564 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Febrvary I, 189a. 
Prebeuvation of Coconut Trees. — Under 
this heading the (olloning Order in Council has ht on 
issued by the Perah Government : — 
Whereas the jiroviaions oontaiued in Goverument 
notifleation No. '.10 of 25th Seftembcr, 1888, have 
proved iosnOlcient to prevent the destruotion of coco- 
nut treea by beetles, tho following is ai!<led to tho 
abovemenlionod notifioaticn. 1. All owners and ooon- 
piers of land ill the vioiuity of oooonut p’aut.ations ate 
required to burn the dead atema of all palm loaves th.at 
may be on their land, as it is in these aterus that the 
heetlea generally breed. Farther, they are forbidden 
to accnmulate hoapa of decaying vegetable mattor, old 
attapa, and tho rofnro of sugarcane or Indian corn, and 
where these have accumulated they aro to take imme- 
diato steps for their removal or deatruction. preferably 
bv fire. 2. Any poraon neglecting to ootnply with tho 
pcovisiona of aoolion 1 of thia Order in Guancil shall bo 
liable, on conviotion, to a fine not exceeding SIO for the 
first and not exceeding $60 for a seoond or aubaequent 
offence. 
The Madras Season UEPonrs.— Tho diatiesa in 
thia Proaidenoy is becoming mote and more eonoen- 
tratod every week. Chiuglepnt and North Aroot aro 
now reported to be out of the area of anxiety, at 
least for the present, and Kurnool, Hollary, Auantapnr 
and Ouddapah have taken their place. Tho season 
tolograma in last uight’a Gazette for the week ending 
the 12th inet. report heavy falls of rain in 'Tanjoro 
and South Aroot, and good falla in Triohinopoly, 
Ohiugleput, eastern porta of North Aroot and southern 
portions of Nellore. And ainoo those teimrts wore 
sent in we learn that li.rgo amounts of rain hiivo 
been registered all ri und Madras and down south, 
that many tanka in North Aroot, Chiegleput and 
Nellore have now a fnll supply, while most of the 
rest have a fair supply. The rain, however, did not 
extend fsr inland, and drought is now being severely 
felt in many parts of tho centrally situated districts. 
In Kurnool, Bellary and Anantapur the dry sowings 
up to November were 768,000 acres deficient. Cattle, 
too, aro now suffering soverely in Bellary and 
Anantapur. Prioos have further risen during the 
week. Last Wedneeday wo ehowed how dangerously 
high they wore, and we regret to obeerve that tho 
eoarcity rate for rieo baa now been reached in 
Vizsgapalam, and for dry grains in Nellore, Kurnool 
aad Halem. Ourionsly enough, thero contiuuee to bo 
a decrease iu tho numbers on relief works and in 
famine kitchens, but when relief operations have been 
tboronghly started in the Coded diatricta wo may 
expect largo and sudden inorcarce.— JIf. Mail, Pec. 16. 
Public Companies anb Estates in British 
North Borneo.— To Mr.Hcnty Walker, Oommissioncr 
of Lands, we aro indebted for an intoroEting return 
BO enlitlod. Of the 28 companiea tho British North 
Borneo Oompany is beyond all compare the most 
important, with 2 millions sterling of capital, and 
20 millions of acres of land, — that is to say 6 
millions beyond the area of Ceylon I This Company 
will of course take up all poBsihle entorpriBea. 
