4*4 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 
[December i, 1891, 
allowed to feimeiit for two to four hours, they pass 
into a “ Sitoooo " tea-drying machine, ami, after ex- 
posure toh-t air at BOO degrees for about 20 minutes, 
they are ready for paoUitig for dospatehto the tioiidon 
warehouse. 
The fsseiice of Mr. .Snolling's system lies, it will bo 
seen, in the ad iptiou of the regular tea-growers' 
methods, and in perfecting it ho enjoyed Ihn advantugo 
at the outset of the prsci ioal co operation of one of the 
beat known of theAsMim planters, Mr. Patrick Eiigees 
Msrgregor, who undertook the inaiiipulalion of ibo 
first samples of hops that were treated at Msidetoiio 
last year. The ordinary system of hop drying fur 
brewers purposes taken about ten hours, during which 
the hops are exposed to the fumes of sulphur and 
charcoal. In the " Sirocco” the prooess is rapid and 
elTeotoal, and the hops como in ooniaot with nothing 
but heated air. 
Here, then, ends the Msidstone pirt of tho 
history of the hop ten manufacture. The 
bleuding takes p'aoe in the L ndon warehonses and 
here it may bo well to note that none but carefully 
Boleoted India and Ceylon teas are used. Tho hop, 
notwithstanding its crushing and sifting, requires 
some further cutting in a mac'jine to ensure its 
perfectly mixing wilb tho fiuir leaf of the teashrnh, 
hut in ibe mixing prceess there is ncthing ilistinclire 
apart from what may he (ecu in any ten watehoti.se. 
IJop oolfec and bop cocoa arc q^faer preparations 
which are coveted by Mr. Sntlling’s paleufs, and 
the production of which forms a part, although a 
miner cue, of tho Company’s operations. In these 
cases, to ensure a perfect mixfure, the Imps are 
grennd to an impslspallo powder. Tho bop c o n, 
in particular, is a very pleasant prepsrntioii, the 
hitter of tho hops connt.eructiog to n great ext. nt 
the nalivo grensiniBS of the ocooa ll»vour which is 
objectionable to maiiy people. 
Kentish people are ptovrrbially loyal to 
their nntive industries. Above everything thi-y believe 
in hops, and tho hearty way in which hop tin has been 
taken up locally is very edilyiiig. All the tea dealers 
sell it j you may get it, I believe, at all, tl e botel!.--or 
at least, in my expertenoe, at tho lending cue ye aicient 
licll. 
For the original and existing Hop Tea, Company oon- 
flnea its field of operaiions to Ureat Britain alone, 
hot Mr. Suelling has secure 1 hia patent rights where, 
ever they can be ai cured a'l over the world, aud tho 
Hops Tea Foreign and Ctlonial Syndicate (Limited) haa 
recently been tegi-iered, with tho ohji-ct i.f dealing, 
eitborby sale or licei.o-, with tho patents granted for 
Belgium, Denmark, France, India, New Bouth Wales, 
Now Zealand, South Australia, Taamnnia, Viotoria, tho 
United Slates. Canada, QiiieiislaiiJ, Norway, Sweden, 
and Bnaaia. The shares in tho ayiidicato are hi-ing 
privately anbacribed, but aone proporticn will be dieted 
to the piiblio, and agents and I ceuseea everywhere are 
in deiuaud. — liuropeun Mai! 
VISIT OF AN AMERICAN PilOFESSOR 
TO CEYLON, 
The Amorieau Professor Qoodale who visited the 
Ceylon botanical gardens soma time ago, calling, when 
in Colombo, at the Observer Offloe, communicates tho 
result of hia visit to tho Americun Journal of 
Science, But for a regrettable oversight the dot.ila 
would have appeared in our columns some time ago. 
1 Botanic Gardens iii the Eqiinlorinl Be lt and in 
the' South Seas (First I>sper.)-It ia my purpose 'o 
give, in the following notes, tome aoor.nut of the niore 
rmpirtaut Botanic Gardens visited by me during a 
recent journey.- The tour osrried me fr^om Geuoa, 
through tho canal at Suez, to Ceylou.iu which country 
Perodenia and Hakgala were examined; tmoico to 
Adelaide in South AuBtraUa ; Melbourne and Geelong 
in Victoria; Hobart in THBUiuiiia ; Uunodin, Uhrist- 
charoh, end Wellinfiton, in New Zealand ; Sydney 
in Now South Waloa; Brisbane in Queenflaiid ; 
BuUenxorg in Java; Singapore in the Struitd Settle- 
ment ; vSaigon, Hong Kong, aud Shangba*, in China ; 
and Tokio iu Japan. With the exoepticn of Shanghai 
and Tokid, the visits were made a', lavorable seasons: 
iu northern China and iu sTapaii the spring wan not 
tar advanced, but the eaily dowers wore in perfec- 
tion. 
