Sept, i, 181 ^ 7 .] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
Directors consider this property a valuable acquisition. 
It consists of 272 acres of Tea in full bearing, and 
31 acres of jungle, The elevation runs from 
4,200 to 4,5O0 feet above sea level, and its Tea- 
producing qualities are amongst the best in Ceylon. 
The crops have averaged about lb. 450 per acre, 
realizing from lOd to Is, and your Director.^ are 
oonfi ,ent th"t, with the cultivation this property will 
now receive, crops equal to the other g .dens will 
result. In order to meet this outlay, it is now pro- 
posed to issue to the holders of Ordinal y Shares the 
balance of the fresh issue, viz., 1,267 Preference Shares 
and 1,133 Ordinary Shares. They will be ofiered to 
the Ordinary Shareholders at a premium of £1 per 
Share, in proportion to their present holdings, and 
notice will be sent with this Report. 
NATAL TEA: BARROW GREEN TEAS. 
Mr. John Fraser is again to the front at the 
Agricultural Show' in Maritzburg this time as 
witness the following from the Natal Witness, 
M»y 29th 
In our report yesterday we omitted to make more 
than passing reference to the excellent exhibit of teas 
by the Barrow Green Estate, which obtained a 
special and a v h c. The exhibit was in clia g ' >f 
the manager of the estate, Mr. J. Fraser, au ex- 
perienced and enthusiastic planter, who though he 
has only been connected with the estate since Febru- 
ary has succeeded in obtaining a grand sample of 
tea, this being an extraordinarily rich Golden Pekoe, 
of which 1 cwt. was shown. The tea in question 
was made in March, and without exaggeration it 
may be said that it will be extremely difficult to 
find any of better quality in the Colony, or even 
farther afield. So much is this particular tea sought 
after that 5s per lb can be readily obtained and was, 
Bdeed, obtained for a 201b. case yesterday. The 
"arrow Green teas are, it is pleasing to hear, gaining 
Popularity every day, and there is a growing 
“emand for them both in the Transvaal and the 
Cape Colony. Mr. Fraser is to be congratulated on 
the success which has attended his efforts. 
MANUFACTUBES SECTION I. — FOODS, EXTBA. 
(3), Barrow Green Estate tea ; h c, Stantial & 
Allerston, lemon squash, lime juice aud cordials, 
manufactured in 1897 by exhibitors, 12 doz.; h c, W. 
Francis & Son, ginger ale, soda water, manufactured 
by S. 8. Birch & Co. in 1897, 12 doz ; h c, R. Derrett, 
mineral waters and ice, manufactured by exhibitor 
in May ; h c, Hesom & Sons, Maiitsburg, spiced 
beef ; h c, IHesom & Sons, carcases, beef and mutton ; 
c, Barrow Green Estate, tea. 
-o- 
A VISIT FROM THE “SUGAR ISLAND.” 
WM. SCOTT, ESQ., DIRECTOR OF 
FORESTS AND GARDENS, 
MAURITIUS. 
Sixteen years W’ithout a change, i.s a long 
spell of work to put in, in a tropical colony 
like Mauritius, and this has been the ex- 
perience of Mr. Scott who is now on liis 
first holiday since, in 1881, he succeeded 
Mr. Horne at the head of the Mauritius Gardens 
and Forests. Mr. Horne paid tw'o visits to 
Ceylon during his term of office, once in the 
“.sixties” to carry back a consignment of the then 
precious “ cinchonas” granted by the Ceylon 
Government, and once again in the “seventies” 
when on furlough. He was an esteemed corre- 
spondent of the late Mr. Wm Ferguson, f.l.s., 
aud we have often quoted his writings. Mr. 
Horne, though retired on pension, cannot be 
idle and living in Jersey, he is giving' his 
attention a good deal in that doliglitfuT cli- 
mate to horticulture. No one would suppose 
that Mr. Scott, his successor, had been so 
185 
long without a change ; but then he is a 
haid-headed as well as .Ttliletic Aberdonian, and 
his work as Conservator of Forests must take 
him a good deal over the island and into the 
higher districts. Still, height is comparative, the 
highe.st point in Mauritius being under 2 800 feet 
from which the sea can be seen breaking on the 
shore all round the little island, and even 
Bourbon, 80 miles distant, be descried. As re- 
gards forests, Mr. Scott lias only about 2,500 
acres of virgin forest, covering the water-shed 
at tlie bigliest part, under bis care ; but a great 
deal has been done by (iovernment in planting 
np witliGrevilleas, Blue Gums and Casuarinas. The 
last-mentioned is the favorite tree with the sugar- 
planters which they put in on abandoned land 
for fuel. Besides this, little but sugar is 
attended to. There is no chance of the little 
experiment in tea, leading to any extended 
industry ; a far more likely hy-prodnet would 
be cacao, suiting tlie deep rich soil (but not the 
hurricanes) and requiring far less labour than 
sugar. A good deal, however, can be said 
for the Mauritius planter confining his attention 
to the product for which he has provided very 
costly buildings and machinery and which, on 
the wliole, best suits Ids rich soil. The troubles 
in Cuba should dve sugar a “spurt” at present; 
but the fact is that Mauritius has almost 
become a Dependency ot India in respect both 
of its imports and exports— most of its finest 
sugar goes to India from which it gets coolies 
and rupees. Part of the sugar, of course, goes to 
Europe and also some to Australia and America 
direct. As to total exports, we quote as follows, 
the latest figures to hand ; — 
In 1894 the weight of sugar exported was 1.39,449,413 
kilos., with an estimated value of R28,672,008. The 
value of the rum exported was R424.697 ; that of 
vanilla, R82,720 ; that of aloe-fibre, 11171,526; and 
that of coconut-oil, R187,116. 
On landing from the B. I. steamer last July, 
Mr. Scott went at once to Kandy and became 
the guest next day of Mr. Willis at the 
Pcracleniya Gardens. Two days later he passed 
on to Nuwara Eliya and visited Mr. Nock at 
Hakgala. He is delighted with the hill-country 
of Ceylon and felt elevated, standing in Nuwara 
Eliya 6,200 feet above the sea (no time to do 
Pedro clo.se by with its 8,296 feet) as com- 
pared with the maximum 2,711 feet of his own 
island. Mr. Scott left a few days after for Europe 
by the B. I. ss. “ Golconda ” and it is .satisfactory 
to think he carried avvay so pleasant a re- 
cullection of bis visit to Ceylon. 
KAMIE (RHEA CULTIVATION. 
PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE. 
The article on “Ramie” (this name is more 
generally familiar in Jamaica than “Rhea”) repro- 
duced in your May issue contains three important 
statements 
1. — That India generally is not so suited for Ramie 
cultivation as has been supposed ; 
2. — That Ramie, when grown in some places there 
proved quite unfit for commercial purposes ; 
3. — That Ramie cannot withstand a drought. 
1. One of the chief and most important argu- 
ments put to me, why Ramie is not likely to prove 
commercially successful in Jamaica, is th t the en- 
ormous quantity which could be produced in India 
would soon swamp the market, and would be put in at 
a figure with which we could not profitably compete. 
The above article confutes this statement, and points 
out that only a comparatively small_area in India is 
suitable for the production of Ramie on a business 
