752 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Mav  I,  1897. 
pened  through  the  same  cause  ou  the  upper  waters  of 
the  Amazon.  If,  then,  this  young  and  most  profitable 
industry  is  to  become  a permanent  source  for  wealth, 
whether  at  Lagos  or  elsewhere,  some  methods  of  insur- 
ing constmcy  of  supply  must  be  adopted.  There  are 
no  ways  by  which  that  might  be  accomplished.  The 
rubber-producing  forests  could  be  leased  on  such  con- 
ditions as  would  give  the  lessees  personal  interest  in 
ipreventing  destructive  “tapping.”  Or,  better  still,  as 
not  confiscating  native  rights  of  free  search,  planta- 
tions might  be  established  at  suitable  places.  Once  the 
trees  reached  maturity,  they  would  continue  to  yield 
the  precious  juice  for  many  years,  if  properly  treated. 
Before  science  turned  its  attention  to  the  matter,  the 
invariable  practice  was  to  bleed  a tree  to  death,  and  it 
is  that  barbarous  method  which  still  obtains  at  Lagos. 
But  by  a new  and  improved  process,  sufficient  vitality 
is  left  in  a “tapped”  tree  for  complete  recovery  and 
future  fruitfulness.  There  seems  to  be  no  reason,  then, 
why  rubber  plantations  should  not  make  as  profitable 
investments  as  tea  or  cinchona  gardens. — S.  F.  Press, 
March  22. 
EXTENSIVE  rUllCHASE  OF  GALLNUTS. 
The  Government  Agent  of  the  Province  of  Uva, 
Baclulla,  notified  that  lie  w'ould  receive  otters  for  th* 
purcnase  of  20,000  bushels,  more  or  less  first  class 
aralu  nuts  on  or  before  April  15th.  We  quote 
as  follow's  from  a paper  by  Mr.  J.  W.  Modder, 
in  the  latest  Ceylon  Forester  : — 
The  tree  is  most  familiarly  known  all  over  the 
Island  by  its  Sinhalese  name  of  “ Aralu-gaha.” 
In  Tamil  it  is  called  the  “ Kadaki-maram.” 
In  commerce  they  are  known  as  Ohebulic  myro- 
balans  and  are  largely  exported  to  Europe  from 
India  anil  even  Ceylon.  In  the  Southern  Circle  of 
Bombay  the  Forest  Department  is  said  to  clear 
annually  a nett  profit  of  a lakh  of  Rupees  by  the 
sale  of  these  fruits  alone.  The  average  annual  ex- 
port from  Ceylon  is  valued  at  about  R22,700  and 
very  nearly  the  whole  of  this  quantity  is  gathered 
in  the  Province  of  Uva.  It  is  said  that  the  Ceylon 
nuts  are  equal  to  the  best  Indian  Myrobalans. 
Uses  of  the  fruits  : The  fruits  are  used  for  dye- 
ing, tanning  and  medicine.  Mixed  with  alum  they 
give  a yellow'  dye,  and  with  iron  clay  a superior 
kind  of  ink.  An  oil  is  extracted  from  the  kernel. 
Fruits  which  are  over  burnt  or  badly  eaten  by 
white  ants  and  unfit  for  any  other  purpose  when 
pounded  and  mixed  with  mortar  strengthens  the  latter 
immensely.  This  addition  is  generally  made  to  the 
mortar  used  for  the  foundations  of  large  and  valuable 
buildings. 
Gall  nuts  bring  the  largest  revenue  under  the 
head  of  “ minor  Forest  produce  ” to  the  Depart- 
ment and  there  is  no  reason  why  the  receipts  under 
this  head  should  not  be  still  further  increased  by 
judicious  treatment  of  these  Forests  departmentally 
with  a view  to  improving  the  condittion  of  the  ex- 
isting trees  and  assisting  reproduction.  The  renters 
pay  R3,500  on  an  average  a year  for  the  right  to 
gather  the  nuts  and  make  a large  profit  over  the 
transaction,  and  there  is  no  reason  why  the  Depart- 
ment should  not  work  the  Gall  Nut  Forest  pro- 
fitabl}’.  Areas  which  yield  gall  nuts  in  the  Uva, 
Eastern  and  Sabaragamuw'a  Provinces  can  be  re- 
served and  worked  by  a special  staff. 
rUODUCE  AND  PLANTING. 
