\ 
 
 GIFT OF 
 
 HORACE W. CARPENTER 
 
ESSAY 
 
 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES 
 
 INDIA. 
 
 BY 
 
 J. F. ROYLE, M.D., F.R.S., L.S., & G.S., 
 
 Late of the Medical Staff of the Bengal Amtff, and late Superintendent of the Hon. 
 
 E. I. C.'s Botanic Garden at Saharunpore ; Fellow of the Imperial Societg 
 
 Naturce Curiosorum ; of the Asiatic Societies of Calcutta and London ; 
 
 of the Agricultural and Horticultural Society of India ; of the 
 
 Horticultural Societg of London ; and of the English 
 
 Agriculiurai Societg. 
 
 PROPBSSOR OF HATBRIA MKDICA AXD THKRAPBITTICS, KING'S COLL., LONDON. 
 
 LONDON : 
 Wm. H. ALLEN AND CO 
 
 LEADENHALL STREET. 
 
 1840. 
 
^7 
 
 Printed by J, L. Cox & Sons, 75. Great Queen Street, 
 Lincoln*B-Inn Fields. 
 
 d^i^"^''*^^ 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 As the Title-page and Table of Contents will 
 inform the reader of the nature of the work he is 
 about to peruse, the Author might refrain from 
 engaging his attention with a Preface, if it did 
 not seem advisable to explain one or two points 
 respecting the nature of the work. 
 
 Having long paid attention, both in India and 
 in this country, to the productions of the former, 
 whether the spontaneous gift of Nature or the 
 produce of Agriculture, the Author observed that 
 they were both varied and abundant, and fitted 
 for every purpose, whether for affording food, for 
 contributing to the comfort of the inhabitants, or 
 for yielding materials for Manufactures and Com- 
 merce. The country being fruitful in soil and 
 rich in climate, he noticed, however, an unac- 
 countable discrepancy between its natural riches 
 and the quality of the different productions, when 
 
 a2 
 
 476183 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 compared with similar products from other coun- 
 tries. Observation and consideration, combined 
 with an examination of the modes of culture and 
 manufacture in other parts of the world, enabled 
 him to perceive, that many of the causes of failure 
 were purely of a Physical nature, some, dependent 
 on the Soil, a few, on the Climate, and others, on 
 the processes of Agriculture. The defects seem- 
 ing as often to be those of redundancy as of de- 
 ficiency of growth, it appeared feasible so to mo- 
 dify the operations of Agriculture, as to subject 
 the plants under cultivation to the influence (in 
 different degrees) of the several physical agents 
 which controul vegetation, such as Light, Heat, 
 Air, and Moisture, and thus produce different and 
 the desired results. 
 
 Being anxious to contribute to the improve- 
 ment of the Agriculture of India, and hoping 
 that some of his suggestions would have that 
 tendency, the Author might have commenced his 
 work by giving, in the first instance, a general 
 view of the influence of Physical Agents on the 
 functions of Vegetation, more especially in con- 
 nection with the soil and climate of India. This, 
 from the general neglect of the Natural Sciences 
 in English education, appeared to him the most 
 important, as few writers, in their experiments or 
 their descriptions, refer to the true causes of the 
 results whicli are obtained. Such a plan would 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 have given cultivatoi^s principles for general cul- 
 ture, instead of empirical rules for routine prac- 
 tice, and, at all events, would have enabled 
 experimentalists more easily to detect errors, 
 and at the same time more readily to adopt im- 
 provements in their own practice. Or instead of 
 treating, in the first instance, of general principles, 
 he might have taken up any of the principal ob- 
 jects of Indian Agriculture, and exemplified in the 
 culture of these the operation of the different phy- 
 sical agents, or the Physiology of Vegetation. 
 
 But before proceeding to adopt either course, it 
 was necessary to become acquainted with the at- 
 tempts which already had been made. In doing 
 this the Author found that many experiments 
 had been instituted, and much had been done 
 for the improvement of many Indian staple pro- 
 ducts ; but that the generality of modern expe- 
 rimentalists seemed to be unacquainted with the 
 labours of their predecessors ; many of them com- 
 mencing improvement by repeating experiments 
 which had already been made, and announcing 
 results as new, which had long previously been 
 ascertained. 
 
 The Author has, therefore, thought it prefer- 
 able, on the present occasion, to take a general 
 view of the principal objects of Indian Culture, 
 of the course which has been followed in attempt- 
 ing to improve them, and of the results, often 
 successful, which have been obtained. He has 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 interspersed these with explanations of, what ap- 
 pear to be, the physical causes of the successful 
 or unsuccessful culture, and the obvious methods 
 of improvement. For the purposes of compari- 
 son, he has commenced, however, with a brief his- 
 tory of the Arts of Culture in other parts of the 
 world. This is instructive, as showing that, in all, 
 difficulties have at first been encountered, which 
 have, on the increase of experience and skill, dis- 
 appeared ; and soils and climates which at one 
 time were pronounced unsuitable for the culture 
 of particular plants, have been afterwards found 
 to produce them of the finest quality. 
 
 By this method, the Author hopes he has been 
 able to prove to a greater number in this country 
 the capability of India for all kinds of culture, 
 and the probability of the almost indefinite ex- 
 tension of these, with increased improvement in 
 most of the principal staples of Indian Commerce. 
 While Cultivators in India will see the number of 
 interesting and important subjects to which they 
 may attend with profit to themselves, and if they 
 undertake experiments with due attention to all 
 the circumstances which controul the results, his 
 object will be equallygained, whether his opinions 
 be refuted or confirmed. He hopes he may be 
 able, on future occasions, to take up more in de- 
 tail both the General and the Specific subjects 
 to which he has alluded. 
 
 That the information on the subjects treated 
 
PREFACE. vii 
 
 of in this work is varied and authentic, will ap- 
 pear from the references to the works which are 
 quoted in the text : that it is not better known 
 must be ascribed to its being scattered about in 
 publications not easily accessible, even to those 
 desirous of information, as the large works are 
 only found in extensive libraries, and the small 
 ones rapidly disappear from circulation. 
 
 He cannot conclude without rectifying an omis- 
 sion, in not having mentioned, when treating of 
 Wool, that the Right Honourable Holt Macken- 
 zie had placed in his hands the materials for a pa- 
 per on this subject, which the Author hopes he 
 may yet be induced to complete ; but having only 
 referred to the same official documents, and not 
 quoted from the paper, the omission is accounted 
 for. The Author has also to acknowledge the re- 
 ceipt of a paper from Dr. Falconer, on Putchuk or 
 Koot, the Costus of the ancients, mentioned at 
 p. 223 of this work. Dr. F. finds that this belongs 
 to a new genus, which he has " named ' Auck- 
 landia,' in honour of George, Earl Auckland, 
 Governor-general of India, not in compliment to 
 his rank, but as a distinction well merited by 
 his Lordship's services in the cause of Indian 
 Botany." 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 Sources of the Wealth of Nations 1 
 
 Mineral, Animal, and Vegetable 3 
 
 Commerce, origin of ... ... ... ... ... 7 
 
 Vegetable Kingdom, importance of ... 8 
 
 — products of, [as forming articles of 
 
 Commerce ... ... ... ,_ .., ... n 
 
 as employed in Manufactures ... 15 
 
 as sources of Revenue ... ... 16 
 
 Culture of Vegetables .. 19 
 
 The Arts of Culture in Europe 28 
 
 in the Colonies and Extra-European 
 
 Countries ... ... ... ... ... ... 39 
 
 in India ... ... ... ... 44 
 
 Culture of Pepper in the Circars 53 
 
 of Cochineal in India ... ... ... ... 57 
 
 Observations on the Results of the Pepper and Cochineal 
 
 Cultivation ... ... ... ... ... ... 64 
 
 Botanic Garden Established at Calcutta 69 
 
 Useful Plants introduced into India 73 
 
 Mahogany, Pimento, Nutmeg, and Spice Plantations esta- 
 blished in Sumatra and Pinang ... ... ... 74 
 
 Production in India of Barilla,Potash,Caoutchouc, Wood Oil 75 
 
 Culture of Cotton in India 78 
 
 India, Culture of Sugar in 85 
 
 of Indigo in ... ... ... 94 
 
 of the Poppy in ... ... ... ... 102 
 
 of Flax and Hemp in 108 
 
 Silk Culture in India ... ... ... ... ... 115 
 
 Production of Wool in India ... ... ... ... 139 
 
 India, Pasture Grasses of ... ... ... ... 155 
 
X CONTENTS. 
 
 Improvement of the Breed of Sheep in India ... ... 161 
 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden, Progress of ... ... ... 173 
 
 — , Herbarium collected and distri- 
 buted by the East-India Company ... ... ... 178 
 
 Prangos Hay Plant 179 
 
 Coffee in India ... 184 
 
 Tobacco from Arracan ... ... ... ... ••• 187 
 
 Forests of Timber in India... ... ... ... ••• 189 
 
 Calcutta Garden, Practical Benefits of ... ... ... 192 
 
 , Plants distributed ; Tea Plants and 
 
 Seeds ; Useful Trees 195 
 
 Teak, Mahogany, Fruit Trees introduced and distributed 199 
 Saharunpore Botanic Garden, establishment of ... 201 
 
 , plans adopted for making 
 
 the Institution efficient ... ... ... ... 206 
 
 Mountain Nursery established ... ... ... ... 209 
 
 Cultivation in different seasons ... ... ... ... 214 
 
 Plants naturalized ... ... ... ... ... ... 215 
 
 Agricultural Experiments ... ... ... ... ... 219 
 
 Saffron, Assafcetida, Koot, or Costus of the Ancients . . . 223 
 
 Prangos Hay Plant 225 
 
 Fruit Trees, Vegetables, and Horticulture ... ... 226 
 
 Useful Plants cultivated and distributed ... ... 229 
 
 Medicines grown or prepared in Saharunpore Garden 
 
 audits Hill Nursery 234 
 
 Scientific objects attended to in the Saharunpore Garden 239 
 Tobacco, Culture of, in India ... ... ... ... 249 
 
 Tea, Cultivation of, in the Himalayas and in Assam . . . 257 
 Cultivation of Cotton in India ... ... ... ... 312 
 
 Botanic Garden established at Dapooree in Westeni India 356 
 Investigation of the Productive Resources of the Madras 
 
 Presidency ... ... ... ... 363 
 
 Agricultural and Horticultural Society of India ... ... 370 
 
 Recapitulation of the Survey of the History and Prospects 
 
 of the Productive Resources of India ... ... ... 375 
 
 Appendix ^ ... 421 
 
ON THE 
 
 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES 
 
 INDIA. 
 
 In contemplating the sources, and examining sources of the 
 the various substances which constitute the wealth Tattons!* 
 of nations, whether these be the necessaries, the 
 conveniences, or the luxuries of life, we observe 
 that the greater number have been derived from 
 the Earth. So much, indeed, is this the case, TheEanh. 
 that some have argued that the earth is the only 
 source of wealth, and have proceeded to propose, 
 that all taxes should be levied on the land alone, 
 as the productiveness of Agriculture is so greatly Agriculture. 
 promoted by the vegetating powers of Nature. 
 Labour, however, is as requisite for working the 
 soil, as for enabling us to modify the properties 
 of material substances to fit them for our comfort 
 or enjoyment ; so that labour in a mixed society, Labour, 
 and in an advanced state of civilization, must be 
 equally valuable, whether employed on the pro- 
 duction of the i-aw material, in preparing it for 
 our use, or in transporting it from one place to 
 another. 
 
2 SOURCES OF WEALTH. 
 
 Products of the But the Merchant cannot transport, nor the 
 
 earth, r ' 
 
 Manufacturer prepare, except what has in the 
 first instance been the result of the labours of the 
 Agriculturist, or is the spontaneous produce of 
 the earth, whether obtained on its surface or from 
 its interior, or procured from the waters of the 
 ocean or of rivers. Therefore, to give an impulse 
 to Commerce, and to obtain materials for Manu- 
 factures, it is necessary to investigate both the 
 natural productions of the earth, and the fruitful- 
 require investi- ncss of the soil : uot oulv as fitted for a variety 
 
 gation, . . 
 
 of products, but also with reference to its ability 
 to produce more than what is sufficient for the 
 use or sustenance of its inhabitants. As the earth 
 yields the various mineral, vegetable, or animal 
 substances which form our food, or the materials 
 of our clothing, of our dwellings, or of the diffe- 
 as employing rent implements necessary for the various arts of 
 
 the Agricul- ... i • /« 
 
 turist, Mer- life, SO it IS the chicf sourcc of wealth from Agri- 
 Manu'facturer. cultural. Commercial, and Manufacturing labours. 
 ?rI^"fndManu-^ But linked as are the several Arts and Manufac- 
 Naturai Prol^ tures ouc with another, and all with Agriculture 
 ducts. and the Products of the earth, it is difficult, if 
 
 not impossible, to determine which is the most 
 important in an advanced state of civilization, or 
 which kingdom of Nature is the most indispensa- 
 ble to man. 
 
 Deprived of the multiplied treasures of the 
 Mineral king- Mineral Kingdom, most of the arts called Che- 
 
 dom. , ° 
 
 Chemical arts, mical would uever have been known, and others 
 would have languished without the aid of their 
 
MINERAL AND ANIMAL KINGDOMS. 3 
 
 mostefficient agents; even Agriculture itself would Mikeral Pbo. 
 have laboured with inferior, instead of the best, 
 materials for its implements. Metals, moreover, Metals, 
 are required to give strength to Shipping, and 
 facility of movement to Machinery, while those 
 called Precious give us the most convenient me- 
 dium of Exchange. Coal, though derived from coai. 
 the accumulation of vegetable matter in former 
 periods of the world, is yet dug out of the inte- 
 rior of the earth, and now forms so excellent a 
 fiiel that it has given a superiority to the 
 manufactures of England, with which the natural 
 advantages of other countries have hitherto been 
 unable to compete. Iron, as abundantly diffused iron, 
 as it is useful, has so surprisingly assisted man 
 in the career of improvement, that Mr. Locke has 
 said that the discoverer of its uses may be truly 
 styled the " fether of arts and author of plenty." 
 
 Animal substances are, however, equally valu- Akotal Pbo- 
 
 DDCTS. 
 
 able ; for man, in the early periods of society, de- 
 pended as much upon the skins of animals for cloth- 
 ing as he relied upon their flesh for subsistence. Flesh for food. 
 Nations, even in the most advanced stages of civili- 
 zation, derive a great portion of their food from ani- 
 mals, at the same time that they employ their skins, Skins for 
 wool, and silk, for parts of their clothing. These, 
 therefore, form extensive articles of commerce, 
 from the nearer as well as from the most distant 
 parts of the world ; as Wool from Germany, Spain, wooi. 
 the North of India, and New Holland; Silk from siik. 
 the South of Europe, China, and Bengal ; Hides Hides. 
 
 b2 
 
TRODUCTS Of AMJMALS. 
 
 Animal Pro» 
 
 DUCTS. 
 
 Furs. 
 
 Cochineal. 
 Lac. 
 
 Fat and oil 
 
 Horns. 
 
 Bones. 
 Draught cattle. 
 
 Vegetable 
 kingdom 
 necessary to 
 animals. 
 
 from the North of Europe and South America, 
 as well as from India; Furs and Skins from 
 Canada and Russia ; while, to dye these of colours 
 more convenient or agreeable than those afforded 
 by Nature, Cochineal is imported from Mex- 
 ico, and the Lac from India. In late, as in early 
 civilization, the fatty portions of animals are 
 employed for affording light ; hence fleets are 
 despatched into polar regions in pursuit of the 
 Whale, and Tallow is imported in large quantities 
 from Russia, and even from India. Horns are 
 manufactured into various sorts of implements, 
 and are obtained from different parts of the 
 world. The clippings of horns and of skins are 
 boiled down into glue, and the bones and offal of 
 animals are employed as manure. Several kinds 
 of cattle, moreover, aid by their labour the pro- 
 cesses of Agriculture; some are employed in trans- 
 porting the produce of the soil, or the treasures of 
 the mine, and others in giving motion to the 
 machinery of many manufactories. 
 
 But still, whether required for food or for its 
 spoils, or for employment as a beast of draught 
 or of burden, the animal cannot subsist in the 
 air or in the water, on the barren soil or arid 
 rock, but must derive its sustenance from the 
 Vegetable kingdom. Plants, therefore, are neces- 
 sary to all, for not even could the Bee collect its 
 honey, unless this were first secreted by the 
 flower ; nor tlie Silk- worm spin its silk, if deprived 
 of the sustenance of the leaf: neither could the 
 
PROGRESS OF CIVILIZATION. 5 
 
 Coehiiieal, nor the Lac insects, elaborate their vegetable 
 
 kingdom 
 
 dyes without their vegetable food. Skin even necessary to 
 
 animals. 
 
 cannot be converted into leather, and rendered 
 fit for the purposes of man, without the astringent 
 I tanning principle yielded by the bark, the wood, 
 
 the leaf, or the fruit of different Plants. 
 
 In tracing the progress of civilization, it has commence- 
 
 11 1 1 , • ,1. mentof 
 
 every where been observed, that in the earliest civilization. 
 stage of society man is found with imperfect 
 weapons, depending for his subsistence on the 
 precarious, long-continued, and fatiguing labours 
 of the chase, assisted by a scanty and uncertain The Hmiter. 
 supply of the wild fruits of the forest. In this 
 state a small number of men require for their 
 support a large extent of territory. From pur- 
 suing animals, man proceeds to attempt their 
 domestication, and the Pastoral state succeeds to Pastoral state. 
 that of the Hunter. Population still is much 
 scattered, as every tribe has to travel in quest of 
 fresh pastures, and each family has to provide 
 itself not only with food, but also with whatever 
 it requires for its clothing, as well as with the 
 necessary arms and implements. In favourable 
 situations, Tillage, or the preparation of the soil, Tillage. 
 and the cultivation of useful plants, is next 
 discovered, and then the habits of the settled 
 Agriculturist succeed to those of the wandering Agriculture. 
 Shepherd. A comparatively small space of cul- 
 tivated ground is then sufficient for the mainte- 
 nance of a lar2:e number of individuals, as the Abundance of 
 
 * . ' . food. 
 
 ground may be tilled and the fruit of the favourite 
 
6 
 
 ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMERCE, 
 
 Abundance of 
 Food. 
 
 Division of 
 labour. 
 
 Commence- 
 ment of 
 manufactures. 
 
 Commerce 
 established. 
 
 Occupations 
 of different 
 nations. 
 
 Great Britain. 
 
 tree continue to be collected, while the flocks 
 at the same time are driven to pasture. 
 
 A superabundance of food allows larger num- 
 bers of men to congregate together, and settled 
 habits afford them leisure for other pursuits. 
 The first division of labour then takes place, when 
 men finding, that by giving their undivided atten- 
 tion to any one pursuit, they are enabled to pre- 
 pare much more of the manufacture on which 
 they are engaged, than is required for their own 
 consumption, they are ready to barter it for the 
 produce of the labour of others. This exchange, 
 though at first taking place only between the 
 members of their own tribe, is soon extended to 
 those of others, and Commerce, in the full sense 
 of the term, is established. This progressive 
 advancement in occupation marks the stages of 
 society. Some peculiarity of country or of climate, 
 however, often renders one pursuit more advan- 
 tageous than another, this, therefore, is followed 
 in preference, and continues to characterize 
 particular people. Hence we find some nations 
 addict themselves principally to Pasturage, and 
 others to Agriculture ; some chiefly to Manu- 
 factures, and others again, who possess but limited 
 territories, or are deficient in produce, employ 
 themselves almost entirely in transporting from 
 one country to another the products of different 
 parts of the globe. Great Britain happily unites 
 with extensive Pasturage the most advanced 
 Agriculture, and great perfection of Manufactures, 
 
EARLY HISTORY OF COMMERCE. 7 
 
 with unbounded Commerce.* India, early cele- India. 
 brated for the richness and variety of its Products, 
 as well as for the Manufacturing skill of its inha- Agricultural. 
 I bitants, may in the present day rather be consi- 
 
 dered as a great Agricultural country. 
 
 It is sometimes made a subject of discussion, Commerce. 
 what parts of the world were first peopled, and 
 became great agricultural and commercial na- 
 tions ; and it is generally supposed that the ex- 
 change of commodities first became considerable 
 in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and on the coasts of Eariyhistoryof. 
 Arabia. We now know, that Arabia produces 
 none of those valuable products for which, in 
 ancient times, it was so celebrated ; the Arabians 
 must therefore have obtained them from the 
 regions where they were produced. The nearest 
 of these are the peninsula of India and the island Indian. 
 of Ceylon ; and as we learn from history that 
 caravans entered into and departed from the 
 north-western parts of India, it is evident that its 
 
 * Dr. Buckland, in his Bridge water Treatise — Geology and 
 Mineralogy, has happily observed, vol. i. p. 2, that if three 
 foreigners were to land at separate points and travel over different 
 parts of Great Britain, which he points out, *' One would repre-« 
 sent it as a thinly-peopled region of barren mountains ; ano- 
 ther, as a land of rich pastures, crowded with a flourishing 
 population of manufacturers ; the third, as a great corn-field, 
 occupied by persons exclusively engaged in the pursuits of hus- 
 bandry." These dissimilar conditions," Dr. B. observes, " of 
 three great divisions of our country, result from differences in 
 the geological structure of the districts, through which our 
 three travellers have been conducted." 
 
8 VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 
 
 Ancient In- pi'oducts iiiust Iiave been objects of desire to the 
 
 Commerce of. nations of antiquity. From these facts it is highly 
 probable that the Manufactures, and necessarily 
 the Agriculture, of ancient India were contem- 
 porary with those of the far-famed, but probably 
 not earlier civilized, Egypt. Indeed, the exten- 
 sive and fruitful plains of India, intersected by 
 magnificent rivers, and having a favourable cli- 
 mate, must early and easily have supplied a super- 
 
 Fruitfuiness of. abundance of food to its inhabitants ; and thus 
 have allowed some the leisure necessary for those 
 other pursuits in which they early excelled con- 
 temporary nations. Their country, moreover, 
 must have produced then, as now, a great variety 
 
 Natural pre of natural products, which when known, must 
 in those days have been objects of desire, as 
 they are to distant nations at the present time. 
 It is in consequence of this that we find so many 
 of them noticed and described in the earliest 
 records which we possess in the ancient liter- 
 ture of the West. 
 
 Chiefly vege- The articles of commerce for which India was 
 
 We. 
 
 so early famed having been chiefly the products 
 of plants, and as the culture of plants, from afford- 
 ing abundance of food, and thus leading to settled 
 Importance of habits, and to the establishment of property in 
 land, forms tlie most important step in the pro- 
 gress of civilization ; so this subject necessarily 
 claims the first consideration in the economic 
 history of a country, and in the development and 
 improvement of its resources. 
 
VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 9 
 
 The vegetable world, though constantly before Plants, general 
 our eyes, is seldom thought of by the generality ^ ^°' 
 of people, except as varying the appearance of 
 a country, as producing vegetables or flowers, 
 or as being the source of some of the products 
 useful or agreeable to man ; and therefore, in the 
 ordinary attempts to cultivate plants for our use 
 or amusement, especially in new situations, every 
 thing, except the desire to possess them, seems 
 to be forgotten. 
 
 Notwithstanding this, almost every one knows, Pi^kts. 
 however, that plants, like animals, are living Living bodies. 
 bodies, and that they require nourishment for 
 their support, which must be procured by them 
 from the world without. Animals, from their P'stincUon 
 
 between thenj 
 
 locomotive habits, are enabled to go in search of and animals. 
 food, which having obtained, they convey into 
 their interior. During the process of digestion, 
 the nutritive particles are separated and absorbed 
 into the system, along the internal surface of the 
 alimentary canal. Plants, on the contrary, being 
 stationary in nature, depend for their subsistence 
 on the soil in which they are placed, or on the 
 atmosphere by which they are surrounded. The 
 particles adapted to their growth being in the 
 one case suspended in the air, and, in the other 
 being intermixed with, or forming a part of, the 
 soil, are dissolved in water, and in this state are ab- 
 sorbed by the external surface into their interior, 
 where, by peculiar processes, they are assimilated 
 to the purposes of the individual. Both animals 
 
10 NATURE OF PLANTS. 
 
 PtANTs. and plants, though acting in conjunction with, 
 
 are yet able, by the influence of their living prin- 
 ciple, to control the powers of attraction and 
 affinity to which, being without life, mineral sub^ 
 stances are alone subjected. 
 
 Derivesuste. Plants, Unlike animals, are able to derive sus- 
 
 nance trom ' ' 
 
 *"Tte "''^ tenance from inorganic matter, such as air, water, 
 carbon, and carbonic acid ; but they flourish most 
 on that which has been already organized, though 
 it is in a state of decomposition. Hence, in the 
 
 Position in scale of nature they hold an intermediate posi- 
 
 scale of nature. ^ *' \ 
 
 tion between animals and minerals. No animal 
 derives its food immediately from unorganized 
 matter, but many prey upon other animals, which 
 have, in the first instance, been nourished by 
 vegetable matter. It has therefore been well said, 
 that " if plants ceased to grow, animals would 
 cease to exist." 
 
 Influence of. The influence of Plants, therefore, even of those 
 of the lowest grade, is much greater than what 
 would at first appear to an unreflecting observer ; 
 • for even the jelly-like forms of vegetation seen 
 floating on stagnant water, aflbrd nourishment to 
 animalculae, which are themselves to serve as food 
 
 FojHiforani. ^ ^^^^ highly-developcd animals. Sea- weeds 
 afford sustenance to many fish, and even to the 
 Dugong and Lamantine of the tropical seas, as 
 well as to the huge Hippopotamus. Lichens and 
 Mosses are among the first plants to grow upon 
 newly-formed lands, and may be seen vegetating 
 even upon the barren rock. These, insignificant as 
 
USES OF PLANTS 11 
 
 they may appear, afford by their decay a portion Planis. 
 
 of organized matter to barren soil, and allow of 
 
 the vegetation of grasses and other small her- Enrich soil. 
 
 baceous plants, which decaying in their turn, 
 
 give additional organized matter to enrich the 
 
 soil, and thus prevent that which has been long in 
 
 cultivation from becoming sterile. 
 
 Myriads, also, of the minutest as well as of the 
 largest living beings feed upon vegetable matter ; 
 even the insignificant rock-moss serves as food for Uses of. 
 the rein-deer, the pasture grasses for herds of 
 ruminating cattle, and the leaves of trees for the 
 largest quadrupeds now seen upon the surface of Food for am- 
 the earth. From the great similarity in nature of 
 the different pasture grasses, in every part of the 
 world, man has been able to transport cattle into 
 the various countries of the earth which he has 
 chosen to colonize. Some fruits afford nutriment 
 to birds and small quadrupeds; while others, em- 
 ployed as such by man, form, with vegetables, 
 the chief objects of attention to the Gardener, and Gardening. 
 the principles of their culture the science of Hor- 
 ticulture; while the Cereal grasses, as yielding 
 the greater portion of the food of man, form the 
 principal objects of Agriculture. Agriculture. 
 
 But it is not only as leading to settled habits Products > 
 
 ... Plants. 
 
 in the early ages of the world, and givmg an inte- 
 rest to property in land, or as continuing to afford 
 a great portion of the food of man, and pastu- 
 rage for his cattle, that plants claim prominent 
 consideration. For we find that the various Their use«. 
 
12 
 
 PRODUCTS OF PLANTS. 
 
 Timber. 
 
 Cotton. 
 
 I. 
 
 Products or principles whicli coiiipose the organs of plants, 
 or which are stored up within their structure, 
 serve man for many useful and important pur- 
 poses. The flower he may admire for its colour, 
 or value for its scent ; but the leaf he uses as a 
 thatch for his habitation ; the bamboo serves 
 him for arms and implements, and with the reed 
 he forms arrows. Hollowed trunks of trees no 
 doubt early afforded him the means of crossing 
 rivers ; while the wood serves all the purposes to 
 which [timber is applied ; and these are so varied 
 that it is difficult to say whether they be more 
 important previous or subsequent to the discovery 
 of metals. The cottony covering- of the seed must 
 early have been converted into clothing, and may 
 have led to the discovery of the applicability of 
 vegetable fibre to the same purposes, when exist- 
 ing in situations where it is less obvious, as in 
 the Flax and Hemp. 
 
 Besides the Fecula, or starch, which is stored 
 up in the Corn-grasses, we find a similar sub- 
 stance, and nearly as well fitted for food, in such 
 seeds as the Chestnut, and in tubers of various 
 kinds, as in those of the Potatoe and of the 
 Yam ; in the Arrow- root of the West, as in that 
 of the East-Indies, as well as in the Cassava and 
 the Sweet Potatoe ; and in the Arums, the taccas, 
 and eddoes of the islands of the Pacific Ocean, 
 with an analogous substance in the Salep, which 
 has long been famed for its nourishing properties. 
 Even the woody fibre, from tlie similarity in con- 
 
 Flax. 
 
 Hemp. 
 
 Starch. 
 
 Salep. 
 
 Woody fibre. 
 
PRODUCTS OF PLANTS. 13 
 
 stituent principles, raay, when reduced to the state Products or 
 of saw-dust, by the slow application of heat, 
 be converted into a kind of gummy substance, 
 which has been proposed as a substitute for 
 bread in times of scarcity. Other plants secrete 
 Saccharine principle, as the Sugar-cane and seve- 
 ral of the Palms, as well as the Sugar-maple of sugar. 
 North America, and the Beet-root of European 
 countries. 
 
 Some plants are remarkable for the Mucilage 
 which they contain, or the Gum, soluble in water. Gum. 
 which they exude. Others, again, yield Resins, Resin. 
 which, unlike these, are dissolved by oils and 
 spirit, and are therefore employed for making 
 Varnishes, to defend various substances from the 
 influences of air and moisture. Nature herself 
 presents to us some of these, fitted for such pur- 
 poses, as the Piney Varnish tree of the Penin- Varnish. 
 sula of India, as well as that of Burma. 
 
 The natural mixtures of Gums with Resins are 
 employed chiefly as medicines, as are also the 
 Volatile Oils, though many of these give the Volatile oils. 
 agreeable flavour to our most valued Spices and spices. 
 Aromatics. 
 
