JUNE 1, 1892.] 
THE TROPICAL AQRlCULtUftlST. 
935 
over the efttimaled yeai’s PipecdUnre ; aod after these 
indents had all be* n roniplied with, ihere w<'Tild )ie 
still lofl in afock on the 3l«t December, 1891, 1,1501b. 
of dniahed quinine aim about 100 lb, of unpowdered 
febrifuge. The machinery at present « reefe I was, he 
said, adequate to turn out the quinine nud febrifuge 
likely to bo indented for : but the machinery in dupli- 
cate. Mr. Dawson hoped the Goveniment of India 
was right in thinking that the uativ»* pupulation had no 
reluctance to taking Iho quio'Urt ; and that the pma)l 
sale of the powders hitherto was dne a dely lo their 
high price, which he agreed might be reduced to 2 pica 
each. 
The Surgeon. G ncrsl with the Government of Madras, 
towhom the correspondence was forwarded for remarks, 
eaid he did not sen that an^ appreciable saving would be 
effected by sending quinine snd jalap in bulk as pro- 
posed by the GovernmeDk of India. On the other 
hand, it would throw addiiioual work ou the subordi- 
nales at Muoioipal ho>*pib'da, who had already as miieb 
work aa they oou'd attend to. Moreover, uniformity 
in appearance, &o.« could only be obtaioed by ad- 
hering to the present system. Ho did not approve 
of the sugijestjon to wrap the powdera in o’d papers, 
which wouM increase the poaoibdiiies of one powder 
being mistaken for the otb r, “morei'ver, the outer 
covering of a drug even among lu ro clviliard people, 
has a dooided ctfect on its sale. A recognised fea- 
ture of the succe-a of proprietary d^uga is the neat 
and at'ittctive way they re made up.” To prevent 
any mistake the wrappers might linve prints*! 01 
them in Tamil Vargative powder, ' and ‘ Fever 
powder, respectively and the outer wrapper enclos- 
ing both powj’ers mi^ht contain simp'o directions, 
such as" the purgative to be t^ken fir-'t and when it 
has a<'ted, the fev( r powder.” Surgeon Gcotralde 
Fabeok’s ovru opinioo regarding the sale of these drugs 
was that it would be in ditev^t ratio t© the int'rcst 
taken in the sale and distribution b" U-venue officials. 
The price of the 5-graii) quinine pow*ler has accord* 
ingly been Axed (*y the Madms Government at 2 pies 
and that of the 100 powder packet at Hi, the jahp 
being issued free of charge as bitberto. This arrange- 
ment will give the seller a commission of Spies in the 
rupee or about 4 per cent, as at pro e t. The Midras 
Government is of opinion that it would be better to 
continue the existing method of distribution, and it 
has ordered that the raTCS of the drugs and direc- 
tions for their U8« are to be printed on the wrappers 
in the v( rnaeoiar of the district to wbiolt the packets 
arc sent for distribution, — d/, .4/ai7, May 5th, 
SOl'RCFS OF FKKTILITV. 
Among the substances prnduced iu the c'lUrAo of the 
fermeutaiiou of dung, organic acids are formed siaiilar, 
to those found iu what id snoiently kuswu ns humus. 
These orgauio acids h.ivo a strong attimty tor ammon a 
which they retain firmly in oombinatiuu. But for this 
tact, there would doubtless be a much greater loss of 
ammonia from the manure heap during fermeutaiion 
than there is, though there is actually more waste 
every day than sbouM be, by allowing tb*- manurisl 
fluid— the very essence of dung— to drain away from 
the mass. 
It is too often forgotten that farmyard dung has 
Bomethiug more to command it than its onmpletoDOsa 
as a manure. Farmers are very apt to look on one 
side of its usefu'nesa only. Its mccbAuical virtues are 
not sufficiently appreciated. It is well known that 
manuring is nut all that the soil require^ .'its physical 
condition tnust bo looked after. Whdo dung replen- 
ishes the soil with obcmical oonstituentA, it also adds 
bulk and pornnity, and thus acoclcrates drainage. It 
has, therefore, much to do with the temperature of 
laud. Besides assistiug iu the removal of superliuous 
moisture, it renders the soil more absorptive, enabling 
it to make better oso of the heat of tho suu than it 
would otherwise do. This is an extremely important 
matter. 
