226 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTQRIS  L 
[Oct.  I,  1896 
to  be  had  in  Mlauji,  an  1 tlie  living  consiste  of  fowls, 
pnnipkins.  and  sweet  potatoes  with  an  oecasi  mal  tin, 
which  is  looked  upon  as  au  extravagaace  and  a 
luxary.  The  puo-ipecjS  of  coffee  ia  Mtiiiji  are  ex- 
celleut,  judging  from  what  I have  soen  at  Mr. 
Bradshaw’s  place,  Monnt  Zion,  and  equals  anything 
I have  seen  in  Ceylon,  India  or  Brazil.  The  s >il, 
although  it  has  an  absense  of  rock  or  stone,  and 
is  of  a chocolate  colour,  seems  to  be  admirably 
adapted  for  coffee.  lu  my  opinion  Liberian  coffee 
would  do  extremely  well  here  and  would  not  be 
here  so  much  effected  by  borer  and  insects  which 
are  the  pests  of  the  country. 
Tea  also  would  grow  well,  but  would  bo  greatly 
handicapped  by  the  labour  supply,  which  is  always 
short  during  the  wet  mouths. 
Cardamoms  grow  wild  in  abundance,  but  as  yet 
I have  heard  of  no  one  giving  them  a trial,  but 
Mr.  Crabbe  tells  me  he  has  written  to  his  firm  for 
a shipment  of  seed. 
Tobacco  is  also  cultivated  by  Buropeans  out  here, 
Messrs.  Buchanan  Bros,  have  gone  in  for  this  in- 
dustry on  a large  scale;  it  is  usually  smoked  by 
the  residents,  and  has  a very  nice  flavour.  Another 
gloom  was  cast  over  t'ne  whole  country  the  other 
day  by  the  sudden  death  of  Mr.  Bobert  Buchanan 
from  blackwater  fever  at  Blantyre.  It  is  indeed 
sad  that  tsvo  brothers  and  members  of  the  largest 
linn  should  die  within  a mouth  of  each  other. 
This  is  the  third  Buchanan  who  has  met  his  death 
from  fever  in  this  country.  I certainly  should  ad- 
vise no  one  to  come  out  here  unless  they  are 
provided  with  a good  consideration,  and  prepared 
to  lead  a lonely  life,  for  it  is  an  undeniable  (act 
that  fever  is  prevalent  throughout  the  country,  and 
especially  where  new  land  is  being  opened,  and 
although  I fully  believe  B.  C.  A.  is  bound  to  go 
ahead,  yet  I should  recommend  no  one  to  come 
out  on  spec. — I am,  &c  , 
AN  INDIAN  BLANTEE. 
Nyassaland,  May  2iiad,  18'J(5. 
THE  COFFEE  PLANTEU 
By  W.  W. 
The  life  of  a coffee  planter  i i the  Mysore  Province 
has  very  much  to  recommend  it,  in  spite  of  the 
vexatious  labour  (uiestion.  What,  after  all,  are  the 
planters’  cares,  compared  with  the  positive  hard- 
ships of  existence  endured  uncomplainingly  by  the 
settlers  in  the  bush  of  Australia,  or  the  sheep  farmers 
of  Newzealand  '! 
Is  the  labour  tiuestion  hero  equal  in  importance 
to  the  rabbit  pest,  drought,  bush  lires,  hnrricanos, 
and  floods  with  which  the  Colonists  have  to  recon? 
Then  there  are,  in  the  Colonics,  discomforts  of  no 
trilling  nature  to  the  man  brought  up  in  a good 
En<^lish  home,  to  which  perforce.  Im  must  submit. 
These  embrace  the  necessity  of  doing  everything 
for  oneself — where  servants  are  but  a name,  and  one 
must  rough  it  generally  with  the  paid  hinds. 
Contrast  this  with  the  condition.s  under  wiiich  the 
coffse  planter  vvorks.  In  his  case  there  is  the  com- 
fortable bungalow,  always  adequately  furuislioJ,  and 
not  infrequently  a luxurious  residence,  reared  upon 
some  commanding  site,  giving  a p.inoramio  view  of 
the  encircling  lulls  with  their  glorious,  ever-changing 
depths  of  colouring ; the  breezy  downs,  and  the 
dense  primjval  forest,  in  clearings  of  which  are 
the  close  ranks  of  tlie  coffee  plant — scenting  the 
air  with  sweetness  from  its  dainty  white  blossom. 
A home  amid  surroundings  such  as  would  delight 
the  soul  of  ths  poet  ! 
The  planter  is  not  so  tar  remove  1 from  iMilway 
communication  that  ho  need  deny  hims.df  any  of 
the  pleasure.s  of  life.  His  bungalow  is  usually  well, 
if  not  liberally,  supplied  with  oreaturj  comforts, 
which  co.st  him  but  a trifle  more  than  they  woii.d 
do  in  B.ingalore— not  a matter  of  much  consi  ler- 
alion  to  the  man  who  soils  his  crop  at  some  iiinety- 
kvo  shillings  per  hundred  weight,  and  realizes  au 
iuoomo  of  thousands  of  pounds  annually  1 There 
are  fairly  goodroads  round  and  about  the  estates, 
enabling  the  planters  to  visit  oach  other  as  often 
as  they  wise,  so  that  no  feeling  of  isolation  need 
be  thought  of  as  a factor  in  the  life,  whilst  there 
is  a fl  nuisliing  and  commodious  club  at  Chickma- 
galur,  where  many  a jovial  evening  is  spent.  Noi- 
ls the  coffee  planter’s  work  of  an  incessant  nature. 