Tte journey was undertaken with a view of secur- 
ing from the Lstabiishmeiita iu question for iho 
Nuiversity Museum at Caiubiiige, spocimens iJhis- 
tralivo oi tho useful prouects ot tho vegetable 
kingi'oDj. Ill every itatatico, tho writer n.et with a 
cordial reception and received innumeiahle coiirteaiea 
for which ho dcEires to thank ai^ain tho direotors, 
curators, and superiutoudeuts of tho variotis botanical 
eaublUhincnts. Every facility t.as atforded for care* 
ful iu^picliuu of thu w'orkiuga of tiie gardens and 
me&eutus, aad, it dould bo added, of the oducatioual 
•institutions with which sain o of them were connected. 
AcaUataclory photogrAphiccuttit rendered it possible 
to supplement the cullcciion of photographic views 
which were purchascable at moat points ; so that 
the series, now stored in tho Museum at Cambridge, 
may be regarded as uno of the largest yot brought 
together. It ocmpriscs views not only of groups 
of plants bo'h iu gaidtus and iu their wild state, 
but of individual plants as well. Early ueit year 
these illustrations will be accessible to vibitiog iia- 
turaUhts. 
Tho present skeleli will follow e&bentially the route 
outlined iu » preceding pursgrapb, beginning with the 
gardens in Ceylon. 
rBRADKNIVA AND HaROALA (CkYLON).— After tllO 
d»:Bert of Egypt and Arabia, aud of treeless Aden 
have bccu t fvstd, ibo traveler cctnss, by an abrupt 
traiisition, upon t'opical luxuriance of vegtt»Uou, 
There i^ to be sure, a dii>tuut glimp e of ISocotra, 
bot its ehorea are tco far away lo yield anythiig 
plainly disoernibie, and even Mmicoy, an Island lying 
between the Maldives aud Laccadives, gives only a 
faint suggest on of plant life, its lovv'O’l^'g Itvod is 
fringed with Bcaltcrcd coeouut palms, of which, later, 
one sees so many. Befuro rcacliicg Ceylon tho ship 
passes withiu sight of th« southern point of ludia 
but not near oticngh to show what its plants are 
like. Iu fact, therefore, lUo arrivul in the harbor of 
Co'omlo biings a iurpriso, Comii-g down to the 
shore, aud extending us fur as the eyo can reach on 
cither Pide, aro croaked* coconut piilms, hero and 
there iuterroinglod with irccs Laving foliwgo of the 
deepest greou. A bolauist is struck at onco by the 
superb oapabiUties of ^uch a country for a tropical 
gardeu. Tbeso capabdities were not overlooked by 
the Dutch, who succeeded tbo Portogneeo in poRscs- 
jiion. A Botnuio Garden was founded by them at 
S avo Island iu Colombo, but when the Dutch wore 
driven out by iboBiitish it fell into aegh ct. There 
w'BB, however, at this pi'ilod, au oxoellent garden 
oouueotod wiih tho country place of the first English 
Governor, near Co Omlio, which at tho beginning of 
bis century was undir ih© charge of a naturalist, 
who gave it t>oriiowhut the character of a botanical 
garden. 
In 1810, Sit Joseph Banks skotehed the plan for 
a Butsnt’cal Garden in blave Island, Colombo, and 
bucc^cdod in trsn^forring thither from Canton, Mr. 
Ktrr, who beoinie its chi*f. According lo tho work 
from which I have derived these facts, tho Hlavo 
Island garden was found suhjfct lo Qoods, and con- 
hrqucntly the c.-tabli^hment was rnovod to Kalutaru. 
Ono tiiids hero x\ia\ there iir Co’ombo trt oas of the 
tild occnpaiicy ri niijinlng in the t amoR of BOino ot 
the streets,— “ Kew” for instance. Fioni Kalutara 
tlio gny. rn wa^ trausLrrod iu 1821 to its pretoot 
Hite. Sincj that lime, tho large garden has cstab- 
li‘hed four bruuchca, in order (o Bcctire all tho 
advanlsgoa \^hicll qan come from liaviug land at 
and with different ixpomrea. 
1 no branch gardoua are (Ij Baiiulla, founded in 1H8B, 
in Iho OAfltfrn part cf tho ibland, with an elevation 
* Crooked convrys tho idea of sharp angli whereas 
the cocouut palms aro gracefully bent. — Ed, 7', A» 
