February i, 1892 .] 
THE TROPICAL AQRIOULTURISt 
601 
Fathers aucl sons all lend a hand to transplanting. 
We gather up the plants in bundles sufficient to 
fill the hand. 
We will plant them cast and west in the broad fields. 
Tbansplanxi.no. 
At early morn we began our work. 
The plants must bo sown in straight lines and 
evenly apart. 
With tlio bundle on the left arm we plant with 
the right. 
Beginning from the left each hislinetowards theright. 
Amidst song and talk thus we pass the day. 
This is the husbandman's busiest of times. 
Weeding. 
The rains have been falling, 
The plants have taken root, 
But the weeds have started and are invading the soil. 
They must be eradicated as should all evil things. 
So up to our knees in mud wo walk between the 
plants. 
And with the hand pluck up these noxious foes. 
Second Weeding. 
If you take off your coat the sun will scorch your 
back. 
Although wearing a hat the perspiration trickles 
down one’s neck. 
But can wo refuse to brave the heat of the day ? 
Whoo I the work is very hot. 
But here come the good ladies 
With a pitcher of tea and something to eat. 
And see, they bring the little youngster. 
Is it that he may take an early lesson in agriculture? 
Weeding. 
The paddy grows tip, right glad are wo. 
But yet another weeding, or ill 't will be. 
To get our daily meal how hard it is. 
For all our toil and labom' 
Is but with the view to fiU the stomach. 
Ikwoatino. 
There was a man of the time of Sung, 
Because the paddy grew slowly hepulledit up an inch. 
And returning boasted how he made things grow. 
There was a man of the Tang Dynasty 
Who watered his field with a cup 
And thought he would do what otners could not ; 
But wo of this wise generation, 
We use chains, pumps, and buckets. 
And never do such foolish things. 
liEAPlNO. 
With our backs bent well to our work 
The sickles ply from right to left. 
Come, boys, and gather up the leavings. 
The sun is already in the western horizon. 
Burdened with the fruit of the soil 
We return with joy to our humble homes. 
Stacking. 
See the stacks how they rise on high, 
There, then, are om' winter supplies ; 
Our minds ore at rest. 
For wo have plenty to eat. 
And our labour is easy from this timo forth. 
Thbashino. 
When the hoar frost sets in 
The leaves begin to fall and the weather is fine ; 
This is the time we choose for thrashing. 
From the open space before the cottage 
The noise of flails resounds afar ; 
The fowls pick up the straying grain, 
And tho black crows sit kwaing on their porches 
around. 
Bounding. 
The rustling sound of wind is heard without, 
Tho noise of pounding goes on within. 
We pound the grain by hand in a tub. 
We pound it also by working with tho feet, 
And while this scene goes on 
A neighbour may be drops in ; 
To talk of crops and other things. 
SlETINO. 
Before the winnow the grain must pass the sieve 
Fine work it is for our arms. 
With a bamboo copse to shelter us from the wind, 
A youthful wife from the window looking on. 
And ihg bright sun spreading warmth around, 
The time passes busily but pleasantly along. 
Winnowing. 
The wind is high and good for winnowing. 
The grain drops down with noise like rain. 
While the chaff being light is blown with the wind. 
As we fill our baskets and measure what 's left 
We are thanliful that with plenty w'e are blessed. 
Hulling. 
The husk has been, you 've seen, removed ; 
There is the skin of tho grain to go ; 
The wherefore of it 's ground between two stones. 
Throe men to push and pull and one to erve 
ho while g 
Aud one more sifting, and the grain is rice for 
human kind. 
Storino. 
It is winter, the weather is very cold. 
Many of us seek warmth in the sun without. 
While our cattle we house secure from the wind. 
See how wo store tho rice in bulk. 
The officials will now come to collect their tax. 
Hetuhnino Thanks. 
Tho spades and forks are now put away, 
Tho sieves and baskets no longer required. 
One year’s operations have thus rotated. 
And on our knees before our altar god 
We give offering aud thanks for blessings vouch- 
safed. 
— Queeimlander. 
SOUTH Wi’NAAD NOTES. 
Jan. 2nd, 1892,—* • • There is no blotting 
out tho fact that though on some estates, crop this 
year has been all that could be desired, on others, 
it has proved a failure, perhaps the more keenly felt 
on aci'ouut of the previous bravo promise, so plossautly 
held out to us at blo-soming time. Tho blossom of 
1891 was an exceptionally fine one, aud to all ap- 
pearance it set with eveiy prospect of success. This 
was followed on some estates by wave after wave 
of loaf disease. Still crop remained visible in most 
satisfactory quantities upon the leafle-w branches. 
The first result of such denudation was that tho 
berries dropped off in large numbers, the next, that 
the^trees, uusbellered and sapless, refused to ripeu 
their fruit, and this either blackened and sbrivefled 
up, or remained green .and unfit for pulping. As I 
write, whole fields are to be seen bore aud there 
as green as thongh we were iu September instead 
of January. Aumher effect of the continued leaf 
disease is, that tunob of the coffee, apparently per- 
fectly good, contains, when pulped, a large pro- 
portion of floaters, whilst amongst tho parchment 
are to bo found many discoloured and spotted 
beans. All these little difficulties have consider- 
ably taken the gilt off out ginger bread, and if we 
in South Wynsad depeudcl entirely upon Coffee 
Arabioa, it would be anything but a bright look 
out for most of us. The high prices help us to and 
we can heartily rejoice with those fortunates whose 
crops have turned out trunaps; and as 1 have 
always said, there is no need for us to strike our col- 
ours because one industry in one locality is mors or 
less a failure. 
We are perfectly and thankfully conscious that other 
things will grow aud fl .urish in Wynasd, and that 
only money and euterprise are needed to make us pros- 
perous again. At the same time, from what I see just 
riiniid me. I venture to doubt the wisdom of stating 
that the prospects of coffee Arabioa are ontirelv flour- 
ishing. The young fields may look well and promise 
bopefiilly, but with ibe soil end atmosphere saturated 
as they undoubtedly ate by vaststrix germs, it would 
be absurd for us to suppose that bur enemy is con- 
quered. That this is not a more craze of my own, as 
some of your eorrespondouts have asserted, is proved, 
for my statement is practically supported by the fact 
that a very conaidersblo acreage has already been 
planted up in Wynaad with Liberian coffee, aud that 
almost every one who objected to tho ides twelve 
months ago, is now acknowledging the force of such visi- 
ble arguments as abandoned estates provide, and making 