 The Fatty Oils are expressed from the Cocoa- Fatty oils. 
 nut, Olive, Sesamum, Rape, Linseed, and from 
 many other plants ; or they are found in the form 
 of Butter, as in the Ghee tree of Almora, the Butter. 
 Tallow tree of Canara and of China, all employed 
 either in cookery, for anointing the body, or for 
 affording light. Other plants are remarkable for 
 
14 
 
 COMMERCE OF VEGETABLE PRODUCTS. 
 
 PlT^""^ °^ secreting Colouring matter, which may be em- 
 Dyes. 
 
 Tannin. 
 
 Caoutchouc. 
 
 Acids. 
 
 Alkalis. 
 
 As articles of 
 commerce. 
 
 ployed as a Dye, or for the astringent principle* 
 which is indispensable to the art of Tanning. 
 
 Some substances which are very peculiar in 
 their nature, as the Caoutchouc, or Indian- 
 rubber, take long before their applications are 
 discovered, but when time and science have 
 effected this, they are found to be not less 
 important than others of which the uses are 
 more obvious. The several vegetable Acids are 
 chiefly useful as articles of diet or as medicines ; 
 but are also necessary in a variety of arts, like 
 the alkalis obtained from the incineration of vege- 
 tables. Wood serves every where as fuel, except 
 where Coal is abundant, which, though more 
 valuable, is also of vegetable origiti. 
 
 As Plants and their products may be applied 
 to such a variety of purposes, and as most coun- 
 tries have some which are peculiar to themselves, 
 or to which their soil and climate are best adapted ; 
 so it is found that different countries produce very 
 different products, or, if the same, then of very 
 different degrees of goodness. Hence these be- 
 come objects of desire to other nations, and thus 
 form a very large proportion of the Commerce of 
 the world, as we may observe in the Corn, 
 Hemp, and Flax of the North of Europe ; the 
 Timber of Norway and of Canada ; the Gin of 
 Holland ; and the Oil, the Fruits, and the Wine 
 and Brandy of the South of Europe ; the Cotton 
 and Tobacco^ the Rice and Flour of the United 
 
EMPLOYED IN MANUFACTURES. 15 
 
 States of America : the Losrwoocl and Mahoarany Products or 
 
 ^ ^ » -^ Plants. 
 
 of Honduras ; the Caoutchouc of Para ; and the 
 Bark of Peru ; the Sugar and Rum, Cocoa and 
 Coffee, Tobacco, Allspice, and Arrow Root of Articles of 
 
 ' r y Commerce. 
 
 the West- Indies ; the Gum, Myrrh, and Aloes 
 of Africa ; the Dates, the Coffee, and Senna of 
 Arabia ; the Saffron and Gum Resins of Persia ; 
 the Rhubarb of Tibet ; the Tea of China ; the 
 Rice and Indigo, Spices and Sugar, Opium and 
 Teak of India ; with a variety of Medicines from 
 all parts of the world ; and Barilla from the 
 South of Europe ; with Potash, Pitch and Tar, 
 from the North of Europe, as well as from North 
 America. 
 
 Many Manufacturers, moreover, are engaged ^^^J^^^^ 
 entirely on the products of Plants, as those who 
 use Timber for carpentering, mill-work, and 
 house or ship-building ; or such as make use of 
 vegetable fibre, as Flax and Hemp, or Cotton, 
 for spinning and weaving into cloth for domestic 
 purposes, or into sails for shipping, or for manu- 
 facturing into ropes and cables. Others, again, 
 are employed in Bleaching the cloth, or in Dyeing 
 it of various colours, or in Calico-printing ; and 
 in this also employ vegetable substances to 
 effect their purpose. Some occupy themselves in 
 grinding the corn into Flour, or in converting this 
 into Starch, or in Malting, Brewing, or in Distil- 
 ling, and in some countries in making Wine ot 
 Vinegar ; in manufacturing or refining Sugar, in 
 expressing Oils, or in extracting Tannin, or in 
 
16 
 
 REVENUE DERIVED FROM VEGETABLES. 
 
 Employed 
 manufactures 
 
 Relative im- 
 portance of 
 products of 
 Nature. 
 
 Product or dissolving Gum or Resin, for the various purposes 
 to vv^hich these substances are applied. Even 
 the destruction of vegetables affords useful pro- 
 ducts, as Charcoal, Pitch and Tar, Potash and 
 '" Barilla ; finally, vegetable matter is required for 
 making paper in all its varieties. 
 
 The relative importance of these, as compared 
 with one another, or with the other products of 
 Nature or of Art, which contribute to the wealth 
 and resources of a country, it is not easy to deter- 
 mine, as they must vary in different parts of the 
 world, and in the several states of society, as well 
 as at different times in the same country. But their 
 value as objects of commerce, or as contributing 
 to the revenues of a country, may be seen by the 
 quantities in which they form its Exports or 
 Imports ; and also in a great measure, by the 
 amount of the Taxes collected on each. This is 
 likewise an interesting subject of investigation, as 
 giving us some means of ascertaining the nature 
 of the products of a country, as well as the occu- 
 pations of a people. 
 
 Great Britain. The result in Great Britain, we observe, is 
 that a very large proportion of the Imports con- 
 sists of raw produce obtained from the vegetable 
 kingdom. Thus, in the year 1836, the net pro- 
 duce of the Custom-house duties amounted to 
 £22,774,991. Of this large sum, 98J per cent, of 
 the whole, or £22,376,869, was collected upon 
 forty-five articles; that is, no less than£21, 127,456 
 upon Vegetable, £1,177,091 upon Animal, and 
 
 imports. 
 
REVENUE DERIVED FROM VEGETABLES. 17 
 
 only £72,323 upon Mineral Substances.* These 
 sums are certainly not in proportion, to the im- 
 portance to the country, of the three kingdoms of 
 Nature, as the Exports consist chiefly of Manu- 
 factured articles, both of Mineral and Animal 
 products, as well as of the Vegetable Substances 
 previously imported ; but they very strikingly con- 
 firm the importance of the Vegetable Kingdom. 
 
 In India, however, the Exports, (amounting in 
 1837-38, in value to Co. Rs. 6,14,79,472,)t consist 
 chiefly of Vegetable Products, as of Opium and 
 Indigo, Sugar, Rice, and Cotton, Wheat, Flour, 
 and Pulses ; with Ginger, Saffiower, Vegetable 
 Oils, Indian Hemp and Jute, also Cotton Piece 
 Goods and Coarse Cloths. The Animal sub- 
 stances, of Raw Silk and Piece Goods, Lac, 
 Hides, Horns, and Elephants' Teeth ; with 
 Saltpetre, Borax, and Sal Ammoniac from the 
 Mineral Kingdom. The Imports, on the con- 
 trary, consist principally of the Manufactured 
 produce of Europe, as of Cotton and Silk Piece 
 Goods, chiefly the former, with Wines and 
 Spirits, and the various articles required for the 
 use of the European inhabitants. Betel-nuts, 
 Pepper, Cloves, Spices, and Teak from the 
 
 * The Progress of the Nation, by G. Porter, Esq. F.R.S. 
 Interchange, Revenue, and Expenditure, p. 323. 
 
 f A comparative view of the External Commerce of Bengal 
 during the years 1836-37, and 1837-38, by John Bell, Superin- 
 tendent of the Preventive Service in the Calcutta Custom-house. 
 
18 
 
 REVENUE DERIVED FROM VEGETABLES. 
 
 countries to the southward and eastward ; Coffee 
 and Dates from Arabia, Tea from China, large 
 quantities of Metals from Europe, and Salt from 
 the Sunderbunds ; with Coral, Chanks, Cowries, 
 Horns, Hides, &c., many of which are again 
 re-exported. 
 
 These Imports, contributing to the comforts of 
 the inhabitants, are evidently bought with the raw 
 produce of the soil, which, as we have seen, is 
 exported in such large quantities. The culture of 
 the land, therefore, is of proportionate importance, 
 as it not only affords abundance of food, and em- 
 ployment for the great agricultural population, but 
 also materials for manufactures, and likewise for 
 both external and internal commerce. 
 
 Tabular View of the Value of Exports and Imports from the 
 Port of Calcutta, in 1837-38, arranged according to the 
 Kingdoms of Nature by which they are produced. 
 
 VZOETABUE. 
 
 Manufectured : — ' 
 Cloth, Rope, &c. 
 Wines, &c. 
 
 Akihal. 
 
 Manufactured 
 
 MiKXBAI,. 
 
 Manufocturcd 
 
 MiSCKLtANEOUS. 
 
 Total. . 
 
 1837-38. 
 
 Imports— Value. 
 35,53,799 
 
 1,15,82,859 
 14,55,963 
 
 6,22,104 
 10,76,139 
 61,12,436 
 24,60,446 
 
 29,94,149 
 
 1837-38. 
 
 Re-Export8— Value. 
 3,95,524 
 
 12,51,640 
 
 1837-38. 
 
 Exports— Value . 
 4,54,21,074 
 
 13,59,261 
 
 75,284 
 
 67,56,613 
 
 43,88,497 
 27,48,980 
 
 69,931 
 1,93,037 
 3,14,164 
 
 10,25,303 
 
 7,29,763 
 
 2,98,57,895 
 
 '32,49,599 
 
 6,14,79,472 
 
ARTS OF CULTURE. 19 
 
 CULTURE OF VEGETABLES. 
 
 Vegetables and their products being thus ne- CowtraEop 
 cessary for the food of man, and the maintenance 
 of his cattle, forming a great part of his clothing, 
 and furnishing materials for his habitation, af- 
 fording medicines to relieve him when sick, and 
 products necessary for the various arts and 
 manufactures ; their culture has from the earliest 
 times, and in all civilized nations, been favoured 
 by the people, and patronised by sovereigns. 
 An art which leads to settled habits, affords 
 employment to a large portion of the population, 
 as well as food for the whole, materials for the 
 arts and manufactures, as well as for internal 
 trade and external commerce, must necessarily 
 command the favourable consideration of every 
 Government. Besides its obvious utility, the 
 culture of Vegetables, moreover, affords much 
 pleasing employment even to those who do not 
 follow it as an occupation. Hence it has been ob- conncctedwith 
 served to have a civilizing effect on the passions, 
 and to lead to orderly habits, ever since the first 
 great advance was made in civilization by the 
 transition of the nomade shepherd into the settled 
 cultivator of the soil. Therefore not only did 
 those nations become first civilized who had the 
 greatest facilities for pursuing the Arts of Cul- 
 ture, or were the most determined to overcome by 
 labour the difficulties opposed by nature; but 
 even in the present day those who are the most 
 
 c2 
 
20 
 
 FARMING, OR AGRICULTURE. 
 
 Culture of 
 Vegetables. 
 
 In early times. 
 
 Agriculture. 
 
 Horticulture. 
 
 civilized in other respects, are observed to pay the 
 greatest attention to the Arts which improve the 
 fruitfulness, or increase the variety of the Pro- 
 ducts of the Soil. 
 
 The Arts of Culture were probably, in the first 
 instance, restricted to Fruit-trees and the Cereal 
 grains, and must then have been limited in 
 degree ; but in progress of time they came to be 
 distinguished by different names, either according 
 to the kinds of Plants, or the extent in which 
 these were cultivated. This is evident if we 
 observe that the culture of the same plant is 
 considered in different countries as belonging to 
 different departments. Employed upon plants 
 required for the food of man, or for producing 
 materials fitted for arts and manufactures and 
 extended into the open culture of a country, it 
 is denominated Farming or Agriculture. In the 
 present day, this also includes the rearing of 
 Stock, whether required as labouring cattle, or 
 as food for man. When this culture is moderate 
 in degree, or carried on in enclosed spaces, and 
 chiefly by manual labour, it is called Gardening 
 or Horticulture. This is usually engaged upon 
 plants yielding fruit, or such as are required in 
 their vegetable state, or as condiments, or which 
 are agreeable for their appearance, or grateful 
 for their odour. The culture of Plants is some- 
 times more minutely divided, as into that of 
 Corn, Hay, and Pasture Grasses, or into that 
 of Timber or of Fruit-trees, or such as are suited 
 
GARD£Nli\G, OR HORTICULTURE. '21 
 
 to the Shrubbery or Flower Garden, or into that Coltque of 
 of Medicinal plants. Such as are too delicate for 
 our climate are protected from its severity in the 
 Green House, while those which have been pro- 
 cured from the hottest regions of the globe have 
 their climates imitated by the artificial heat and 
 moisture of the Hot-house. Culture is often still 
 more divided, as into that of particular plants, 
 as of the Hop, Hemp, Flax, and Cotton ; Sugar, 
 Tea, Coffee, Tobacco, Opium, and Indigo. 
 
 Ctilture of every kind must necessarily, in Culture must 
 
 *' _ . . at first be luni- 
 
 the first instance, be limited in extent, as it is ted in extent 
 only by the multiplication of the seed, or offsets 
 from the plant first cultivated, that means are 
 obtained for extending the cultivation even of 
 one that is indigenous in a country. This must be 
 still more the case with such as are foreign to the 
 soil. It is evidently impracticable, except at unne- 
 cessary expense, to introduce new plants, or their 
 seeds, in large enough quantities to suflSce for the 
 culture of a country ; and, at all events, it is pre- 
 mature to do so, before the question of their suc- 
 cess or failure in a new locality has been carefully 
 determined by experiment. Then their peculiari- 
 ties of habit in the new situation will have been 
 ascertained, as well as the modifications required 
 in culture, to compensate for differences of soil 
 or of climate. 
 
 It is evident, therefore, tliat as culture must Therefore of 
 be, in the first instance, limited in extent, it will cordensr^ 
 partake, more or less, of the nature of garden 
 
22 ORIGIN OF GARDENS. 
 
 Institution of culture. Institutions of this kind, by whatever 
 
 Gardens. ... 
 
 name distinguished, may be traced from very early 
 to the present times, whether simply denomi- 
 nated a Garden, an Experimental Farm, a Nur- 
 sery, a Horticultural, or a Botanic Garden. The 
 earliest we find described as agreeable, from af- 
 fording shade or from coolness, or from con- 
 taining an assemblage of plants, pleasing for their 
 appearance or grateful for their odour, or such as 
 were celebrated for yielding delicious fruits. 
 Gardens first The East having been the first peopled, and 
 the East. the earliest civilized, it is not surprizing that 
 to its nations we are able to trace the origin 
 of many of the arts, and among the rest that of 
 Gardening. This, not only because in these 
 countries the arts of culture had been discovered, 
 and the transition first made from the wandering 
 shepherd to the settled cultivator of the soil, but 
 also because these regions present the greatest 
 contrasts of climate, at different seasons of the 
 year, as well as very dissimilar products in diflTe- 
 rent parts of the country. The mountains under 
 the influence of a cool and refreshing temperature, 
 afford verdant pastures, beautiful flowers, and 
 well-flavoured fruits ; while the plains, like the 
 summers, being hot and dry, present only a 
 brownish, stunted, and thorny vegetation, except 
 in the immediate neighbourhood of the streamlets 
 which descend from the mountains. The earliest 
 accounts of gardens we read of are in Syria, Pa- 
 lestine, Mesopotamia, and Persia ; and in the al- 
 
HORTICULTURE IN ANCIENT EUROPE. 23 
 
 most imperishable paintings of the Egyptians we Gardens in an. 
 observe the attention which they paid to the cul- 
 ture of vegetables, as well as to all the other arts 
 of Peace. 
 
 The Greeks have described the Gardens of The Greeks. 
 Cyrus ; and it is more than probable, that from 
 their intercourse with Persia and Egypt, they 
 may have learned to value their uses. Thence also 
 they may have acquired their love for and em- 
 ployment of flowers, as offerings at the altars 
 of their gods, as well as for adorning the persons 
 of their priests, philosophers, and warriors, as 
 has always been the custom in Eastern countries. 
 
 The Romans, though so warlike a people, paid The Eomans, 
 great attention to all the arts of culture ; indeed 
 we are indebted to them for many of the vegetables 
 andfruits at present so common in Europe. They 
 took great pains not only in introducing the use- 
 ful plants of the countries they conquered into 
 those which they alrefidy possessed, but also in 
 inculcating the practice of their own improved 
 agriculture throughout their widely-spread terri- 
 tories. 
 
 Granting the origin of civilization and of the Gardening in 
 
 . . 1 •! 1 • 1 modem Persia. 
 
 arts of culture m those regions described m the 
 earliest works of Western writers, it is not proba- 
 ble that they would cease to be esteemed in the 
 countries where they originated, or that they 
 would not, like civilization, spread to the south 
 and east as well as to the north and west. Gardens, 
 therefore, have continued to be cultivated by the 
 
24 HORTICULTURE IN THE EAST. 
 
 Gardens in the moilerii as bv the ancient Persians ; but there 
 
 East. . , 
 
 Persia. IS a remarkable difference between those of An- 
 
 cient and Modern Europe and the gardens of the 
 East. In the former every year has seen numer- 
 ous accessions to their riches, and an increase in 
 their uses and applications, while the latter re- 
 main the same in appearance, and without much 
 increase of the objects of cultivation ; as the same 
 plants continue to be cultivated now as in an- 
 cient times, with but few additions to their 
 number. Persian gardens, in modern times, are 
 described as having a reservoir of water in the 
 centre, with a broad and straight avenue, planted 
 on either side with poplars, cypresses, and the 
 Oriental plane, the latter especially valued for the 
 shade it affords. The fruits cultivated are the 
 melon, apple, apricot, peach, and grape-vine: 
 also a few flowers, conspicuous for their odour 
 or appearance, as the rose, jessamine, narcissus, 
 hyacinth, and tulip, all of which are however in- 
 digenous in the plains or mountains of the coun- 
 try ; and for the love of which the Persians have 
 always been distinguished as a nation. 
 India. The arts of culture were not long confined to 
 
 the Persians, or to the ancient Egyptians, for 
 contemporary with them the Hindoos excelled in 
 all the arts of Peace ; and no doubt originated 
 many of them, as they early practised improved 
 Fruitfuiness of. proccsses of Agriculture. India, rich in natural 
 products, and easily cultivated, having water near 
 the surface, and its plains intersected by magnifi- 
 
GARDENI>fG IN INDIA. 25 
 
 cent rivers, with a climate in which wheat and India, 
 
 . Fruitfulness of. 
 
 barley probably introduced from the north, could 
 be cultivated at one season, and at another the 
 rice and joar, indigenous in the country, must 
 easily have furnished superabundance of food, 
 and thus have afforded facilities for some of the 
 inhabitants to follow arts, pursue commerce, and 
 give themselves up to literature and science, for 
 which they were so early celebrated. 
 
 The Hindoo modes of Culture are in many re- Indian Agncui* 
 spects peculiar, as in sowing several kinds of 
 seed together, and collecting the different crops 
 as they successively come to perfection. Though 
 their Rice is collected year after year, and often 
 twice in the same year in the same field without 
 manure, they are well acquainted with the im- 
 proving effects on land, of the culture of legumi- 
 nous plants ; and also that the corn grasses, rice 
 excepted, impoverish it : whence Dr. Roxburgh 
 was of opinion, that " the western parts of the 
 old world first learned the art of changing their 
 crops." They have, besides, employed the Drill 
 plough from time immemorial, though this is 
 considered a modern European invention. The 
 native peasant, according to Mr. Colebrookc;, 
 " feels a superstitious predeliction for the trees 
 planted by his ancestors, and derives comfort^ 
 and even profit from their fruit," while " the 
 clumps of bamboos M'hich, when once planted, 
 continue to flourish as long as they are not 
 too abruptly thinned," supply him materials for 
 
26 GARDENING IN INDIA. 
 
 GardensinBen- the coiistruction of liis cottage, at the same time 
 that they are sources of profit. 
 
 The Hindoos also grow useful plants near their 
 houses, and are attached to the culture of flowers, 
 for offerings at the shrines of their gods, or for 
 throwing into their sacred streams, as well as 
 for adorning their persons, as in the form of 
 necklaces of jessamine and of the night-blowing 
 nyctanthes. Yet Gardening seems never to have 
 made much progress, as Dr.Wallich describes the 
 gardens of the natives in Bengal, and many will 
 recognize the truth of the description, as consist- 
 ing of an assemblage of straight and narrow rows 
 of arecas, planted at right angles ; beds of endless 
 tagetes, and a few others of the most common 
 flowers ; with wildernesses of inferior sorts of 
 plantains and some other ordinary fruits ; also 
 the mangoe in its natural state, the guava, and 
 custard-apple. 
 Gardens in N. In the north- west of India, where the customs 
 *" of the Mahomedan conquerors chiefly prevail, 
 
 the gardens partake of the Persian character, but 
 with the intermixture of the usual Indian with 
 some northern plants. The gardens are generally 
 laid out in squares, divided by imperfectly kept 
 roads, which are bordered with water-courses for 
 irrigation. These are also agreeable for the cool- 
 ness they create ; and are sometimes formed of 
 stone, and at others, as in the palaces, of marble. 
 The trees often consist of rows of cypress, or of 
 oranges and limes, with fine peaches, the pome- 
 
GARDENING IN INDIA. 27 
 
 granate, apple, grape-vine, and mulberry ; in- Gardens in n. 
 different mangoes, plantains, with the guava 
 and custard-apple, Indian jujube, and curounda. 
 The Melon tribe is extensively cultivated, and 
 also some of the more ordinary vegetables. The vegetables. 
 usual flowers consist of the rose, jessamine, and Flowers, 
 tuberose, with the hyacinth, narcissus, crinum, 
 some flowering arborescent bauhinias and cassias, 
 with a few trees, such as the neem and bukayun, 
 with the simbhaloo, used like the others medici- 
 nally. 
 
 The gardens of India usually disappoint a Eu- 
 ropean, accustomed to the rich variety of English 
 gardens, yet that the natives are much attached 
 to such institutions, is evident by their having 
 been established, and also villages assigned for 
 their maintenance, by the native governments at 
 Agra, Secundra, and Saharunpore. The gardens 
 at Delhi, especially that called Shalimar, were Delhi. 
 formerly of great repute ; but that of the palace of 
 the king is alone kept up with any care. Here 
 the shady trees, surrounded by the lofty palace 
 wall, and constant irrigation from a branch of 
 the Canal flowing through the garden, produce 
 an artificial climate, which is cooler, moister, and 
 more equable than that of the surrounding coun- 
 try. This accounts for the existence there in the 
 open air, of a tree, found only in the southern 
 parts of India, and which is allied in nature to, 
 and requires a similar climate with the tropical 
 Mangosteen. 
 
28 THE ARTS OF CULTURE IN EUROPE. 
 
 THE ARTS OF CULTURE IN EUROPE. 
 
 Progress of The Romans, who practised successfully the 
 ESipl*""" '" ^^^^ ^^ culture in their own country, also intro- 
 duced them perseveringly into those which they 
 conquered, sometimes stimulating them by the ex- 
 action of tribute in corn. But as their influence 
 declined, and that of their barbarous successors 
 became paramount, no prospect of improvement 
 could be entertained, and the utmost to be 
 hoped for, was the preservation of that which 
 had already been taught. This was, in some 
 measure, insured by the establishment of numer- 
 ous religious communities throughout uncivi- 
 lized Europe, who, building churches, founding 
 abbeys, relieving the sick, and providing food 
 for the poor, promoted the civilization of the 
 people among whom they took up their abode. 
 As the lands which these establishments pos- 
 sessed required to be cultivated, not only for 
 their own maintenance, but also for that of their 
 poorer neighbours, some of the body studied the 
 precepts of Agriculture in the works of the 
 Agriculture. Romans, and practised the art with a success 
 to which historians have borne testimony, in their 
 statement of the church lands being always the 
 best cultivated. Gardening moreover was pur- 
 sued with a skill which was unknown in ancient, 
 and unsurpassed until very modern times. 
 
 Early stages of. ..,,,.. , 
 
 Agriculture bemg in tlie present day so exten- 
 
EARLY AGES OF AGRICULTURE. 29 
 
 sively practised, and highly patronized through- Agricuiture- 
 oiit Europe, we find a difficulty in representing 
 to ourselves a state of society in which it was 
 not so. But by referring to the records of history, 
 we find that it often required the interference of 
 the sovereign to induce the subject to cultivate 
 that which was not only for his own advantage, 
 but also for the improvement of his country. 
 Thus, Charlemagne, in the eighth century, in France. 
 directed the cultivation in France of no less than 
 seventy-three kinds of fruit-trees and of medi- 
 cinal plants. The ordonance which he pub- 
 lished, is referred to by Montesquieu, as a monu- 
 ment of prudent economy and good administra- 
 tion. He even opened a correspondence with 
 Haroon-al-Rashid, and by that means procured for 
 France the best sorts of pulse, melons, peaches, 
 figs, and other fruits.* From his era, therefore, 
 dates the introduction of many of the best fruits 
 for which France is famous, as well as the esta- 
 blishment of orchards and vineyards. 
 
 The revival of learning and the Culture of Arts in itaiy. 
 having taken place in Italy, it was there that 
 agriculture and gardening were first regarded 
 with any thing like the attention they had excited 
 in earlier times. Crescenzio, a senator of Bologna, 
 wrote his work on Rural Affairs and Gardening 
 in the early part of the fourteenth century, though 
 not printed till 1471 at Florence. Irrigation had, 
 
 • The Abbe Schinde Mag. Eneye, as quoted by Mr. Loudon, 
 in his Encyclopaedia of Gardening. 
 
W PROGRESS OF ARTS OF CULTURE 
 
 Agriculture in however, been practised previously to 1037, and 
 
 Silk-worms were imported from Greece into Sicily 
 
 First Botanic in 1146. The first Botanic Garden was established 
 
 Garden. _^. . -r* i • 
 
 at Fisa m 1543, and the next at Fadua m 1545. 
 The greatest agricultural improvements took place 
 Improvements in Tuscany and Lombardy. In the former, the 
 Italy. * culture of the Vine and of the Olive were brought 
 to great perfection ; and the Oil of Lucca, and 
 the Wines of Florence became celebrated. Lom- 
 bardy excelled also in the management of com 
 and cattle, and the pastures were the most pro- 
 ductive in the world, having the advantages of a 
 climate so temperate in winter, that the grass 
 grows all the year; a soil naturally rich, and 
 an abundant supply of river water for irrigation. 
 HoUand. Though gardening was first brought into no- 
 
 tice in Italy, it attained perfection in Holland and 
 the Netherlands : the climate and soil being singu- 
 larly favourable for Horticulture and Flower- 
 gardening. The garden of Leyden was began in 
 1577, when the magistrates, learned men, and 
 citizens, all patronized the introduction of new 
 plants, and the captains of ships were directed 
 to bring them, and seeds from all parts of the 
 world ; so that the garden soon contained not 
 less than six thousand species of plants. Before 
 the middle of the seventeenth century, gardens 
 were established in all the provinces ; and this 
 century was distinguished by the rage for flowers, 
 which has been denominated Florin^ania, when 
 particular kinds were sold for such enormous 
 
IN GREAT BRITAIN. 31 
 
 prices. Harte, in his Essays, considers Agriculture Arts of Culture 
 
 to have been brought at an early period from Italy 
 
 to Basle, the Economical Society of that city being 
 
 among the oldest in Europe, and the husbandry 
 
 of its neighbourhood the most perfect on the 
 
 Continent. 
 
 In France the garden of Montpelier was esta- Gardens in 
 blished in 1597, and that of Paris completed in 
 1634, after eighteen years of prosecution, and six 
 of culture, according to the description of one 
 of its early superintendents. Since 1786 it has 
 been much improved, and still more so within the 
 last few years, and being connected with aUniver- 
 sity, forms a school of Horticulture and of Plant- 
 ing, as well as of Agriculture and of Medicine. 
 Other gardens are established in different parts of 
 France, and which pay attention to the Botany 
 and Horticulture of the several districts. 
 
 In no country, however, of Europe, or indeed in Great Bri- 
 tain. 
 of the world, have the Arts of Culture, including 
 
 in these terms both Horticulture and Agriculture, 
 been carried to higher perfection than in Great 
 Britain. But even here we observe, that they 
 were long in an apparently stationary state, that 
 their advance was slow, and that it is only in com- 
 paratively recent times that they have made great 
 progress ; the impulse having been given either Agriculture 
 by the patronage of the sovereign, the works of 
 remarkable individuals, the institution of Socie- 
 ties, or by some extraneous circumstance. The 
 Romans no doubt introduced their Agriculture, 
 
32 PROGRESS OF AGRICULTURE 
 
 In Great Bri- soiiie of their vesfetables, and also a few of their 
 
 tain. . . . . . 
 
 fruits, but attention to such subjects declined with 
 
 their departure. It, however, was revived by the 
 
 Improved by Norman Barons, and especially by the Clersfy, 
 
 Normans. , . . 
 
 who both paid great attention to the improvement 
 of the land, and the latter to the introduction also 
 of fruits, and the practice of gardening. 
 
 Early authors. It is curious that many to whom improve- 
 ments in Agriculture are traced were not profes- 
 sional farmers, but men engaged in other pur- 
 suits, who, with cultivated minds turned their 
 attention also to this subject. Thus, the first 
 English Treatise on Husbandry was written by 
 
 Sir A. Fitzher- Sir A. Fitzhcrbert, Judge of the Common Pleas 
 in 1534, and from this, Harte, Canon of "Windsor, 
 in his Essays on Agriculture, dates the revival 
 
 Tusser. of Agriculture in England. Tusser, the author 
 
 of " Five Hundred Points of Husbandry," pub- 
 lished in 1562, was a scholar of Eton, and after- 
 wards of Trinity Hall, Cambridge, before he 
 
 Sir R. Weston, applied to Farming and Literature. Sir R.Weston, 
 who was Ambassador from England to the Elec- 
 tor Palatine and King of Bohemia in 1619, 
 introduced Clover into England; his Discourse 
 on the Husbandry of Brabant and Flanders was 
 published in 1645, and is said to mark the dawn 
 of the vast improvements which have since been 
 
 Evelyn. effected in Britain. Evelyn, who is considered one 
 
 of the greatest encouragers of improvements that 
 had ever appeared, was, as is well known, a 
 gentleman attached to literature and science, and 
 
IN GREAT BRITAIN. 33 
 
 often employed in the public service. He pub- rn Great BiI- 
 lished, in 1664, his " Sylva, or a Discourse on 
 Forest-trees and the Propagation ofTimberinhis 
 Majesty's dominions," with many other works, 
 which had a great influence in the improvement 
 of the country. Jethro Tull, who introduced the Tuii. 
 Drill Husbandry, and published his work on 
 Horse-hoeing Husbandry in 1731, was bred a 
 barrister ; he first made experiments on his own 
 estate, and then practised farming. 
 
