THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Nov.  2,  1896. 
318 
eccUngon  the  bug,  and  recommended  that  the 
services  of  a Government  expert  be  called  for 
to  pursue  his  investigations.  It  is  with  dilli- 
dence  that  we  venture  to  disagree  with  Mr. 
Newport  in  this  matter,  to  whicli  he  has  now 
for  so  many  months  given  his  closest  attention. 
Yet  we  think  that  the  very  face  of  the  species 
being  indigenous  militates  against  their  value. 
They  have  all  tlie  conditions  reciuired  for  their 
speedy  nml  tiplic.ations  and  conse([uent  destruc- 
tion of  bug,  so  why  is  bug  found  at  all  in  South 
Indian  cotl'ee?  What  is  the  factor  that  i)reserves 
the  balance  of  nature  in  this  instance?  We 
would  make  a shrewd  guess  in  sng»esting  that 
the  presence  of  parasites  will  probably  be  found 
to  have  a great  deal  to  do  with  it.  We  are 
strongly  of  the  opinion  that  if  Government  aid 
be  invoked  at  all,  it  should  primaiily  be  directed 
towards  the  importation  of  those  varieties 
which  have  acliieved  sucli  .signal  success  in 
Hawaii.  The  matter,  we  think,  is  how- 
ever essentially  one  for  exi)eriment — argument  is 
more  or  less  out  of  place.  In  conclusion  we  trust 
.Mr.  Newi>ort  will  continue  his  important  im’estga- 
tions,  whether  Government  ahl  be  obtained  or 
not:  the  value  of  sucli  original  re.search  cannot 
easily  be  over-estimated. 
W^'e  m.ay  mention  here  that  the  late  Dr.  Nietner, 
in  “The  Coffee  Tree  and  its  Knemies  ” ad- 
vertised elsewhere,  published  a description  of  tlie 
Chilocorus  circuindatas,  a kind  of  lady-bird  jiarasite 
feeding  on  tbe  Brown  or  Scaly  Bug,  generally 
called  the  Blat;k  Bug,  Lecaninm  coffeo’.  The 
work  was  ininted  in  Ceylon  in  188(5. 
Since  writing  the  above  we  notice  two  com- 
munications of  interest  in  the  Cci/loii  Obaerver, 
the  first  one  being  a letter  from  Mr.  Ernest  Green, 
the  author  of  the  coming  book  on  the  Cocciu;e 
of  Ceylon,  on  the  subject  of  the  fund.  * ♦ * 
The'  next  is  a letter  from  the  inevitable  wet- 
blanket,  whose  remarks  liowever  it  is  only  fair 
to  pnblisli  as  giving  the  other  side  of  the  ques- 
tion. Our  contemporary,  the  Ciscrw/-,  it  is  need- 
less to  add,  attaches  but  the  slightest  importance 
to  tlie  views  of  its  correspondent.  — Planting 
Opinion,  Sept.  2G. 
BUITISII  CENTU.'VL  AEKIC.A  ClJllUENT 
CtI.\T. 
Pulping  has  been  in  full  swing  during  the  last 
month  on  all  the  low  elevation  estates. 
We  understand  that  Messrs.  Foulkes  and  Pigott 
intend  setting  up  their  machine  on  one  of  the  Lake 
Nyasa  islands  and  treating  Saiiserviera  Ci/linclnca 
p£0jxip)  which  is  said  to  be  abundant  in  awild 
condition  on  the  Lake  Nyasa  islands,  riioy  have  ob- 
tained a concession  from  Government  for  this  purpose. 
While  most  readers  of  Li/e  and  U'ork  will  be  thank- 
ful for  the  medical  notes  at  present  appearing  we 
fear  some  of  the  remarks  will  not  be  appreciated 
owing  to  their  evident  absurdity,  e.g.  the  following 
“ The  preparation  of  palatable  coffee  is  a task 
which  up  to  the  picseut  time  lias  baffled  the  en- 
deavours  of  luosti  colfee-planters  in  I’ritisn  Lentiai 
Africa,”  etc.  ^r-  1 
We  have  yet  to  learn  that  Dr.  McVicar  has  sam- 
nled  the  coffeo  brewed  by  “most”  coffee-planters  in 
1}  C A.  If  he  has  he  must  have  been  doing  little 
else  since  bis  arrival  at  Blantyre  only  some  three 
months  ago.  Dr.  McVicar  is  evidently  anxious  to 
nlace  the  results  of  his  specialised  training  at  the 
disposal  of  the  B.  C.  A public  and  the  effort  is  a 
lauLble  one.  It  is  to  be  hoped  therefore  that  he 
will  not  prejudice  his  readers  by  indulging  in  criti- 
dsms  which  are  only  the  result  of  a throe  months 
planter’s  coffeo  may  be  bad  is  further  not 
necessarily  due  cither  to  incompetence  or  laziness. 
