158 
THE TKOPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Sept, i, 1897 . 
iii the negative. Though direct evidence may 
be wanting, tracing plants from the seed in the 
nursery to their growth duly Labelled, until they 
fruit, the experience of observant people cor- 
responds with the general belief among, what 
may be called, the uneducated classes, that 
sweet orange seeds do not invariably produce 
sweet orange plants. The testimony of Professor 
McOwan, in his Manual of Practical Orch.ard 
Work for Cape Colony, is quoted in the follow- 
ing terms : — 
‘‘It would therefore appear that the colony pos- 
sessed in the irst instance excellent named sorts of 
this delicious fruit, but by the cultural error of pro- 
pagating by seeds a mongrel race has sprung up, 
which does justice neither to the exceptionally suit- 
able climate of the Cape nor to the possibilities of the 
ruit itself.” 
And the Professor thus quotes an eminent Florida 
grower ! — 
“ Do not let any man or number of men in a 
pomological convention induce yon to establish a 
seedling orange grove. If you do, you will some of 
these fine days wake up from a Eip-Van-Winkle 
dream and find yourself as far behind the age as he 
is reppresented to have been. 
“No two seedling orange trees will ever produce 
fruit exatly alike, consequently your fruit will become 
promiscuous and variable in character and quality, 
and your neighbours who have selected known and 
uniform varieties will find a more ready demand and 
sale at fully 50 per cent advance on what you can get 
for your mixed promiscuous fruit.” 
Another authority, while admitting that “seed- 
lings of the sweet orange produce fruit similar to 
those produced by the parent,” observes that 
“there is yet mmh variation in the fruit from 
such seedlings.” Now, these are important facts 
to remember by those who would engage in 
orange culture— that a sweet orange seed Jiiay 
produce a tree bearing sour or bitter fruit, and 
that if the tree be true to type as regards sweet- 
ness, the quality of the fruit may be very differ- 
ent from that of the parent tree. In regard to the 
production of the “ bitter sweet orange,” we have 
curious conlirmation from a Veyangoda planter, 
who has a grove of sweet and sour oranges 
planted by the former proprietor as sweet, and 
whose own plantation of sweet from seed has 
produced different varieties. Last year one of 
these plants had a first crop of a few fruits which 
he took for large rough skinned oranges. They 
ripened yellow and looked very tempting ; but 
when cut the rind was almost as thick as that of 
the shaddock, without the spongy protuberance at 
the stem ; while the taste was different from both 
the orange and the shaddock. He finds no diffi- 
culty in calling it now a bitter sweet ! The 
remedy for this variation from tyjie is said to be 
grafting ; and here is what Mr. Hart writes : — 
“ We can say without hesitation grafted plants for 
choice, if planters can afford it ; for though costing 
more, it is true economy in the long run. Such plants 
will fruit earlier, will be true to name, will deceive 
no one, will allow the grower to put 'a regular class 
of fruit upon the market ; their quality can be de- 
pended upon, and a fruit can be grown exactly to 
suit the grower’s taste, or to suit any particular 
demand. Grafted plants will certainly be much 
dearer to plant than seedlings, and at present few 
would invest at the rates which would be charged 
for them ; but if a certain and continuous demand 
arose, this price would certainly be reduced and 
grafted trees would be sold at reasonable rates.” 
This i.s one direction in which the Koyal Botanic 
Gardens and the School of Agriculture should 
combine their force.s for the public good, by 
raising grafts, giving “demonstrations” of the 
best methods of grafting, and teaching practical 
grafting as a special subject. The article itself is 
so interesting, and likely to prove so useful, that 
we shall reproduce it in full in the Tropical Agri- 
culturist. As we have said, the orange is one of 
our commonest fruits and it is grown in almost 
every native garden ; -but— as usual in the case of 
Sinhalese — without any attention to cultivation. 
We have tasted oranges of splendid flavour, equal 
to anything ■we have tried on the Continent of 
Euro])e or in England : but the flavour can be 
ascertained only after tasting the fruit ! The 
general belief is that oranges grown on the sea- 
borde, or in the low- country, are far superior to 
those grown upcountry. If the verdict be correct, 
what is tire explanation? Meanwhile, we trust 
that what we have written may stimulate investi- 
gation and experiments. 
BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS. 
The news comes from Cambridge that the special 
Board for Biology and Geology has voted £100 t« 
Mr. H. H. W. Pearson, B.A., of Christ’s College in 
aid of his expenses in visiting Ceylon for the purpose 
of making Botanical Investigations, the grant being 
conditional on the recipient reporting to the 
Vice Chancellor the results of investigations in 
a form suitable for publication. The grant is 
made from the “Wort’s TravellingScholars’ Fund.” 
A grant of £300 is also made to Dr. Haddon 
for anthropological researches in Torres Straits. 
As Mr. Pearson comes from the same College as 
Mr. Willis of Peradeniya, they will no doubt 
co-operate heartily in the work to be undertaken. — 
London. Cor., loccal “ Indejtendent.” [Dr. Haddon 
is Professor Alfred C. Haddon also of Christ 
College who spent a year in Torres Straits and 
New Guinea some time ago. Professor Haddon 
is an enthusiastic Naturalist and Antliropologist. 
—Ed. T.A.-] 
PLANTING IN JAVA. 
(From a Correspondent.) 
I have a letter from Java in which I get the 
following information Java soil is a long way 
ahead of Ceylon, but for alt that they have 
many difficulties to overcome. Labour is scarce, 
and very bad at its best. Cholera is very bad 
in Soorabaya. Sugar planting is almost at a 
standstill owing to heavy fall in prices. They 
expect a very heavy crop. 
^ 
A TRIP TO THE TKAVANCOKE HILLS. 
FINLAY MUIR’S ESTATES, &c. 
(From a Correspondent.) 
From Bodynaikanur up to Devikulani is a ride 
of about 30 miles, 5 to the foot of the hills, 10 
up a terribly steep ghaut some 4,500 ft. in height, 
and then 15 more through a beautiful grass 
valley shut in by high cliffs and fringed with 
thick forest, rising at the end up to nearly 6,000 
ft. Once over this pass we enter the property of 
the North Travaiicore Agricultural Society, which, 
with the exception of a few private estates, is now 
owned by P'inbay Muir & Co., whose operations 
are spread over Ceylon, Assam and Travancore, 
and who have a capital of two millions sterling to 
back them up. About 2 ^ years ago Sir John 
Muir bought up the whole of the shares of the 
old Society. The shareliolders did not benefit 
much, for they only got about R70 lor every 
RlOO invested some 15 years previously. But 