 Scotland, now so remarkable for careful cul- Scotland. 
 ture and successful farming, was in a most de- 
 pressed state in these respects, even so late as 
 the end of the seventeenth century. The impulse 
 to improvement was given by such men as Lord 
 Kaimes, the Earl of Stair, and Mr. Cockburn 
 of Ormiston, who instigated a number of land- 
 holders to form themselves into a " Society of improvers of 
 Improvers in the Knowledge of Agriculture in 
 Scotland." As this association did not continue 
 more than twenty years, another was established 
 in 1784, and well known as the Highland So- Highland So. 
 ciety, whose beneficial influence in improving the ^" 
 Agriculture and the landed property of the coun- 
 try is so universally acknowledged. 
 
 In England, the Society of Arts, established ^n's^^^"^ 
 in 1753, have also displayed very laudable zeal 
 in encouraging, and have therefore greatly pro- 
 moted planting, in the colonies, as well as in Great 
 Britain. The Board of Agriculture was esta- 
 blished in 1 793, and though not effecting all that 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 PROGIIESS OF AGRICULTURE 
 
 Agricultural 
 Societies. 
 
 Improvers of 
 Agricullure. 
 
 Non-profes- 
 sional. 
 
 was expected, yet produced the publication of the 
 " County Agricultural Surveys," which have been 
 fruitful of information. Besides these, numerous 
 Agricultural societies have been established in 
 several counties of England, and even very re- 
 cently " The English Agricultural Society" in the 
 metropolis ; the mode in which, and the per- 
 sons by whom, these are supported, are indi- 
 cations of the value entertained for the labours 
 of such institutions. 
 
 From the above very cursory examination, it 
 is evident that the improvements have proceeded 
 from the amateurs and patrons of Agriculture, 
 rather than from those who are best acquainted 
 with all the practical details of the art. The 
 latter, indeed, have in general been found rather 
 throwing obstructions in the way of, than for- 
 warding any innovations, which interfered with 
 the routine methods which they had been led to 
 consider as essential to success. But in the pro- 
 gress of society, education becoming more diffused, 
 Practical men. and practical men, enjoying in their youth the 
 advantages of a liberal education, have the power, 
 as well as the inclination, to profit by the instruc- 
 tions of their predecessors ; and thus being enabled 
 to combine principles with practice, they them- 
 selves obtain important results, which have an 
 influence on their own, as well as on future 
 times, as has been evinced in the case of Mr. 
 Dawson of Trogden. But even within the last 
 half century, the principal writers, whose in- 
 
 Mo«lern au- 
 thors. 
 
IN GREAT BRITAIN. 35 
 
 stroctions form the practice of the times, have 
 belonged to the former, rather than to the lat- 
 ter class ; as the celebrated Arthur Young, who Arthur Young. 
 commenced a series of useful and excellent 
 publications in 1767, and continued them until 
 1810. Dr. Dickson's Practical Agriculture ap- Dr. Dickson. 
 peared in 1806, and may be considered as giv- 
 ing a most complete view of the Agriculture 
 of the time ; while Sir John Sinclair's Code of sir j. Sinclair. 
 Agriculture is an epitome of the Art of Farming. 
 "The Farmer's Magazine," Mr. Loudon, to whose Farmer's Ma- 
 
 _ gazine. 
 
 Encyclopaedias we are indebted for many of the 
 above details, states " has done more to en- 
 lighten both the proprietors and tenantry of Scot- 
 land, than any work which has appeared." This 
 was first conducted by R.Brown, a farmer of Mar- 
 kle, and Dr. Somerville, a Physician of Hadding- 
 ton, thus uniting the advantage of a judicious com- 
 bination of Science with Art. The establishment 
 of a Professorship of Agriculture in the Univer- Professorsbip 
 
 , . °^ Agriculture. 
 
 sity of Edinburgh in 1790, indicates the necessity 
 which began to be felt of the combination of 
 Principle with the Practice of Agriculture, as is 
 well displayed in the Elements of Agriculture of 
 Professor Low, the successor of Dr. Coventry, 
 who had been appointed the first Professor. 
 
 If we examine the progress of that department Gardening in 
 of Culture which is called Gardening or Horti- 
 culture, we find that even what is now considered 
 a national taste, namely, that for Florist's Flowers, 
 is supposed by some to have been introduced 
 
 D 2 
 
36 PROGRESS OF GARDENING. 
 
 Flowers— into England by the Flemish manufacturers of 
 
 ^ * °^' worsted, and into Scotland by the French weavers. 
 
 From Norwich the taste for the culture of Flowers 
 spread to other manufacturing towns, and it is 
 still indulged in by the weavers of Spitalfields, 
 and the operatives of Manchester, and until of late, 
 very conspicuously so by those of Birmingham. 
 
 culture of; Quc of the earliest notices of the culture of 
 Flowers is that at Sion House, the property of the 
 Duke of Somerset, under the care of Dr. Turner, 
 whom Pulteney considers the Father of Eng- 
 lish Botany, and who had studied at Pisa and 
 
 introduction of Boloffua. Duriua: the seventeenth century nu- 
 
 froni the East. . 
 
 merous plants were introduced from the East, 
 
 through Constantinople, as well as from the 
 
 East and West Indies. The Oxford Botanic 
 
 Establishment Garden was established in 1632, and that of Edin- 
 
 of Botanic 
 
 Gardens. burgh in 1680 ; in 1673 Sir Hans Sloane gave 
 the ground of the Chelsea Garden to the Society 
 of Apothecaries, on condition of their presenting 
 fifty new plants annually to the Royal Society. 
 The Cambridge and Kew Gardens were estab- 
 lished about the middle of the eighteenth century. 
 The writings of Bradley, Professor of Botany at 
 Cambridge, and of Miller, the celebrated Curator 
 of the Garden at Chelsea, had great influence on 
 the improvement of Horticulture. The Liverpool 
 Botanic Garden owes its origin, in 1803, to the 
 celebrated Roscoe, who, in the relaxation from 
 commercial pursuits, found leisure for Literature, 
 as well as for Botany. The example of Liverpool 
 
PROGRESS OF GARDENING. ' 37 
 
 has been followed in all the great commercial Gardens in 
 towns, as in Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, 
 and Hull. 
 
 It is curious in reading; the early accounts of Depreciation of 
 
 1^1 /. 1 • 1 ' 1 English Soil 
 
 the Culture of this country, to observe the want and ciimate in 
 
 ,.,.,. . ™ 1 , former times. 
 
 or skill, apparent m want of success, and now 
 frequently this is ascribed to unfruitfulness in the 
 soil or to unsuitableness in the climate of Eng- 
 land, so that then even " Kitchen Garden wares 
 were imported from Holland, and Fruits from 
 France." Dr. Boleyn ascribes the inferiority to 
 want of cultivation ; and Oldys, alluding to the 
 depreciation of the English soil and climate, 
 by some adducing the fine garden of Gerrard, 
 says, hence it would appear that " our ground 
 could produce other fruits besides hips and haws, 
 acorns and pisfnuts." In the present day we are i" t»'e present 
 
 . ^ , . . ^ "^ day of India, 
 
 in the habit of hearing similar statements respect- 
 ing the unsuitableness of the Indian soil, at one 
 time for the production of Cotton, at another for 
 that of Sugar and of Tobacco ; while Indian Coffee 
 is hardly thought of, and its Hemp despised. Its 
 Opium is undervalued in comparison with that of 
 Turkey, and even all its Rice is thought, almost 
 necessarily, inferior to that of America, because 
 most of that is so which is imported here. Its 
 Spices and its Indigo are, perhaps, alone acknow- 
 ledged to be superior to that of other parts of 
 the world. It will not, however, be difficult to owing to hasty 
 prove that in India, as formerly in England, hasty 
 genemlizations have ascribed to poverty of soil. 
 
38 APPLICATION OF SCIENCE TO PRACTICE. 
 
 tive'^uS%f ^^^^ "^^^^^ ^^ ^^'*^^ todeficiency of skill. There- 
 
 ^vbted'' ^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^y reasonably hope, as we shall en- 
 deavour to show, that by following the course 
 which has been so successfully pursued in civi- 
 lized Europe, that is, the application of Principles 
 to Practice, we may entertain a rational certainty 
 of obtaining equally successful results. 
 
 m"uwT^"^ Improvements in the Arts of Culture have 
 taken place, as we have seen, at different periods, 
 but in none so conspicuously as in the present 
 century, when the improvements in Horticulture 
 have been reflected on Agriculture ; and those 
 made in the latter have equally advanced the 
 practise of the former. This is in consequence of 
 both having been founded on the principles of 
 
 from attention Scicncc. It is Only of late years that the pecu- 
 
 to Science. . . /. /~^i' 
 
 liarities of Climate have been studied, m conjunc- 
 tion with the Physiology of Vegetation; and the 
 assistance of Chemistry has been called in to 
 explain the nature of Soils, and the changes 
 effected in the Atmosphere. From the writings 
 of Brown and of Humboldt, we have learnt the 
 true distribution of Plants on the surface of the 
 globe ; and from those of the latter, the influence 
 Sciences con- of Climate ou Vegretation, as well as the zones of 
 
 nected with ° 
 
 Arts of cui- Temperature best suited to different Cultures. 
 The discovery of Dr. Wells of the production of 
 Cold and of Dew, in consequence of Radiation ; 
 and Professor Daniells' observations on Evapo- 
 ration, on Dryness, and Moisture, and on " Cli- 
 mate with regard to Horticulture," have had 
 
 ture. 
 
ARTS OF CULTURE IN THE COLONIES. 39 
 
 the most important and extended influence on 
 the practice of Gardening. Davy has shown 
 us, in his Lectures on Agriculture, the Che- Sciences con. 
 
 .- ,_ . . nected with the 
 
 micai nature and uses of soils. Ihe intimate Arts of Cuu 
 knowledge of Vegetable Physiology possessed by 
 the late Mr. Knight, the first President of the 
 Horticultural Society, which was founded in 1 805, 
 his happy combination of Science with Art, and 
 his constant application of the former to practice, 
 have had the most beneficial effect in introducing 
 just views respecting the influence of external 
 agents on Vegetation, and consequently in im- 
 proving the Arts of Culture. 
 
 Arts of Culture in the Colonies and 
 Extra-European Countries. 
 
 Considering how long and how perseveringly Arts of Culture 
 the Sister Arts of Horticulture and of Agri- 
 culture have been pursued by the people, and 
 patronized by the Governments of Europe, it was 
 but reasonable to expect that they would endea- 
 vour to introduce them wherever their influence 
 extended. This was still more to be expected 
 where they were interested in improving the pro- 
 ductiveness of the land, as is the case in their 
 diff*erent Colonies. 
 
 The Spaniards and Portuguese, though paying The Spaniards 
 little attention to such subjects in the present day, guesc" 
 at one time took considerable pains in introducing 
 into the New World some of the more valued pro- 
 
40 
 
 ARTS OF CULTURE 
 
 Iiitruduction 
 
 ot Plants. 
 
 Tlie French. 
 
 spanianis and ducts of the aiicieiit Continents. The former in- 
 ortuguese. tj-oduccd the Pinc-applc and Tobacco into Spain. 
 The West-Indies and South America were in- 
 debted to both of them for the Orange, Lemon, 
 Plantain, and Tamarind, as well as for the Sugar- 
 cane, Grape-vine, Fig, Melon, and Pomegranate. 
 The Portuguese probably introduced into India 
 some of the richest products of America, as the 
 Maize or Indian Corn, the Capsicum, together 
 with the Guava, Custard, — and Pine-apple. 
 
 The French have generally shown themselves 
 more sensible than other nations of the importance 
 of such introductions, as is evident by their con- 
 stant endeavours to transplant valuable plants of 
 other countries into their own Colonies. Thus 
 they established, in 1630, a Botanic Garden at 
 Cayenne, to which the British West- India islands 
 have been indebted for some of the useful 
 plants of the Old World. The Coffee was intro- 
 duced by them into Martinique, from a plant from 
 the hot-houses of Amsterdam, which was pre- 
 sented by the Dutch to Louis the Fourteenth. 
 They also introduced Ginger, Pepper, and Cloves, 
 which now form articles of export from that 
 part of the world. The Bourbon Cotton is so 
 named from having been early introduced into 
 that island by the French, though identical with 
 the Barbadoes Cotton of the West- Indies. 
 
 In the British West-India islands, Gardens 
 were also established, as in Jamaica and St. 
 Vincent's. The former consisted of seventy 
 
 West- India Is- 
 lands. 
 
IN THE COLONIES. 41 
 
 acres, and had for one of its objects the preser- Gardens esta- 
 vation of the productions of different climates, 
 without artificial means. For this purpose a 
 site was chosen on the side of the Liguane 
 mountain, the summit of which is 3,600 feet 
 above the level of the sea, and where at different 
 elevations suitable localities are found for the 
 useful products of various countries ; but this 
 garden was sold by the government in 1812, 
 though much remained to be done in introducing 
 plants suited to the island from other parts of 
 the world. The Garden at St. Vincent's was 
 established by General Melville, and we have 
 accounts of the introduction into it of Cloves, 
 Cinnamon, Nutmegs, and a statement that all 
 East- India plants flourished there. Capt. Bligh, 
 when employed in transporting the bread-fruit 
 in 1793 into the West- Indies, also delivered with west-indies. 
 it a number of fruit-trees of tropical countries, 
 into the gardens of St. Vincent's and of Ja- 
 maica, as well as into that of St. Helena. But 
 these islands have obtained many of the most 
 useful plants from the French colonies, as 
 the Coffee, Black Pepper, and Nutmeg. The Plants imro- 
 fortunate capture, by Lord Rodney, of a French 
 East Indiaman, put them in possession, with 
 other plants, of the Ceylon Cinnamon, and of 
 the true Nankeen Cotton, from which some cloth 
 was manufactured at Glasgow in 1785. Gui- 
 nea Grass, now of so much importance in Ja- 
 maica, as forming the chief food in the graz- 
 
nca. 
 
 Rice. 
 
 42 ARTS OF CULTURE 
 
 Introduction of ing and breeding farms, was accidentally ob- 
 tained from the coast of Guinea, as food for 
 some birds which were sent to Chief Justice Ellis. 
 Nortii Ame- North America, havinsr been colonized from 
 Europe, it was natural that the inhabitants 
 should, from the suitableness of the climate, 
 introduce the Corn culture, as well as the Fruit- 
 trees of the Old World. Hence it is not sur- 
 prising to observe, that their most extensive arti- 
 cles of export are of foreign introduction. Thus, 
 Rice, an undoubted native of India, and where it 
 has been extensively cultivated from the remotest 
 antiquity, now affords food to many of the in- 
 habitants, and forms much of the export trade 
 of parts of the New World. Mr. Dalrymple, 
 Editor of the Oriental Repertory, states ** that 
 he was informed by the late Mr. Hazard, who 
 assured him he learnt from one of the parties 
 concerned, that Rice, the staple of Carolina, 
 was the result of a small bag of Paddy, given as 
 a present from a Secretary of the East- India 
 Company to a Carolina trader." In a sub- 
 sequent page he corrects this statement, men- 
 tioning that the Rice was given by Mr. C. Dubois, 
 Treasurer of the East- India Company. 
 Cotton. Cotton, now so successful a culture, was intro- 
 
 duced from other countries ; the Nankeen, ac- 
 cording to Mr. Spalding, from China, the Sea- 
 island kind from the West- Indies, and the Green 
 Seed, or Georgian Cotton, he supposes from 
 Smyrna, but its origin is doubtful, as it was culti- 
 
IN THE COLONIES. 43 
 
 vated before the Revolution. The present ex- introduction of 
 
 ^ Plants. 
 
 cellence of American Tobacco is not due to 
 superiority of the soil, but is the result of the 
 unwearied attention both of the government 
 and of cultivators to the improvement of its 
 produce ; for the American planters seemed to 
 think, in former times, as Indian Zumeendars 
 appear to do at the present day, that " ajiy thing 
 was good enough for the merchants'' — Tatham 
 on Tobacco, p. 141. — The government, in 1639, improved Cui- 
 
 . , ture of Tol)acco 
 
 anxious to improve the quality of Virginia pro- in America 
 duce, issued rules for checking over-luxuriance. Government. 
 and appointed officers (sworn to do their duty 
 impartially) to see them enforced, as well as 
 for rooting up inferior plants. Every hogshead 
 of prepared Tobacco was moreover taken to 
 government warehouses, to be inspected by com- 
 petent officers before it could be exported, and 
 all of an inferior quality condemned to be 
 burnt.* 
 
 The Dutch, though jealous of the extension of "^^ Dutch, 
 the Spices beyond the limits they prescribed, yet 
 paid considerable attention to the vegetable pro- 
 duct-s of their colonies. They established a garden 
 of large extent at Cape Town, which was divided 
 into four quarters, each of which was planted 
 with the trees, plants, and flowers, that are 
 peculiar to each of the four parts of the world ; 
 and hence in this one enclosure were to be found 
 
 • Tatham on Tobacco, p. 69-106 ; and 138, 207 ; London, 
 1800. 
 
44 ARTS OF CULTURE 
 
 the several gardens of Europe, Asia, Africa, and 
 America. Many of the fruits of Europe were 
 also introduced, and the Vine has been the source 
 of their principal article of export. 
 
 Arts of Culture in India. 
 
 Arts of Culture Noticing the different kinds, and detailing the 
 early history of Culture, and the stages of its 
 introduction into different countries, has not 
 been for the gratification either of idle or of 
 curious inquiry, but that we might make the 
 experience of the past serve us as lessons for the 
 future. This especially with reference to that coun- 
 try, which we hope to prove is neither so sterile, 
 nor so stubborn in soil, so limited in range of 
 climate, nor deficient in intelligence of popu- 
 lation, as to make it improbable that, by fol- 
 lowing the course which has in other countries 
 
 Soil and cii- {^qq^ gQ succcssfuUy Dursucd, we shall attain, at 
 
 mate varied as ^ l ' 
 
 is the Culture, least, an equal degree of success. For the soil 
 of India is rich in many parts, varjed in others ; 
 and the climate affords us sufficient variation of 
 temperature, as well as of dryness and moisture, 
 to allow of the cultivation of Rice at one season, 
 and at another of that of Wheat and Barley. The 
 inhabitants also are acquainted with many, and 
 have the merit of originating some, of the approved 
 Hindoos well proccsscs of Agriculturc, as the rotation of crops 
 Agriculture. and the drill husbandry. They are probably not 
 more bigoted to the practices of their forefatliers, 
 than many an English fanner has shown himself, 
 
IN INDIA. 45 
 
 when he has remained unconvinced, even by the Hindoo Cnju- 
 
 vators. 
 
 successful practice of a neighbour of his own 
 rank and occupation, nor than the Italian, who 
 stops discussion, by saying, " I do as my father 
 of blessed memory did before me, and that is 
 enough."* 
 
 The Hindoo cultivator must, however, be To be improved 
 
 by example, 
 
 taught by example rather than by precept, and 
 those who teach must endeavour to fortify their 
 precepts, as well as their practice, by taking care and by Practice 
 that both are conformable to principle. Thus, the principle, 
 experience of other nations, as well as of other 
 places, may be made suitable to new situations, 
 where, though all the requisites for successful 
 practice are present, yet they may not be in the 
 same relative proportions as elsewhere. A mo- 
 dification of pmctice is therefore essentially ne- 
 cessary, to compensate for such variations in the 
 richness or poverty of the soil, the dryness, or 
 moisture of the climate, in order to attain the 
 same ends ; otherwise our precepts may be as 
 empirical and as unsuited to the new situation, 
 as they are adapted for the places where they are 
 practised. The result, therefore, may be as un- 
 successful as those which we are endeavouring to 
 improve. 
 
 That we may have correct data for comparison, information re- 
 as well as be able to ascertain the nature and ex- c^tmi 
 
 * " Facio cune faceva la bucm anima di miopadre, e cio 
 basta." 
 
46 INDIA — KNOWLEDGE OF. 
 
 India— infer- tent of the information to be referred to in our 
 
 mation con- 
 cerning, future reasonings, it is desirable to take a cursory 
 
 view of the means which have hitherto been 
 adopted to develop and improve, and the know- 
 ledge which we possess respecting, the physical 
 capabilities of India. 
 
 By this it will be seen that the information 
 
 upon which we rely is sufficiently authentic, and 
 
 drawn from an extensive enough basis to warrant 
 
 authentic and the inferences which are dcduccd. The results also 
 
 varied. , ^ • -i er^ • 
 
 which have already been obtained are sufficient 
 to justify the most sanguine expectations for the 
 future. It is not, therefore, premature to state, 
 that our knowledge of the Soil, Climate, and 
 Vegetation of the Indian empire, though not 
 sufficiently minute in all particulars, is yet full 
 enough in many, to entitle us to draw legitimate 
 Results of Ex- inferences on a number of subjects. The success 
 
 periments war- . • i • i • <• 
 
 rant future sue- also lu many cases attending the introduction of 
 
 cess and varied _^- . , , , „ 
 
 culture. new Flants and improved cultures has been suin- 
 
 ciently encouraging. We may therefore state, 
 that perseverance in the course which has been 
 commenced, and a steady application of principles 
 to practice, will ensure the utmost success in the 
 culture of as great a variety of useful and valu- 
 able products, within the wide-spread dominions 
 of the Indian empire, as is practicable within the 
 limits even of several different countries. 
 
 British Domi. As the British dominions in India stretch from 
 
 ■ 8** to 31® of north latitude, we find the northern 
 
 limits extending to the points which were reached 
 
EARLIEST ACCOUNTS OF. 47 
 
 by the Greeks under Alexander, while the south- India— 
 em points are those first touched at by the 
 Portuguese when they reached India by sailing 
 round the Cape of Good Hope. Further, as the 
 products of India reached Europe both by the Products of. 
 Red Sea, and by caravans from the north, it is 
 necessary to consult the works of all the nations 
 which have ever been connected with India, if 
 we desire to acquire a complete knowledge of the 
 early history of the natural Products, the Agri- 
 culture, Commerce, and Manufactures of India. 
 As the earliest notices of Indian commerce refer 
 chiefly to Vegetable products, we may notice treated of by 
 
 . * . , authors of se- 
 
 the information respecting these before proceed- verai nations, 
 ing to other subjects ; and it is fortunate that 
 the majority of those who are considered as hav- 
 ing attended to the vegetation of India only in a 
 botanical point of view, have paid considerable 
 attention to the useful plants, and therefore it is 
 of advantage to notice these authors in connec- 
 tion with the economic history of the country. 
 
 Both Greek and Latin authors proclaim the Greek and La- 
 high estimation in which the products of the East 
 were held by the nations of antiquity. We may, 
 even in the present day, trace the limits to which 
 Commerce extended in ancient times by the de- 
 scriptions which we read, in the authors of those 
 days, of products which we know can only grow 
 in the peninsula of India, or in still more southern 
 latitudes, as the far distant islands of the Indian 
 Ocean. Marco Polo is, however, accounted the 
 
48 
 
 WRITERS ON VEGETABLE 
 
 India-writers fipst who described, from actual inspection, some 
 
 respecting pro- * 
 
 duets of. of the useful Plants of India and of the Indian 
 GarciasabOrto islauds. The Portuguese physicians, Garcias ab 
 costa"^^^' * Orto* and Christopher a Costa, long resident at 
 Goa, also gave some of the earliest accounts of 
 many of the valued products of the East. The 
 Dutch paid considerable attention to the vege- 
 table products of India, as well from a desire to 
 transport some to the garden of Leyden, as for 
 the purpose of becoming acquainted with the use- 
 ful products of the country. 
 Rheede. Rheede,t Governor of Malabar, had the plants 
 
 of the country collected, described, and figured, 
 as well as their useful properties indicated. So 
 Rumphius,j; who went out as Physician to Am- 
 boyna, and afterw^ards became Consul there, de- 
 scribed and figured numbers of the plants of the 
 Archipelago. He completed his work in 1696, 
 but it remained in manuscript for thirty years in 
 the possession of the Dutch East-India Company. 
 Plukenet, who was appointed in England to suc- 
 
 Ruinphius. 
 
 Plukenet. 
 
 * The work of Garcias ab Orto ("De Aromatis") was first pub- 
 lished in 1651. This, as well as the work of C. a Costa, on 
 Aromatics, is included in *' Clusius Exoticorum libri decern." 
 Kaempfer, who accompanied the Dutch fleet to India, described 
 and figured many of the plants of that country, but these are all 
 lost. He then proceeded to Japan, of which, as well as of Persia, 
 he has given some account in his " Araaenitates Expticae." 
 
 f Rheede, " Hortus Malabaricus," twelve volumes folio, 794 
 plates. 
 
 X Rumphius, ♦* Herbarium Amboinense," seven volumes folio, 
 696 plates, 1741 to 1757. 
 
PRODUCTS OF INDIA. 49 
 
 ceed Parkinson as Herbalist, and to the charge of 
 the Royal Gardens at Hampton Court, had collec- 
 tors despatched both to th6 East and West- Indies 
 for plants. In his works, therefore, many Indian 
 plants are figured, as well as in those of the two 
 Burraanns.* That of the first appears to have been Two Bur- 
 principally drawn up from specimens collected 
 by Dr. Paul Hermann, who was sent out in 1670 
 to Ceylon, where he remained till 1677, at the 
 expense of the Dutch East-India Company, for 
 the purpose of describing all the plants and spices 
 growing in that island. 
 
 The systematic investigation of Indian vegeta- 
 tion can, however, only date from the arrival in 
 India of Koenig, a pupil of Linnaeus, and who, in Koenig. 
 1769, joined the Danish missionaries at Tranque- 
 bar, many of whom afterwards prosecuted Botany, 
 and Dr. John founded the garden at that place. 
 Kcenig finding his means too limited to enable 
 him to pursue his investigations, took employment 
 with the Nawab of Arcot ; but as his difficulties 
 were still as great, from irregularity of payment, 
 he applied for assistance to the Madras Medical 
 Board. In consequence of their recommendation, 
 the Indian Government granted him a monthly 
 allowance, with which aid he proceeded to the 
 
 • Plukenet, Opera Omnia, London, 1691 to 1705; 534 plates 
 of nearly 3,000 plants. 
 
 Burmann, Thesaurus ZeylanicuSj Amsterdam, 1737, quarto, 
 100 plates. 
 
 Burmann 2d, Flora Indica, 67 plates, 1768. 
 
 E 
 
50 BOTANY PATRONIZED BY 
 
 Koeiiig. Straits of Malacca and to Siam, from whence he 
 
 returned towards the end of 1779. One of his 
 first acts was to transmit a number of the useful 
 plants of those regions to St. Helena. From this 
 time he continued to be regularly employed in 
 the East-India Company's service until his death 
 in 1785. 
 
 Russell. j)j, Patrick Russell was appointed to succeed 
 
 Dr.Koenig, and though then engaged in his great 
 works on the Fishes and Snakes of the Penin- 
 sula, he projected another, which is interesting as 
 having given origin to one of the most important 
 works on the useful plants of India. But as he did 
 not remain in India long after this, he recom- 
 mended Dr. Roxburgh to be employed, " on the 
 score of his ability to be of essential service to the 
 Company in the way the Directors wish, that is, 
 in the application of such researches to the more 
 immediate purposes of utility." 
 
 Koxbui^h. I3r. Roxburgh, stationed at Samulcottah from 
 
 1781, had long known and corresponded with 
 Koenig, and had made large collections of plants 
 in the Carnatic ; but he had the misfortune to lose 
 them all, with his books and manuscripts, in an 
 inundation, at Injeram, in 1787. He, however, 
 recommenced making a fresh collection of plants, 
 and the Court of Directors sent him out a pre- 
 sent of Botanical books. He described accu- 
 rately the plants he collected, which were also 
 drawn, and he added such remarks on their 
 uses as he had learned from experience or 
 
THE EAST-INDIA COMPANY. 51 
 
 had collected from the natives. The plan of Eoiburgu, 
 the work recommended by Dr. Russell having 
 been forwarded by the Madras Government to 
 the Court of Directors, was returned with a para- 
 graph in the General letter, expressive of the 
 " readiness at all times of the Court of Directors 
 to promote the improvement of natural history, 
 and of their approbation of Dr.Russell's proposal . 
 for publishing a select collection of useful Indian 
 plants." 
 
 The first packet of drawings and descriptions 
 sent by Dr. Roxburgh were received in 1791, and 
 the last in June 1794, when the number five hun- 
 dred was completed. Sir Joseph Banks having 
 undertaken the general superintendence of the 
 work, and Dr. Russell, who was then in England, His coro- 
 the correction of the press, the first number was 
 published in 1795 of '* a progressive work, in 
 which a preference was given to subjects con- 
 nected with Medicine, the Arts, and Manufac- 
 tures," illustrated by elegant engravings, and 
 which is now so well known as Roxburgh's Co- 
 romandel Plants.* 
 
 The works of Dr. Roxburgh are remarkable 
 
 * The Plants of the Coast of Coromandel, selected from draw- 
 ings and descriptions presented to the Hon. Court of Directors 
 of the East-India Company ; by W. Roxburgh, M.D. ; pub- 
 lished by their order, under the direction of Sir Joseph Banks, 
 Bart., F.R.S. Three volumes elephant folio, with 300 coloured 
 engravings. 1st vol. in 1795, 2d vol. in 1798, and the 3d vol. 
 in 1819. 
 
 e2 
 
 maiidel Plants. 
 
52 USEFUL RESULTS OF 
 
 for combining scrupulous correctness in descrip- 
 tion and careful discrimination of species, with 
 constant attention to the practical applications 
 of his subject. This is seen in his observations on 
 Grain, and the productiveuess of different kinds of Grain ; on 
 
 other articles , /. i t /• t-i i • i 
 
 of food. the sources whence further supplies of r ood might 
 
 be procured, as in the various esculent Herbs, 
 Roots, and Fruits, and in his substitutes for Sago 
 and Arrow-root. The value and great variety of 
 
 Timber trees. Timber trccs, fitted both for house and ship-build- 
 Gums: ing ; Gums of various kinds ; Resins, or Dammer, 
 
 Varnish, and ^^ substitutcs tor pitch ; the Pincy varnish-tree, 
 1 trees. ^j^j ^jj^ IHepic oil-tice, are all brought to notice ; 
 
 Tanning mate- as wcll as AstHugents for tanning, as the Kino of 
 the Dhak or Pulass, and the Caducay galls and 
 
 Dyes. Myrobolans ; Dyes, as the Chaya root, with sub- 
 
 Aiedicines. stitutes for ludigo ;* notices of Medicines of vari- 
 ous kinds, especially substitutes for Ipecacuanha, 
 Sarsaparilla, and Peruvian bark.t 
 
 * A botanical description and drawing of a new species of 
 Nerium (Rose Bay.), with the process for extracting from its 
 leaves a very beautiful indigo. 
 