The iempotatnro of the Boil w affected by other 
ceuaes than the auna rayi. Decaying vegetable matter 
is a source of hea*, as evidenced by the high tempera- 
ture germinated by the prooesB of fermentation of 
dung Farmyard manure thoa supplies heat to the 
Boil from two dilTerent soutoea, while it belpp it to 
retain mueh valnable mnnutial ingnu'ienta, which, in 
a colder or mote purt ly mineral soil, would he washed 
away. It also opeus up dense, aciff .oils to the iofluenoea 
of the air, and gives freer oouras lo the roola of planta 
It is not to be eoramended for application alone, but in 
coujuQctiouf* with pboaphatio manures we believe that 
farm-yard dueg is indispensable in niaintaiping the 
uecossarv temperature and fertility of the soil, — far- 
mer and Stock-Uretitr, April 4th. 
CINCHONA-SAMPLING IN AMSTERDAM. 
4Vb gave patliculara some time ago of a meeting 
held under theauapices of the Cinchona WarehOoBiog 
Association in Amsterdam at which it was decided 
to adopt a new plan of drawiug samplea of bark. 
We now understand that the neoesaary machinery 
for grindiug the bark has been put down, and that the 
samples for tho auction of May 5th, next will be treated 
upon tho new system . — Chemist and Dmggut, 
■tfiltlGULTURAL PRODUCTS OP THE 
PHILIPPINES. 
The United States Consul at Manilla says that 
tho principal products of the Philippinoa are hemp, 
coffee, rice, tobivcco, corn, and frnita. Tho cultiva- 
tion of hemp is a very simple operation, and as 
it yields a large revenue it is not surpriaing that 
it 18 a popular occupation among the people. This 
staple is the product of a species of planting which 
grows wild on the Pacific slopes of the volcanic ele- 
vations of the Philippine islands, particularly the 
southern ones. Under cultivation the tree attains a 
height of 15 or 20 feet, with a trunk from 8 to 12 
inches in diameter, lu its gnreen state it is crisp 
and juicy, and can' be readily cut down with an 
ordinary carving knife. The preparation of the 
hemp /or market is very simple. When the tree 
has properly matured, it is cut down and divided 
into long strips, which are shredded under a largo 
knife kept in the proper position by o rude lever. 
Tliis separates the juice and spongy matter from 
the fibre, and the latter is spread out in the sun 
to dry, after which it is packed in bales of about 
210 lb. for shipment. There are a large number of 
plantations owned by natives, os well as by Spani- 
ards and mestizos, where the trees are set out in 
regular rows, and well cared for. The cultivation 
of the coffee tree has been followed to some extent 
tor the past thirty years, but interest in this branch 
of cultivation has been renewed during the post (our 
or five years, and it is expected that its export will 
increase iinnually. There is no way of ascertaining 
tho aiea of laud occupied by coffee trees nor the 
amount of coffee annually produced, as the treesaro 
scattered in various parts of the archipelago. Tho 
largest plantations are iu the province of Hatangas, 
in the island of Luzon, but many of the natives 
have a few trees in their front yards, under the. 
shade of tho plantations, that may yield (our orfive 
bushels of coffee berries. The increase in production 
has been marked within tho past few years. In 1887, 
a little over 5,887 tons wore exported : in 1888, about 
7,501 tons. Although rice is the native's principal 
article of food, there is not enough of it produced 
in the archipelago for local oonsumptiou, and more 
than 70.000 tons are imported annually. Tho tobscco 
industry in the Philippines employs a large amount 
of capital and a vast number of hands. The best 
tobacco comes from tho provinces of Cogayan and 
Isabella on tho island of Luzon, the average annhal 
yield from thoas bein^ from 60,000 tons to 100,'0O0. 
Tobacco is also grown in the provinces of North and 
South Ilocos, Abra, L^anto, Nuova Exija, and Union, 
all on the island of Luzon, and on the islands of 
Cebu, and Pa ay. The tobacco produced in the 
fonner provinces is called Igorrotes, while that from 
Cobh and Panay ia designated risajiw, I# cultivat- 
