Jan.  I,  1897.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST^ 
457 
SELANGOR  PLANTERS’  ASSOCIATION. 
The  following  are  extracts  from  the  minutes  of 
a General  Meeting  held  at  the  Selangor  Club  on 
Saturday,  21st  November. 
Read  letter  from  the  Colonial  Secretary  in  reply  to 
the  Hon.  Sec.,  S.P.A.,  re  “ An  Ordinance,  for  the 
Protection  of  Indian  Immigrants.”  Resolved  that 
the  Hon.  Sec.  should,  as  suggested  by  the  Colonial 
Secretary,  apply  to  the  Resident-General  for  inform- 
ation as  to  whether  fresh  legislation  on  colonial 
lines  is  meditated  for  each  or  all  of  the  Confederated 
States. 
The  Draft  Federal  Produce  Protection  Enactment, 
1897,  was  discussed  and  it  was  resolved  that  the 
following  additions  be  recommended  to  Government 
— viz.,  that  “ plantation  ” shall  include  in  addition, 
pepper,  nutmegs,  ramie  and  rubber ; That  ‘‘  pro- 
duce ” shall  also  include  “ sap  ; ” That  in  para  4, 
the  words  “ nutmeg  tree  ” and  “ sap  of  the  rubber 
tree”  be  added. 
The  following  resolution,  proposed  by  Mr.  Carey 
and  seconded  by  Mr.  Walker  was  carried  unanimously 
— viz.,  •'  That  Government  be  urged  to  throw  open 
the  Magistrates’  Courts  of  the  Federated  States  to 
legal  practitioners  of  status  and  position,  the  large 
vested  interests  of  capitalists  deserving  in  the  opinion 
of  this  Association  more  adequate  protection  than 
that  afforded  at  present.” 
Read  letter  from  Mr.  Gunn  re  closing  market  prices 
and  it  was  decided  that  all  the  planting  members  of 
the  Association  be  invited  to  support  the  project 
on  the  basis  of  a pro  rata  payment  for  each  estate, 
or  group  of  estates  owned  by  the  same  proprietors. 
A sufficient  number  of  the  members  present  having 
signified  their  wish  to  join  in  the  scheme,  it  was 
agreed  that  the  offer  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Sin- 
gapore Exchange  should  be  closed  with. 
Mr.  Dalrymple  was  elected  a member  of  the  As- 
sociation. 
^ 
NOTES  FROM  THE  METROPOLIS. 
Via  Genoa,  Nov.  16. 
THE  DUMONT  COFFEE  COMPANY. 
Possibly  you  may  have  heard  by  telegraph  of 
Mr.  G.  A.  Talbot’s  very  reassuring  report  on  the 
property  of  this  Company.  It  was,  indeed,  a 
very  wise  move  to  send  Mr.  Talbot  across  to 
Brazil ; for  he  lias  . riot  only  had  a long  and 
varied  experience  ) hilt  is  noted  for  his  caution  and 
has  a special  C^lpn  reputation  at  stake.  When, 
therefore,  Mr.  Talbot  reports  so  favourably,  <as 
be  does  in  his  “cablegram”  to  Mr.  Rutherford, 
of  the  Dumont  property,  it  is  rpiite  evident  to 
all  who  know  them  both  that  the  position  of 
the  Company  ought  to  be  greatly  strengthened. 
THE  LANKA  PLANTATIONS  COMPANY 
has  had  a successful  annual  meeting,  at  which  a 
favourable  report  h.as  been  adopted  and  a satis- 
factory dividend  declared. 
The  affairs  of  the 
OPIENTAL  HANK  ESTATES  CO. 
are,  however,  not  yet  settled,  although  the  Com- 
mittee of  investigation  or  arrangement,  lias  had 
several  meetings  and  gone  to  a good  deal  of  trouble. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  valuable  assets 
owned  by  the  Company  if  only  a fair  st.art 
could  be  got.  The  Mauritius  management  of 
the  Company’s  affairs,  I see,  is  blamed  in  a letter 
to  a Financial  paper  and  a change  called  for. 