 Col. Kyd writes from Calcutta, 22d June 1790, respecting 
 this Indigo, that both he and Mr. Harris are of opinion that 
 the Nerium Indigo possesses the qualities of the best Indigo, 
 and falls to be ranked (if not equal in value to the first) to the 
 secondary species which has yet been produced in Bengal. 
 
 fA Monographof Swieteniafebrifuga, by Dr. W. Roxburgh 
 printed by order of the East-India Company. 
 
DR. ROXBURGH'S LABOURS. 53 
 
 Culture of Pepper in the Circars. 
 The desire of Dr. Roxburgh to make his scieii- Pepper— cuiti- 
 
 . . vation of, 
 
 tific discoveries tend to practical purposes is con- 
 spicuous in his endeavours to cultivate Pepper in 
 the Circars, and in the number of useful plants 
 which he introduced into the Company's Pepper 
 plantations established at his recommendation 
 in the neighbourhood of Samulcottah. As the 
 origin and progress of this attempt at a new 
 culture are productive of some useful lessons, 
 we may enter a little more into detail than would 
 otherwise be necessary. 
 
 Dr. Roxburgh himself states in a letter, dated proposed. 
 Samulcottah, 25th August 1788, — "Since the end 
 of 1781, 1 have been stationed here, and as soon as 
 I became a little acquainted with the Seasons, 
 Soil, and Produce of the country hereabouts, I 
 formed an idea that Pepper and Coffee would 
 thrive as well in this Circar as in any part of Asia ; 
 my natural turn for Botany, Agriculture, and Me- 
 teorological observations, enabled me to form the 
 idea upon pretty certain grounds." But, on the Pepper dis- 
 
 ... \ I 1 • T I 1 covered in the 
 
 25th April 1786, he had written, " J have the plea- Hdis of the 
 sure to inform you, that since my return I have, 
 for the first time, discovered that Black Pepper is 
 found growing wild in some parts of the hills to the 
 north-west of this; the natives of these hills bring 
 small quantities frequently down to the plains to 
 sell." Mr. Ross, in a letter to Sir A. Campbell, 
 
54 HONOURABLE COMPANy's 
 
 Governor of Madras, in reference to some samples 
 
 of this pepper sent by Dr. Roxburgh, and which 
 
 of excellent the latter described as equal to, if not better, than 
 
 quality. u u 11,^1 
 
 the best Malabar or Ceylon pepper, says, that 
 "on comparing it with the pepper from the Mala- 
 bar coast, which is here in the shops for sale. 
 Pepper Cui- the shop keepers say that the former is at least ten 
 
 ture approved ^ *' 
 
 of bythe Court per ccut. better in quality." Mr. Ross further 
 
 of Directors. . i ^ 
 
 writes (13th Aug. 1786), " The most particular 
 orders were given in time to the Chief and Coun- 
 cil of Masulipatam, to furnish Dr. Roxburgh with 
 all the necessary disbursements, to enable him to 
 proceed, and to give orders to the zemindars to 
 assist and encourage the undertaking." The Court 
 of Directors, moreover, in the General letter to 
 Madras, dated 22d April 1789, expressed their 
 approbation of the undertaking,* and ordered 
 that every encouragement and assistance should 
 be afforded to Dr. Roxburgh. 
 lZ% £m The Pepper was brought for sale to Cottapilla, 
 ««"°pa. at the skirts of the hills ; but the Plants were 
 
 * "In our letter of the 31st July 1787, we approved of the 
 measures you had taken to assist Dr. Roxburgh in the cultiva- 
 tion of Coffee and of the Pepper plant in the Rajahmundry 
 Circar ; but for want of information, &c. we could not decide 
 how far it was a measure meriting our further encouragement. 
 Having since received this information, and likewise the most 
 favourable accounts of the success of the undertaking, we now 
 order and direct that you afford Dr. Roxburgh every encou- 
 ragement and assistance in your power, in the cultivation of 
 such useful articles of our commerce, particularly that of Pep- 
 per." — Oriental Repertory, i. p. 24. 
 
PEPPER PLANTATIONS. 55 
 
 procured from Rampa, about thirty miles within 
 them, and about fifty directly north from Saraul- 
 cottah. It was afterwards discovered growing 
 wild in almost every valley amongst the moun- 
 tains, immediately north of that station. The plan- 
 tations were established about six miles inland 
 from Samulcottah, and about eight or ten miles Plantation 
 
 esfciblislied at 
 
 from the nearest point of the sea, where they were Samuicottaii. 
 sheltered by innumerable clumps of mangoe- 
 trees. About five hundred slips were first ob- 
 tained. These, by the end of 1787, had formed 
 four thousand plants, which at the end of the 
 second year had increased to forty thousand in 
 number, the props being formed chiefly with 
 the branches of the Moochy-tree (Erythrina in- 
 dica). 
 
 On the 17th July 1790, Dr. R. writes, " I have Successor 
 
 Culture. 
 
 brought this species of culture to such a pitch of 
 perfection as must convince every person, that 
 the Pepper-vine will thrive as well on this coast 
 as in any part of India." The rate of its pro- 
 ductiveness had, however, yet to be ascertained ; 
 but before they were old enough for this purpose 
 a difficulty arose, from Dr. Roxburgh discovering 
 that, instead of the real Pepper-plant of Suma- 
 tra and the coast of Malabar (Piper nigrum of 
 botanists), he had found a new species, which 
 though yielding an equally good Pepper, was more 
 difficult of cultivation. This was inconsequence unforeseen 
 of the male and female flowers being on dif- <*'**'"''y* 
 ferent vines, and there being a third kind, with 
 
56 USEFUL PLANTS INTRODUCED 
 
 Pepper of cir- hermaphrodite flowers, or hermaphrodite and 
 
 curs — quality ^ 
 
 of. female flowers mixed, on the same catkins. Hence 
 
 Dr. R. has called this species Piper trioicum, 
 which he had taken for the true Pepper-plant 
 before he had an opportunity of seeing- that 
 famous plant. The natives had increased the 
 difficulty by supplying him in the first instance 
 only with the barren plants. The pepper of the 
 second kind had less pungency than common 
 pepper, but the third sort ripened perfectly, and 
 when dry was exceedingly pungent. Dr. R. was 
 equally unfortunate with the pepper which he sent 
 to this country by a private hand to have its value 
 ascertained, as it was seized by the Custom-house 
 officers. 
 
 Useful plants Into the PcppcT plantations Dr. Roxburgh also 
 
 introduced into , r^ • 
 
 Pepper plan- mtroduccd Coffce, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Annotto, 
 
 tatioDs. . 
 
 and Gumea Grass ; also the Bread-fruit tree, 
 which had been found growing luxuriantly in 
 Cochin, called by the Dutch, Maldivy Jack ; 
 and also mentions having " thousands of young 
 Sappan-wood trees in the Company's Pepper 
 Teak tree. Plantations." He introduced the Teak into the 
 low grounds of the Circars, though it was com- 
 mon in the hills of the Rajahmundry Circars, 
 recommending its being planted in every vacant 
 corner ; and mentions that Lord Cornwallis and 
 Col. Kyd had been for some time introducing 
 it into Bengal. He also procured the eggs of 
 the Silk- worm, and proposed its culture in the 
 Circars, as the Mulberry grew there most luxu- 
 
INTO THE PEPPER PLANTATIONS. 67 
 
 riantly from cuttings ; and obtained copper sugar- 
 boilers from Bengal, in order to try and improve 
 the quality of the Sugars. His paper on the Sugar, 
 culture and manufacture of sugar in India is 
 among the most interesting which has been pub- 
 lished.* 
 
 Culture of Cochineal in India. 
 Dr. Roxburgh further mentions having re- cociiineai— 
 
 , . /. 1 ^ .r-k. • 1 • 1 cultivation aU 
 
 ceived slips of the Cactus or Opuntia, obtamed tempted ; 
 
 by Sir Joseph Banks from the Royal Gardens at 
 
 Kew, and sent out by the Court of Directors, 
 
 which, he states, grew astonishingly. Attention 
 
 had been called to this subject by Dr. James by Dr. James 
 
 Anderson. 
 
 Anderson, physician-general of the Madras army, 
 who Mas distinguished as much for his pro- 
 fessional attainments as for his constant atten- 
 tion to whatever would afford employment to 
 the natives, and improve the productive resources 
 of the countrv. Dr. Anderson had found an 
 insect, which he imagined to be a kind of Co- 
 chineal, and with which he had dyed pieces of 
 
 * An Account of the Hindoo method of cultivating the 
 Sugar-cane, and manufacturing the Sugar and Jagary, in the 
 Rajahmundry Circar, interspersed with such remarks as tend 
 to point out the great benefit that might be expected from 
 increasing this branch of Agriculture, and improving the quality 
 of the sugar ; also the process observed by the natives of the 
 Granjam district in making the sugars of Barrampore. By Dr. 
 William Roxburgh, Samulcottah, 20th June 1792. 
 
58 
 
 THE CULTURE OF COCHINEAL 
 
 Cochineal cul- 
 ture in India 
 recommended 
 by Sir J Banks. 
 
 Flannel, Shawl, and Satin. Specimens were for- 
 warded to the Court of Directors, and by their 
 order subjected to various experiments, but were 
 found to be entirely useless in dyeing. 
 
 Sir Joseph Banks obtained similar results, but 
 having ascertained (22d May 1787), that the 
 specimens sent him were those of a real species 
 of Coccus, he conceived the idea that the true Co- 
 chineal might easily be cultivated on the Coro- 
 mandel Coast, as the " climate was as good as 
 that of the West-Indies (where it had been in- 
 troduced) ; the soil suitable to the production of 
 the Cactus with few spines, and labour as cheap, 
 if not still more so, than in Mexico."* The Com- 
 mittee of Warehouses of the Court of Directors 
 were led to entertain the same view, as they state 
 in April 1788 — " The supposed discovery of 
 ^/,PT"'"^® Dr. Anderson in the environs of Madras, which, 
 
 of Warehouses. 
 
 although unsuccessful in the issue, has, neverthe- 
 less, led your Committee to conceive that the 
 Insect may very successfully be introduced and 
 propagated in the British settlements in India, 
 to the advantage of the natives, the Company, 
 and the British nation, by giving to the former a 
 new article of Culture, to the second an addi- 
 tional article of Commerce, and to the latter a 
 participation in a lucrative article of Trade, 
 
 • Letters to Sir Joseph Banks, Bart., P.R.S., on the subject 
 of Cochineal Insect, discovered at Madras; 1788. By James 
 Anderson, I\I.D., Physician-General, Madnis. 
 
PROPOSED IN INDIA. 59 
 
 which has hitherto been enjoyed unrivalled by 
 a neighbouring power." At their recommenda- 
 tion sealed orders were given to the captains of 
 some ships proceeding to the Brazils, to pro- 
 cure, if possible, some of the real insect, and 
 carry it to the coast. 
 
 Dr. Anderson was in the meantime permitted Nopairy or 
 
 ' _ Cactus Garden, 
 
 to establish, with Dr.Berrv placed under him as established by 
 
 ^ ^ the East- India 
 
 superintendent, a garden to be called the Com- company. 
 pany's ISopalry, for the cultivation of the several 
 kinds of Cactus, on which alone the true Cochi- 
 neal feeds. 
 
 Plants of Cactus were obtained with consi- Cactus plants 
 
 . obt-iined ; 
 
 derable difficulty. One species, extremely com- 
 mon in many parts of India, was undervalued as in India ; 
 being thought unsuited to the insect. It is called 
 by the natives nag-kalU and nag-phuneet and 
 by Dr. Roxburgh Cactus indicus, being thought 
 to be indigenous ; but it was probably intro- 
 duced by the Portuguese. Plants were also ob- 
 tained from Canton, Manilla, and the Isle of and from can- 
 France, as well as from the Kew Garden. All isfe of^raS*ce, 
 these four. Dr. Anderson states, were alike in ^„ ^^ "' 
 appearance. In the course of three years, there 
 were not fewer than two thousand Opuntia plants 
 in the Hon. Company's Nopalry — all obtained 
 from the few Kew plants. Specimens were dis- 
 tributed throughout the Presidency, as well as 
 sent to the Botanic Garden at Calcutta. 
 
 Attention having thus been turned to the sub- 
 ject, the Cochineal insect was obtained by Capt. 
 
60 A SPECIES OF COCHINEAL INTRODUCEC 
 
 cochineaiin. Neilson,of H.M.74th Rcgt., on his return to India 
 
 sect brought ' o * 
 
 from Brazil by jn Jung 1795 When the fleet in which he sailed 
 
 Capt. Neilson. 
 
 repaired for refreshments to the coast of Brazil, 
 Capt.N., in his walks at Rio Janeiro, saw a planta- 
 tion of Opuntias, and obtained several plants with 
 the insect on them.* Many of them died during the 
 passage to Bengal; and a few only remained alive 
 on the last plant, of which several of the leaves 
 had withered. Capt. N., on his arrival at Cal- 
 sent to cai- cutta, scut the survivors to the Botanic Garden, 
 
 ciitta Botanic 1 i 1 1 • 
 
 Garden; whcrc they were placed on the several species 
 
 of Cactus, or Opuntia. On the China and Ma- 
 nilla species of the Nopal, and even on that 
 from Kew, the survivors began to die fast. It 
 fortunately occurred to make trial of the indi- 
 genous Opuntia, on which they were luckily 
 
 thrive remark- found to thrive amazingly ; and so rapidly, that 
 Captain Neilson himself writes, on the 3d Au- 
 gust 1795, that he had the day before seen at 
 the Company's Garden near Calcutta about one 
 thousand fine plants covered with the insects : 
 enough to stock all India. He hopes that Dr. 
 Anderson had received the plants and insects 
 sent by Dr. Roxburgh ; and expresses his in- 
 tention of bringing a fresh supply, with the 
 hopes of " seeing in a very few months the plant 
 and insect an object of cultivation over all the 
 
 • Miscellaneous Communications, by James Atiderson, M.l)., 
 Physician-General, Madras, from March 1794, to October 
 1796. 
 
 ably. 
 
FROM BRAZIL INTO INDIA. 61 
 
 Carnatic, which I am inclined to think a more insect distn- 
 favourable climate for it than that of Bengal :" di'a^ 
 Capt. N. concludes by saying, that great numbers 
 of gentlemen in Bengal have already begun No- 
 pal Plantations; and that Dr. Roxburgh had sent 
 the insect to different parts of the country. 
 
 The insects sent to Dr. Anderson were deli- introduced 
 vered over to Dr. Berry, Superintendent of the •"'^^*^'^5 
 Company's Nopalry at Madras, who, on the 
 26th August, reported, that the climate seemed 
 most congenial to them in all exposures, as they 
 had gone through all their stages from 28th July 
 to the 24th August. He found the same want of 
 success with the foreign, and, as in Calcutta, 
 was obliged to have recourse to the country 
 jNopal. As this was common everywhere, the 
 culture and collection of the Insect very rapidly distributed 
 spread, particularly as the Collectors of Revenue sidency. 
 were each furnished with a small quantity, and 
 directed to exert themselves in the most strenu- 
 ous manner ; also to enclose spots of ground 
 fifty or sixty feet square at some of the villages subsidiary 
 under each coUectorate. On the 8th December, wished. 
 
 1795, Dr. Berry further reported, that this Co- 
 chineal dyed casimere, cloth, and flannel with a Used as a dye. 
 colour equal in brightness to the best scarlet, 
 
 but that four times the quantity of the Sylvestre 
 Cochineal reared in India was required to pro- 
 duce the same colour as that produced by the 
 Grana Fina Cochineal of Mexico. In March, 
 
 1 796, the Madras Government having determined 
 to hold out the most solid encouragement to the 
 
62 COCHINEAL COLLECTED IN QUANTITIES 
 
 Madras Go- cultivators of Cochineal, offered one pagoda per 
 
 vemment offer i o r 
 
 to purchase the pound for the Cochineal, to such of the natives 
 
 Cochineal. 
 
 as might be disposed to employ their industry 
 in its culture, this being considered by Dr. Berry 
 an allowance liberal enough to encourage the 
 cultivation. 
 Sent from In. Specimens of the insects collected and dried, 
 
 dia to Eng- 
 land; both on the coast and in Bengal, were sent to 
 
 the Court of Directors.* These specimens were 
 
 submitted to examination by the best judges 
 
 of the commodity in England, who all agreed 
 
 found to be the that it was the Sylvestre, or wild species; and 
 
 Sylvestre, or . ft 
 
 wild species of that there was little prospect of its being: culti- 
 
 Cochineal. r r & 
 
 vated to any advantage for the supply of the 
 Europe market, unless it could be offered at 
 about one-third of the price of the Grana Fina, 
 or at from 5s. to 6s. per pound, freight and all 
 charges included. 
 Quantity col- The Madras Government had collected, in Sep- 
 
 lected and pur- ^ ^ 
 
 chased by Ma- tcmbcr 1797, 21,744lbs., and fresh supplies were 
 
 dras Govern- . . , • • i 
 
 ment. then coming in, at the average price of nearly 
 
 one pagoda per pound. By a statement, showing 
 the issue of the sales of the Madras Cochineal in 
 England in the years 1797, 1798, and 1799, it 
 appears that 55,196lbs. were sold at an average 
 of 8s. S^d. per pound, which was little more than 
 its prime cost in India. In 1807, the manage- 
 ment of the purchase of Cochineal at Madras 
 was transferred to the Board of Trade, who re- 
 
 • Memoir on the Bengal Cochineal, by Dr. N. Pontana. — 
 Asiatic Annual Register, vol. i,, 1801. 
 
IN INDIA, AND SENT TO ENGLAND. 63 
 
 ported that since the date of the Court's letter Board of Trade 
 of September, 1800, with the above statement, purchaTeTbeLg 
 73,366ilbs. of Cochineal, amounting to pagodas ai'Sot ^ofit- 
 40,883:14:29, had been sent to England; and ^*'^^- 
 that from the London Price Current, it did not 
 appear to be an article of profit to the Company; 
 and they, therefore, suggested the propriety of 
 discontinuing the purchase, or reducing the price 
 to two and one rupee per pound. The Govern- 
 ment, in reply to this date, directed purchases to 
 continue ; and in this determination the Court of 
 Directors expressed their concurrence in the fol- ordered to be 
 
 . . . continued by 
 
 lowmg terms: — "As the prices which we have court of du 
 
 rectors 
 
 obtained for the Cochineal on sales have not been 
 such as to reimburse the prime cost and charges, 
 our sole reason for continuing to suffer a con- 
 siderable annual loss upon this article, has been 
 with a view to encourage the breeding of the 
 insect, until it should become perfectly under- 
 stood among the natives." 
 
 In 1807, Mr. William Webbe, of the Madras Rewardoflfered 
 
 11 ^^^ *^^ intro- 
 
 Civu Establishment, suggested through Dr. An- duction of the 
 
 , 1 ^1 •^•11 GranaFinaln- 
 
 derson to the Governor in Council, the expe- sect into India. 
 diency of advertising a reward for the introduc- 
 tion of the Grana Fina, or real Mexican Cochi- 
 neal, into India. The Court ofDirectors concurred 
 in the reward offered by the Indian Government 
 of two thousand pounds for this purpose.* 
 
 * Measures which have been pursued by the Court of 
 Directors and the Governments in India with a view to the 
 
64 OBSERVATIONS ON THE RESULTS OF THE 
 
 Observations The details which have been given with respect 
 
 on the causes , -r» i ^ i • i i • .l- 
 
 of failure in to the Fcppcr and Lochmeal cultivations are 
 
 both the Pep- . i • i • i i 
 
 per and Cochi- important, as shewing that, even with the greatest 
 energy in individuals, and the utmost necessary 
 patronage in the Government, success is unattain- 
 able, unless equal precaution be taken with every 
 part of an experiment. Here the utmost degree 
 of success was obtained that was possible with 
 the materials. The plants succeeded perfectly, but 
 it is doubtful whether any of them was the true 
 Cochineal-Cactus of Mexico ; and, in fact, the 
 Insects (certainly the inferior kinds) preferred 
 the Cactus already in India to that which had 
 been procured expressly for them, though this 
 was found an excellent remedy for scurvy, and 
 a vegetable for voyages at sea. The Grana Syl- 
 vestre Insect — unfortunately the only kind pro- 
 cured — being one-third only of the value of the 
 
 The same ex- Graua Fiua, while the expenses of its cultivation, 
 
 penses incurred ^ * 
 
 in the Syivestre collcctiou, and drying, wcrc ncccssarily the Same ; 
 
 as would bene- , . , . 
 
 cessary for the the pHcc also paid foT the Insect being high, 
 
 Grana Fina. • i i - t n 
 
 because intended as an encouragement in the nrst 
 instance, made this culture, like all experimental 
 ones, more expensive than would be necessary 
 when success was established. The results also 
 appear more unfavourable than they actually are. 
 The Cactus, instead of requiring the best grounds 
 
 Introduction of the True Cochineal Insect into the British 
 Territories in India. — Trans. Asiat. Soc. of Calcutta, vol. vi. ; 
 Appendix, p. 85. 
 
PEPPER AND COCHINEAL CULTIVATION. 65 
 
 and garden culture, will flourish in the most sterile observations 
 
 1 • 1 1 • 1 1 on the result 
 
 parts of the country, needing but little subsequent of the experi- 
 
 , 1 1 •! 1 1 ments on Co- 
 
 attention; and as women and children may be chineai culture. 
 
 employed in the care and collection of the insect, 
 
 the expenses should, therefore, not be great. The 
 
 experiment was so successful with the Grana Syl- 
 
 vestre, that no doubt can be entertained respecting 
 
 equal success with the Grana Fina Cochineal, 
 
 whenever it can be introduced; and this, with the 
 
 same care and no greater expense, would be so 
 
 much more valuable as a dye, and as an article of 
 
 commerce.* 
 
 With regard to the Pepper Cultivation, we On the Pepper 
 
 , , - . cultivation. 
 
 have seen that complete success was not attained; 
 in fact, as far as a profitable culture was concerned, 
 the Pepper Plantation at Samulcottah was a 
 failure. Every thing, however, appeared favour- 
 able, for the Pepper of the Hills was pronounced 
 by dealers to be of excellent quality: the Garden 
 was established close to where the plant was in- 
 digenous; and Dr. Roxburgh was a most careful, 
 and at the same time skilful Superintendent; but 
 at that time, never having seen the true Pepper 
 
 * It is not easy to estimate the expenses of the experiment, 
 as so many small gardens were established in different parts 
 of the country : but those of the principal one at Marmalong, 
 near Madras, were restricted to 200 pagodas a month : £500 
 was paid to the brother of Capt. Neilson; and 13,397 pagodas, 
 17 fanams, and 20 cash, to Dr. Anderson in 1795, for disburse- 
 ments, on account of the introduction of the Cochineal and 
 Silk-worm upon the coast. 
 
 F 
 
66 OBSERVATIONS ON THE RESULTS OF THE 
 
 Causes of plant, he mistook for it a nearly allied species, 
 percuitivation; yielding excellcnt Pepper, but which for the rea- 
 
 by Dr. Rox- -^ *5 fl' > 
 
 burgh, a wrong sons Stated (p. 65) was more difficult of culture- 
 
 plant. . 
 
 Dr. Heyne, however, (v. infra), has given a diffe- 
 by Dr. Heyne, rent rcasou for the want of success in the culture. 
 culture; Hc succccded Dr. Roxburgh in the charge of the 
 
 Pepper Plantations, and, having afterwards an 
 opportunity of visiting Bencoolen, he made par- 
 ticular inquiries respecting the culture of Pepper 
 Culture in Su- in Sumatra. He learnt that the Malays plant the 
 
 nnatra. \ * _ 
 
 Pepper vine at distances of five cubits in every 
 direction, and support it on pieces of the Mootchy 
 tree (Erythrinae, sp.); that the Pepper grew luxu- 
 riantly where it had much moisture, and hence the 
 vallies were the most favourable situations for 
 Pepper gardens. After the first planting in Sep- 
 tember the vine required but little attention, being 
 left to its fate for twelve or eighteen months, 
 when it received a peculiar treatment, which Dr. 
 Heyne thinks, is the cause of its great fertility. 
 The whole plant, with all its branches, being 
 Plant buried in then buvicd in such a way " that only a small arch 
 
 the ground . , . , i « i-i >i • 
 
 whentweiveor 01 the stcm Tcmams above ground, rvom this 
 monthToid. arch new shoots soon sprout out, three or four of 
 which are allowed to climb up the prop tree, 
 and are expected to produce flowers and fruit in 
 a year after this operation. Dr. Heyne supposes, 
 that by this practice the strength and vigour of 
 the plant, — by the multiplication of its organs of 
 nourishment, the roots — being so much increased, 
 it cannot only produce large crops of flowers. 
 
PEPPER AND COCHINEAL CULTIVATIONS. 67 
 
 but bringr the fruit also to its greatest perfec- Causes of 
 
 "^ . failure m Pep- 
 
 tion. The omission of this practice, Dr. Heyne per cultivation. 
 supposes, was the cause of failure at Samul- 
 cottah, as he says, " the plants that were raised 
 from cuttings seemed indeed to thrive well, and 
 soon produced blossoms ; but such as had male 
 flowers only. To account for this circumstance, 
 we supposed that the hermaphrodite plant had 
 been withheld by the people who sent us cuttings 
 from their hills, where pepper is cultivated to a 
 small extent, when, in fact, we had starved our 
 plants into celibacy. (Tracts, p. 402.) It would 
 be an interesting and very useful experiment, as Experiment 
 well as one easily put into execution, in any 
 of the Botanic or Horticultural Gardens favour- 
 ably situated in India, to ascertain whether the 
 Malayan treatment applied to the Pepper Vine 
 of the Northern Circars would make it more 
 fruitful. 
 
 At the same time that so much pains was other cultures 
 
 * attempted. 
 
 bestowed on the cultivation of the Pepper, Cactus, 
 and Cochineal, considerable attention was also 
 directed to the culture of the Mulberry and the Mulberry; 
 Silkworm, as well as to that of Sugar, and to siik: sugar; 
 the introduction of Indigo. But as these were indigo. 
 attempted in consequence of their success in 
 Bengal, their notice may be deferred. 
 
 It is interesting to observe, that even at this Cotton. 
 early period the indefatigable Dr. Anderson was 
 employed in sending "Mauritius Cotton Seeds," as 
 well as " Brown Cotton Seeds," to different parts 
 
 F 2 
 
68 LABOURS OF DR. HEYNE. 
 
 Useful plants of the Peninsula. The latter had been brought 
 
 introdiiced into 
 
 India. from Malta to India by Major Macdonald, Go- 
 
 vernor of Penang, in 1796, who, in writing for 
 some useful plants to be sent him, says, " I forward 
 two boxes of plants from Mr. Smith, the Com- 
 pany's Botanist here, addressed to Dr. Heyne, 
 Botanist at Samulcottah ; No. 1, containing .360 
 plants of the India Rubber, and No. 2, 353 of 
 the Dammar." 
 
 Dr. Heyne, J)y, Heyne, SO favourably known by his " Tracts 
 
 on India," succeeded Dr. Roxburgh at Samul- 
 cottah, and afterwards acted as assistant to Col. 
 Mackenzie, Superintendent of the Mysore Survey. 
 
 his attention to jje paid Considerable attention to Botany, made 
 
 Botany and ^ •' _ 
 
 a large collection of Plants, some of which are 
 contained in the East-Indian and Banksian Her- 
 baria, and some were described by Roth ;* but he 
 
 Mineralogy, chiefly studicd Mineralogy, and his Tracts t are 
 full of original information concerning the Rock 
 formations, the Minerals, and Soils of the Penin- 
 sula. With respect to practical subjects, it is in- 
 
 introdnction tercstiug to find him observing, that Potatoes were 
 first introduced into the neighbourhood of Ban- 
 galore and of Nundydroog by Col. Cuppage, and 
 since 1800 by himself among the natives, whom, 
 
 * A. G. Roth, Novae plantarum species praesertim Indise 
 Orientalis ex coUectione Doct. Benj. Heynii. Halberstadii,l821« 
 
 •j- Tracts, Historical and Statistical, on India ; with Journals 
 of several Tours through various Parts of the Peninsula, &c. 
 By Benjamin Heyne, M.D. F.L.S., Surgeon and Naturalist on 
 the Establishment of Fort St. George. London, 181 -l. 
 
GARDEN ESTABLISHED AT CALCUTTA. 69 
 
 he says, " I was enabled by Government to sup- introduction 
 
 .of Potatoes. 
 
 ply with Seed Potatoes of the best kind from the 
 St. Helena stock, and to offer them a sale for 
 their produce, which, however, they soon found 
 for themselves, in all parts of the country where 
 Europeans reside. Since that time they have even 
 supplied Madras, where their potatoes are pre- 
 ferred to those of Bengal."* 
 
 Botanic Garden established at Calcutta. 
 
 The Botanic Garden of Calcutta was first Calcutta Bo- 
 
 tanic Gardeii 
 
 established in 1786, part of it having been pre- established. 
 viously cultivated as a private garden by Col CoUKyd. 
 Kyd, to whom the genus Kydia^ was dedicated 
 by Dr. Roxburgh. Dr. Carey, in his Introduction Dr. Rori>urgii 
 to the Hortus Bengalensis^^ justly says, " The un- 
 
 * Dr. Heyne not having had leisure to publish the results of 
 all his observations, says, " I have in the mean time not been 
 sparing in communicating my specimens to such as will be 
 able to make them usetul ; and this, on the whole, was and is 
 the primary object. It matters but little whether it be known 
 by whom a thing is collected, provided it only be used for the 
 good of the community. Many of my friends seem to be of the 
 same opinion !** Tracts, Preface, p. vii. 
 
 -J- "In memory of the late Col. Robert Kyd, whose love for the 
 science induced him, at the desire of the Honourable the English 
 East-India Company, to begin the Botanical Garden and Public 
 Nursery at Calcutta, in Bengal, which he conducted with much 
 success during his life." Roxb. Corom. Plants, iii. p. 11 ; pub- 
 lished in 1819. 
 
