October i, iSgi.j 
TI-'P TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
263 
Iron production by the aid of charcoal is now 
about to be triad in the Mysore Province, and we 
shall watch the result of Dr. Dhanakoti Ilajii’a 
speculation with much interest; but it will be many 
years before this will reach a stapo from which 
instruction can be dt rived, Thequ^'S'ion ip, how vor, 
one of such vital importance to the interests of the 
Presidrniy that it would he worth the while of 
Government to depute an officer to the duty of 
colIeoliiiR sUtieiios aa to the extent of forest availab'o 
efter alltwiiiB for the general rtqnirement.s of the 
Diiir'eis, and of land available for planting, of 
chatooai obtainable pet acre of forest and required 
per ton of ore emeltcd or of iron produced, the cost 
of its nianutacture, Ac. The present head of the 
Geological Department in this Presidency is welt 
qmlilnd for the task. Another fuel alluded to ie 
the peat produced on the Nitgiri Hills, and in view 
of the ehortly expeeted Nilgiri Railway some enquiry 
in this dire tion might be us' tul. It must, wo 
fear, bo aoeepted aa a fact that the cost of any 
imported fuel would he prohibitive. The author 
arguee, and in thi we agree, that to be a comracrciiil 
Buooeas the pro inotion of pig iron must bo aoonni- 
paniid by its m tnufac; arc into wrought iron bars, 
pl/itop, mis, etc., nrr. assuming the fu l difficulty 
to have been t ve; oma for the production of the 
‘ pig, ” should 'here be any obstao'e, in the preeent 
ailvanoing state of enterprise in India, to Btioh further 
progress ; while it is nlmost enperfluons to point 
our, as the author doc=, the advantages to the 
country of being self-contained in this important 
respect in timo,i both of war and of peace. Thera 
were estaldism d some years ago at Beypore Ironworks 
for the p’.rp .ee of re-ro!!ing rails and otherwise 
working up old railway iron, but it came to an 
eaily end, on account, wc believe, of this same fuel 
difficulty. S me hazy recollection of this has caused 
a curious con fu ion of ideas in the author's mind 
when, on psgo 0, ho apparently treats Palem and 
Beypore ns . onvettilde terms, and implies that iron 
has been produced at both plaoee. 
Not the lesft inlerestirg chapter in the book is 
that which treala of the tnbsidiary metals to which 
space only permits a very brief reference. Copper 
is believed to have been worked in pre-historio times 
near Midnapore, and even worked with soma succo's 
in tho liflif6,hut it wsskilled by the lieavy royalties 
demand-d by tho Rajilis. In 1831 the Indian 
Copper Company was working the Nellore Mines. 
“ In theGoomaiunda Valley, in theKurnaul District, 
there exists a deserted copper mine so old that tlio 
very legend of its workers hsa been lost to the 
people living there," which has been the case also 
with the goldmines of Kolar. Of other metals we 
are toll of platinum in the Indus Valley and at 
K I'ar, mercury in th« .Vndamau Islands, zinc in 
Oodryporc, tin at Bancegunje and in several parts 
of Burma ; all showing potentialities of riches which 
have hiihrrio borno little fruit and which justify 
the writi r s lament that “ truly the mineral wealth 
of India has been sadly neglected." Government 
can do much by exploitation end publication of 
retuUs and judicious conoessions, and we conclude 
with a passiigc from the author wTh which at least, 
however we may have differed from some of his 
oonoloaions, we can cordially agree : — 
"But tbe chief thiugs wanted to develop the iron 
iridustriis of India are motiey and experi- need i-kill, 
neither of which sbwll we get until either some 
Bhillod capitalist is a tra t d to tbo Kast with a 
yiew of developing, not its gold and jewils, but its 
iron, oe— and this is the real sululiou— the iiatlves 
of Itinia, or 11 few of them, taVe real iiitcrsst in 
these iniittovs. AVe see how native enterpri.io has 
dev. loped tbo cotton industry of Bombay, and made 
It what it is — au iiidnstty tho greatest in nil India. 