He  has  all  his  energies  exercised  to  the  full  during 
certain  seasons  of  the  year,  and  much  auxiety  as 
to  crop  prospects,  leaf  disease,  and  the  dreaded 
“ borer,”  but  when  the  harvest  is  in  and  despatched 
for  shipment,  and  the  coffee  has  been  pruned  and 
otherwise  treated  for  the  ensuing  season,  the  planter 
has  his  holiday  and  may  have  a run  home  at  the 
most  enjoyable  time  of  the  year — for  England,  or 
enjoy  tne  term  of  his  freedom  in  travelling  about 
the  country.  What  rest  has  the  Australian  squatter, 
or  the  New  .Zealand  sheep  farmer  ? Tne  man  “ in 
indigo,”  on  the  Baugal  side,  has,  perhaps,  a pretty 
good  all-round  time  of  it.  He,  too,  has  his  time 
of  work  and  tlien  of  rest,  and  his  cares  are  for 
the  crop  and  market  rates  of  the  dye.  He  is  not, 
we  believe,  distressed  on  the  score  of  labour,  and 
in  this  respect  has  the  pull  over  the  coffee  planter. 
The  Assam  tea-man  is  a martyr ! his  life  isn’t 
worth  living.  A trip  by  river  steamer  as  far  as 
Dibriigurh,  will  convince  anyone  that  the  pestilen- 
tial jungles  of  Assam,  whilst  contributing  largely 
to  the  output  of  Indian  tea,  are  accountable  for 
a fearful  deatlirate  amongst  the  planters.  Certain 
places  along  the  banks  of  the  treacherous  upper 
reaches  of  the  Brahmapootra  are  pointed  out  to  the 
voyaging  stranger  as  The  white  man’s  grave,”* 
meaning  that  in  those  particular  districts  no  white 
man  could  live  for  any  length  of  time.  Then,  planters 
who  hoard  a steamer  for  a day’s  riiii  to  some  other 
landing  place  will  toll  the  stranger  that"  they  come 
abroad  for  breath  of  fresh  air  to  knock  the  fever 
out  of  them.  Poor  fellows,  they  look  as  though  a 
puff  of  wind  would  knock  the  life  out  of  them. 
With  these  brief  comparisons  before  us,  how  much 
better  is  the  lot  of  the  Mysore  coffee  planter  ? ex- 
cepting the  *'  man  in  indigo,”  but  even  he  works 
in  the  hot  plains,  and  has  no  elevated  site  for  his 
bungalow. 
The  labour  question  for  tho  coffee  planter  will, 
ajapareutly,  soon  be  solved,  and  with  the  regulations 
which  will  then  come  into  force,  one  of  the  chiefest 
obstacles  of  the  industry  will  be  removed.  With 
labour  arraugerneuts  then  offering  no  difficulties, 
wc  wouhl  suggest  that  the  planters  might  and  it 
very  distinctly  to  their  interest,  and  a guard  against 
adverse  seasons  with,  possibly,  lower  rates  in  the 
near  future  for  coffee,  were  they  to  utilize  such 
portions  as  their  holding  which  are  unfitted  for 
their  staple  crop,  in  raising  some  other  marketable 
commodity.  Were  tliis  suggesiion  carried  out,  the 
plant  r,  could  face  a bad  season,  or  a fall  in 
prices,  with  comparative  equanimity.  A i-efcrence 
to  the  .'\Iadras  Agri  Horticultural  Society  would  elicit 
sufficient  informatiou  for  practical  experiments.  Why 
not  raise  the  sugar-beet  ? Tho  country  is  well  ad- 
apted for  its  growth,  and  it  has  many  claims  over 
cane,  which  it  has,  to  au  enonnuus  extent,  crowded 
out  of  the  market. — Planters’  Gazette. 
-- 
CETLON  TE.\  IN  AMERICA. 
AN'  ICXl’ERIEXCl'.D  J’E.VNTER  AND  CHIN.V  lUJVER 
ON  THE  .SURJECT. 
Sir,— Having  just  returned  from  a trip  through 
the  Eastern  States  and  Canada,  I thought  your 
reader.s  inigiit  be  interested  in  hsaring  the  result 
of  my  observations  on  the  subject  of  tho  demand 
and  use  of,  Ceylon  teas  there.  To  commence  with 
San  Fruicisco,  1 find  the  sale  of  your  staple  i.s 
but  very  slowly  increasing  tho  reasons  bein‘>-  that 
the  deinind  here  rum  principally  on  stron coiu- 
nion  cheap  teas,  ami  teas  of  a finer  grade’  havind 
a good  deal  of  “stylo"  about  them  and  not  too 
sfronij. 
ill  the  lirst  grade  Ceylon  cannot  compote  with 
China  as  a “good  leaf  for  tho  money”  goes,  say 