 X Hortus Bengalensis, or a Catalogue of the Plants growing 
 in the Honourable East-India Company's Botanic Garden at 
 Calcutta. Serampore, 1814. Introduction by Dr. Carey. 
 
70 
 
 ESTABLISIIMEiNT OF THE BOTANIC 
 
 Results of Dr. 
 Roxburgh's la- 
 bours. 
 
 Catalogue of 
 the plants con- 
 tained in the 
 Calcutta Bo- 
 tanic Garden. 
 
 Dr. Carey. 
 
 Uses of Bo- 
 tanic Gardens 
 
 remitted attention paid by Dr. Roxburgh to the 
 improvement of the Garden, and his eminent 
 abilities as a Botanist, are far more fully exhibited 
 in the following Catalogues than they could pos- 
 sibly be by any eulogium from a friend." The 
 number of described species now in the garden 
 amounts to about 3500, for the knowledge of no 
 fewer than 1510 of which, as named and described 
 in this Catalogue, we are indebted to his inde- 
 fatigable and discriminating researches. Among 
 these are a great number of new genera, some of 
 which have already a considerable number of 
 species ascertained. To these should be added 
 those plants contained in the second Catalogue, 
 which, though not yet in the Botanic Garden, 
 have been described, and many of them accu- 
 rately drawn by him — these amount to 453. This, 
 indeed, forms as important a part of his valuable 
 labours, as the description of those already in 
 that rich repository of Indian Plants. The total 
 number of Plants drawn and described by him is 
 1963. (Introduction, p. 2. 3). 
 
 Dr. Carey, celebrated for his missionary labours, 
 and knowledge of Asiatic language, whence he 
 was appointed Professor in the College at Cal- 
 cutta, as well as for his attention to Botany, justly 
 remarks in his Introduction, that by the formation 
 of Botanic Gardens the labours of scientific men 
 have been called forth and greatly aided, as these 
 afford facilities for the improvement of Botanical 
 Science, which might have been sought for in vain 
 witliout the aid of such institutions. '* But the 
 
GARDE X OF CALCUTTA. 7 1 
 
 Botanical Gardens, and other noble collections Botanic car- 
 of Plants in Europe, could never have been 
 brought to the perfection in which they now 
 appear, had not public or private repositories of Uses of. 
 plants been formed in the different settlements in 
 Asia, Africa, and America." This, however, as 
 he further observes, is not the only use of such 
 institutions, as they are intended chiefly for the 
 benefit of the country in which they are estab- 
 lished. Useful plants, such as Grains and Timber- 
 trees, are first introduced, and then spread into introduction of 
 
 , , , useful plants. 
 
 the culture or the country; others also employed 
 in the domestic economy of the inhabitants, or 
 which by their beauty contribute to the enjoy- 
 ment and pleasure of mankind. Thus are intro- 
 duced Flowers, Shrubs, and Timber-trees, Grains 
 supplying food for man and beast. Esculent and 
 Medicinal Plants, and those which yield Colour- 
 ing matter, or are employed as Mordants. 
 
 " It is readily granted," continues the vene- Agricuituna 
 
 Societies — 
 
 rable Carey, " that Agricultural Societies would 
 more effectually accomplish the object of im- 
 proving the culture of Grain, and that the 
 premiums bestowed by them upon successful 
 candidates in the various branches of husbandry, 
 would operate with greater success, where these benefit of. 
 operations must necessarily be carried forward on 
 a large scale, and a comparative view made of 
 the advantage attending different modes of culture, 
 and of the produce of different kinds of soil. 
 This is, however, impracticable in many of our 
 
72 PROGRESS OF THE CALCUTTA 
 
 Experimental foreiVn possessions, and must necessarily be 
 
 Farm attached . . . 
 
 to Botanic attended with many defects in them all, which it 
 
 Garden. 
 
 is not necessary here to mention : the best substi- 
 tute for such a society seems to be, the attaching 
 of an Experimental Farm to a Botanical Garden, 
 a measure which the liberal views of the Govern- 
 ment of British India have induced them to adopt, 
 and which has been well repaid by the experi- 
 ments made there on the cultivation and produce 
 of different kinds of grain, on the strength and 
 durability of the fibres of the bark of various 
 plants, and upon various other subjects, highly 
 important to the Agricultural interests of the 
 country." — Introduction, p. 4 and 5. 
 
 Dr. Roxburgh. Though Dr. Roxburgh had very indifferent 
 health, having been obliged during his Superin- 
 ^ tendence to make three distinct voyages, between 
 the time of his first coming to the Garden, in 
 1793, and that of his death, which happened in 
 1813, once to the Cape of Good Hope, and 
 twice to Europe, few men have laboured with 
 greater zeal, assiduity, and success ; and even 
 during his absence, some of the men who acted 
 for him were well qualified to do justice to the 
 
 Dr. John Fie- institution. Dr. Johu Fleming, President of the 
 Medical Board, and who is well known by his 
 Essay on Indian Medicinal Plants and Drugs, 
 acted as Superintendent when Dr. Roxburgh 
 went to the Cape of Good Hope ; and on another 
 occasion, Mr. Colebrooke, distinguished as a San- 
 scrit scholar, and for his Philosophical Essays 
 
 mmg. 
 
BOTANIC GARDEN. 73 
 
 upon the Literature and Philosophy of the Hin- Mr.coie- 
 doos, as well as for the attention he paid to the 
 useful Plants of India, as displayed in his Papers 
 on Olibanura, Camphor, &c. in the Asiatic Re- 
 searches ; as likewise by his " Remarks on the 
 Husbandry and Internal Commerce of Bengal." 
 Dr. Carey also seems to have been in constant com- Dr. Carey. 
 municatioii with the Calcutta Botanic Garden, of 
 which he published the Catalogue in 1814, and a 
 complete edition of Dr. Roxburgh's Flora Indica 
 in 1831 and 1832. 
 
 The Botanic Garden of Calcutta has been use- Useful plants 
 
 - . . - . . - . introduced into 
 
 ful m mtroducmg many important plants mto India. 
 India. So long ago as 1814 Dr. Carey states, 
 " The Mahogany tree, for instance, which but a Mahogany. 
 few years ago was brought from Jamaica to this 
 country, thrives so luxuriantly in Bengal, that 
 many thousand trees of it are growing here, and 
 even small pieces of furniture have been already 
 made of the wood. The Pimento and Coffee Pimento, 
 prosper now as well in Bengal as in their native 
 soil, and the Nutmeg, notwithstanding the climate Nutmeg. 
 is somewhat too cold for it, already produces 
 fruit every year." The Nutmeg was but imper- 
 fectly known until it was correctly described by 
 Dr. Roxburgh from specimens growing in the 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden, which were obtained 
 from the Molucca Islands, while they were in the 
 possession of the English from 1796 to 1802. 
 A Spice plantation was established by the E. I. 
 
74 
 
 SPICE GARDENS ESTABLISHED. 
 
 Spice planta- 
 tion establish- 
 ed by the E.- 1. 
 Company in 
 Sumatra. 
 
 Mr. Cole's 
 plantation at 
 fiencoolen ; 
 
 also in Penang. 
 
 Cinnamon. 
 
 Camplior tree. 
 
 Company, under the charge of Dr. C. Campbell, 
 on Mount Carmel, about sixteen miles south of 
 Marlborough. Mr. Cole, a Civil servant of the 
 Bencoolen establishment, was the first who took 
 measures to cultivate the Nutmeg and Clove 
 Plants on a scale that merited attention. " His 
 plantation, however," Dr. Heyne says, " was the 
 only one of its kind until 1803, when it began to 
 produce, and convinced the sneerers that the 
 Spice did not only grow well, but produced in 
 the greatest perfection." (Tracts p. 412.) From 
 that period, plantations sprang up on every side, 
 and the settlement thereby wonderfully improved. 
 The number of plantations amounted in 1812 to 
 about thirty-three, most of which had trees bear- 
 ing fruit, and their produce in the market, par- 
 ticularly the Mace and Cloves, was found equal 
 to that from the Eastern Islands : the Nutmegs 
 were not quite so large as those from Banda. Dr. 
 Roxburgh states that at Prince of Wales' Island, 
 where by far the most extensive plantations were 
 formed, the plants were in a middle state, between 
 those at Bencoolen and in Bengal, but did not 
 thrive by any means so well as in Sumatra, 
 where they are perfectly at home in every respect, 
 and fruit earlier than in the Molucca Islands. (Fl. 
 Ind. iii. p. 845.) 
 
 In addition to the Spice trees, the Cinnamon 
 was introduced into the Calcutta Botanic Garden 
 from Ceylon ; and the Camphor tree from the 
 
USEFUL INDIAN PRODUCTS. 75 
 
 Cape of Good Hope, where it had been conveyed camphor and 
 
 , Benzoin trees. 
 
 by the Dutch ; also the Benzoin tree from Suma- 
 tra, and the Culitlawan from Amboyna. 
 
 Among other subjects of great national im- 
 portance, which at that time attracted Dr. Rox- 
 burgh's attention, were Barilla, Cotton, Sugar, useful Indian 
 Indigo, Hemp, and Caoutchouc. Experiments p'^""'^^' 
 were made on these in the Botanic Garden, but 
 of which, though very important in nature, it was 
 long before their results and value were appreci 
 ated, or before imitators were found among those 
 most interested in the improvement of the soil. 
 
 Potash and Barilla, which are imported in Bariiiain 
 such large quantities, the former chiefly from 
 America and Russia, and the latter from Spain 
 and Sicily, he proposed to supply from India. 
 The two species of Salicornia, and one of Sal- 
 sola, which he described, and which are extremely 
 abundant on the Coromandel Coast, he says might abundant; 
 be made to yield batilla sufficient to make soap 
 and glass for the whole world ; as labour is 
 cheap, population abundant, and, except in years 
 of remarkable drought, there is always more 
 grain produced than can be sold on the spot. 
 But as the natives can scarcely procure a suffi- would afford 
 
 the natives 
 
 ciency of food during the dry season of the year, useful employ- 
 when there is little or no employment for them, it 
 appears the more necessary to institute such 
 branches of manufacture as will employ them 
 during that season, — such as gathering these 
 plants, and burning them for the Alkali. " Our 
 
 ment. 
 
76 
 
 BARILLA AND POTASH FROM INDIA. 
 
 Potash from 
 India. 
 
 Mineral alkali 
 sent from In- 
 dia. 
 
 Caoutchouc 
 from Assam. 
 
 extensive, and I may also say impenetrable forests 
 which cover such large tracts of the best lands 
 in India, might by degrees be cleared and turned 
 into Potash, for the same reasons, and by the 
 same means. Certainly labour is as cheap here as 
 in Russia. In this hot country we have many 
 advantages, viz., immense tracts of wood of the 
 most solid texture, which requires little labour 
 to prepare it for the fire, on account of the great 
 drought and heat which prevail at the season 
 this manufacture could best be carried on. The 
 same heat and drought is fully sufficient to evapo- 
 rate the ley without the least assistance of fire. 
 All that could be necessary would be some broad 
 shallow vessels exposed to the sun and wind." Dr. 
 Helenus Scott, however, received a gold medal 
 from the Society of Arts for sending from Bom- 
 bay, as asubstitute for Barilla, considerable quanti- 
 ties of Mineral Alkali, which he describes as being 
 dug out of the ground, and which, though inter- 
 mixed with a little common salt, yielded as large 
 a proportion of Barilla as the Spanish. — v. Trans. 
 Society of Arts, vol. vi. 
 
 Caoutchouc, or India Rubber, long appeared a 
 substance of trifling importance, but we ^ee it every 
 day becoming a more extensive article of com- 
 merce. From a source of this substance, disco- 
 vered in Assam by Dr. Roxburgh above thirty 
 years ago, it has only now entered the market, in 
 consequence of letters written by the Author in 
 1836. It is now rapidly increasing in quantity. 
 
CAOUTCHOUC AND WOOD OIL FROM INDIA. 77 
 
 and is of so excellent a quality as already to have Caoutchouc 
 
 trom Assam ; 
 
 reduced the price, nearly thirty per cent, of that 
 which had been so long and almost exclusively 
 imported from Para. Though an agency house in 
 Calcutta, to whom it was sent in 1828 by desire 
 of the late Mr. D. Scott, informed him that '* the 
 article being unknown in this (the Calcutta) 
 market, we are sorry we can give you no idea of 
 its value ;" and this, in March 1828, when it was 
 selling in London for two shillings a pound ; in 
 the year 1837, 514, and in 1838, 925 Bazar maunds 
 were exported from Calcutta ; the former of the 
 value of 4,112, and the latter 7,400 Rupees. 
 
 Wood Oil, which is also a remarkable substance, wood on. 
 and contains a large proportion of Balsam of Co- 
 paiba, is yielded by several trees described by him.* 
 This has never become an article of commerce, 
 but no less than five hundred gallons of it have imported; 
 been sent by a single individual, in consequence 
 of a letter, also written by the Author, stating that 
 it might become an article of commerce if made 
 known here. The Custom-house officers, how- 
 ever, refuse to pass it except at the highest rate high duty re- 
 of duty, namely that, for a manufactured article, ^""^ ' 
 though it is actually obtained merely by tapping 
 
 * Species of the genus Dipterocarpus, as D. turbinatus, 
 D. costatus, D. incanus, D. alatus, belonging to a family rich 
 in valuable trees, as that yielding the Camphor and Camphor 
 Oil of Sumatra ; the Piney tree, which yields a liquid varnish, 
 Indian Copal,and a Vegetable Tallow ; the Saul tree, yielding 
 a valuable timber, and Dammer, an excellent resin. 
 
78 CULTURE OF COTTON IN INDIA. 
 
 Wood Oil. the tree. The selling price is hence increased be- 
 fore it is even known, and it may thus perhaps be 
 prevented from becoming an article of commerce. 
 
 Culture of Cotton in India. 
 
 Cotton ; Among the various products of the soil, there 
 
 are few, if any, which are at the present day of 
 greater importance than the wool-like covering 
 of the seeds of a tropical genus of plants, which 
 is so well known under the name of Cotton. This 
 is one of those products of the Vegetable King- 
 dom, which is common to both the New and the 
 
 known to Old World. It is mentioned by the Greeks, as 
 
 native of India. Hcrodotus statcs, that the Indians possess a 
 plant which produces wool of a finer and better 
 quality than that of sheep, of which the natives 
 make their clothes, and Nearchus describes it as 
 flax made from trees. That it was also indigenous 
 
 Indigenous in America, we know from its having been found 
 
 also in Ame- . . r» • • 
 
 rica. in some of the ancient Feruvian tombs, toge- 
 
 ther with specimens of Cotton cloths ; some of 
 the woven patterns of which, it is curious to 
 observe, very closely resemble some modern pat- 
 
 From India tcms. From India, Cotton seems to have been 
 
 introduced into . ii* -i-i-i 
 
 Persia and first mtroduced luto and cultivated m the islands 
 
 *^^ * of the Persian Gulf, and subsequently into Egypt, 
 
 where, though known as an article of commerce, 
 
 it does not seem to have been cultivated until 
 
 later times, nor could it have been very, common 
 
CULTURE OF COTTON IN INDIA. 79 
 
 as an article of clothing, for the Mummy Cloths Linen, 
 are found to consist of linen. 
 
 Though the Flax plant and Linseed are well 
 known, and extensively cultivated in India, it is 
 remarkable, considering the early and constant not known to 
 
 Indians. 
 
 communication between the two countries, that 
 the Hindoos should not have learnt from the 
 Egyptians the art of separating the Flax, and of 
 weaving linen out of a plant, which they exten- 
 sively cultivate on account of its seeds. This is 
 most easily accounted for, by their possessing a 
 substance like the Cotton, which is obvious to AdvMitages of 
 
 Cotton cloth- 
 
 the senses, and easily spun into thread, and ing in hot cli- 
 mates. 
 which, when made into cloth, is so well suited 
 
 to the climate. Its inferior conducting powers 
 making, it like flannel, more efficacious than linen 
 in preventing chills, in a climate where perspira- 
 tion is so copious and evaporation very rapid, 
 which is necessarily accompanied with a certain 
 degree of cooling. 
 
 Seeing that Cotton is one of the indigenous 
 products of India, and one which has been so long 
 cultivated in the country for the uses of its in- 
 habitants, it strikes one as extraordinary to hear 
 
 India frequently adduced as a country incapable India errone- 
 ously supposed 
 of producing the finer kinds of Cotton. In the unfavourable 
 
 ... .to growth of 
 
 history of the nation, it is only in comparatively Cotton, 
 recent times that it has been of such great impor- 
 tance to provide what is so much valued by 
 the English manufacturer, that is, Cotton of a 
 good length and quality of staple, as well as of 
 
80 
 
 CULTURE OF COTTON IN INDIA. 
 
 Indian Cotton 
 carelessly col- 
 lected ; 
 
 but cleaned 
 before weaving. 
 
 India not yet 
 recovered from 
 the revulsion 
 in the com- 
 merce of Cot- 
 ton. 
 
 Cotton ; im- 
 provement of 
 dependent on 
 careful culture, 
 and clean pick- 
 ing. 
 
 a certain degree of cleanness. From the earliest 
 times, the Hindoo, with his patient habits and 
 prodigal labour, because this was so cheap, though 
 he collected his Cotton carelessly, yet cleaned it 
 with care before weaving it into the matchless 
 fabrics, emphatically denominated " woven air," 
 for which India is still unrivalled. Cotton Piece 
 Goods long formed an extensive commerce from 
 India to England, but the improvement in English 
 machinery has caused a revulsion in commerce, 
 from which, as it is not easy to change the 
 habits of a nation, the weavers of India con- 
 tinue to suffer. Their country is inundated with 
 the proceeds of the incessant working of English 
 machinery; and the English manufacturer re- 
 quires to be constantly supplied with the raw 
 material of a certain quality, instead of the Eng- 
 lish merchant importing, as heretofore, the manu- 
 factured products of Indian looms. 
 
 To improve the length or the quality of the 
 staple of Cotton, and to collect it in as clean a 
 state as possible, are two very different, though 
 nearly equally important processes — one entirely 
 mechanical in nature, the other depending on 
 the application of the principles of Science to the 
 culture of the plant. These, we shall endeavour 
 to show, depend not only upon a proper selec- 
 tion of kinds of Cotton, — that is, of species suited 
 to particular situations, — in reference to pecu- 
 liarities of soil and of climate, embracing in 
 the latter term not only temperature, but also 
 
CULTURE OF COTTON IN INDIA. 81 
 
 dryness and moisture, and everytbinff which is Culture of 
 
 •■111, 1 . ^ Cotton. 
 
 now included under the comprehensive term of 
 Climate. Few of those who have written on the 
 subject seem to have been aware of the paramount 
 necessity of attending to the influence of the diffe- 
 rent Physical agents on the growth and secre- 
 tions, and therefore on the Products of Plants, 
 though the importance of so doing may any day 
 be proved, even in the growing of a Cabbage, or 
 the blanching of a Lettuce, or of Celery. 
 
 TheCourt of Directors called the attention of the culture of Cot- 
 
 ^~u • T T 11 « ton encouraged 
 
 Government in India, as early as the year 1788, to by e.i. Com. 
 the cultivation of Cotton in India, " with a view^ ^*"^' 
 to affording every encouragement to its growth 
 and improvement in general, but particularly to 
 the species manufactured into the finer sorts of 
 thread in use for the superior goods of the Dacca 
 fabric." Reports were called for, from the Col- Reports re. 
 lectors of districts. Mr. Bebb's and Mr. Dun- ^^^^^ ' " 
 can's are among the most valuable of those re- 
 ceived. In the year 1794, a machine was sent out Machine sent 
 
 •^ out; 
 
 for cleaning Cotton from seeds or other im- 
 purities. A few years afterwards a bounty was Bounty offered 
 offered for its cultivation on the coast ; a planta- 
 tion was then established at Rhaudaterra on the Cotton Farm ; 
 Bombay side, under the superintendence of a Mr. 
 Brown. Instructions for the proper cultivation instructions 
 
 ... sent out, &c. 
 
 of Cotton were also sent out : and it was inti- 
 mated that seeds of the West-India and Ameri- s^^'^^- 
 can Cottons would be procured, and sent out to 
 India. 
 
 G 
 
82 
 
 MEANS ADOPTED IN INDIA 
 
 Means adopted 
 by EI. Com- 
 pany for en- 
 couraging the 
 culture of Cot- 
 ton in India. 
 
 Cotton sent 
 from India; 
 
 a small portion 
 only sold ; 
 
 its dirty state 
 particularly re- 
 prehended. 
 
 Bourbon seed. 
 
 In consequence of the position of public rela- 
 tions with the United States of America, the Court 
 of Directors, at the commencement of 1809, sent 
 out instructions to India. The result of which 
 was, that about thirty millions of pounds weight 
 of Cotton- wool were sent by the month of Au- 
 gust in 1810 ; of this quantity, somewhat less than 
 five millions only were sold, the intercourse with 
 America having then been renewed. In the year 
 1810, one point especially noticed, is " the foul- 
 ness, dirt, and seeds which are suffered to remain 
 mixed with the Cotton, and for the continuance 
 of which no excuse would hereafter be admitted." 
 It was further stated " it is our positive order that 
 the commission be not paid to any commercial 
 resident, whose provision of cotton shall be faulty 
 in this particular." But even this failed to im- 
 prove the culture of Cotton. 
 
 In the vear 1811, the Court of Directors ex- 
 pressed their intention of consigning to the diffe- 
 rent Presidencies, a sufficient quantity of the seed 
 of the Cotton produced in the Isle of Bourbon, 
 with a statement of its mode of cultivation, and 
 the nature of the soil best suited to it. This was 
 done to enable the Governments in India to make 
 a decided experiment, and ascertain whether a 
 considerable quantity of Cotton-wool of good sta- 
 ple, which might in all respects be equal to Ame- 
 rican Cotton, could not be successfully grown in 
 India. The Court, however, were not unmindful 
 that the experiments previously made with Bour- 
 
FOR CULTURE OF COTTON. 83 
 
 bon Cotton in India had not been very successful. Cotton— cul- 
 ture of; 
 We have seen (p. 66) that seed had been introduced 
 
 from the Mauritius into the Peninsula of India 
 by Dr. Anderson, but it did not succeed, evi- 
 dently from want of attention to the soil it re- 
 quires. Dr. Roxburgh early ascertained that " it 
 succeeds better in the more elevated, dryer, and soil suited to 
 less fertile soil of Coromandel, than in Bengal, tonT 
 where the plant grows to a great size, yields less 
 Cotton, and the cultivation is very generally re- 
 linquished, though there must be many situations 
 near the mountains of our northern frontier where 
 it would thrive." (Flora Indica iii., p. 187.) 
 
 Dr. Roxburgh also describes with the above, species of cot- 
 the green-seeded Cotton as a native of America, American; 
 and five other species, with their varieties, as 
 natives of Asia, stating that, "after a search of Asiatic; 
 thirty years, he had been unable to find more 
 well-defined species of the genus." Among the 
 varieties described, is the famous Dacca Cotton, Dacca cotton. 
 which is figured in his Coromandel Plants. This 
 Cotton was described by Mr. Bebb, Resident at 
 Dacca, as the finest in the world, and as produc- 
 ing cloth of astonishing beauty and fineness ; the 
 best quality of this was cultivated only in a tract 
 to the eastward of Dacca. But w hether its supe- 
 riority was owing to the soil, the quality of the air, 
 or to any particular art of cultivation, was uncer- 
 tain, and probably could not be ascertained. Dr. 
 Roxburgh states, that the most intelligent people 
 of that country (Dacca) think the great difference 
 
 G 2 
 
84 CULTURE OF COTTON IN INDIA. 
 
 Dacca Cotton. Hcs in the Spinning, and allow little for the in- 
 fluence of soil. 
 
 In the experiments hitherto made, we do not 
 Want ofatten. obscrve, howcvcr, that any attention was paid by 
 pie" in Sure the Expcrimcntors and Cultivators to what is 
 now thought so essential to success in a new 
 culture, or in, what is the same thing, the im- 
 provement of an old culture by the introduction 
 of new species, and the adoption of the practices 
 of other places. Such as, ascertaining whether 
 the soil and the climate of the new situation are 
 similar to that of the place of which we wish 
 to adopt both the plant and the practice ; or, 
 supposing differences of soil or of climate in the 
 country into which a plant is introduced, whether 
 such modifications may not be introduced into the 
 culture, as to be more suitable to the new situa- 
 tion, and thus enable us to obtain the same pro- 
 ducts as elsewhere. This we know may be done 
 by duly apportioning the influence of the several 
 physical agents, as light, air, heat, and moisture, 
 on the delicate and easily altered vegetable struc- 
 ture, according to the richness or poverty of the 
 soil, the dryness or moisture of the atmosphere. 
 Though we cannot alter the quantities of the 
 above agents, we may modify their effects, either by 
 open or close planting, by a richer or more sterile 
 soil, pruning or irrigation. We shall afterwards 
 see that those who succeeded best in their ex- 
 periments, were those who paid attention to the 
 influence of physical agents on vegetation. 
 
cultuue of sugar in india. 85 
 
 Culture of Sugar in India. 
 Suffar is one of the ancient productions of Sugar-cane a 
 
 o * , native of India. 
 
 India, which was early known to the nations of 
 
 the West, and to the Greeks, four or five hundred 
 
 years before the Christian sera. It was at first 
 
 called " honey of canes," and afterwards sakkhar, 
 
 which is its Indian, and evidently the origin ot 
 
 its European names, as sukkhar kund is of Sugar 
 
 Candy, thus indicating very clearly their Eastern Jo^h^J^souUi "f 
 
 origin. The Saracens introduced the Susrar-cane Europe, 
 
 ^ '^ the Canaries, 
 
 into Sicilv and the South of Europe, and the Por- the vvest-in- 
 
 * _ dies. 
 
 tuguese into the Canaries; from thence it was 
 taken to Hispaniola in the year 1506.* 
 
 The remarkable effects produced by the intro- 
 duction of a vegetable are in no cases more con- 
 spicuous than in the transportation of the Coffee 
 and of the Su&ar-cane into the West -Indies, sugar trade of 
 
 *^ West-Indies. 
 
 There, before the middle of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, no less than three hundred sail of ships 
 went annually from Great Britain, besides those 
 from other places. The navigation of France also 
 
 • " The first Sugar-canes found in the West-Indies were at 
 Hispaniola in 1506, an inhabitant of La Vega, named Acquil- 
 lor, having brought them from the Canaries. BachillaVel- 
 losa and Pedro Atienga were the first who planted them, and 
 extracted Sugar from them. They yielded so well, that in a 
 short time there were on the island forty Water and Horse 
 Mills, The first was made by Christoval and Francisco de 
 Tapia, at Laguate." — Tablas Chronologicas por Claudio Cle- 
 mente. Valencia 1689; 4to. p. 168, as quoted by Dalrymple in 
 the Oriental Repertory, i., p. 2. 
 
86 MEANS ADOPTED FOR CULTURE 
 
 Sugar-cane in- ^^s described even in 1701, in a memorial by a 
 
 troduced from •'_ 
 
 India into French Chamber of Commerce, as " owinff all its 
 
 America. ^ 
 
 increase and splendour to the commerce of its 
 sugar islands;" and this owing to the intro- 
 duction of a plant which came originally from In- 
 india sup- Jia. Yct that country has lonff been supposed, and 
 
 posed mcapable _ ^ o i l ^ 
 
 of producing still is SO by many, incapable of manufacturing 
 the product of the Cane, so as to compete with 
 those countries to which it has so freely given 
 this, as well as many other of its natural riches, 
 — as Rice, Ginger, Indigo, Tamarinds, the Man- 
 goe, the Orange and Lemon tribe. Coffee, Cloves, 
 Nutmeg, Cinnamon, and many others, have also 
 been derived from parts of Asia. 
 
 East-India In the year 1792, Sug-ar rose by decrees to 
 
 Company call- '' . . . 
 
 ed upon to im- an cuormous price, in consequence, it was sup- 
 port sugar from 1 n 1 1 • • 1 • 
 East-Indies, poscd, 01 the annual importation being very 
 
 unequal to the increased consumption of Great 
 Britain, combined with the demand for exporta- 
 tion. The East-India Company were called upon 
 at a General Meeting of the Public to lend their 
 assistance towards effecting a reduction of the 
 price of Sugar, by encouraging importations of it 
 from the East- Indies. A General Court of Pro- 
 prietors was held, on the 15th March 1792, for 
 the purpose of considering an application in- 
 tended to be made to His Majesty's Ministers or 
 to Parliament, for lowering the duties then pay- 
 able on East-India Sugar. Upon this occasion 
 a Report by the Committee of Warehouses, dated 
 the 29th February 1792, relative to the culture 
 
OF SUGAR IN INDIA. 87 
 
 and produce of Suffar in British India, was read. Sugar culture 
 
 r o HI India; 
 
 As further authentic information appeared still 
 indispensable, the Court of Directors ordered, 
 agreeably to a suggestion in this report, that 
 the Collectors of the Indian revenues should be 
 called upon *' to ascertain various particulars information 
 
 * _ _ * ^ called for. 
 
 relative to the existing state of the Sugar culti- 
 vation, its increase or decrease ; whether it la- 
 boured under any peculiar disadvantages which 
 could be removed by proper encouragement." 
 
 It had, however, been directed in the year 1789, sugar sent 
 that a quantity of Sugar and some other articles 
 should be sent for trial. In the year 1790 a quantity 
 of Benares Sugar, with samples of other Sugars 
 and of Tobacco in the leaf, the produce of Ben- also Tobacco, 
 gal and Behar, were transmitted to England. In 
 February 1791, Lieut. J. Paterson, of the Bengal 
 
 Establishment, addressed a memorial to the Court i^'^ut- Pater- 
 son contracts to 
 
 of Directors, statinj^ that Su2:ar could be culti- manufacture 
 
 ® ® Sugar on the 
 
 vated in Bengal with many superior advantages, westindian 
 and at less expense than in the West- Indies ; 
 though after making his contracts, and returning 
 to India, he does not seem to have found the 
 facilities so great as he expected. 
 
