March 1 , 1898 .] Supplement to the “ Tropical Agriculturist" 
655 
There was an outbreak at Onegama, a Moorish 
village situated ten miles east of Polonnania in 
Tamankaduwa District. At first I was not able 
to find out how the disease was introduced, as I 
could not have got any clue as to its origin. 
But I was able to ascertain the facts in a neigh- 
bouring village. Some of the drauglit buffaloes 
in Onegama had been lent for paddy-field work 
in the Eastern Province. Shortly after they were 
lent, rinderpest broke out in that part of the 
Eastern Province where these cattle were work- 
ing. The owners hearing of the outbreak went 
and brought back their buffaloes to Onegama in 
order to protect them from the disease. But 
soon after they reached the village it was found 
that they had already caught the contagion, and 
from them the disease spread throughout the 
village. 
Again, at Bulankulam, a village situated a few 
miles north of Maradaukadawela, and about a 
mile from the Matale road, a serious outbreak 
of the disease took place lately. It was brought 
to my notice about a month after it began, and 
theTelvidane of the village, whose cattle were the 
first to be attacked, bitterly complained that he 
had lost almost all his cattle. Questioned as to 
the origin of the outbreak, he said he was utterly 
ignorant of it ; nor could 1 elicit any informa- 
tion about it from any other resident in that 
village. But subsequently 1 heard in another 
village that the Velvidane himself had introduced 
the disease unawares, and it came about in this wise: 
One day while out in the jungle he found the 
carcase of a coast bullock lying there. Its long 
tapering, polished horns looked very attractive, 
and the Velvidane removed them and fixed them 
in the calf shed. A few days afterwards one of 
the calves got ill and died. In a short time 
another calf died, and then another took ill. The 
Velvidane noticing his calves getting ill and dying 
in rapid sncce.'sion, suspected that some one had 
“done hoonium" to them by invoking an evil demon 
against them, and consulted the deity in a temple 
cfose by. The deity, through its spokesman, con- 
firmed the man’s suspicion, and suggested some 
medicine in which the dung of the ass wns one 
of the ingredients ! The medicine, however, was 
of little avail, and from the calves the disease 
spread to the older cattle. It was not until 
several of the cattle were attacked that the Vidai e 
suspected the disease was rinderpest. Of course 
he tried to keep the history of the p i" of horns 
and the fact of the outbreak as secret as possible ; 
and it was after the disease had spread through- 
out the neighbouring village of Am me that it 
was noticed by the higher headmen. 
In another instance which took pb.ce near 
Kalawewa the disease originated from ^ome in- 
fected hides which happened to be placed in the 
loft of a cow shed. On a wet day the shed 
began to leak, and drops of rain fell on the hides 
and trickled down to the place where the cows 
were tied. So these were attacked first, and from 
them the disease spread to the other cattle in 
the village. 
The question whether rinderpest is enzootic in 
Ceylon is very important in connection with the 
prevention and suppression of the disease, it 
is difficult to prove that it is enzootic, for one 
must be able to show that all sources of mediate 
as well as immediate contagion have been absent 
before asserting that it is enzootic. It is the 
experience of the oldest men living in this 
Province that rinderpest was very uncommon here 
before the opening of roads, and they believe it 
is introduced by cattle newly brought from 
India. 
Even supposing the disease is enzootic it is 
clear that it is at times introduced afresh by 
infected cattle from India drivoa across the 
Province. A. strict watch should, therefoi’e, be 
kept on such cattle ; and they should be carefully 
examined both while landing and at certain 
stations along the course of their journey. Any 
found attacked with rinderpest should be des- 
troyed and the rest quarantined ; and in this 
connexion it must be noted that the importation 
of several hundreds in one herd is objectionable, 
as they cannot be managed in case an epizootic 
breaks out among them. 
E. T. HOOLE. 
Anuradhapura, 24th January, 1898. 
THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENT AIANURES 
ON THE QUALITY OF PRODUCE. 
In the Ceylon Observer of December 20th last 
is published a press “ interview” with Mr. A 
Baur who has lately established manure works 
in Ceylon. In this interview we find the follow- 
ing statement : — “ Mr. Hughes, in whose judg- 
ment must be placed the greatest value ex- 
pressing the opinion that no blood, raw bones or 
fish should be used, as strong-smelling substan- 
ces taint the value of tea.” Mr. Hughe.s, who is 
here referred to, is the well-known Agricul- 
tural Chemist who has in a great measure identi- 
fied himself with the tea industry in Ceylon 
and it will be seen that his remarks with re- 
ffirenoe to the effect of manures on the quality 
of the crop have special reference to the ter 
plant, the flavour of the produce of which i.-< 
so important a factor in its market value. 
On reading the opinion quoted above, one is 
at first naturally inclined to consider it rather 
a sweeping statement, as altogether prohibiting 
the use of so well-established and valuable a 
fertilizer as blood, and a subsequent explana- 
tion offered by Mr. Baur himself in the 
Observer of December 23rd, comes as a sort of 
relief. In this statement Mr. Baur says : “ With 
reference to your comments on the question of 
the tainting of the flavour of tea by the appli- 
cation of strong-smelling manures like blood 
or fish, it would read as if the chief argu- 
ment of Mr. Hughes against their use was^in 
this direction, whilst on the contrary the princi- 
pal objection against them, and raw bones was 
on the grounds of the risk of their introducing 
some fungoid disease.” From this explanation 
we may infer tliat Mr. Hughes did in some 
measure object to the use of the manures re- 
ferred to, on the score of their tainting the 
flavour of tea (but to what extent we are not 
told), if we are warranted in inferring even 
this much. Under the circumstances we are 
inclined to think it most advisable that he 
question of the tainting of tea by strong- 
smelling manures should be submitted to Mr. 
Hughes for special opinion. 
