October i, 1891.] 
TMF TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
247 
PEITKIL TEA AA’I) COFFEE CULTl VATIOxV 
IX FEKAK. 
In tho annual report of the Kuala Kan^ear 
diatriot, U U staled that 
Sycd MuHpji popper caUto at Pneir Pnujang, although 
not quite ho welFkept aud oartd for aa might be 
winlio i in making fair progro<R. Syod Musa, uulortun- 
atoly, know nothing ol the cultivation of p» ppor when 
he coinmcnood bis plantation, aud haa thecetore been 
vory much in tho h^uda of thn Achitus-i coolies work- 
ing on ooairaot under him. Tue laltt^r have not paiti 
flulUciout aLtoniiuu to tho tying up of thu vines, and 
the oatato hna not always been kept as clean as it 
might bo, and this 1 tlud to be tliu case with most 
of the M^Iay pUutaiions Apart from theeo detects, 
vines are doing well. Tho esta.o is now about 16^ acres 
in extent, and contains about ll,6u0 vines, oi these 
1,500 ate grown ou har<t»\vouij posts a»\d the remainder 
on ‘M( dttps.” The tiret vmea were planted about two 
years ago, and thuro aro now 5,0i)0 in bearing, about 
three of pik.ils pepper having already been gathered. 
Up to tuo end of the year ttio (iovornment had ad- 
vanced ,$i.780 on the esta o. Advances are to be con- 
tinued up to §8,000, and altogether lO.OOJ viios cro 
to be plauted. Ttie Oovcrnaieut origiuilly provide 1 
^yed Musa with the meana of opening this estate with 
a view to encouraging other luitves in the district tii 
take up land lor the cultivation <d' pepper aud this 
objf cb has Certainly been attained, during the year 
600 acres, mostly in small blocks vnr>itig from one to 
live acres in extent, having been taken up for this 
purposes. Some of the ]) nntations are duiug very well 
particularly those belongiug to Ohiiiese a'.d AiiUinC'^c 
who pO:»8oss a lit le capital Tho F.^rak Malay?, as a 
ruU', ure not bj »>llcce^s^lll, l<icking both tin porsever- 
Mice aud energy rrquiaitu for the cuhiv itlon cl' popper 
and having a rootau ubjeoiioii to t-in-’iing any tn uiey 
in their plautaiioiis uaess it tan ho borrowed froin 
Govurnmeiit. After Syrd Musa’s tho larj^cst pepper 
estates are two bilo ging to Kong Lini, which are 
10 and 30 iicrcB in extent rO'pfictively, The smaller of 
tho two, ou which tho vines are trained aguiust hard- 
wood posts, ia worked with Chineae labour, but on the 
SO acre block the pepper is bomg grown ag dust dedap 
trees, uti 1 the hibour purforiuod by ftTchiueso working 
iw tho tribute sysroui, U'h.’SH two ota'os were both 
started about tho saiuo timouiid on tho sumo soil, it 
will thori f 'to bo iut. resting and iiiBfcrttot.vo to com- 
pare their prognssaiid uliimaio succe.iB. Kong Ltm 
does notuppoar to have much uilUcuiCy in obtaiiiiug 
Chiueso agciculturKl labour, but ho coraptuiui ot 
tho short hours ihn oooU> 8 work. The men he is now 
oniploying iiiBiHt on wiirkiug for only cghl hours 
a dfi), as in the mines; audio make pepper pay ho 
Bays it is necossary that they Hhonid woik lor at h ut 
10 hc‘uc8. Tilt Govrriimeiit cxponnnin al popper plsu- 
tfttiuu at tho fuot of Guuung Fond k, as was sntici- 
patu<l, has not proved a huocob^, tlio sod, although Vi ry 
rich, being quo uuauiiod for tho growing ol peppt-r. 
In tho other Governme' t plautaiion, at Padai.g 
Keugaa, the vines, appear tu tui in n very llouribhiiig 
condition. This plant di>>n is about Idaeres in extent, 
Hnd oontuius several large iiur6tir<ee of pepper p ants 
Wbioh aro uow ready for planting out, a 1 trg« mim* 
bor having altsady noon supplied to Kong ijini and 
other plauters in this dintricit. The Oicid> T'-a Esla'O 
was let in Juno to Mcsiis. Lim Ah Kii, Li Peh and 
others ; aud in July the liormitago TVa E^tilo was 
rolot t) the Sdmo p<ople, Luring Uie la-t year Iho 
numbr.r of ooolios employed ou Mcasrp. Ilili and llalli- 
borub’s Liberian collce plaulution, at K imuniug, biis 
bosn luGitascd, and a vast nuprovement ufl’i-cted lu ilie 
general appearance of the eainte. y^vorni fi dd-i, which, 
for want of i^ibour, had to bo iibaMdoncd, have now 
boon recliiinel, aud 1 »m iufonn d that the whole 
of the originil clearing, about 258 aero-* in extent, 
will bo ebt oJ and planted up by March next 
and that the first picking will commence about Ootober' 
COCO-DE-ilEH. 