 The result of the above orders was a series of Reports on Su- 
 
 gar culture in 
 
 valuable reports by the Collectors of Revenue India. 
 upon the culture of Sugar in India. Among 
 these, that of the political resident at Benares is 
 the most full and comprehensive in its views, 
 and it may be profitably referred to, even now, 
 for the improvement of the culture of Sugar 
 
88 CULTURE OF SUGAR-CANE IN INDIA. 
 
 Reports on in India. With these were obtained a few essays 
 
 Sugar culture "> 
 
 in India; on the subject by scientific persons in India, — as 
 
 those drawn uj) by order of the Supreme Go- 
 vernment by Drs. Roxburgh and Buchanan Ha- 
 milton. Large quantities of Sugar were also iin- 
 
 Reports pub- ported, as is fully related in the " Papers respect- 
 ing the Culture aud Manufacture of Sugar in 
 British India." The result may be briefly summed 
 up, as is done in the above report of the Com- 
 mittee of Buying and Warehouses 11th Decem- 
 
 Quantitiesof bcr 1822 I " In the course of the thirty years 
 
 Sugar imported ^ '' •' 
 
 from India. which havc clapscd since the former proceed- 
 ings of the General Court of Proprietors rela- 
 tive to East-India Sugar took place, this article 
 has risen, by a regular gradation, to be an impor- 
 tant branch of the national commerce ; the quan- 
 tity of East-India Sugar imported in the year 
 ending the 5th of January 1821 having amounted 
 to about fourteen thousand tons, and in the year 
 ending the 5th of January 1822, to thirteen thou- 
 sand five hundred tons." 
 
 Effects of the The ffrcat extent of the Indian territories in 
 
 introduction of ~ • • i • l 
 
 East-India which Suffar may be grown, the quantities which 
 
 Sugar. ^ • 1 1 • 1 • 
 
 were imported, and the cheapness with which it 
 can be manufactured, had, no doubt, considera- 
 ble influence in reducing the price of Sugar, and 
 would perhaps have injured the commerce of the 
 West-Indies, had not this been prevented by the 
 great distance, high freights, and the very unrea- 
 sonable duties, amounting to £.37. 16s. 3d. per 
 cent, charged on this country on East-India Sugar. 
 
OTAHEITE SUGAR-CANE IN WEST-INDIES. 89 
 
 At this time English metals were admitted free of increased de. 
 duty, and English manufactured Goods, Cottons gar. 
 even, entered India on paying only two and a-half 
 per cent. The continued demand for Sugar, of 
 which the consumption seemed to increase in pro- 
 portion to the extent of its production, had also its 
 influence in preventing any very great reduction 
 of price taking place. 
 
 But at the very time that these efforts were 
 making in India, the West-Indians were assisted 
 by the introduction of a new kind of Sugar-cane, 
 which far surpassed that originally introduced 
 from the Canaries, in size and in productiveness 
 of juice. This was the Otaheite cane, of which otaheiteSugar- 
 Capt. Bligh says, "some very fine Sugar-cane ed into the 
 
 1 I J. J. ■> r J.I, • • West-Indies 
 
 was brought to me, each oi the pieces was six 
 inches rpund." The French, about the year 1794, by the French, 
 introduced three new kinds of Sugar-cane into 
 Martinique, and into their other West-India co- 
 lonies. One from the island of Bourbon, another 
 from Otaheite, and a third from Batavia. The 
 Bourbon and Otaheite Canes were found to be 
 nearly of the same nature, both, being much 
 larger than the old West-India Cane; many of their 
 joints measuring nine inches in length, and six in of great size, 
 circumference. When trimmed and fit for grind- 
 ing, some of the canes weighed seven pounds, 
 being about two pounds heavier than the largest 
 picked canes of the old kind. They ripened quicker, 
 and were fit for cutting in ten months ; their juice rich in juice. 
 also granulated sooner, and threw up less scum 
 
90 
 
 OTAHEITE SUGAR-CANE IN WEST-INDIES. 
 
 Otaheite Sugar- 
 cane. 
 
 Sugar estates 
 greatly increas- 
 ed in value. 
 
 Bourbon 
 Canes, 
 
 in the boiling than that of the old canes. 
 They also resisted the injuries of excessive dry 
 weather, and the ravages of that destructive 
 insect, called the horer in the Sugar islands. So 
 that in one season, in a year, wherein the dry 
 weather and the borer were particularly fatal to 
 the other canes, a proprietor estimated the pro- 
 duce at 3,500 pounds of sugar from an acre. In 
 a subsequent season, however, 5,700 pounds an 
 acre are recorded as having been produced. Mac- 
 pherson, in his Annals of Commerce, says, 
 ** After such proofs of their superiority, the new 
 canes, generally under the name of the Bourbon 
 canes, were soon spread over all the British 
 West-Indies, where they very quickly superseded 
 the old canes, and with such advantage to the 
 proprietors of sugar plantations, whom they have 
 inspired with the most splendid hopes, that the 
 introduction of them will undoubtedly constitute 
 an important aera in the history of the West- 
 Indies."* 
 
 It is a curious coincidence that the Otaheite 
 
 * A proprietor of the greatest respectability in the Island of 
 Tobago, writes on the 20th September 1797, " my properties 
 here, since we were restored to the British Government, have 
 become very valuable. I have for three years averaged five 
 hundred hogsheads of sugar, and a large proportion of rum, 
 and the Bourbon canes are so wonderful, that I expect from 
 six to seven hundred hogsheads next year, if I can make them. 
 This cane passes wonder, and renders the appearance of the 
 old canes unpleasant. I would not, as a planter, have credited 
 a report of what I have witnessed of it." 
 
CHINESE SUGAR-CANE IN INDIA. 91 
 
 Cane should have been introduced into the West- Little attention 
 
 paid in India 
 
 Indies at the very time tliat vigorous efforts were to improved 
 
 . culture or ma- 
 
 making for establishing the Sugar trade of the nufactureof 
 
 East- Indies. It is remarkable also, that among 
 the numbers who at that time paid attention 
 to the subject, so few should have thought of im- 
 provements in the Culture of the Cane in India, 
 or even in the Manufacture of the Sugar, and still 
 fewer of the introduction of new kinds of Sugar- 
 cane from other countries. Some, however, ac- 
 quainted with the West-India method, forcibly 
 called attention to the unthrifty manufacture in 
 India, where, from delays in the processes, much 
 of the saccharine principle was destroyed, before 
 the juice was boiled down into Sugar. The Bour- 
 bon, or Otaheite Sugar-Cane, was at that time 
 probably little known, but Dr. Roxburgh was 
 well aware of the importance of this subject, as 
 at the beginning of the year 1796, he applied 
 to Government to write to the Supercargoes at 
 Canton for the seeds of all vegetables that yield 
 flax and hemp, or that produce substances em- 
 ployed in their stead, as well as for the various 
 sorts of Sugar-cane. 
 
 Among the plants received from China, to- chinaSugar- 
 wards the close of 1796, in consequence of this hi^mQmto^ 
 
 ' •,• I • 1 r c u' u Calcutta Bota- 
 
 requisition, was a kind oi ISugar-cane, which nic Garden, 
 Dr. Roxburgh considered a new species, and has 
 called Saccharum Sinense, or Chinese Sugar- 
 cane. Of this, he writes at the close of 1799, 
 that it '' has been cultivated with the utmost pos- 
 
92 CHINESE SUGAR-CANE IN INDIA. 
 
 SiTextS^ sible success. Many hundred thousands have 
 
 buted.^'^*" been distributed over the country amongst the 
 cultivators of that article." It possessed the ad- 
 vantage of being so hard and solid as to resist 
 the forceps of the white ants and the teeth of the 
 
 Its advantages, jackal, two great enemies to the East- India Sugar 
 Plantations. It was found, however, too difficult 
 to express the juice with the common Bengal 
 Sugar-mill ; but Dr. Roxburgh was of opinion 
 that this might be obviated by introducing the 
 simple, and at the same time powerful mill of the 
 Coast of Coromandel. The cane he further de- 
 scribes as bearing drought much better than the 
 sorts in general cultivation, producing more- 
 over a profitable crop even to the third year; 
 while the common cane of India must be annu- 
 
 Report from allv rcuewcd. Accordiuff to the report of Mr. 
 
 E.I. Com- " . . 
 
 pany's Sugar Touchct, the comuicrcial resident at Radnagrore, 
 
 Farm. . 
 
 and of Mr. R. Garden, Superintendent of the 
 Honourable Company's Sugar Plantation Farm 
 at Mirzapore Culna, it not only resists the rava- 
 ges of the white ant and jackal, but yields about 
 double the produce of the common Bengal Cane. 
 (v. " Report on the Sugar Trade," p. 258, and 
 Roxburgh's " Flora Indica," 1 p. 239).* 
 
 • Though anticipating events, it may be mentioned, that the 
 Otaheite Cane was only introduced lately into the Botanic 
 Garden at Calcutta by Captain Sleeman of the East-India Com- 
 pany's service, and thence into India. It has since spread 
 rapidly, seems highly esteemed, and the climate appears suit- 
 able to it all over India. A European house, however, em- 
 
CULTURE OF THE SUGAR-CANE. 93 
 
 In examining the accounts of the Suffar-cane Principles to 
 
 Y , . , be attended to 
 
 Culture in India, several subjects of inquiry pre- in the culture 
 
 . . and manufac- 
 
 sent themselves as worthy of investigation, and ture of sugar. 
 respecting which, accurate experiments seem still 
 to be required. It is evident that every part of the 
 extensive plains of India is well suited to the cul- 
 tivation of Su^ar; but we do not know what 
 peculiarities of soil and climate are best suited to 
 produce the richest secretion of juice; nor which 
 cane is best suited to the different degrees of dry- 
 ness and moisture, heat or cold of the different 
 parts of India. The differences in these respects 
 it would be extremely desirable to have accurately 
 ascertained. In the culture also of the cane, many Culture; 
 peculiarities must have considerable influence in 
 the nature of the secretions, and consequently on 
 the quantity of Sugar that is produced, besides 
 what is dependent on difference of species. Such 
 as the more or less deep ploughing and planting, 
 as well as whether the latter be close or open, (so 
 as to exclude or admit air and light,) the copious 
 or scanty weeding, or the frequent irrigation. In 
 addition to this, any improvement in the unthrifty 
 mode of manufacturing it will ensure the produc- Manufacture; 
 tion of Sugar of as superior quality in every, 
 
 ployed in the culture and manufacture of Sugar, and in the 
 distilling of Rum, in the north-west of India, writes, that they 
 found the China Cane to be superior to that introduced from 
 the Isle of Bourbon, and now spread over India under the 
 name of the Otaheite Cane. 
 
94 HISTORY AND CULTURE OF 
 
 Culture and as we HOW know to be produced in some, parts of 
 
 Manufacture of ^ '■ * 
 
 Sugar in India, the Indian empire. Samples of East-India Sugar 
 sent to this country have been pronounced equal 
 to any from the West-Indies. But to ensure suc- 
 cess, as well as to make it profitable, it is necessary 
 to pay as much attention to the culture of the 
 cane, as to the manufacture of the Sugar. 
 
 Culture of Indigo in India. 
 Indigo, Indigo, which like Rice, Pepper, Cotton, and 
 
 Product of In- Sugar, is a natural product of India, and has 
 
 dia, 
 
 like them, been successfully introduced into other 
 countries, is still better calculated to prove, that 
 the success of the manufacture of a vegetable 
 product, and therefore the extent of its Com- 
 merce, depends as much upon skill, combined 
 with energy in the cultivators and manufactu- 
 rers, as upon suitableness of climate to its culture. 
 That Indigo is an original product of Hindostan, 
 known to an- is provcd by its name Indicum among ancient 
 
 cients, i i • m 
 
 authors, and hence it was, until very recent 
 times even, called Indico in European commerce. 
 That this was the substance which we now call 
 Indigo, is evident by the directions given by 
 Pliny for detecting spurious kinds, as he states, 
 that •* the proof hereof is by fire, for cast the 
 right indico upon live coles, it yieldeth a flame 
 of most excellent purple." It might be adduced 
 as an objection, that the substance alluded to is 
 
INDIGO IN INDIA. 95 
 
 sometimes called the stone indicon, but so even indigo. 
 in the present day is Catechu, also an Indian 
 and equally a vegetable product, called Terra 
 Japonica. 
 
 With regard to the commerce of Indigo, it is commerce of. 
 mentioned in the Periplus of Arrian, as exported 
 from Barbarike on the Indus, to Egypt. In the 
 seventeenth century, the consumption of Indigo 
 in Europe was so considerable, that the sale of 
 Woad was much diminished, and the use of 
 Indigo was prohibited in an imperial edict, pub- useofprohi- 
 lished in 1654, when it was denominated the 
 deviVs dye. The Nuremburgers, moreover, com- 
 pelled the dyers annually to swear that they 
 would never use Indigo.* In the '* Report of the 
 Proceedings of the East-India Company, in re- 
 gard to the Culture and Manufacture of Indi- 
 go," we learn that it formed a prominent article imported by 
 
 /» 1 • East India 
 
 of importation during the hrst century of their company. 
 commerce ; and we find in the earliest notices 
 respecting it, that like so many other Indian pro- 
 ducts, though intrinsically good, its value was 
 diminished by carelessness in preparation as well carelessly pre- 
 as in packing. It was then recommended that the Jacked. 
 sand and dirt which adhere to the outside should 
 be avoided, as frequent complaints had been 
 made, that the sand injured the mills in grind- 
 ing it. 
 
 In the markets of Europe, however, the East 
 
 * Bancroft ; Phil, of Permanent Colours, 1, p. 166. 
 
96 HISTORY AND CULTURE OF 
 
 Indigo, were again to be supplanted by the West-Indies. 
 
 in Mexico, On the discovery of Mexico, a dye like Indigo 
 was known to the Aztees, and, according to Hum- 
 boldt, a species of Indigo plant is seen among 
 the most ancient hieroglyphical paintings of that 
 country. But it was not from improvements 
 in the ancient culture there, that the East-India 
 Company were obliged to discontinue their im- 
 ports from India, but in consequence of the British 
 
 inWest-indies. colonists in the West-Iudies and the southern 
 parts of North America, giving their attention 
 to the culture and manufacture of Indigo, in such 
 large quantities and so successfully. 
 
 Cultivated by The culture and manufacture of Indigo had 
 
 Portuguese, also bccu introduced into St. Domingo by the 
 paiiiar s, Prench, who greatly improved the process, while 
 by the Portuguese it was carried into Brazil, and 
 by the Spaniards into Mexico. About the year 
 1747, most of the planters in the British West- 
 India possessions relinquished the cultivation, 
 
 BywhomGreat and Great Britain, with the rest of Europe, was 
 
 Europe suppii- supplied by the Spaniards and French, who manu- 
 factured the finest kinds of Indigo. 
 
 EffortsofEast- But, about 1779-80, the Court of Directors of 
 
 IndiaCompany. . 
 
 the East-India Company made extraordmary ef- 
 forts to increase the production of Indigo, and to 
 improve its quality, foreseeing that if they suc- 
 ceeded, the result would at once be highly advan- 
 tageous to India, and beneficial to this country. 
 A contract, at prices which were intended to 
 encourage the growth, was therefore entered into 
 
INDIGO IN INDIA. 97 
 
 with Mr. Prinsep * who at this time conceived that indigo in in. 
 India might supply Europe with Sugar and Cot- 
 ton, as well as Indigo: and for a supply of the 
 latter, they continued to make other engagements 
 of a similar kind until 1788. But, on reviewing imported into 
 
 England. 
 
 the issue of all the sales prior to the year 1 786, it 
 was ascertained that the several parcels yielded a 
 remittance of only Is. 7d. 67 dec. for the current 
 rupee, which was a loss in the first instance of Losses sustain. 
 upwards of seventeen per cent., independent of 
 freight and charges, which may be reckoned at 
 full ten per cent. more. In 1786, several contrac- 
 tors delivered in Indigo, which was sold in Lon- 
 don, — of this, that supplied by Mr. J .P. Scott 
 was the only parcel which yielded a profit, and 
 this to the extent of lid. 01 dec. per pound. 
 Notwithstanding this, the losses upon the aggre- 
 gate of the above consignments were very consi- 
 derable; as that which stood the Company in 
 
 Cost and charges ^30,207 
 
 Produced only 21,596 
 
 so that there was a loss of £8,611, or equal to 
 twenty-eight per cent. 
 
 * Having been kindly allowed access to papers left by Mr. 
 Prinsep, I find that as early as 25th Jan. 1780, in a letter to 
 Lord North, he writes of his *' objects of introducing Indigo, 
 Sugar, and Tobacco into Great Britain from the East Indies ;" 
 and in another letter it is stated that he had, " with the utmost 
 trouble and expense, collected round him Europeans bred to 
 different arts and sciences, as well as the most intelligent mecha- 
 nics and planters of the East." 
 
 H 
 
98 CULTURE OF 
 
 Means adopted TIiouj^li tlicse losses had been sustained, impor- 
 
 for improving * 
 
 Indigo in qua- tant Tcsults wcFC the consequence. Europeans ac- 
 quainted with West-India methods having pro- 
 ceeded to Bengal, considerable improvements 
 took place in the manufacture of Indigo. Some 
 transmitted by Mr. Boyce, even so early as 1787, 
 was pronounced by a competent judge in London 
 "equal to Spanish, 9s. 6d to 10s. 6d. the pound 
 the second sort." From the proved practicability, 
 therefore, of making superior kinds of Indigo, 
 and contrasting this with the inferior qualities of 
 that sent from Bengal, as well as the high 
 prices at which it was tendered, the Court came 
 to the determination that the Company should 
 
 Company dis- ccasc to purchasc foF at least three years. This, 
 
 continue pur- . i /v /• 
 
 chases for it was supposcd, would havc the effect of creatmg 
 competition among individuals, and would not 
 " fail to operate in bringing the article to its greatest 
 possible state of perfection ; " at the same time, the 
 lowest rate at which it was possible to be manu- 
 factured would be ascertained. 
 
 To insure due attention being paid to all parts 
 of the process, and to afford the requisite facili- 
 
 instructions, tics for attaining success, instructions were sent 
 
 Specimens, and • .1 j /• c . 11 
 
 Reports, sent out conccmmg the mode of manufacture, as well 
 
 out to India. j* i- *• a1 e • l- i 
 
 as directions respecting the square forms m which 
 it was desirable that the Indigo should be sent 
 home. Specimens also of the good kinds which 
 it was desirable to rival, were sent to India, and 
 also the reports of the Dyers and Brokers on 
 the several samples which liad been successively 
 
INDIGO IN INDIA. 99 
 
 transmitted from India. Besides this, some of the Relief in du- 
 
 tics. 
 
 duties were remitted for the seasons of 1789 and 
 1790, and relief also afforded both as to tonnage 
 and freight. Advances were likewise made by the 
 Government to some manufacturers, and " as a fur- 
 ther aid, the Company made large advances of ^•*^*"*^®^ ^^ 
 money secured on the Indigo, on a plan of re- 
 mittance to London, and this course w as followed 
 for many years."* 
 
 It is extremely interesting; and instructive to improved 
 
 '' ^ ^ , quality of In- 
 
 find these measures followed by rapid improve- digo. 
 ment in the quality of the Indigo. It is stated 
 in a letter of the Court of Directors of the 30th of 
 May 1792: "It affords us much pleasure tore- 
 mark that the article, as to quality, is still in- 
 creasing in reputation. It has already surpassed surpasses the 
 the American and French, and there is no doubt French, and 
 
 11 1 • 1 /• Spanish. 
 
 but, by perseverance and attention on the part oi 
 the planters, it will effectually rival the Spanish." 
 In fact, a parcel of five chests, belonging to 
 Messrs. Gilchrist and Charters, was declared to 
 be superior to Spanish, and was sold at a higher 
 rate ; while the buyers deemed it to be possessed 
 of every requisite that Could be wished. By the 
 accounts of the quantities of Indigo imported into 
 Great Britain, during ten years, ending in 1791, 
 it appeared, that in proportion as the imports 
 
 * Vide "Report of the Proceedings of the East- India Com- 
 pany in regard to the Culture and Manufacture of Indigo," 
 p. V. 
 
 H 2 
 
100 CULTURE OF 
 
 from Bengal increased, there was a diminution 
 French Indigo from Other parts. The consumption of French 
 
 supplanted by ^ *^_ '^ 
 
 Bengal. Indigo in this country was even then nearly sup- 
 
 planted by that from Bengal, and it was a still 
 more favourable circumstance, that the cultiva- 
 tion in St. Domingo diminished nearly one- half 
 in the course of the seven years which preceded 
 1789, in consequence chiefly of the increased 
 cultivation of Coffee. 
 
 Large quanti. From the succcss of the culturc, it was pro- 
 ties imported 
 
 from India. sccutcd with uuduc vigour, as this in the year 1 795 
 caused an importation of 4,368,027 lbs., of which 
 the consignments from Bengal alone amounted to 
 •2,956,862lbs. From this immense quantity being 
 thrown into the market, and from four-fifths of it 
 being of a very inferior quality, a considerable 
 
 StSon^'if reduction in price ensued. These fluctuations 
 
 prices. continued to characterize the commerce in In- 
 
 digo, and this not only for the above reasons, but 
 also because the consumption of Indigo depends 
 upon the condition and progress of other manu- 
 factures. The reduction in price was at no time 
 more remarkable than between 1824-25 and 
 1829-30, having been lis. 5jd. a pound in the 
 
 Creat extent former, and 4s. 3|d. in the latter. But the trade 
 
 of commerce in ^ 
 
 Indigo. increased gradually to a great extent, as no less 
 
 than 9,913,010 lbs. were imported in 1828, though 
 not more than 6,545,873 lbs. in the year 1837: 
 of these importations ninety-four per cent, was 
 supplied by India. 
 
 Few liistories of commercial products are more 
 
INDIGO IN INDIA. 101 
 
 instructive than that of Indigo, which we see an observations 
 
 ^^ , on the previous 
 
 article of export in the earliest times, from the history. 
 country where the plant is indigenous. It formed 
 one of the principal articles imported by the 
 East-India Company in the first century of their 
 commerce, but was soon supplanted when Euro- 
 pean skill was applied to the culture of the plant, 
 and the manufacture of Indigo, in the West-Indies 
 and southern parts of North America. It was re- 
 stored again to the country of its birth, by the 
 very means by which it had been wrested thence, 
 that is, by the application of European skill and 
 energy, as well to the culture of the plant as to 
 the chemistry of the manufacture. Accurate in- 
 formation was also supplied, and specimens of the 
 quality of drug it was desirable to rival. 
 
 But all these would hardly have sufficed, had it indigo manu- 
 
 factory esta- 
 
 not been for the extensive purchases made by the wished by pur- 
 
 I'll chases of East 
 
 East-India Company, the losses which they sus- India Com- 
 tained, and the advances which they still con- 
 tinued to make. The manufacturers eventually 
 attained a degree of skill, which in a climate 
 favourable to the plant, and backed by the cheap- 
 ness of labour in Bengal, enabled them to bid 
 defiance even to the more practised manufac- 
 turers of the West. The culture and manufacture 
 being established, Indigo has continued one of 
 the staple products of Bengal. Its goodness is per- 
 manently secured by the planters in Bengal and 
 the south-east provinces attending to the culture 
 of the plant and the manufacture of the Indigo, 
 
 pany. 
 
102 CULTURE OF THE 
 
 Observations while tliose in the north-western parts of India 
 
 on history of ^ 
 
 Indigo Culture: supply them with Seed. The moisture and rich- 
 ness of the Bengal soil and climate are fa- 
 vourable to the luxuriant growth of the parts 
 of vegetation, in which the colouring matter is 
 secreted ; while the comparative dryness of the 
 northern provinces enables them more easily to 
 perfect the parts of fructification. The whole 
 history, culture, and manufacture afford most 
 useful lessons for the means to be adopted for 
 ensuring success in other cultures, which at first 
 appear equally nnprofitable, but are not more 
 hopeless, inasmuch as they are substantive pro- 
 ducts, which do not depend upon the state of other 
 manufactures for their sale and consumption. 
 
 into India. 
 
 Culture of the Poppy in India. 
 
 tiS'odyeT Opium, so well known, and so extensively 
 produced, need hardly be adduced as an instance 
 of the physical capabilities of India for producing 
 valuable commodities ; were it not that the culti- 
 vation of the Poppy gives us an instructive lesson, 
 not afforded by the other cultures successfully 
 practised in India. Cotton, the Sugar-Cane, In- 
 digo, and Pepper, are all indigenous products of 
 the country, while the Poppy is a striking instance 
 of the successful introduction of a valuable plant 
 of more northern latitudes, into a hot country. 
 The history of the Poppy, and of Opium, its in- 
 
POPPy IN INDIA. lOS 
 
 spissated juice, are imperfectly known. Though Poppy and 
 extensively cultivated in India, the Poppy is also tory of. 
 common in the gardens of England. Very good 
 Opium has sometimes been prepared even in this 
 uncertain climate, and in France and Germany it 
 has been so very frequently. The Opium, so called 
 Turkish, is chiefly collected in Asia Minor, and is 
 exported to the extent of about 400,000lbs. from 
 Smyrna. It is produced at several places, at from Opium— vane- 
 
 , , ,. • , . . , tiesof; 
 
 ten to thn-ty days distance in the interior ; but that 
 grown at Caisar, about six hundred miles from 
 Smyrna, is the most esteemed for its cleanness and 
 good quality. Besides this, other kinds of Opium 
 are known in commerce, as that of Constanti- 
 nople, and of Trebisond, as well as the Egyptian. 
 
 The oldest notices of the Poppy are found in Poppy; 
 the works of the early Greek Physicians, where of. 
 not only the plant, but also its juice, is mentioned. 
 Opium, however, does not appear to have been so 
 generally employed as in modern times, or the 
 notices respecting it would have been more nu- 
 merous and definite. It seems also probable that 
 it first came into extensive use in Egypt. But, 
 from having been so long and so generally culti- 
 vated in Europe, and the northern parts of Asia, 
 the Poppy has spread, and become so completely where indige- 
 naturalized in different countries, that it is now 
 difficult to ascertain where it was originally indi- 
 genous. But, extensively as it is cultivated in In- 
 dia, it is remarkable that nowhere are even a 
 few stray plants to be seen in a wild state ; a 
 
104 CULTURE OF THE 
 
 cultivated in sufficient indication that it is not a native of the 
 
 India, but not 
 
 found wild; country. This supposition is still further con- 
 firmed, by no other species of Poppy being found 
 in the plains, though the Author discovered one in 
 the mountains, and Mr. Griffith has sent the seeds 
 of a species of wild Poppy from Caubul. The 
 names of the Drug seem also to assist us in tracing 
 
 SnameT^"^'" ^^^ Origin to couutries beyond India. Opium isy 
 no doubt, derived from the Greek opos, (juice ;) 
 which may also be the origin of the Arabic 
 qfioon; and this latter, of the Hindee ap/iim. Ac- 
 cording to Professor Wilson, the only Sanscrit 
 term for Opium, is ahiphena ; this occurs in the 
 Medical Dictionary, called the " Raja Nighanta," 
 and has every appearance of being borrowed and 
 adopted from the Arabic term. By the Chinese, 
 as we [learn from the Memorial of Heu-Naetse, 
 Vice-President of the Sacrificial Court, it is 
 called Afooyung in the Materia Medica of Le 
 Shechin, of the Ming dynasty. — (Correspondence 
 relating to China, 1840, p. 156.) 
 
 The Poppy, not being a native of tropical coun- 
 tries, is not cultivated in India during the seasons 
 which are characteristic of those climates, that is, 
 during the hot weather or rains ; but in what are 
 
 Poppy cuiti. the winter months of European climates, namely 
 
 vated during 
 
 the cold season, from October and November to March. 1 he great 
 heat is then sufficiently reduced to allow of the 
 successful cultivation, not only of this, but also 
 of other valuable plants requiring only the sum- 
 mer heat of northern latitudes; such as Wheat, 
 
POPPY IN INDIA. 105 
 
 Barley, and European Kitchen-garden Vegetables, culture of the 
 As low temperatures enough occur throughout 
 the plains of India, the Poppy may be success- 
 fully cultivated from Behar, even to the banks of 
 the Sutlej, or in the several independent states 
 of the partially elevated table land of Central In- 
 dia, which are usually comprehended under the 
 name of Malwa. The Behar, or Patna Opium, Behar, or Pat- 
 
 na Opium ; 
 
 has long been esteemed of the finest quality for 
 
 the China market; but that of Malwa, contain- MaiwaOpium; 
 
 ing a large proportion of the narcotic principle, 
 
 has rapidly attained almost equal value. For 
 
 this it is probably indebted to the climate of 
 
 Central India; but the north-western provinces 
 
 could no doubt produce it of as fine a quality ; since 
 
 a specimen prepared at Bareilly was found to 
 
 contain the largest proportion of the narcotic 
 
 principle. Some Opium prepared by the Author JJ^Jj^cMr^* 
 
 at Saharunpore, was pronounced equal to the best 
 
 Turkey, for medical purposes, and this was very 
 
 similar to some procured in the Himalayas. The ^^^^l'' """^ 
 
 latter is grown there much later in the season, 
 
 and collected nearly in the same months as in 
 
 Europe and Asia Minor, that is in May and June. 
 
 It can, no doubt, be prepared of the best quality 
 
 for the European market, both in the hills and 
 
 plains, whenever it is thought desirable to do so. 
 
 Though in the preparation ofmany of the valued opium requir- 
 articles of commerce, the Hindoos preceded most ""^ ** y <»re . 
 nations, yet they have usually been surpassed, 
 whenever European skill and energy have been 
 
106 CULTURE OF THE 
 
 Preparation of applied to the improvement of these very disco- 
 veries. It is remarkable, therefore, to find that 
 with Opium they should have attained complete 
 success, and this too, without the aid of Euro- 
 pean science. But, in the preparation of Opium, 
 nature does everything, and man has only to wait 
 patiently and carefully to collect the secretions of 
 her laboratory. 
 
 The cultivation of the plant, however, requires 
 some degree of attention, such as good soil, ma- 
 dependent up- nure, and also careful management of the irriga- 
 
 on state of at- . i /. i • • i i j.i 
 
 mosphere; tiou. The Strength of the juice depends upon the 
 quantity of moisture, and also, as Dr. Butter has 
 shown, upon that of the dew which falls upon the 
 surface of the capsule. A deficiency of dew 
 prevents the proper flow of the milk, while an 
 excess, besides washing off the milk, causes addi- 
 tional mischief, by separating the soluble from the 
 insoluble parts of the Opium. This deteriorates 
 its quality, as well as increases the quantity 
 of moisture, which must afterwards be got rid of. 
 This, together with the adulterations practised by 
 the Ryots, causes the chief difficulties experienced 
 by the Opium agents. 
 
 easier to make This dependence upon the state of the atmos- 
 
 good Opium in .n • i • xi i. 
 