If  only  there  could  be  a separation  of  Ceylon 
and  Mauritius  interests  w'itli  a dilferent  Board 
for  each,  it  might  be  a case  of  plain  sailing ; 
and  there  could  scarcely  be  a more  favourable 
time  than  this,  for,  rvith  the  troubles  in  Cuba 
and  the  Philippines,  it  looks  as  if  Mauritius 
57 
might  have  “a  good  time.”  Let  tho.se  v/ho 
know,  and  believe  in,  the  Sugar  Island  get 
their  own  Company  for  the  estates  and  busi- 
ness there ; while  iinttin?  the  Ceylon  business 
and  estates  under  a Company  supported  by  those 
who  know  about  our  island,  its  ])roducts  and 
prospects. 
A lecturer  on  Hygiene  of  high  standing  in 
Lonrlon  has  recently  been  recommending  the 
drinking  of  a decoction  not  of  “ Cocoa  or 
“ Cacao”  nibs,  birt  one  made  from  the  husk, 
or  what  is  known  in  the  trade  as 
“COCOA  .SHELL.?”! 
He  mentioned  that  these  could  be  bought  at 
4d.  a lb.  and  that  the  preparation  was  specially 
valuable  to  brain-workers  because  of  the  large 
proportion  of  pho.sphorus — he  was  lecturing 
mainly  to  an  assembly  of  clergy.  .Some  years 
ago,  I announced  in  the  Observer,  the  use  of 
these  cocoa  husks  for  a palatable  drink  and 
how  one  West  End  clergyman  regularly  u.sed  it 
in  his  family  (along  with  their  servants) — gave  it 
the  preference  over  tea  or  coffee — and  Avho, 
moreover,  bought  their  supply  by  the  bagful 
from  the  Cocoa-preparing  Factory  at  the  low 
rate  of  l^d  per  lb.  I have  verytied  this  account 
and  finil  that  the  experience  continues  and  the 
price  has  not  risen. 
The  question  now  arises,  whether  the 
COFFEE  HUSKS,  OR  CHAFF 
from  Colombo  mills— alas  1 a greatly  diminished 
quantity — might  not  be  utilised  in  the  same  way. 
Probably  they  are  not  so  rich  as  cocoa  husks  ; 
but  the  experiment  may  be  worth  trying. 
I have  just  heard  from  the  editor  of  The 
Friend  that  the  Society  of  Friends  has  noY^  de- 
finitely taken  up  the  Industrial  Mission  to  Pemba 
(Zanzibar)  in  the  interests  of  the  Freedmen  with 
a view  to  employing  them  in  the 
CLOVE  AND  COCONUT 
“Shambas  ” ; and  that  Mr.  Theodore  Burtt,  sails 
in  the  P.  Sz  0.  ss.  “ Caledonia”  from  Marseilles 
on  2nd  January,  to  take  up  the  superintendence 
of  the  Mission.  I have  been  applied  to  for  copies 
of  our  Planting  Manuals, — “All  about  Spices,* 
copies  of  which  I have  much  pleasure  in  placing 
at  the  disposal  of  so  deserving  a Mission. 
VOGAN  TEA  COMPANY  OF  CEYLON,  LD 
An  extraordinary  general  meeting  of  this  Com* 
jrany  was  held  on  the  12th  ultimo.,  for  the 
purpose  of  authorizing  the  directors  to  accept  the 
purchase  of  land,  ai^gregating  about  210  acres, 
made  by  their  authority  on  the  30th  November 
and  1st  December  last,  and  to  issue  debentures 
from  time  to  time  as  required  for  the  purposes  of 
the  Company,  the  aggreg  ite  not  to  exceed  R100,000 
at  7 per  cent  interest  or  less. 
THE  KANAPEDI  WATTE  TEA  CO.,  LD. 
The  latest  of  the  new  Tea  Companies  registered 
is  the  Kanapediwatte  Tea  Co. , Ld.,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  .accjuiring  .and  working  the  Kanapedi- 
watte, Blackford,  and  St.  Cuthbert’s  estates,  situ- 
ated in  the  Pussellawa  and  Ulapane  districts. 
The  signatories  to  the  Memorandum  of  Associ- 
ation are  Messrs.  W.  Kingsbury,  E.  M.  Shattock 
by  his  attorney  W.  Kingsbury,  A.  J.  Gordon 
Field,  Reginald  Jolin,  A.  M.  Caldicott  Smith, 
E.  H.  A.  Vanderspar  and  A.  Alex,  Hankey, 