This is duo to the fact natives have realised 
the value of cotton and alee tho proceeses of mann- 
fac*urc, and are devoting theinsilvts to its d«ve. 
lopment. Let then, dovoto tbeniselvea to tho study 
of iron with equal zeal for five or tcu years and 
then seo what gr^at results will arise. Let five or 
six of onr mo t iiit ibgei t I'ativo youths, the tons 
and nephews of nur great capi nl'sts be sent by th- ir 
ro'ativea to Europe to stii y tbo iron inrlirsiriea 
ss they now go to s’n.ly law and medicine. Let 
them be not too proui to losrii in tho pc-jicr way, 
viz., a.s wo'kmin, and in t at fi st ns masters, and 
mnob will he done. It i.s an old story bnt a true 
one, that India con bs best dovelop.d by h r own 
p opie, provide ' the people will study the right 
way. " — J/a4ras Mail. 
CINNAMON. 
Tho nows received by wire yesterday, of the 
results of the Quarterly Sales held in Loudon on 
Monday last, is not very cheering, . though it can- 
not bo said to have been nuexpected. 'This is the 
third sale in succession at which fino qualities have 
been neglected, and a drop in prices has been ox- 
periencod. In November last, tine qualities »cro 
not in demand, and wore chiefly bought in. What 
little was told changed hands at 4d. to Irf. less 
than August ^ prices. At the February sales, out of 
15H2 Bales offered, only about 700 sold— fino qualities 
being again neglected, and largely bought in, though 
sellers were willing to accept id. to 2d. less than 
the previouH ratk-s. There waH no private inouiry 
between the sales for tho loU which did not find 
buyers ; and, with the quantities sent forward since 
February to add to tlie unsold pacccls, it is not 
surprising that a further drop was experienced. 
Whether tho sumll pro^^ovtion of lots which found 
buyers — 60U J^alos out of 1800 — means that some 
holders of fine suice were firm, and bought in their 
lots in hopes of better prices, or that even at tho 
decline of Id. buyers neglected the better qualities, 
wo caimot say. It is to be feared that the latter 
is the case, as a dead set seems to have been ori- 
f inated against fijio spice, and London Agents have 
ogim to counsel their Principals here to manufacture 
medium sorts. This is not the first time that Cinna- 
mon of S'lperior make has been neglected : but it is, 
BO far as we know, the first occasion on whicii fine 
sorts have been neglected at three successive Quarterly 
bales, selling at a decline each time, while coarser 
sorts liave advanced almost In February 
these sold at an advance of about id , and thisw’eek 
of about id to Id per lb. This would seem to in- 
dicate a determination on tho part of buyers to lower 
the price of fine Cinnamon, wliether for a, eculativo 
purposes, or from a conviction that tho coarser 
qualities answer quite as well os the finer manu- 
factures for most of the pur osea to which they are 
consolmg features in the situation are 
that the fall in Exchange will, to some extent at 
least, nullify the fall in price; and that the current 
p'lces might help to poj.ularise the best spice. When 
good tunes set in, there may be a brisker demand 
for fine qualities. Good time , we say, hecause tho 
nnancial troubles of the | rincipal foreign countries 
u ^ j the S|jice mav account largeh^ for 
the drop. B[iain, Portugal ancf the South American 
Kepublics are known to absorb large quantities in 
their lioman Catholic Churches; and among the 
Continental nations the spice is used freely for con- 
fectionery, chiefly chocolates. Meanwhile, nianu- 
factureris of ordinary qnaJities are to be congratulated 
on tlie bettor demand for their wares; and tliero 
should be a rise in local prices in sympathy with 
the upward tendency in London. The extent to which 
fine fjualities have been neglected may be inferred 
from tbo following figiires; — 
November ISUU .. 8,020 lialos 1*^90 
February IHDl .. 1 582 
May 1891 .. 1 auO gO() 
The decreasing offerings do not imi’ily a falling off 
in the quajititles imported mto Great Britain 
last year, out of 1,094,011 Ife, quiSponed honce" 