 Northern than phcrc Will lu many cascs explain the greater or 
 dia. " "^ less facility experienced in the preparation of 
 Opium of the best quality in different parts of 
 India. Also, why though the soil be less fertile, 
 it is easier to prepare Opium of fine quality in 
 Malwa and the north-western provinces of India, 
 
POPPY IN INDIA. 107 
 
 than in Bengal. But the history of the Opium History of 
 
 • • r T J • Opium ; in- 
 
 culture IS as instructive as that or Indigo, though stmctive as 
 
 ,.„ —,, , 1 . • T that of Indigo ; 
 
 m a different way. The latter being an indigenous 
 plant, has continued to be cultivated by the na- 
 tives according to their own methods, while the indigo indige- 
 manufacture of its dye has been improved by "°"^' 
 the application of European energy and science. 
 The Poppy, on the contrary, is a foreign plant, Poppy foreign. 
 successfully introduced by the natives themselves, 
 of which the produce requires care, but not science 
 on their parts. It is well calculated though, to show 
 the important results which may follow the intro- 
 duction of a plant, suited to the soil and climate 
 of a country. When the Poppy was first culi- 
 vated in India, is not known, but it had at- 
 tained considerable importance in 1 786, as there 
 is a memorial of the Marquis Cornwallis of that 
 date, respecting the best mode of deriving a reve- 
 nue from Opium. In 1826, the Finance Com- Poppy, and its 
 
 . , juice, a source 
 
 mittee estimated that the government might of Revenue. 
 derive from it about £1,000,000 yearly of revenue. 
 
 The Poppy has been adduced as a remarkable g^Jcessfa'^cuu 
 instance of a foreign plant successfully cultivated ^ure of opium. 
 in India, but chiefly on account of the lessons 
 which may be drawn for the culture of other 
 plants from similar climates. For we are led to 
 enquire whether it be so peculiar in nature, as to 
 be the only useful plant from similar climates 
 cultivable in India, or whether it may not rather 
 be an instance which may be successfully imitated. 
 Therefore that other plants, as important as arti- 
 
108 CULTURE OF FLAX AND 
 
 Inferences cles of commerce, which like it succeed in the 
 
 from successful 
 
 culture of summcr of European climates, may with equal 
 success be introduced into the cold weather cul- 
 ture of the plains, or into the summer culture 
 of the mountains of India. 
 
 Opium. 
 
 Culture of Flax and Hemp in India. 
 
 fo° subSituter We have seen, that on the occasion of the high 
 for Hemp ; pnce of Sugar, India was looked to, for a supply 
 of what in some countries is considered a luxury, 
 but in Great Britain almost a necessary of life. 
 When a deficiency began to be felt in the best 
 materials for Canvas, Cables, and Cordage, so 
 essential for the safety of our navy and mer- 
 cantile shipping, India was again looked to, and 
 expected to send an adequate supply of Hemp, 
 or of some efficient substitute. 
 
 The Lords of the Privy Council for Trade and 
 Foreign Plantations, in a letter, dated the 4th of 
 February 1803, recommended to the Court of 
 Directors of the East-India Company to encou- 
 u*^pmin6\a ^^S^ ^^ much as possible the growth of strong 
 recommended, jjemp in such parts of their dependencies in 
 India, as might be best suited to the production 
 of that article. On the 23d of the same month, 
 the Court replied that they would take the needful 
 measures for accomplishing the object of their 
 Lordships' wishes. But attention must have 
 been directed to this subject long previous to 
 
HEMP IN INDIA. 109 
 
 this, as in the Treatise on Hemp,* &c., by Mr. Culture of 
 
 Hemp in In- 
 
 Wisset, he quotes from the Board of Trade con- dia; 
 saltations in Bengal, of the date of 1792, refer- 
 ing to the Reports of the Collectors of Revenue, 
 which impart much valuable information respect- 
 ing the culture of Sunn, in India. We learn also 
 from a letter of Dr. Roxburgh's, dated 24th De- 
 cember 1799, that the Court of Directors had 
 sent out Mr. Sinclair to establish the cultivation ^'«"- sindair 
 
 sent out to 
 
 of Hemp ; but he, having died shortly afterwards, estabUsh it. 
 the experiment was continued by Mr. T. Douglas, 
 and, according to Dr. Roxburgh, in a most 
 expensive manner. 
 
 India being: an anciently civilized country, and Many cordage 
 
 o •' •" plants in India. 
 
 its inhabitants practising various arts and manu- 
 factures, must necessarily have possessed some 
 plants, of which the fibre could be employed 
 for the purposes of Cordage. This we know is 
 required for many purposes, besides being es- 
 sential for the rigging of the vessels of their 
 extensive river navigation. In fact, in inves- 
 tigating the subject, we find that the natives 
 of India possess no less than between forty 
 
 • A Treatise on Hemp, including a comprehensive account 
 of the best Modes of Cultivation and Preparation as practised in 
 Europe, Asia, and America, with Observations on the Sunn 
 Plant of India, which may be introduced as a substitute for 
 many of the purposes to which Hemp is now exclusively em- 
 ployed. By Robert Wisset, Esq., F.R. and A.S. London, 1808, 
 Clerk to the Committee of Warehouses of the East-India Com- 
 pany. 
 
110 CULTURE OF FLAX AND 
 
 India— cordage and fifty different plants which yield them ma- 
 terials fit for cordage. The fibres of some of these 
 plants are remarkable for their great strength ; 
 those of others more easily cultivated, are defi- 
 cient either in softness or strength : but as these 
 are produced in the greatest abundance, their 
 characteristics have come to be considered as 
 those of all Indian plants of this nature. 
 
 described and j)^^ Roxburffh,* described many of these and 
 
 cultivated by ° ' •' 
 
 Dr. Roxburgh, cultivated them in the Botanic Garden. He 
 also prepared their fibres, in general by macera- 
 tion, &c., as is done with Hemp and Flax in Eu- 
 rope; and had them made into cords, for the pur- 
 pose of comparing their respective strength (plain, 
 tanned, and tarred). The details it would be 
 out of place to enter into at present, as we shall 
 recur again to the subject, and be able to 
 show, that besides those usually cultivated in In- 
 dia, there are some others which are in request 
 in the English market, and which are well suited 
 to the soil and climate of different parts of that 
 country. On the present occasion, we need only 
 
 * Observations of the late Dr. William Roxburgh, Botanical 
 Superintendent of the Honourable East- India Company's Garden 
 at Calcutta, on the various Specimens of Fibrous Vegetables, the 
 produce of India, which may prove valuable substitutes for 
 Hemp and Flax, on some future day, in Europe. Edited by a 
 Friend, and published at the expense of the East-India Com- 
 pany, for the information of the Residents, and the benefit that 
 may arise therefrom throughout the Settlements in India. Lon- 
 don, 1815. 
 
HEMP IN INDIA. Ill 
 
 mention the Flax and the Hemp plants; the Fiax cultivated 
 
 former is extensively cultivated on account of the 
 
 oil contained in its seeds, but the plant itself 
 
 is thrown away. Of this, Dr. R. says, " Samples 
 
 of the Flax have frequently been procured by the 
 
 Board of Trade, and sent to England to the sent to Et^. 
 
 Honourable Court of Directors, so that it is from *° 
 
 home we may expect to learn its properties. If 
 
 the Flax has been found good, large quantities 
 
 may be reared at a small expense, as the seed 
 
 alone which the crop yields must be more than 
 
 equal to the charges to render it profitable to the 
 
 farmer." — Observations, p. 17, and Trans. Soc. of 
 
 Arts, 1804, xxii. p. 389. 
 
 The Hemp, like Flax, seems to have been cul- Hemp, 
 tivated from very early times, being mentioned in 
 old Sanscrit works, and in some European works 
 it is referred to as a native of India. It is the native<rf India; 
 ganja of the Hindoos, and is valued by them only 
 for a resinous secretion, which is elaborated by 
 the leaves and green part of the flowers. This is 
 of a stimulant nature, and taken by some of the 
 natives for the purposes of intoxication ; they call it 
 by various names, though that of Bang or Bhang 
 is that most commonly known. The plant is cultivated in 
 therefore cultivated everywhere, and grows ap- 
 parently wild in the north-western parts of India, 
 at the foot of the Himalayas, and very abundantly, 
 and of large size, in the mountains themselves. 
 It is well known to the Persians and Arabs, and 
 
1 12 CULTURE OF FLAX AND 
 
 Hemp plant, jt is probable that its name, kinnuh^ gave origin 
 to the Greek Cannabis, as it did to the European 
 hemp ; as another name, husheesh, is thought to 
 have done to the word assassin. Though an 
 
 where indige- Asiatic plant, it is also extensively cultivated in 
 
 genous. 
 
 many parts of Europe, especially Poland, Russia, 
 and Italy, and it is matter of doubt whether 
 it may not have been originally indigenous in 
 some of the southern provinces of Russia. 
 
 indianFiaxand The Flax, or Liusccd plant, being valued by 
 the natives of India on account of the oil of its 
 seed, and the Hemp on account of the resinous 
 secretion of its leaves, are both cultivated so as to 
 
 planted so as to favour the production of the largest proportion of 
 
 secrete oil and , i • i t^i 
 
 resin, &c., and thcsc sccretious, that IS, the rlax usually on the 
 
 not to produce /./.ii iitt • r 
 
 softness and bordcrs of fields, and the Hemp nme leet apart. 
 In Europe, it is well known, that if it be wished to 
 prevent a plant secreting the principles, bitter, 
 acrid, or otherwise, which are natural to it, the 
 practice is to exclude it from the influence of 
 light and air, as in tying up Lettuces, and cover- 
 ing up Celery. So, to ensure a full secretion of 
 the principles natural to a plant, an opposite treat- 
 causes of de- ment is necessary, and is practised with the Hemp 
 in India by openness of planting, and consequent • 
 exposure to the full influence of Light, Heat, and 
 Air. But this very exposure will produce hard- 
 ness of fibre, as is well known in the best tim- 
 ber being produced in exposed situations. 
 Therefore, as in the case of the Indian Hemp, a 
 
HEMP IN INDIA. 113 
 
 diminution is produced, of the softness and flexi- Indian Fiax 
 
 II- 1-1 -1 I 1 and Hemp; 
 
 bility, which are as essential as strength to good 
 Flax and Hemp. 
 
 This hardness, and consequent inflexibility, of hardnessand 
 fibre, produced by open planting, and which 
 may have caused a prejudice against the fit- 
 ness of the plants of Indian growth for the pro- 
 duction of Flax and Hemp, is a defect, proba- 
 bly, most easily remedied. Mere sowing thick, 
 necessarily causes the plants to grow close to 
 each other, and as they extend themselves most 
 in the direction of the light and air, they will 
 shoot upwards, and produce but few lateral 
 branches. The rapidity and extent of growth how to be 
 produces not only length, but also softness of 
 fibre, with some diminution of strength, but pro- 
 bably with not more than is necessary to ensure the 
 requisite degree of softness and flexibility. Thus, 
 even in Europe, when Flax is required for Cam- 
 bric, it is sown much thicker than when it is to be 
 made into Linen. 
 
 Flax was prepared by Dr. Roxburgh in India, F'*^ prepared 
 and he was of opinion that it could be produced burgh; 
 profitably, and in any quantities. So he also ob- 
 tained Hemp, from the true Hemp Plant (Can- aisotme 
 
 '^ r \ Hemp; 
 
 nabis sativa) both on the Coromandel Coast and 
 in Bengal. He was led to think that it might be 
 cultivated to greater advantage over the interior might be cuiti. 
 parts of Bengal and Behar; and especially in Ro- 
 hilcund, also in the adjoining mountainous tracts 
 to the northward of that district, (Observations, 
 
 I 
 
1.14 
 
 CULTURE OF FLAX, &c. 
 
 abundant in 
 north-western 
 provinces ; 
 
 and in Hima- 
 layas. 
 
 Hempinindia; p. 2). In a Subsequent page (31), however, he fears 
 that it can never be cultivated to advantage in 
 India, as numerous expensive experiments had 
 been made by Government without any prospect 
 of real advantage. But this opinion is of less 
 weight, as he calculates the freight at £16 per 
 ton, and because his experiments were made in 
 Bengal, which, he states, is unsuited to the cul- 
 ture. He was also unacquainted with the fact of 
 the great abundance of this plant in the north- 
 western provinces, and also until a late period, 
 that the Himalayan mountaineers value it for its 
 bark, of which they make a coarse sackcloth, 
 (much used for grain bags by the merchants in 
 the plains), as well as the strongest ropes, for 
 crossing their broad and rapid rivers. 
 
 In this part of the country, therefore, the prac- 
 ticability of preparing Hemp for the European 
 market ought first to be ascertained, and if suc- 
 cessful there, as will probably be the case, it may 
 then be spread to other parts of India.* The ca- 
 pabilities of the country for growing cordage 
 plants, and the habits of the people in preparing 
 them, are evident from the large quantities of 
 the substitutes for Hemp and Flax which have 
 been exported ; — as of Indian Hemp (probably 
 Sunn) 18,955 maunds, and of Jute 14,565 maunds 
 
 Quantities of 
 Hemp and Flax 
 exported. 
 
 * Fide a letter by the Author, on the Cultivation of Hemp in 
 India, published in the Proceedings of the Agricultural and 
 Horticultural Society of India, 12th February 1840^ Calcutta. 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 115 
 
 were exported from Calcutta in 18*28-29, besides Export of in- 
 
 dian substitutes 
 
 1,013,277 pieces, Gunnies and Gunny bags, made for Hemp. 
 of these very materials, while in the following 
 year no less than 9,006,415 were exported. 
 
 Silk Culture in India. 
 
 Having noticed the progress of the culture in 
 India, of several vegetable substances which enter 
 most largely into the commerce of the world, and 
 endeavoured to explain the causes of success or of 
 failure in the experiments which were instituted 
 for their improvement, we might now proceed Animal Pro- 
 to investigate the principles which require to be denton^v^e- 
 attended to in the culture of plants, whether for * ^" "^' 
 amusement, or for increasing our comforts, or the 
 resources of a country. But there are some ani- 
 mal products which depend so entirely upon the 
 proper culture and suitableness of their vege- 
 table food, that we cannot well omit them even in 
 the present cursory enumeration. 
 
 Silk is one of those rich productions of the East, suk. 
 which even from ancient times has been highly 
 valued by the nations of the West. There can be 
 no doubt that the Silk- worm was originally a na- 
 tive of China, and that Silk has been produced siik-wom, a 
 
 natire of 
 
 there from the most remote antiquity. Chinese China; 
 annals assign to its discovery a date equivalent 
 to two thousand seven hundred years before the 
 Christian aera. It has also been known in India long known in 
 from very ancient times, as it appears that Silk is 
 
 i2 
 
1 1 6 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 fn'oifTests^iT'^ mentioned in the Amera Kosha ; though it may be 
 
 scrit Works, doubtful whether the worms most common there 
 
 be indigenous or introduced. In some of the 
 
 older Sanscrit works, Silk is called C/ieenam- 
 
 Sokam, or cloth of China ; and in the Mahabharat, 
 
 which is supposed to have been written before 
 
 the Christian aera, Patta-keetas, or Silk-worms, 
 
 are described as having been brought by Chinese 
 
 as a present to Yoodhestera during his reign at 
 
 Endraprastom.* Several distinct species of Silk- 
 
 fomeTpedes of, ^^'^^m are, nevertheless, indigenous in India, as 
 
 liidfsu"""^ "^ ^'^ shall immediately see, and yield silks which 
 
 are very distinct from those of China, and which 
 
 • In the 2d part of the Mahabharata, entitled Sabha Parvam, 
 chap. 86, we have the substance of the following verses : — 
 '' Cheenas, Hoonas, Kashas, and Cauchas, 
 
 Who lived on mountain summits, 
 
 And who were famous, 
 
 With obedience brought (to Yoodhestera) 
 
 Ten thousand Caps and Haircloths, 
 
 And also Silk and Silk-worms." 
 Translation by Teroovercaudoo Mootiah in Anderson's Commu- 
 nications. Madras 1795. 
 
 The Author having submitted the above quotation to the first au- 
 thority. Professor Wilson, he was good enough to look through 
 the above book of the Mahabharat, and has favoured him with 
 the following note : — 
 
 *' The reading of other copies of the Mahabharata does not 
 exactly agree with that consulted by Mutiah. As it stands in 
 the printed edition, with which in all essential respects a good 
 copy in the East- India Company's library agrees, the passage 
 occurs thus : * Chinas, Sakas, Barbaras, Hunas, &c. brought 
 fine cloths, made from the wool of the sheep and goat, pro- 
 duced from worms — from Patta, and made from or with 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDLA. 117 
 
 valued for their useful qualities in India, are now import of in- 
 
 ... , 1 1 1 • 1 !• ^'*"' SHk into 
 
 beginning to be esteemed and desired tor some Europe. 
 of the manufactures of this country. At what 
 period the Silk of India was first introduced into 
 Europe, it is probably impossible to ascertain, foi* 
 it must often have been confounded with that from 
 China; as the sources of both were so little 
 known, that the accounts of Silk are frequently 
 confounded with those of Cotton. 
 
 The Ancients describe Silk under the names of suk, ancient 
 Sericum and Bombykia, the latter derived from 
 Bombyx^ the insect, and the former from Serica 
 and Sereinda, the remote country beyond the probably ob- 
 Ganges, where Silk was produced, or from Seres, cwna. 
 the people who inhabited it. This country pro- 
 bably was China, from the frontiers of which the 
 Persians conveyed merchandize across central 
 Asia to the coast of Syria. A portion of this was, 
 no doubt, diverged from some part of the route, 
 towards India, and in works now in use there, 
 
 kuti (?), soft sheep skin, sharp swords, «&c' There can be no 
 doubt that by Intajam we must understand Silk; patlajam is 
 more questionable, patta meaning a plant, from the fibres of 
 which a coarse cloth or canvas is made : what is meant by 
 kute hritam I do not know. The most important difference in 
 the reading is that regarding Silk- worms, which is the sense 
 Mutiah attaches to paita kttdn. No such compound occurs in 
 my copies^ the version being there, 'pattajam Hlajam tathd.' 
 It is, therefore, very questionable if the Mahabharat is autho- 
 rity for the introduction of the worms from China into India. 
 Silk, both raw and manufactiired, was no doubt an article of 
 import from China into India at a very early date." 
 
1 18 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 the country whence it came is noticed, under 
 the name of Katliai, (China) the old Cathay of 
 our own Authors. 
 
 Silk from Ctiina Xhc RomanS CStcemcd Silk so much that Mar- 
 esteemed by 
 
 the Romans; cus Autouiuus Sent an cmbassy to China, to open 
 a direct communication with that country ; but 
 the Ambassadors, who proceeded by way of Eg:ypt 
 and India, do not seem to have been more suc- 
 
 siik-worms in. cessful than thosc of modern times. Silk-worms, 
 
 troduced into 
 
 Kurope; as is wcll known, were subsequently introduced 
 
 into Europe by two Persian monks, in the year 
 552, conveying the eggs in a hollow cane to Con- 
 stantinople. The worms w ere fed upon the leaves 
 of the Mulberry tree, which was, fortunately, in- 
 digenous in Europe. 
 
 Culture of, long The culturc of the Silk- worm was for six hun- 
 
 coniined to ter- , . /• i /-< 
 
 ritories of drcd ycars confined to the territories of the Greek 
 
 Greek empire ; . ^t- • • i i ■, i . i ^ 
 
 empire. Yet it might have been supposed that 
 the eggs of an insect so highly valued, and which 
 had been brought from China to Constantinople, 
 would in this long period have been introduced 
 into other parts of Europe. This, however, did 
 introduced into not take placc till Rosjcr I. of Sicily carried into 
 
 Sicily; ^ '^ "^ . 
 
 captivity a considerable number of Silk- weavers, 
 whom he compelled to settle at Palermo, and to 
 impart the knowledge of their art to his subjects. 
 Twenty years afterwards the silks of Sicily are 
 described as having attained a decided excel- 
 lence. By degrees, a knowledge of the several 
 processes spread over the greater part of Italy, 
 sjwin; and ^vas carried into Spain. It is said, that Silk 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 119 
 
 Was first introduced into France by Louis XI., cuuareof suk 
 
 J. . J introduced into 
 
 who obtained workmen from Genoa, Venice, and France; 
 Florence, and established them at Tours in the year 
 1480, under very extensive privileges ; but it was 
 notuntil the reign of Francis I. that much progress 
 was made in the Silk Manufacture in France.* 
 
 In those days so little encouragement was 
 afforded in England even to machinery, that the 
 Rev. W. Lee, of St. John's College, Cambridge, 
 who invented an engine for knitting or weaving 
 stockings, was induced to comply with the invi- 
 tation of Henry IV. of France, and, accompanied 
 by several journeymen, established his looms at and «»"<* ««- 
 
 •'•'•' , couraged. 
 
 Rouen, in Normandy. Colbert, minister of Louis 
 XIV., was so anxious to increase the produc- 
 tion of Silk, that he not only gave trees from the 
 Royal Nurseries, but also caused them to be 
 removed and planted at the Government ex- 
 pense. But, as the trees thus easily acquired, were 
 found to be but little valued, a reward was after- 
 wards offered to cultivators for every Mulberry 
 tree that should be found in a thriving condi- 
 tion, three years after it had been planted. 
 
 The Silk-worms having, though with difficulty, 
 been introduced into Europe, have now been 
 spread over a srreat extent. Beins: indigenous in siik,cuitiTation 
 China, Silk is extensively produced there, chiefly 
 to the south of the Yellow River, and especially 
 
 * The Author has referred for these historical facts, which 
 are sufficient for the present purpose, to the volume of the Cabi- 
 net Cyclopaedia on the Silk Manufacture. 
 
120 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 SKdS"""* ahoiit the neighbourhood of Nankin, in 32° N.lat. 
 but it is said not to flourish in the most southern 
 provinces. In India, on the contrary, the Silk cul- 
 ture flourishes only in the southern parts, that is, 
 in Bengal ; and all the East-India Company's fila- 
 tures were confined to that province, and did not 
 extend beyond 26° N. lat. Silk has long formed 
 
 commerce of, an article of commerce from India, but in incon- 
 
 from India; 
 
 siderable quantities before the middle of the 
 eighteenth century. It was, moreover, very in- 
 ferior in quality, " being wound from the co- 
 coons, and reeled into skeins after the rude man- 
 ner immemorially practised by the natives of In- 
 dia," and which is now distinguished by the name 
 of *^ country wound.'' It fell into so much disre- 
 pute, that the Court of Directors informed the 
 Bengal Government, that unless the defects could 
 be rectified, the Company must abandon the ex- 
 portation of it to England."* 
 
 The Court were induced, in the year 1757, to 
 
 send Mr. Wilder, " a gentleman who had the 
 
 Bengal siikim- reputation of being perfectly acquainted with the 
 
 indu Com- ^ culturc and preparation of Silk in every stage," 
 
 M"*^wiider ^ut to Bengal. He remained in India till the time 
 
 sent out. of hJs death, in 1761, and laid the foundation of 
 
 great improvements in the winding of the Silk. 
 
 *' Subsequently to the acquisition of the Dewan- 
 
 nee, the cultivation of the Mulberry was recom- 
 
 * Report of the Proceedings of the East-India Company in 
 regard to the Trade, Culture, and Manufacture of Raw Silk. 
 London, 1836. 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 121 
 
 mended in the strongest manner to the Zemindars Culture of the 
 
 Mulberry en- 
 
 and landholders, and all possible encouragement couraged. 
 
 afforded for the clearing of such lands as would 
 
 best answer for the purpose." "The Government 
 
 also was directed to make such deductions from 
 
 the rents of the lands planted with it, as should 
 
 have the effect of a bounty in its favour, and 
 
 render it more profitable than any other kind of 
 
 culture." By these means a very ^reat increase increase in im- 
 
 . T J- portation of 
 
 took place in the importations of Silk from India, suk. 
 
 But hitherto the better modes of preparing 
 the Silk had been but partially successful, and 
 as " considerable dealers and manufacturers had 
 given it as their opinion that the staple of the 
 Bengal raw Silk was equal to that of the Italian 
 or Spanish, and capable of being used for all the 
 purposes — if reeled in the same manner," — ^it was 
 determined, in 1769, "to introduce into Bengal Italian mode of 
 
 winding intro- 
 
 the exact mode of winding practised in the fila- duced ; 
 
 tures of Italy, and other parts of the Continent." 
 
 For this purpose several Englishmen and foreio;n- Europeans 
 
 . . sent out to 
 
 ers, as Messrs. Wiss, Robinson, and Aubert, and Bengal. 
 others — as drawers, winders, reelers, and mecha- 
 nics, — were retained, for the purposes of pro- 
 ceeding to India. It was also determined that 
 the method of spinning and drawing the Silk as 
 practised at Novi,* in Italy, was to be adopted 
 throughout all the filatures. The first Silks pre- 
 
 * *' Various tools, implements, and models, manufactured in 
 London, and at Novi, were forwarded to Bengal for the use of 
 the Establishmaits." — Report, p. xii. 
 
122 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Silk wound by 
 Italian me- 
 thod; 
 
 received and 
 reported on. 
 
 Silk-worm in- 
 troduced from 
 China. 
 
 Italian method 
 of winding 
 fully esta- 
 blished ; 
 
 the results of 
 this improve- 
 ment. 
 
 pared by the Italian method were sent to the 
 Court of Directors in 1771, and reached Eng- 
 land in 1772. The report, which was made here 
 on their arrival was, that " Mr. Wiss had succeeded 
 to admiration in drawing a tolerable Silk from 
 the most ungrateful cocoons that the sickliest 
 worms under the most unfavourable season could 
 produce; that the coarse Silks could not be much 
 improved; that it was the finer sizes that re- 
 quired reformation, which, if accomplished, the 
 Company would view the advanced price, and 
 eager demand for it, with astonishment." 
 
 About this period the Bengal Government ap- 
 plied for, and received from China, a quantity 
 of the China Silk-worms, as well as Mulberry 
 plants, which were planted in the Governor- 
 general's garden. It is unnecessary to follow the 
 history more minutely, as "It has been shown 
 that the introduction of the Italian method of 
 winding Silk in Bengal may be dated from about 
 the year 1770 ; but it was not until 1775 that the 
 new mode could be considered as in full opera- 
 tion. In the intermediate period much time was 
 unavoidably taken up in erecting buildings, fit- 
 ting up furnaces, reels, &c. ; and in instructing 
 the natives, whose long established prejudices it 
 was difficult to remove, so scrupulously averse 
 are they to innovations of any kind." 
 
 The result of the successful efforts for improv- 
 ing Bengal Silks was quickly seen, by the decline 
 of importations from Aleppo, Valencia, Naples, 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDLL 123 
 
 Calabria, and other places in the Mediterranean, successof Ben- 
 gal culture. 
 SO that, in a very short period, the whole of the 
 
 Silks used in this country were furnished only from 
 the northern provinces of Italy, from Bengal, and 
 China. 
 
 In the deficiency of the supply of Hemp from ^^^l^"^ 
 Russia, and in that of Sugar from the West In- ^^y "• *^^ 
 dies, we have seen that India was looked to, 
 to relieve the wants of the British public. So 
 in 1808, when the decrees of Napoleon occa- 
 sioned an entire cessation of the customary im- 
 portations of Italian raw silk into this country, 
 the Silk trade held a meeting at Weavers' Hall. 
 It was then resolved unanimously, " That Ben- 
 gal Silk was become highly necessary in many 
 branches of manufacture, and that from experi- Boigaiiooked 
 
 ' to for a supply; 
 
 ments lately made, it is found fit for purposes to 
 which it had not before been thought suitable." 
 That it was highly desirable that its quality should 
 be further improved, and that a greatly increased 
 quantity should be brought over. A Commit- 
 tee was also appointed to confer on the subject 
 with the Chairman and Deputy-Chairman of the 
 East-India Company. 
 
 In consequence of this, orders were sent to increased 
 
 quantities or- 
 
 the Bengal Government to adopt all possible ^red; 
 means for increasing the supply of Silk, and to 
 arrange, as soon as circumstances would admit, 
 that the whole of it should consist of the filature- 
 wound class. Instructions for reeling Silk were 
 
124 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 instructions for 
 reeling Silk 
 sent out ; 
 
 translated into 
 native lan- 
 guages; 
 
 specimens of 
 silk sent out ; 
 
 specimens of 
 cocoons, and 
 reports re- 
 quired. 
 
 furnished by Mr. Wiss,* and these were sent out 
 to Bengal, and directed "to be supplied to the 
 Residents at the several Silk aurungs, and to be 
 translated into the native languages for the in- 
 formation and direction of the native servants, 
 who are entrusted with the care of the minor 
 establishments. The Indian Government was also 
 recommended to consider whether it might not be 
 practicable to a certain extent to establish Mul- 
 berry Plantations on its own account. 
 
 To remove uncertainty respecting the exact 
 sizes of Filature Silk required, the Court transmit- 
 ted to Bengal sets of regulating specimens, with 
 directions that the Silk should in future be 
 manufactured strictly in conformity with them 
 Specimens of the cocoons reared in the vicinity 
 of the several factories were also required, with 
 reports on the varieties of the Bengal Silk- worms 
 by the different Commercial Residents. The Com- 
 mercial Resident at Santipore having suggested 
 that a certain quantity of Mulberry land should 
 be cultivated, and that the Silk-worms should be 
 
 * Mr. Wiss having returned to England, was presented by 
 the Court of Directors with £1,000, for the assiduity and skill 
 with which he had established the Italian mode of winding 
 at one operation from the pod. He was also appointed Silk 
 Superintendent, and "continued in the Company's home ser- 
 vice for many years, and was eminently useful in furnishing 
 the Residents in India with suggestions for improving their 
 Silks." — Report, p. xvii. 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 125 
 
 reared, and the cocoons formed under his imme- Experimental 
 
 , . Silk Farm 
 
 diate superintendence, his recommendation was established. 
 sanctioned both by the Indian and Home Govern- 
 ment. The experiment was continued until 1830, 
 but the Silk was not found improved in proportion 
 to the expense incurred. 
 