The rest ate all tobacco oompiiuieB, excepting ono 
lor gold mining, one for mining rights and planting, 
two for hotel and stores, two for planting, eaw- 
mills, Ac , and one various. There is no coffee, 
tea or cacao company : all save those mentioned 
are tobacco companies. Tobacco shows the same 
preponderance in tho lists of private eetates. Of 
45 in the Mybnrgh district two are for timber, 
two various, leaving 41 for lobaoco. In Darvol 
Bay 6 estates all grow tobaooo. In Aloook Pro- 
vince there are 10 estates, all tobaooo, except one 
Liberian coffee and one coffee and cacao. In 
Dewburst Province 6 estates all grow tobacco, and 
BO with 12 OBtatoB in Martin Province. This being 
BO we are not surprised to find that the names 
of the managers are nearly all Dutch and German ; 
there is little more than a score of English names 
to fully three score foreign. The traots of laud 
monopolized by companies and individuals are 
enormous, ranging after tho 20 millions of the 
great Oompany, from 60,000 acres downwards. Tho 
smallest acreage held by any public oompany is 
3 577. One holding of 800 acres for Liberian 
coffee looks quiie exceptional amongst the big 
figures. Wo trust British North Borneo will prosper, 
although at present the Britieb element does not 
propoodorato in the enterprise of the colony. , 
A French Duty on GROONPNnTS. — An article 
which appeared in tho Madrat Mail on Saturday 
evening, the 6th instant, ennounoing that a telegram 
hud been received from France during the day, to 
tho effect that the Senate had voted a duty of 3 
francs per 100 kilos (210 lb.) on groundnuts and 
gingelly seed imported into Franco, from any port 
except Pondicherry, caused an immense amount 
of excitement, for a time, and operators in tho 
produce, of all classes of tho tralfic, rejoiced greatly, 
at tho good tidings which woro to spoil Madras 
and Ouddalore of their present groundnut aud 
gingelly seed export trade, to the great advantage 
of tho French port ; it was settled, there and then, 
that the whole of the products, in question, 
exported from the Coromandel coast to Franco 
must, in future, bo shipped from Kurrikal or 
•Pondicherry, while that from Bombay would go to 
Mab6. But the news was too good to last ; and a 
very few hours after the distribution of tho Mail, 
tho extraordinary news was authuritively contradicted. 
It is true that a duty of 3 francs per 100 kilos 
has been voted by the Senate, but exemption applies 
only when the products are grown on French soil, 
and ae there is no space in tho Franoo-Indian 
territories for producing groundnuts und gingelly 
seed for export, beyond perhaps 10,000 or at moat 
16,000 bags per year, the fair capital of French 
ludia is not likely, therefore, to bo much benefited 
by the new import duty.— Cor. 
Emiquation or Coolies from Ganjam to the 
Indian Tea DieTBicrs. — Keeent articles which wo 
have extraotrd from the Piotteer seems to show that 
the Assam planters are not so favourably situated 
in regard to cheap labour as Mr Skrine's resolution 
asBumed. Northern and Eaetern India not being 
equal to their, wants, they are now drawing labour 
from Ganjam in the Madras Preaidenoy, where 
diffioullieB oppose themselves to reoruitiog whieb 
are ihns stated in a Memorial to Lord Wenlock: — 
We, tho undersigned, agents for emigration of eoolioa 
to the Indian lea dialriots, beg respectfully to bring 
to your Lordship’a notice the great inconveuionce to 
which the coolies are put, aod also tho extra heavy 
expomos incurred by ns iu sondirg our coolies from 
Uopilpore to Ohatruporo or Berhamporo for registra- 
tion. On the 2lBt of February lait, wo applied to 
E. C. Jokiielon, Beq , O. S., Protector of Labourers, 
to forwanl our appeal to your Lordship’s Government 
to allow ri’gistration to be done at Gopalpore, the 
port af embarkation, but the concession was not granted. 
\Vo take tiiie opportunity of approaching your Lordship 
with this onr appeal to grant ua the oonoesaion asked 
for, namely that an ofilco of registration may bo 
extended to Gopalpore, as the eooliee have to travel 
thirteen miles each way, in ail a distance of 26 miles, 
for registration at Ghobrapore, at wl ieh place regis- 
tration is more oxpe litiouSly dono than at Berhamporo. 
Wo would also peiui out to your Ercelloncy tlio dis- 
advantage to emigrants, especially n omen and children, 
having to trcvel 28 mib s, and tlicir inability on such a 
journey to obtain propeily cooked food ptovious to 
their undertaking a sea voyage to Oaloulta. This state 
of matters is the more to be regretted, seeing that crai 
gration is inoroasing every year, and that thousands 
of coolies are expoeted to emigrate from Ganjam during 
tho oiirrcnt recruiting eeasoii. If deemed necessary, 
wo are willing to psy cost of or fees for any extra 
establishment Government may think nooossary tor 
registration at Gopalpore. In oonolusion, wc fervently 
hope that your Excollonoy will take our humble petition 
into kind ooneideratiou. Gopalporo, Ganjam, Nov. 1891. 