It  may  be  due,  we  would  suggest,  to  pressure  of 
work.  Wc  have  known  missionaries  whose  coffee 
would  not  pass  muster  at  a cooking  school  but  the 
public  put  it  down  not  to  indolence  or  incompetence 
— but  to  their  absorbing  zeal  for  their  work.  Pos- 
sibly the  public  may  have  been  wrong  but  at  any 
rate  they  felt  it  was  a charitable  verdict  and  so  let 
it  pass. 
Civilization  among  the  natives  is  certainly  mak- 
ing headway.  Malota,  who  has  a coffee  plantation 
out  Midima  way,  is  engaged  in  building  a brick 
residence  there  of  no  mean  proportions. 
Mr.  Schippers  is  confident  that  when  the  people 
of  Holland  know  more  about  the  possibilities  of 
B.  C.  A.  as  a coffee  growing  country  they  will  not 
be  slow  to  invest  in  our  staple  product. — Central 
African  Planter. 
GllITICISMS  ON  BRITISH  CENTRAL  AFRICA. 
We  publish  in  another  column  a letter  written  to 
the  Zanzibar  Gazette  in  reply  to  criticisms  made  by 
Mr.  Rhodes  Morgan,  Deputy  Conservator  of  Forests, 
I.  F.  S.  on  B.  C.  A.  Mr.  Morgan  was  interviewed 
by  the  liomhay  Gazette  and  his  chief  points  against 
the  country  were,  (1)  that  it  was  malarious,  (‘2)  that 
leaf-disease  might  break  out,  (3)  that  the  disco- 
very of  gold  would  ruin  our  labour  supply,  (1)  that 
cattle  manure  was  almost  impossible  to  get  and 
artificial  manures  were  out  of  the  question 
owing  to  high  freights.  As  the  rejoinder  points  out 
these  criticisms  are  easily  disc  lunted  and  they  shew 
but  a superficial  knowledge  of  this  country.  'The 
only  point  which  is  really  serious  is  the  menace  to 
our  labour  supply  should  gold  be  discovered.  It  is 
not  however  likely  to  be  found  in  B.C.A.  and  should 
it  be  discovered  in  payable  quantities  in  the  B.S.A. 
Coy’s  territory  a wise  Administration  could  easily 
frame  such  regulations  as  would  prevent  the  dis- 
organization of  our  labour  supply.  The  B.S.A.  Ter- 
ritory, unlike  the  Rand,  has  a native  population  of 
millions  to  draw  from  so  that  it  would  not  be 
necessary  to  recruit  labourers  in  B.  C.  A.  Such 
criticisms  as  Mr.  Morgan’s  may  do  some  good  in  keep- 
ing the  wrong  sort  of  man  out  of  the  country  for 
B.  C.  A.  is  no  place  for  “ armchair  ” planters.  Under 
a wise  and  beneficent  government  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  B.  C.  A.  will  become  one  of  the  foremost 
states  in  Africa.  We  have  a unique  geographical 
position;  the  country  is  at  such  an  elevation  as  to 
make  it  fairly  health  and  development  will  make  it 
healthier  still ; we  have  high  plateaus  suitable  for 
sanatoriums  within  easy  reach  of  nearly  every 
part  of  the  {irotectorate  , wc  have  already  got  tele- 
graphic communication  and  a railway  is  certain 
within  the  next  three  years.  All  that  is  required  is 
capital  and  energy,  the  one  without  the  other  will 
not  suffice,  but  the  prospects  for  the  two  combined 
are  of  the  beat.  In  saying  “ all  that  is  required  ” we 
are  assuming  that  we  have  a government  suited 
to  the  country.  This  however  is  at  present  by  no 
means  the  case  and  the  sooner  the  present  pro- 
visional form  of  government  is  changed  for  a more 
permanent  one  with  a properly  organised  civil 
service  the  better  for  the  country.  Ic  is  rumoured 
that  Sir  Harry  Johnston  will  not  return  and  so  far 
we  have  not  heard  anyone  deplore  the  possible 
contingency.  If  the  rumour  proves  correct  we  also 
hope  it  will  mean  the  end  of  the  present  autocratic 
form  of  goverment  and  the  beginning  of  a new 
regime. — Central  African  Planter  lor  August. 
WvNAAD  Tea. — The  ilevelopineiit  of  tea  in  this 
district  is  inoceeding  apace,  so  fast  in  fact  that 
a recent  Ceylon  visitor  was  .sadly  scared.  He 
returned  to  the  Island  willi  words  of  woe  and 
warning,  declaring  that  it  would  be  sheer  inad- 
ne.ss  for  Ceylon  men  to  think  of  extending,  with 
Wj'iiaad  tea  expanding  so  “ visibly.”  However, 
while  the  sun  is  shining,  wise  men  mean  to 
make  tlieir  hay,  and  there  is  a very  brisk  enquiry 
reported  for  Wynaad  tea  lands  by  Island  planters, 
whom  a stern  Government  nonsuits  in  their  own 
country. — rianting  Opinion,  Sept.  26. 
