484 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [J*n. 1, ,898. 
bottom, the hole having evidently been consider- 
ably made use of as a ^burial place. According to 
native accounts the last body buried there was 
about three years ago. The depth is about 60 feet. 
The ivory which was reported to have been 
thrown down some years ago was not discovered, 
nor were there any relics whatever. A shot gun 
dropped down some time ago by Mr. MacDonald was 
recovered not very much the worse for its exposure. 
The natives expressed great fear when the in- 
tention of exploring the hole was made known to 
them, but after Captain Brake had been drawn 
safely up again they recovered their spirits. 
It is feared that the prolonged drought may 
cause some damage to coffee. This appears to have 
been the driest year on record, practically no rain 
having fallen in Zomba since the end of the 
last rainy season. 
From reports received from the West Shire and 
Ruo Districts there is reason to believe that 
Rinderpest has made its appearance among the game 
in those districts. 
Information has been received that game is dying 
in numbers in the Elephant Marsh. Prompt measures 
have been taken to endeavour to prevent its intro- 
duction into the Shire Highlands. In arnther column 
appear a few notes by Doctor Kerr Cuss as to the 
best method of preventing and ti’eating the disease 
taken from reports and papers published in connec- 
tion with the outbreak in South Africa. 
The segregation of herds of cattle can be more 
easily carried out in this country than in the South 
and this is one of the greatest safeguards against 
the intrcduction of the disease. — B. C. Afnca Oazette, 
Oct. 18. 
THE AGRICULTURAL MOVEMENT IN 
ZANZIBAR. 
Here is an example for the Ceylon Government 
in regard to backward districts. We quote from 
“ The Shamba,” — a journal of agriculture fer 
Zanzibar : — 
A very successful Shauri was held at Weti on Oc- 
tober 24th in connection with the w'ork of the 
Agricultural Department of Zanzibar. Hamis bin 
Salm, the Li Wali had summoned the Arabs to meet 
Mr. Lister, Government Agent for Pemba, and Mr. 
Lvne, the Director of Agriculture, who were travelling 
through. The most significant feature of the meeting 
was the interest which some of the leading Arabs, 
notably Mohammed bin Jumnh of Kish Kash and 
Mohammed bin Juraah of Mikindani, took in the 
matter. The Li Wali took the chair and in a brief 
speech explained (he obi'ects of the meeting and called 
upon the Arabs for their interest and support. Mo- 
hammed bin Jumah of Kish Kash followed with a 
very energetic address. The Aiabs, he said, were too 
fond of sleeping and eating, and never bestirred 
themselves to any work, but the time had now come 
to make an end of all this. Mr. Lister next rose and 
said he had been among the people of Pemba now for 
eight months and during that time had made m.auy 
friends both among Arabs and natives and he now 
appealed to that friendship for a fair and impartial 
hearing. He asked the Arabs to believe that what 
he had to say on behalf of the Government was 
sincerely said for their own welfare. In travelling 
through Pemba he had been struck by the fact that 
many people completely misundeistood Ihe nature of 
their work. Most people seemed to think that be' 
cause they were members of the Government that 
their only business was to help in taking their slaves 
away. He and Bwana Lyne had nothing whatever 
to do with this. Their business was with the land, 
the shambas, the cloves and chillies, coffee and cocoa, 
rubber and vanilla, all trees and plants; what to 
grow and how to grow them, how to prepare them 
for the market and so on. They all knew that cloves 
had been falling in price and that Arabs were not 
BO well off as they were three or four years ago. 
The Zanzibar Government saw that if the people 
did not begin to grow something in addition to cloves 
they would get less and less money each year and 
probably in the end be all ruined. And sotheGo- 
wrote home to Europe for a man to come 
and try and find out what would be the most suit- 
able plants for these islands to grow. That was what 
Dunga. He had many 
sorts of trees at Dunga and all the work that he was 
doing there was for the assistance of Arabs and their 
fv. A to help the Arabs 
nu ess the Arabs would help themselves. They must 
try and improve their shambas. Each shamba should 
have a nursery of young trees for planting out as 
the rainy seasons came round. Every shamba had 
a lot of waste ground upon it, and if each Arab had 
planted out say 100, 500 or 1,000 coconut trees, 
according to the size of their shambas, they would 
soon become valuable estates. As it was many of 
them were almost worthless on account of being 
eg ec ed. It was a work not of one year but many 
years, iiwana Lyne would get now seeds and plants 
tor them but they must ask for them, and if they 
got them he would come round and see that they 
looked after them properly. They should all buy a 
py ot lae Sl^mha Gazette which was written especially 
tor Arabs. They could buy it every month from the 
tlmdi Hashim m Weti for one anna. The Arabs 
s ou d write letteis to the Shamba if they did not 
understand anything, and their letters would be 
printed and answered Rev, J. Key in proposing a 
ote of thanks to the Li Wali for his trouble in collect* 
ing the people said he himself felt verv strongly 
about these matters. The whole system of cultiva* 
tion in Zanzibar could be improved upon. Many of 
the products such as cloves, copra and chillies reached 
the London Market in a disgraceful coi dition and 
in nearly every crop which the Zanzibar planters 
grew they were at the bottom of the market 
Ceylon Planters in the STRAiTS.-ln the 
distnct report on Kuala Langat, in Selangor, 
lor Octolier, it is noted that applications for land 
tor planting have been received from Messrs. 
Miinio and (,arey at Morib, and an application 
for permission to take up the whole of the island 
opposite Jugi a, received from Mr. Carey on behalf 
ot Ml. \y login of Ceylon, is now being considered 
and dealt witli by Government. The area of the 
island IS said to be about 30,000 acres. In view 
of the increasing activity in the district, it is a 
matter for regret that the' only means of ingress by 
land— VIZ., tlie road from Klang — is in a very bad 
condition. Since the advent of tlie rains, the road 
IS little better than a quagmire.— Nfrm'fs Times, 
Fibre-Yielding Plants. — A writer in the 
latest JwfOan Forester just to hand condemns 
tne hbre ot Calotrojns gigantea (“Wara’* 
ol the Sinhalese) as comparatively useless : his 
letter will he found on another page. 
We cannot understand this experience after what 
we were told about the value of this fibre Mr 
Macdonald’s report should clear up the discre- 
panoy. We have had placed before us by a 
an appreciable quanticy 
Ot libie rather coarse but strong — which- he 
obtained without much trouble from the stems 
ot Hibtsctis esculentiis, the well-known plant 
yielding the “ handekai ” vegetalile of our dinner 
tab.e, described as follows in our “ Gardening in 
Ceylon ” :— ® 
BkmiKAY— Hibiscus esculentus.~1he long capsnlea 
when young may be boiled and served like asparaoua 
and are very delicate, or sliced and put into soups or 
curnes. Seeds in good light oil. in drills 2 feet apart, 
I his plant IS easily grown and if it turns out 
that besides supplying a useful vegetable, it 
yields paying fibre, tlie cultivation might 
w.dl prove profitable in the neighbourliood of our 
iowcountry towns. We are sending the fibre to 
London for report. 
