its roots out horizontally over a large area. Here the roots 
were descending vertically as if seeking to reach the clay 
bed which underlay the peat at a considerable depth. Y\ here 
the clav came near the surface the plants undoubtedly did 
better but a depth of 12 feet or even less of the vegetable 
debris was fatal to them. . A , 
It has been shown lately by experiment that a wet 
swamp of peaty soil, that is one with an excess of vegetable 
matter is not hygrophytic but xerophytic and that the plant 
naturally found there are specially adapted tor drought, 
that is to sav, a shortage of water. 
The reason for this is that these peaty soils contain m 
their water an excess of humic acid. This acid lias so 
deleterious an effect on the protoplasm ot the plants not 
special Iv adapted for growth m such soils that the watei 
which should be taken up by the roots is actually poisonous 
and cannot be used by them at all. In fact it has much the 
same effect as sea-water. TT i • 1 
Nothing could be more unsuitable tor the Hevea which 
requires a lot of water and requires it good. Plants m soil 
such as this become weak and very soon succumb to the 
attacks of fungus. They have no strength to resist any 
disease. In any case they could never make healthy trees 
even if there was no fungus about. In ground °* ^ 1S 
nature I have recently heard of a mortality of IOC I per cent, 
and that the area planted has had to be entirely abandoned, 
fn manv parts of the Peninsula there are still lett considet 
ab r areas of similar soil to this I have described, and 
planters would do well to avoid this ground entirely for 
rubber planting. H N Eidley . 
COTTON IN BARAM, SARAWAK. 
Some samples of cotton grown at Baram in Sarawak 
were forwarded by the Resident of Baram with a request 
for report as to value. Part of this was sent to Professoi 
Dunstan of the Imperial Institute, whose report is an- 
neXe Native cotton has not unfrequently been reported on 
from The Malay Peninsula and Islands, it was formerly 
cultivated as half wild in Muar. The samples have some- 
times proved equal in quality to the Baram sample, that is 
to sav while not of the very best quality, still a perfectly 
good'saTeable article. Could the Dyaks be induced to con- 
