Supplmneni to the “ Tropical Aqnculturisi.'^ 
[January i, 1892. 
S'6 
Government in allowing a vote for six new 
agricultural instructors next year. It seemed 
to liim that the best plaii of dealing with these 
students was to utilize them as itinerating in- 
atnictors — not cnnitniug them to this school or 
that school, hut alloting them to a certain dis- 
trict, say for a couple of harvests or even more, 
but not for any length of time, and then trans- 
ferring them to other districts which also recpiired 
exploiting so to speak, lie had spoken of the 
preliminary difficulties which were enconntereil, 
but he thought he could now say, judgijig from 
the applications for instructors which had been 
made to him by the various Agents, that the 
success of the school was fairly established. He 
had applications from Kurunogala, from the 
Government Agent of Ratnnpnra, from! he As.sis- 
tant Agent of Kegalla, and from two other centres, 
and that fact witnessed to the usefulness of the 
instruction whicli was imparted. Tlie chief object 
of the instructors hitherto had been the economic 
cultivation of paddy. There was no doubt from 
the rtiports he had received from the Government 
paddy cultivating areas of the island tluit the o.x- 
perimonts that were conducted had been very 
successful. At the end of last year he received a 
long report from the Government Agent of the 
linstern Province in which ho conclusively showed 
that, comparing the two systems of cultivation 
— the improved system as taught by the instruct- 
ors, and the old system as pursued by the ordin- 
ary village cultivators — the yield of the new sys- 
tem was incomparably superior. He thought the 
attention of the instriictors might profitably be 
drawn to another form of cultivation, that was 
fruit cultivation. There was no doubt whatever 
that fruit cultivation so far as Colombo was con- 
cerned and the island generally, was more or less 
rudimentry ; very' little imj)rovcment had laani 
matle in that direction. hettergrowth of oranges, 
plantains, and mangoes might be obtained, and 
he had no doubt the Principal would turn his 
attention to that. One thing he was glad to note 
was the is.sue of leaflets by the Principal. These 
bad no doubt been productive of much interest 
and much good amongst the poo|)le. lie was 
informed by the Principal that the issue of 
leaflets now amounted to something like ti,0()0 
per month. As regarded the dairying operations 
of the School he had that afternoon visited the 
farm and cattle buildings where there were about 
lb or 18 cows, and the Superintendent of the 
dairy farm told him that ho made a ])rotit of 
something like 40 or oO rupees. IV hen one con- 
sidered how very little was done in the way 
of dairying, it being almost impossible for one to 
got a glass of milk when travelling, although cows 
are swarming round about him, the new departure 
in the way of dairying seemed to boa great pro- 
mise. lie did not jmopo.se to detain them any 
longer, blithe should like to bear this testimony 
to the work and energy displayed by the Principal 
during the past year. There was no doubt that 
whatever practical success especially the School 
had attained was due to Mr. Drieberg's succe-ssful 
tuition. He felt sure that all those who were 
interested in the welfare of the villagers generally 
as connected with agricultural operation.s would 
coincide in that opinion. (Applause.) 
H. R. the OovERNOn: — The pleasing duty of 
distributing the prizes is the next item on the 
programme and devolves upon me. 
The prizes and certificates were then distributed 
by H. E. ns follow's; — 
Srnior.s. — Theoretical .Agriculture, Cfhenii.stry 
and botany, R. M. .lohannes ; English, Mathematics, 
and Entomology, E. M. .lohannes ; botany and 
Zoology; 11. S. Dias; Practical Agriculture, S. S. 
A'iramuttu. Special Prizes : — .Mr. de Soysa's jirize 
(U2d) for Practical Chemistry, E. M. .lohannes; 
Mr. Jno. Clovis de Silva’s prize, (KIO) for Practical 
•Agriculture, S. S. Viramuttu ; Mr. J. 11. Barber's 
prize, (liooks) for Practical Agriculture, J. S. 
Salgodo ; Mr. A. M. Ohiltamhalanis prize for 
Theoretical Agriculture (cheque UlOj, E. M. .Tohan- 
nes. 
Juniors. — Theoretical Agriculture, H. b. 0. 
Athapathu ; Chemistry, It. Jayasiriwurdtme ; Che- 
mistry, 11. 15. G. Athaiiathii; Geolog}', T. b. 
Ivehelpannala; Mathematics; P Gunawnrdua , bota- 
ny, K. D. Roraial ; English, History and Geogra- 
phy, T. b. Kehelpannala ; Histroy and Geography, 
Atliapattu ; Kield Surveying, K, li. Roraial. S])ecini 
Prizes: — lV.de Mel's prize (books) for Practical 
Agriculture, C. M. Abayasekera; Jlr. Arnold Dias’s 
Prize (hooks) for Practical Agriculture, S. Nalla- 
sully ; Mr. S. T. Muttiah's jirize for Field Survey- 
ing (RIO), K. I). Romial. 
Certificates were presented to the following 
students, who are leaving the College: — S. iM. 
Johannes, H. H. Dias, S. S. Viramuttu, C. II. 
Perera, D. Amarawickrama and J. S. Sulgndo. 
H. K. the Govkrnor afterw'nrds said : — Radies 
and gentlemen, I am sure you have in common 
with me listened with profit and .satisfaction to 
the very full report which had been read by the 
Siiperintemlent of the Agricultural College^ and 
the commentary upon it which W'e have heard 
from the Director of Public Instruction. I say 
for myself that 1 have listened to that report and 
these comments with profit, because 1 find that I 
hav'e gained by them information which I certainly 
did not po.ssess before of the object, history anil 
progress of this institution. I have listened to 
those remarks with great satisfaction because 
they have put before us a very satisfactory 
history of the working af the Institution even 
after making allowance for a little very natural 
enthusiasm on the part of the Superintendent. 
It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of an 
institution of this kind in a country like Ceylon 
which is almost entirely dependent oil the develop- 
ment of its agricultural sources, and 1 am par- 
ticularly glad therefore to see so many visitors 
jiresent to give their encouragement to this 
liarticularly interesting and valuable institution. 
The syllabus that 1 hold in my hand of the in- 
tended work of this College is a ver}' compre- 
hensive one, comprising as it does a large number 
of theoretical and practical subjects of education, 
ana wlien this syllabus is augmentod, as we have 
been told ii probably w'ill be, by the teaching of 
more advanced veterinary science, and also possi- 
bly by the ingrafting upon it of some technical 
teaclilug, 1 think there will be very few educa- 
tionnl^ institutions in Ceylon which will equal 
this College in importance and interest. (Hear, 
hear.) J was particularly interested by those 
passages in the report of the Superintendent which 
deal w'ith the results of experiments in the im- 
provement of paddy cultivation. It is pitiful to 
