COCONUTS IN THE 
FEDERATED MALAY STATES IN 1903. 
The Inspector of Coconut trees, Mr. L. C. Brown, has just 
published his annual report for 1903, which contains a good deal 
of instructive information. He says that the area under Coconuts 
amounted at the end of the year to 77,5 00 acres, which may be 
roughly valued at between 12 and 15 million dollars. This is a 
large increase on the acreage recorded in the previous year. A 
little more than half the cultivated area is in Perak, the rest is 
almost evenly divided between the three other States. The Inspec- 
tor gives an account of one estate showing how a little carelessness 
may produce a great development of the beetle pest. 1'he estate 
chiefly Para Rubber contained 50 acres of coconuts mixed with the 
rubber, and these it was deluded to destroy. “ Unfortunately this 
was done without sufficient precaution being taken to see that 
each tree as it was cut clown was thoroughly destroyed. The conse- 
quence being that in a very short space of time the red beetles and 
grubs were simply swarming in the stumps and stems lying about. 
Some idea of the enormous numbers may be gathered from the 
fact that as manv as 20,000 beetles and grubs were killed in one 
day and before the pests could he got rid ot and which was done 
at considerable expense in about 2 months time over I 70,000 Ot 
them were collected and destroyed. They spread also to the ad- 
joining estate and several thousands of the beetles were caught in 
the coconuts there, but the Manager put on several hands to deal 
with the evil which is now eradicated/' 
In some instances the Malay owners were aroused to take more 
interest in their holdings, and collected a body from themselves 
to clean up the villages in regular order, with highly beneficial 
results, but the Malays in other parts were callous and indifferent. 
At Bagan Dato Estate where there were 800 acres under 
European cultivation, Mr. BROWN found on his first visit that 
much damage had been done bv rats, but the trees were free from 
beetles, but towards August the place became suddenly and se- 
riously infested by beetles and grubs, which were found in large 
numbers in the decaved stumps and in the top soil of black loams. 
The pests were exterminated by flooding. It is noted that trees 
between 8 and 10 years old or even older that have been attacked 
by beetles easily become recoverable with ordinary care in a very 
short time. On the other hand young trees between the age of three 
and six years require continual and particular attention and always 
give considerable trouble, and this may also be said of very old 
trees which take even longer to come round. 
As regards the prospects of the coconut cultivation, owing to 
the increased interest in Para and other rubbers, the Inspector 
does not look for a great increase in coconut cultivation bv Euro- 
peans. In fact it may diminish the coconut trees being cut down 
to make room for the rubber. This however, he does not think 