In  Pk.vish  of  Assam. — In  the  last  Ln  Jievuc  de  Paris 
Prince  Henri  of  Orleans  describes  the  final  stage  of 
his  Mekong  exploration,  and  in  doing  so  he  record 
Boino  interesting  facts  concerning  Assam  tea-growing, 
lie  points  out  to  his  countrymen  that  there  were 
three  yijars  ago  close  on  300,000  acres  covered  with 
tea-planti;.  This  enormous  tract  of  land  was  divided 
into  823  estates,  employing  regularly 300,000  labourers, 
as  well  as  a floating  j)opulation  of  100,0(X)  who  are 
called  in  when  necessary.  The  French  Prince  was 
exceedingly  struck  by  the  prosperity  of  Assam.  He 
visited  a number  of  tea  plantations,  and  pays  a 
tribute  to  the  sense  and  good  management 
with  which  they'  were  conducted.  He  points 
out,  and  we  hope  that  he  _ is  correct, 
that  each  superintendent  is  paid  somewhat 
over  a thousand  a year,  and  two  coolies  are 
supposed  to  be  able  to  look  after  one  acre  while 
the  plant  is  actually  growing.  He  goes  on  to  say 
that  the  gathering  of  the  leaves  takes  place  during 
six  months  of  the  year — from  March  to  September 
— and  in  good  j'ears  an  acre  can  yield  as  much  as 
nine  hundred  pounds  of  tea  in  twelve  months.  He 
warns  those  who  are  thinking  of  turning  their  at- 
tention to  Assam  tea  planting  that  a considerable 
capital  is  required,  for  a tea  plantation  can  only  be 
said  really  to  pay  after  three  or  four  years  of  in- 
cessant labour.  With  reference  to  the  labour  questions 
which  seems  to  have  puzzled  Prince  Henry  a little, 
he  points  out  that  the  existing  state  of  things  in 
Assam  seems  to  suit  the  people,  and  he  dwells  on, 
the  advantages  of  the  hospitals  and  schools. 
Useful  KNowLEnoE— Mr.  Christison  is  doing  very 
useful  work  in  the  interests  of  tea  by  continuing  his 
lectures  on  Indian  tea  and  its  manufacturer  in  various 
parts  of  the  country.  Lecturing  at  Watford  last  week 
Mr.  Christison  gave  his  audience  some  interesting 
facts  about  Indian  tea  cultivation.  lie  said  in  India 
there  were  in  1894  423,000  acres  under  tea  cultivation, 
ns  against  305,000  in  1895  in  Ceylon ; and  there 
were  in  other  parts  of  the  British  Empire  small 
pieces,  bringing  up  the  total  area  under  cultivation 
m the  Empire  at  the  present  time  to  probably 
770,000  acres. 
Making  the  Most  of  it. — In  a handbill  issued  by 
a Glasgow  firm  of  tea  dealers  the  advertisers  en- 
deavour to  score  off  the  tea  duty  question.  They 
say  : — “ It  should  be  kept  in  mind  that  every  pound 
weight  of  tea  is  charged  with  an  Imperial  tax  (or 
duty)  of  4d.  Therefore,  if  you  buy  a pound  of  tea 
for  Is,  you  are  paying  8d  for  tea,  whilst  the  remain- 
ing 4d  goes  to  the  Imperial  Government.  If  you  pay 
2s  for  your  pound  of  tea,  your  contribution  in  the 
form  of  taxation  is  still  only  4d,  and  you  will  get,  if 
you  deal  with  an  honest  firm,  the  full  value  of  the 
remaining  Is  8d  in  tea  of  fine  quality.  We  sell  pure 
common  tea  at  Is  per  lb.  (vvonderful  value  for  the 
money),  because  some  people  will  have  it,  but  we  advise 
our  customers  to  go  in  for  quality,  which  is,  after  all, 
the  true  test  of  cheapness.” 
Coffee  Cultivation. — An  effort  is  being  made  in 
India  to  stir  up  increasing  interest  in  coffee  culti- 
vation, and  the  coffee  planters  of  Southern  India 
are  urged  to  form  an  association  at  home  for  push- 
ing the  sale  of  coffee,  and,  in  fact,  to  follow  the 
example  of  those  who  represent  the  Indian  and 
Ceylon  tea  industry.  We  have  in  previous  issues 
Eointed  out  the  course  which,  in  our  opinion,  would 
e likely  to  prove  useful  if  a special  move  is  to  be 
made  in  Indian  coffee,  and  we  have  also  endeavored 
to  show  some  of  the  main  difficulties  in  the  way. 
Meantime,  coffee  cultivation  generally  is  on  the 
increase,  and  in  British  Central  Africa  alone  rapid 
strides  are  being  made.  In  1891  the  first  few  sacks 
were  sent  to  the  London  market,  and  favourably 
reported  on.  In  1895  nearly  170  tons  were  exported, 
last  year  the  total  rose  to  300  tons,  and  this  year 
it  is  expected  that  there  will  be  at  least  600  tons. 
It  is  estimated  that  at  the  end  of  the  century  the 
export  of  coffee  from  the  Shire  highlands  will  amount 
t*  2,000  tons,  and  the  planters  are  agitating  for  the  con- 
struction of  a railway  from  Chiromo  to  Blantyre,  in 
order  to  obviate  the  present  difficulties  of  transport. 
The  Position  of  Cocoa. — The  advance  in  the  price 
of  cocoa  from  the  lowest  point  in  November  last  to 
the  present  date  in  Mincing  Lane  quotations  has  been 
about  6s  to  lOs  perewt.,  chiefly  on  the  common  and 
middling  qualities  of  Jamaica,  Grenada,  Trinidad, 
other  British  West  India,  African,  and  San  Domingo, 