There is in the cabinet ot Mr. Joseph H. Wriijht 
of this city a very fine specimen of the Coco-de-Mer, 
a curious nut produced upon Iho palm tree which 
grows in only one spot in the world, tho Soycholle 
Iiilands. Thb f>pccimeu has attracted a groat desl of 
nttemiou and has been loaned by Mr.^ Wrijilit lor 
exhibition in this and other cities. We ^American 
Croctr) arc indebted to Mr. Wm. SaiiudeiH, Supcriii- 
ten i lit of tho Public Gardens, WaBhingtou, i>. C. 
for the following interesting descriptiou of the palm 
troo which produces tliis remarkable fiuit: 
LODOICEA SECif KLI. A RtJM. 
This palm produces the ctdebratod Double Ooconub 
or Occo-tlc-Mer, which, until about 141) years ago 
when tho trees were discovered upon which they 
pew, WAS ouly known as a l.u*gc mu found floating 
in tho Indian Ooenn and near the Mnldivo Islands. 
The iiuta were oi ly found destitute of thuir husks, and 
mostly widi the internal park decayed. They were 
Buppusod to be pro iuced on a tree growing \n the sea, 
nu 1 Uhineso and Malay sailors affirmed that the nuts 
vf^vQ bomu upon a tree deep iu the water, which wn.s 
fi’milar to a .coconut tree, and was visible in placid 
buys, upon tUo coast if Sumatra aud adjoining coasta, 
hut that if they sought to dive after the tree it 
disappeared, 
Negro priests declared that it grow near the i^l^lDd 
of liivn, where its leaves aud branches rose above tho 
wide*, a nl wore tho habitation of a monstrous hirvl, 
which carriol olT elephants and tigers to its irsI, ro 
that marinors of the Indian AroiiipeUgo carefully 
avoided thnt spot. 
Great value was also preferred upon these nuts for 
medicinal pro(>orties, all of which is equally a nnittor 
of liistorical fable. 
The Seychelles lie to tho north of Malagascnr, itt 
about 5 d -g eoiith latitude. It is in thia group only 
Uiat the palm is found, a:.d among them only m tho 
isles tf Pra>Iiii, Curn-use and Hound Isumd. These 
aro witliiii half a milo of each other aud are inona- 
tainous and rocky. 
The Loiloicea attains a height of tfO or 90 feet, and 
is anriu uiited by a beantifid crown of winged and 
palinated leaves; the tiunk is from 12 to 15 inches 
in diameter aud very flexible; the leaves aro large, 
20 leet long and 10 to 12 feet iu breadth, aud even 
lartor. The straight and slender .'t- m, when 0urm )uiited 
with A he*vy crown of lexv^B and fruits, has a strong 
levenigo on the roots, which are flr^ngtliened for this 
office ill a peculiar mariner; llto baae of the stem ia 
n unded, aud fits into a natural l>n«iii or socket;, about 
30 inches iu diiiuetor and 18 inches in depth; thia 
la>iii is pierced wi.h hundreds of amall oval ht.les 
about hx f ou inch iu diameter, with h' Ilow tubes 
corro'^pon li: g on the outside, through which the roots 
lonet^ato the ground on aO sides, but never become 
attached to the basin or bowl, their partial oliettcity 
nffording a ceittiin aiuonnt of play to the stem in 
violent gales. 
The tree requires 100 yca a before it attaine its fnll 
growth, Kud thirty yeais is tho shortest period bel. ro 
it pushes tut ils flower buds. Zb requires ten years 
fr. in the first appearance of the flower till tho fruit 
reaches maiurity ; it bears ooly one cluster of flowers 
yearly, yut it will often have tin in bloom at once; 
it liiB fi wers ami fruit of all ag.s at one time. 
The Iruit is a drupe, of an olive green color, uiid 
gfneriilL double, fometimos triple, and even quadruple, 
aud frcq ic tly aitiim a length of 18 inelns, with a 
circuintorenco of 3 feer, and somt times weighing 40 
to 5o poimiJs. It is the largest fruit which any known 
t"oe pro lucci, 
The iinmainro fruit is easily cut with a knife, aud 
iifl' rds a Bwoet and melting aliment, of an agree *blo 
taate. When it is ripe it drops on the ground, and 
is no longer fit for use. 
The unopened leaves of young plants are used for 
making hats and bonnet) ; the hplittiu^ of tho leaflets 
is difficult, but is performed with considerable skill by 
those accustunei to the work. Various useful and 
extren oly b*. nutiful articles are made ( f these leaves 
aud mats of great dtimbiliiy nre manufactured of the* 
itrong leaf fibres Tho leaf stalks are used for fences 
aud for miters of houses; they are strong and very 
durable. Tho trunk is so hard as to bo difficult to 
cub with an axe; split iu two and hollowed, it is ujed 
for water gutters, and is almost imperisliable 
