  his  place  here  was  tilled  by  Mr.  Lane  (the  As- 
sistant Curator),  who  returned  during  the  year  from 
Allahabad,  where  he  had  held  an  acting  appoint- 
ment. Mr.  Lane’s  place  on  the  staff  of  this  Gar- 
den was  in  turn  tilled  by  Mr.  Davies,  who  had  previ- 
ously been  a probationer  under  the  new  scheme  for 
providing  a corps  of  gardeners  for  India.  Mr.  Troud- 
iock’s  advancement  lo  the  Ootacamund  Garden  thus 
gave  the  means  of  giving  well-merited  promotion 
to  iiiessrs.  Lane  and  Davies,  whose  work  during 
the  year  has  been  very  satisfactory.  The  offices 
both  of  tbe  Rotanic  Garden  and  of  the  Cinchona 
Plantation  have,  during  the  year,  been  in  charge 
of  Babu  Gopal  Chandra  Datta,  who  has  worked  with 
his  usual  assiduity. 
10.  The  usual  appendices  (six  in  number)  which 
accompany  this  report  give  full  details  as  to  the  dis- 
tribution of  plants,  seeds,  and  Herbarium  specimens. 
SEED  FROM  ARABICA-LIBERIAN  GRAFTS. 
Some  few  years  ago  a considerable  amount  of  in- 
terest was  taken  in  the  subject  of  grafting  the  deli- 
cate but  valuable  Arabica  on  to  the  robust  stock  of 
the  haidier  Liberian.  From  an  account  of  some 
interesting  and  possibly  very  valuable  experiments  in 
this  direccion  carried  out  on  a plantation  in  Coorg, 
we  learn  the  chendes  gathered  from  the  grafted 
plants  show  marked  differences  to  the  ordinary 
Arabica.  They  are  large,  heavy,  with  a thin  cover- 
ing of  skin  and  pulp,  the  very  desirable  result 
of  enlarging  the  bean  and  reducing  its  .cover- 
ing the  beam  and  reducing  its  covering  being  the 
first  decided  score  for  the  grafts,  Some  of  this 
seed  has  been  planted,  and  the  habits  of  these  are 
being  watched  with  care.  The  results  will  be  ex- 
tremely interesting  to  learn.  The  theory  of  grafting, 
as  far  as  we  understand  it,  does  not,  it  is  true, 
promise  very  much,  earlv  and  heavy  cropping 
being  the  general  results  of  the  practice,  with  the 
added  constitutional  strength  of  the  usually  hardier 
stock.  Usually  the  scion  in  this  case  the  Arabica, 
would  be  true  to  the  plant  from  which  it  was  taken; 
but  the  aboA’C  instance  is  a decided  exception.  If 
the  seedlings  follow  in  the  same  footsteps,  there  is 
no  telling  what  discoveries  may  yet  be  in  store  for 
us.  Some  experiments  in  Arab  liberian  hybrids  are 
also  being  carried  on  by  the  same  enterprising  gentle- 
man. By  the  way,  how  is  it  that  we  have  heard 
nothing  of  late  of  Mr,  Brooke-Mockett’s  Mysore 
hybrids  the  accounts  of  which  created  such  a stir  a 
short  two  years  ago  ? — Planting  Ojjuiion,  July  18. 
^ 
A GOOD  CUP  OF  COFFEE. 
The  cultivated  coffee  tree  or  shrub,  writes  Anna  G. 
Murray,  in  the  TopeKa  Capitol,  is  an  evergreen  grow- 
ing from  four  to  five  feet  high  ; its  jasmine-like  floAVers 
forming  in  clusters  at  the  root  of  shiny  leaves,  give 
forth  a delicious  odor.  The  fruit,  like  a purple  cherry 
consists  of  a sweetish  pulp  and  two  seeds,  that  lie 
in  this  pulp,  face  to  face.  The  crop  aveiages  one 
pound  of  beans  to  each  tree,  though  in  the  prolific 
West  Indies  and  Brazil,  where  shrubs  can  be  forced 
to  bloom  eight  months  in  the  year,  three  crops  is  not 
unusual.  Coffee  is  not  native  to  Central  America  or 
the  Indies,  the  first  plants  having  been  brought  to 
Martinique  in  1720,  from  a layer  originally  imported 
from  Mocha,  and  propagated  by  the  Jardindes  Plantes 
of  Paris.  It  is  native  to  Abyssinia  and  Ethiopia,  Avhere 
leaves  as  well  as  the  bean  have  been  used  from  time 
unknoAvn.  It  has  never  been  cultivated  to  any  ex- 
tent in  North  America,  though  there  is  an  indi- 
genous tree,  dubbed  “ Kentucky  coffee  tree,” 
because  the  seeds  were  formerly  much  used  by 
Kentuckians  instead  of  the  imported  coffee.  A recent 
experiment  in  Iowa  with  Rio  grains  has  proved 
however,  that  it  is  possible  to  raise  an  excellent 
grade  of  the  genus  in  the  United  States. 
A German  physician  was  the  first  to  land  coffee 
as  a beverage  to  the  people  of  Europe,  in  1573  and 
it  is  to  another  German  traveler  that  Europe  owes 
the  original  coffee  plants  transplanted  from  the  East. 
The  first  cargo  of  coffee  was  landed  in  1809.  Coffee 
delights  in  a moist  atmosphere,  and  in  dry  climates 
profuse  irrigation  is  necessary  to  the  plant.  After 
picking,  the  ripe  cherries  are  soaked  in  cisterns, 
then  dried  by  sun  flooding  floors  specially  adapted 
to  the  purpose. 
The  dried  pulp  is  then  separated  from  the  seeds 
by  a process  of  sifting,  shovelled  into  sack's  and  con- 
veyed to  the  coast  towns,  where  it  is  roasted  and 
shipped.  The  universal  use  of  coffee  OAves  itself  to 
the  publii’  coffee  houses,  the  first  in  Europe  being 
that  of  C jii^tcntinople  in  1551.  In  Turkey  coffee 
is  so  niuch  a necessity  that  refusal  to  supply  it 