 From the fore^oins: cursory view of the means Results of the 
 
 , . . measures of the 
 
 adopted for improving the Silk culture of India, East India 
 
 Company. 
 
 we observe that there, as in Europe, improve- 
 ments have generally, if not always, been urged 
 upon cultivators by the influence and expenditure 
 of the Government. In later periods of the his- 
 tory of nations, individuals are sufficiently well 
 informed to adopt suggestions for a prospec- 
 tive advantage; though this is never found to be 
 the case, nor indeed can it be expected, in nations 
 less advanced in civilization. The results of the 
 measures which had been adopted were, as we 
 have seen, firstly, great improvements in the Silk Greatimprove- 
 of Bengal, and secondly, the quantity imported suk. '" 
 into England was increased from 401,445lbs. in 
 the year 1792, to l,387,754lbs. in 1829, though in 
 subsequent years it was somewhat less. 
 
 The culture of Silk, though susceptible of Inferencesfrom 
 . *■ success in Silk 
 
 further improvement, having succeeded to so culture; 
 great a degree in Bengal, ought to afford the best 
 encouragement for the ultimate success of other 
 cultures. Many of these are not more hopeless 
 than that of Silk appeared when the East-India 
 Company determined upon attempting its im- 
 provement. In fact, any difficulties must be fewer 
 
126 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Species of Silk- 
 worm in India, 
 
 Requisites for in number, and less in decree. For in that we 
 
 Silk culture. ^ 
 
 had not only to procure the animal which was to 
 prepare the Silk, but also the leaf upon which it 
 was to feed ; and, thirdly, a climate was required 
 suitable, both for the growth of the vegetable, and 
 for the healthy existence of the animal. 
 
 The species of Silk-worm indigenous in India 
 are sufficiently numerous, besides those which 
 have been introduced from China, and latterly 
 from Italy. An account of the indigenous Silk- 
 worms has been given by Drs. Roxburgh and 
 Buchanan Hamilton, Col. Sykes, Dr. Geddes, 
 Mr. Hugon, and Dr. Heifer, as well as by the 
 Residents at the East-India Company's Silk Fila- 
 tures. 
 
 The Residents describe the Silk-worms which 
 yielded the investments of Silk, as — 1st. The large 
 Annual Worm reared only once in the year, and 
 yielding its produce from the middle of March till 
 May. 2d. The Dessee, or Indigenous Silk- worm 
 of Bengal, of which the cocoons are obtained 
 throughout the year; that is, there are four or five 
 collections annually ; of these, the worm of the 
 cold weather, or November breeds, and that of 
 the dry weather, or March and April breeds, are 
 superior to the others, from the more nourishing 
 nature of the leaves at those seasons. 3d. The 
 China Silk-worms introduced into Bengal, which 
 are next in estimation to the annual and country 
 breeds ; of these, both the yellow and white co- 
 coons are abundant in the Radnagore district. 
 
 as described by 
 Residents; 
 Annual 
 Worms ; 
 
 Dessee; 
 
 China ; 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 127 
 
 The Residents also describe, firstly, the Nistry Nistry Worms; 
 tribe of Worms, which is said to include three 
 distinct kinds, the madrassiej soonamooky, and 
 crmnee, and these yield a portion of what was 
 formerly the Company's investment of Silk ; se- 
 condly, the Tusseh Silk-worms, of which the Tusseh. 
 mooga, teerah, and boiihunda are described as dif- 
 ferent kinds ; the cocoons of these are collected in 
 September, and are called the Rain weather 
 sorts ; but there are others of the dry weather 
 months, which are denominated dahha and hug- 
 goy. Tarroy is an inferior sort collected in De- 
 cember. 
 
 The Tusseh, orTussar Silk, is very extensively Tusseh silk- 
 worms exten- 
 difFused, the Residents describins; the Worm as siveiy distri- 
 
 1 • /. T-. buted. 
 
 bemg reared in all the western forests from Ram- 
 ghur to Midnapore. Dr. Roxburgh mentions it as 
 a native of Bengal, Behar, and Assam, and that it 
 is the same as the Bughy insect of other districts. 
 The Jaroo is also described as a variety, by Dr. 
 Buchanan Hamilton, and as occurring in the dis- 
 tricts of Bhagulpore and Dinajepore; by Col. 
 Sykes it was found in the Bombay, and by Dr. 
 Geddes in the Madras Presidency. 
 
 Mr. Hugon, Sub- Assistant to Captain Jenkins, suk-wormsof 
 
 Assam, de- 
 
 Political Agent in Assam, describes six species of scribed by Mr. 
 Silk-worm as being found in the central part of 
 that province. Of these, the Mulberry Silk- worm, 
 (Bombyx Mori) ; the Tusseh Silk-worm (Satur- 
 nia (Phalaena), Paphia) and the Eria, or Arindy 
 
128 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Silk-worms in 
 Assam ; 
 
 and by Dr. 
 Heifer. 
 
 The wild Silk- 
 worms: 
 
 important as 
 affording em- 
 ployment, 
 
 and clothing. 
 
 Silk-worm, (Phalaena Cynthia,) were previously 
 well known ; but the others have been described 
 by himself and by Dr. Heifer. The Mooga Silk- 
 worm (Saturnia Assamensis, Heifer), was also evi- 
 dently known to the Residents, (v. Report, p. 52). 
 The Joree Silk- worm (Bombyx religiosae, Heifer), 
 is a new species discovered by Captain Jenkins on 
 the Peepul tree (Ficus religiosa). This is said to 
 yield a Silk certainly equal to that of the Mul- 
 berry Silk- worm. Saturnia Silhetica, Heifer, is a 
 native of the Kassia mountains, and of Silhet and 
 Dacca. It also yields Silk, as do two other species, 
 the wild Silk- worm of the central provinces, and 
 another, which produces its cocoon upon the 
 Mangoe tree. This the people of Malda gather, 
 and mix with Arindy Silk cocoons in spinning. 
 There are probably other species in different 
 parts of India, which may be found to yield 
 useful products. 
 
 These wild Silk-worms may be thought by many 
 unworthy of notice, as they do not yield the kind 
 of Silk most valued in commerce ; but they are 
 more important than they at first appear to be. 
 We must remember that the culture of some in 
 the forests, and the collection of all, affords em- 
 ployment to considerable numbers of the natives 
 in the parts of districts least productive of useful 
 occupation. They afford also clothing for many 
 of the inhabitants, as Mr. Hugon informs us that 
 Silk from the Eria, or Arindy worm, is the daily 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 129 
 
 wear ef the poor in Assam, and is used by every AnndySUk; 
 class in winter. It is remarkable for its very 
 great durability. 
 
 The Tusseh Silk is still better known, having Tussehsiik; 
 also afforded the natives in Bengal, &c. a coarse 
 durable Silk, which is much esteemed in India, 
 both for ladies' and childrens' dresses ; for the 
 latter especially, on account of its cheapness 
 and durability. This Silk will probably be- becoming an ar- 
 
 ^ . , t, tide of com- , 
 
 come an extensive article oi commerce, as some merce; 
 
 of it, having been sent on speculation to Paris in 
 
 its unbleached state — was there employed as a 
 
 covering for parasols, and was found to answer so 
 
 well, that an instantaneous demand for it sprung 
 
 up. The price advanced, and the quantity im- quantity im- 
 
 , , , . , . , ported into 
 
 ported has greatly increased; in 1835, only 158 England; 
 
 pieces, in 1836, 830, in 1837, 2,647, and in 1838 
 
 no less than 4,249 pieces were imported. Other 
 
 uses will probably be found for it when it is 
 
 better known, and from the extensive tracts over 
 
 which the Tusseh Silk- worm is distributed, we 
 
 know that this commerce is susceptible of great 
 
 extension. As an instance of the quantities in 
 
 which the Tusseh Silk is produced in India, we 
 
 may adduce the evidence of Mr. R. Montgomery of quantity manu- 
 
 the Bengal Civil Service, for one district only. In A^imghu" 
 
 an abstract statement in 1837, of the results of 
 
 the survey and settlement of the district of Azim- 
 
 ghur, giving accurate returns of the total area of 
 
 cultivated, culturable, and of waste land, with the 
 
 revenue of the district, Mr. M. has also given an 
 
 K 
 
130 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Tusseh Silk ; 
 quantity manu- 
 factured in 
 Ajiimgbur. 
 
 Food of the 
 various Silk- 
 worms. 
 
 Species of Mul- 
 berry; 
 
 varieties pro- 
 duced by culti- 
 vation. 
 
 estimate of the quantity of Cloth, Silk, and Tus- 
 seh, manufactured, which Mr. Tucker and him- 
 self obtained from looms at work. In this state- 
 ment 318,772 pieces of Tusseh Silk are given as 
 the quantity produced annually. 
 
 The food best adapted to these Silk-worms 
 requires attention to as great a variety of points 
 as the animals themselves. As the leaf of the 
 Mulberry is required for their food, it is evident, 
 that if a species of Mulberry had not been indige- 
 nous in Europe, the Silk-worm could not have been 
 introduced from China into Constantinople. The 
 Black Mulberry (Morus nigra) being the only 
 European species, must originally have been em- 
 ployed as the sole food for the Silk-worm ; as it is in 
 the present day in the small experiments in this 
 country. It is also occasionally cultivated inFrance. 
 The White Mulberry (Morus alba), however, is in- 
 finitely to be preferred — and this has been intro- 
 duced from C hina into Europe, as well as into India, 
 — but so many varieties have been produced from 
 cultivation, that it is difficult to ascertain whe- 
 ther they all belong to one species. Thus Morus 
 Indica, the species most common in Bengal, 
 is thought by Dr. Wallich to be only one of its 
 varieties. Morus atropurpurea is a species intro- 
 duced into India from China, where it is employed 
 as food for the Silk-worm, though Dr. Roxburgh 
 states, that it had not been found to answer for 
 that purpose in Bengal. Two varieties (one, the 
 Doppa Foglia), of the Italian White Mulberry, 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. ^ 131 
 
 received from St. Helena, were established in the species of MuI- 
 East-India Company's Botanic Garden at Da- "^"^ 
 pooree, in the Bombay Presidency. The then 
 Superintendent, Dr. Lush, forwarded to Cal- 
 cutta young plants, which, in September 1833, 
 were reported by Dr. Wallich to be in a flourishing 
 condition. Two other species are common in the 
 plains of North-western India, and others have 
 been introduced there from Caubul and Cashmere; 
 one distinct species occurs, moreover, in the Him- 
 alayas. 
 
 Col. Sykes has drawn attention to the great Momsmuiti- 
 •' '^ cauiis pro- 
 
 importance of introducing into India the Mul- posed to be in- 
 
 .... troduced into 
 
 berry called Morus raulticaulis, a distinct species India by Col 
 or variety introduced by M. Perrottet into France, 
 in 1821, from the Phillipine Islands, where it had 
 been brought from China. It is now thought by 
 many, both in Italy and France, to be the most 
 valuable sort for cultivation, and has become a 
 favourite variety in America. It is said, besides 
 growing easily, and affording abundance of leaves 
 of the most nourishing kind, to be able to with- 
 stand a considerable degree of cold. 
 
 We see, therefore, that the various species of other plants 
 
 1 1 fed on by wild 
 
 Mulberry are nearly as numerous as those of Silk- siifc-wonns. 
 worms ; but all the wild Silk- worms feed upon 
 different trees, such as the Jujube, Ficus religiosa 
 or Peepul, the Castor Oil Plant, some of the 
 Laurel tribe, and others, which are found in al- 
 most all the forests of India. 
 
 k2 
 
132 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Modeof culture 
 of Mulberry j 
 
 bush; 
 
 standard. 
 
 Properties de- 
 sirable in leaf. 
 
 Effects of phy- 
 sical agents on 
 different modes 
 of planting. 
 
 Bu*U culture. 
 
 Great importance is necessarily attached to the 
 kind of Mulberry to be selected, but it is of 
 hardly less consequence to determine upon the 
 best method of cultivation. Respecting this, there 
 are considerable differences of opinion, some con- 
 ceiving that the hish system usually adopted in 
 Bengal is the only eligible method ; while others 
 recommend that the Mulberry be allowed to grow 
 into a standard tree. It will probably be found 
 that both methods are suitable to different situa- 
 tions, according to the respective soils and cli- 
 mates of the places. 
 
 The object being to obtain such food for the 
 Silk-worm as will enable it to spin the strongest 
 and finest Silk, we must first ascertain what pro- 
 perties in the leaf indicate its being best calcu- 
 lated for this purpose; and we must then inquire, 
 what effects the different modes of planting are 
 most likely to produce on the leaf. From the tes- 
 timony of various observers, it is evident that too 
 herbaceous or watery a leaf, though eaten voraci- 
 ously by the worm, produces sickness in it, and 
 weakness in the Silk. This state of leaf will be 
 produced whenever, from too moist a soil and 
 atmosphere, combined with heat, there is rapidity 
 of growth. This is experienced in many parts of 
 Bengal, though the climate there is on the whole 
 so well suited to the growth of the Mulberry and 
 the culture of Silk. 
 
 The Bengal mode of cultivating the Mulberry 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 133 
 
 by ciittiiiars planted rather close to each other, Bengaiorbush 
 
 ^ o 1 culture of Mul- 
 
 produces rapidity of growth, and, consequently, berry. 
 succulence both of branches and of leaf. The 
 abundance of foliage prevents evaporation from 
 the surface of the soil, at the same time that much 
 watery vapour escapes from the surfaces of the 
 leaves by their transpiration. Everything, there- 
 fore, contributes to increase the moisture, which, 
 according to circumstances, may be an advan- 
 tage or a disadvantage. That the latter is some- 
 times the case is evident, from Dr. Roxburgh 
 having given it as his opinion, that the only im- 
 provement in the native culture which he could 
 suggest, was, that a little more space should be 
 allowed to the plants ; as he conceived that more 
 light and air would render the leaves better food. 
 Dr. Wallich also has more recently stated it as 
 his opinion, that it would be extremely desirable 
 to cultivate the arborescent kinds of Mulberry. 
 
 In the standard cultivation, the trees being standard cuia- 
 planted apart from each other, will be freely ex- Mulberry. 
 posed to light and air ; rapid growth will thus be 
 checked, but a more healthy state of the secre- 
 tions will be induced ; though such exposure may 
 sometimes produce too much dryness, and even 
 harshness of leaf. But in many moist situations 
 the standard will undoubtedly be preferable to 
 the shrub cultivation, as it will partially obviate 
 the tendency in such situations to run too much 
 into leaf. It may also be preferable in some dry 
 soils, where the difficulties of irrigation are greats 
 
134 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Standard culti- 
 vation of Mul- 
 berry, known 
 to natives of 
 Bengal. 
 
 Soil suited to 
 Mulberry in 
 Europe. 
 
 Signer Mutti 
 introduces 
 standard culti- 
 Tation into 
 Bombay Presi- 
 dency. 
 
 as when the plant is once established it would 
 send its roots into the earth in search of moisture. 
 This practice is not entirely foreign to the natives, 
 as the resident at Bauleah states that the annual 
 worm prefers the leaf of the shrub which is well 
 matured, to that which is young and tender ; and 
 therefore he infers that it would thrive better 
 with the tree leaf than the shrub leaf. He also 
 says that the tree is cultivated in parts of the 
 Rungpore and Radnagore districts for the pro- 
 duction of cocoons. The resident at Hurripal 
 states, that there, the method of cultivation differs 
 from that in use about Bauleah and Malda, the 
 leaves being gathered only from standard trees^ 
 which are preferred on account of the dryness 
 of the soil in that district. (Reports, p. 137 and 
 p. 142.) 
 
 In Europe it is found that when the Mulberry 
 is required to feed the Silk- worm, rich soils are 
 not suited to it, but that such as are sandy or 
 gravelly, or even hilly situations, are better. In 
 such places, less copious nourishment, combined 
 with exposure to light and air, produce effects 
 analagous to the Standard cultivation. 
 
 Signor Mutti, in 1830, offered to the Bombay 
 Government to produce Silk at Poona. A grant 
 of land was given him, and he first tried the 
 bush system ; but not finding it suited to Bombay, 
 he introduced the Italian method of growing the 
 Mulberry as a standard tree. His success in the 
 latter has been so considerable, that both the 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 135 
 
 Affricultural Society of Beniml and that of Bom- standard cuiti- 
 
 *^ . . . vation intro- 
 
 bay awarded him premiums for the benefit which duced into 
 
 . Western India. 
 
 had been derived from Ins great merit and inde- 
 fatigable exertions, in introducing tlie method of 
 producing superior silk into the Bombay Presi- 
 dency. 
 
 Dr. Roxbursrh, in reply to a query of the Ben- Effects of cii- 
 
 ^ ' ' -^ ^ ^ •' ^ mate on Silk 
 
 gal Board of Tiade, respecting the influence of culture. 
 Climate on the Silk-worm, observes, but hardly 
 with his usual sagacity, " that meteorological 
 knowledge would operate but slowly in the im- 
 provements the Board (of Trade) have at heart." 
 There is no doubt, how ever, but what considera- 
 ble advantage may be derived from attention to 
 peculiarities of climate. 
 
 It is remarkable to see both the Mulberry and g^^Jf"^. 
 the Silk- worm diffused over so wide a space, that berry and of 
 
 ^ ' Silk-wonn. 
 
 is, flourishing in the hot and moist climate of 
 Bengal, in the mild and dry climate of the South 
 of Europe, and in the cold and changeable one of 
 England. The same species of plant, however, 
 is not found in these different situations ; the 
 black Mulberry, or old European species, being 
 alone common in the north, and the others in 
 southern latitudes. The worm which is exposed 
 to all the influence of the climate in Bengal, is 
 in Europe reared in houses, and is therefore 
 subjected to a much more equable temperature. 
 
 It is interesting to contrast the East- India Com- J°^°t^j^n°' 
 pany's filatures all confined between 22° and 26° s^i- 
 of north latitude, with the absence of the Silk- 
 
136 
 
 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 probably dlso 
 electricity of 
 atmosphere J 
 
 worm from the more northern provinces of India. 
 Heat of North- This must be ascribed to the greater temperature 
 
 em India hurt- 
 
 fui to Silk. and dryness of these plains in the months from 
 
 worms; . 
 
 March to the middle of June; for excess of heat 
 in Bengal, and even in the south of Europe, is 
 often fatal to myriads of the worms. Heat alone, 
 however, does not seem adequate to explain the 
 whole of the phenomena, as the worms are often 
 in the most healthy state previous to their being 
 suddenly destroyed. But as the weather is des- 
 cribed, then as being very hot, the air very dry, 
 and evaporation very considerable, at the same 
 time that the atmosphere is highly charged with 
 electricity, it is possible that the latter state 
 may be fatal to the worms, at the time when 
 they are ready to spin a non-conducting material 
 like silk. This may, perhaps, also explain why 
 thunder-storms are sometimes so fatal to myriads 
 of Silk-worms. If such should be proved to have 
 any influence, as the author hopes to be able 
 to ascertain by experiment, the obvious remedy 
 how both may would be to diminish the heat and dryness by 
 
 be obviated. ^ . 
 
 exposing surfaces of water, or by having it 
 thrown on tattees (thatched coverings), to be 
 attached to the doors of well-secured buildings. 
 This would diminish the heat, dryness, and also 
 the electricity. At all events, well-built houses, 
 with glazed doors or windows, which would give 
 light and allow a modification of temperature, 
 with the requisite circulation of air,^ as recom- 
 mended by Mr. Marjoribanks, would enable the 
 
SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 137 
 
 silk culture of the annual worm at least, to be siik culture 
 
 . ,. , . /. T T 1-1 mightbe carried 
 
 carried into drier parts oi India, which now appear into other parts 
 unsuited to the culture of silk; and also along the 
 vallies of the Himalayas and into Assam. That 
 the expense in establishing experimental Silk 
 farms if attached to Indigo, or other Factories, 
 would not be excessive, has been proved by Mr. 
 Speed, in the Transactions of the Agricultural 
 Society of Calcutta. 
 
 In the preceding review, comparatively little notice has been 
 taken of the recent endeavours to introduce t'le Silk Culture into 
 Bombay (owing chiefly to the exertions of Signor Mutti), as the 
 recital would, as far as principle is concerned be only a repe- 
 tition of what took place in Bengal, or, perhaps, more correctly 
 in Madras about 1791. The earliest attempt to introduce the 
 Culture of Silk into Bombay, was probably that of Dr. H. 
 Scott, about 1795, mentioned in Dr. Anderson's Correspon- 
 dence. Dr. Lush states, that there was nothing like a Silk fila- 
 ture in Bombay, and that the worm was first introduced by Mr. 
 Baber, about 1823, into the jail at Dharwar, and that a few 
 maunds of Silk were subsequently made for home consumption. 
 But the determined perseverance of Signor Mutti was required 
 to contend against the difficulties which attend all new under, 
 takings. It has been mentioned in the text that he first tried the 
 hush system, and then had recourse to the standard cultivation, 
 and removed from Bombay to the neighbourhood of Poona. 
 A house was given him, and land free of rent for several years ; 
 but time was required before the superiority of the standard 
 cultivation could be proved. He was appointed to survey and 
 report on the Deccan, and afterwards made Superintendent of 
 Silk Culture. The Transactions of the Agricultural Society of 
 Calcutta, vol. vi., contains Mr. Mutti's remarks on the superi- 
 ority of standard Mulberry trees for the culture of Silk in Ben. 
 gal and the Deccan, as well ai his Guide to Silk Culture in the 
 
1^3 SILK CULTURE IN INDIA. 
 
 Experiments Deccan. The Report of the Bombay Chamber of Commerce, for 
 on Silk culture ^, ^ „ , -.-^ . _ • i • i t> 
 
 in Bombay and ^"6 "^st quarter of 1839-4)0, contams his reports on the rro- 
 
 m Madras. gj-gss of the Silk Culture in the Deccan, and the Proceedings of 
 
 the Agricultural and Horticultural Society of Bombay, Dr. 
 Burns' Report of his progress in the same culture ; forwarded 
 by the Revenue Commissioner, Mr. T. Williamson. 
 
 The Silk Culture was commenced in the year 1791 by the 
 Madras Government; ground, generally, to the extent of ten 
 acres with twenty labourers, was allotted by the Collectors of 
 Districts in the neighbourhood of different stations, where 
 various gentlemen were appointed Superintendents of Mul- 
 berry Plantations. Silk-worms were obtained from Bengal ; but 
 so little information was possessed respecting the culture 
 even there, that Dr. Anderson supposed that Silk was not 
 produced in Bengal in the cold weather ; so that Mr. Glas, 
 of Boglepore, writes him, 11th June 1791: "Believe me, 
 it is quite the reverse of what you have been told; the 
 Mulberries are in high order all the cold season, and the three 
 principal Beens (or hatchings) of the year are in November, 
 January, and March." The Bengal workmen, afterwards sent 
 from Cossimbazar, found fault with the mode of feeding the 
 worms with the leaves gathered at noon, when they are flaccid, 
 instead of in the morning, when they are fresh. The Mul- 
 berry was found in gardens all over the Presidency, in the state 
 of trees and in hedges, but the Bengal, or Bush system, was 
 adopted, though objectionable as requiring much irrigation in a 
 dry climate. Various means were adopted for encouraging the 
 natives to undertake the culture. Some of the native princes 
 also attempted the culture of Silk, as Tippoo Sahib, in Mysore, 
 and the Court of Hydrabad in Berar, as well as some of the 
 smaller princes; and the Court of Directors encouraged the 
 attempt in the Madras Presidency, as we learn by the Extract 
 of a General Letter from England, dated 21st May 1794, pub- 
 lished by Dr. Anderson. 
 
 *' Par. 53. The directions contained in the 4th paragraph of 
 our Revenue dispatch of the 3d July last, sufficiently evince 
 our earnest desire to afford every reasonable degree of encou- 
 
PRODUCTION OF WOOL IN INDIA. 1 39 
 
 ragement to Dr. Anderson's endeavours for establishing the Experiments 
 Manufacture of Silk on the coast of Coromandel, and we shall ^t Madras, 
 cheerfully consent to your rendering such pecuniary assistance 
 to the undertaking, as shall give it a fair chance of success. 
 With respect to what is stated in the 5th and 6th paragraphs of 
 yoilr letter, in the Public Department, of the 28th February 
 1793, concerning the charges already incurred by Dr. Ander- 
 son, in his laudable endeavours for furthering an object of so 
 much utility, we can only say, that we are not only willing to 
 discharge the amount thereof, but shall have great satisfaction in 
 giving Dr. Anderson a more substantial proof of the sense we 
 entertain of his zeal and ability." 
 
 " 54. Of the samples of Silk received by the contractor, the 
 following report has been made to us, that it is of good quality, 
 was admirably well wound, and if it is procurable at a rate of 
 cost equal to what the article is afforded for at Bengal, it 
 would answer for sale in this country." 
 
 Production of Wool in India. 
 
 Considering the tropical nature of many of the Wooi, a pro- 
 substances of which we have treated, and that East. 
 Wool of a good quality is usually thought to be 
 a produce only of cold countries, it may startle 
 many but partially acquainted with India, to hear 
 of Wool as a product of that country. Yet from 
 the oldest records which we possess, we find the 
 tending of sheep, and the preparation of clothing 
 from their wool, one of the earliest occupations 
 of mankind in the warm and dry regions of the 
 East. The open plains of these countries, from 
 their great absorption of heat at one season, in 
 
140 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 India climate, summer becoiiie scorched up, but from its free 
 
 peculiarities of. ^ 
 
 radiation at another, are cooled to an ahnost equal 
 degree in winter. The northern plains of India 
 are in a great measure similarly situated with re- 
 spect to climate, though under the influence of the 
 tropical rains at one season of the year. But 
 in the winter, the cold is sufficient to require their 
 inhabitants to be clothed in the fleeces of their 
 sheep, or in coats padded with cotton. 
 
 As in the culture of Silk, so in considering the 
 probability of the production of Wool, we have 
 to consider the best breeds of the animal suited 
 to the climate in which they are to be placed, as 
 well as the pastures upon which they are to feed. 
 India, parts of The widc-sprcad territories and diversified cli- 
 sheep^ ° mates of the British territories in India, can in 
 no case be made more evident than in the diffe- 
 rent districts suited to, or unfit for the production 
 of Wool. The coasts of the Peninsula, and the 
 plains of Bengal, may be unsuited to the support 
 of such sheep as will be valued for their fleece 
 alone, but no where is the mutton finer than that 
 of the grain-fed sheep of the plains of India, 
 suited to wool. The tablc-laud of the Peninsula, however, com- 
 mencing with the Neelgheries, and proceeding 
 along Mysore to the Deccan, Candeish, and Gu- 
 zerat, presents large tracts of country affording a 
 favourable climate, and abundant pastures for 
 numerous flocks of sheep. If from thence we 
 proceed in a north-east direction, passing Mar-* 
 war, Malwa, Rajpootana, to the district of Hur- 
 
 bearing sheep* 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 141 
 
 riana, and the province of Delhi, we shall see India, natural 
 
 * pastures of. 
 
 supported on the natural pastures of the country, 
 immense herds of cattle, and numerous flocks of 
 sheep. The latter affording Wool employed by 
 the natives for making blankets (Kumlees), of 
 different degrees of fineness, which form a con- 
 siderable article of the commerce of these pro- 
 vinces. 
 
 Again, the Himalayan mountains, on their Himalayas; 
 
 "' I'l T southern face 
 
 Southern face, present a Jburopean-like climate, of; 
 remarkable however for being influenced by the 
 periodical rains. The temperature varies accord- 
 ing to the elevation ; but they afford everywhere 
 rich pastures, and support a fine breed of sheep, 
 of which the Wool is employed by the Moun- 
 taineers to form their clothing. The Northern northern face 
 face of these mountains is as remarkable for its 
 dryness, as the Southern is for its moisture ; the 
 cold is excessive, and the animals which are 
 pastured there are covered with shaggy hair, or 
 with long Wool, and a fine down. It is here that 
 the Shawl Wool Goat finds its most congenial 
 climate. 
 
 Attention was early turned to the possibility shawi wooi 
 
 •' r- .^ Goats imported 
 
 of deriving some benefit from the Shawl Goat, into England; 
 but, in the first instance, England was alone 
 thought of. We learn from Dr. Anderson's pub- 
 lications, that in consequence of the establish- 
 ment of a Society for the Improvement of British 
 Wool, which was instituted at Edinburgh, on the 
 31st January 1791, Sir John Sinclair made ap- 
 
142 PRODUCTION OP 
 
 Attempts to in- plicatioii to the Court of Directors, and wrote on 
 
 troduce Shawl i n -mir i /^ i r* a 
 
 Goats into the 10th 01 March or the same year to Ur. An- 
 "^ derson, requiring *' in the first place, as much 
 
 information as possible respecting the sheep and 
 other animals in the East, carrying any species 
 of fur;" secondly, " to have specimens sent over 
 of such breeds as are likely to answer in this 
 country." In a letter to Sir John, dated 11th 
 June 1794, from Dr. A., written in consequence 
 of one to the latter from Dr. Roxburgh, we learn 
 of the arrival at the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, 
 of eighteen Shawl Goats, which had been pro- 
 cured by order of the Court of Directors, for the 
 purpose of being sent to Sir John Sinclair. At- 
 tempts w^ere also made to obtain " Carmenian 
 Goats from Persia ; " and we learn that Dr. An- 
 derson had procured a ram with six horns from 
 Mount Ararat, which on arrival in England, 
 with the exception of having six instead of four 
 horns, was found to be nearly identical in ap- 
 pearance with another which had been procured 
 from Sweden. 
 
 Sheep's Wool In the country of the Shawl Goats, some Sheep's 
 Wool of very good quality is also produced. 
 This might, no doubt, be easily improved, but 
 the country is little under the influence of Euro- 
 pean advice or example, even if it were prof- 
 fered. Attempts were made to divert a portion 
 of this Wool trade towards India ; but the 
 difficulties were found to be considerable. Mr. 
 Moorcroft, who was deputed in 1814, to that part 
 
 of Tibet: 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 143 
 
 of Little Tibet, in Chinese Tartary, where the Mr. Moorcroft 
 
 on Sheep's 
 
 Shawl Goat is pastured, for the purpose of open- wooi of Tibet 
 ing to Great Britain the means of obtaining the 
 materials of the finest woollen fabric, found that 
 the Hooneas were obliged to send all their best 
 Wool to Cashmere.* In the year 1819, consider- 
 able advantage was anticipated from importing imported into 
 this Wool into England ; as a gentleman who "^ *" ' 
 was consulted, and who professed to have a 
 practical knowledge of the English Wool Mar- 
 ket, valued it at eight shillings per pound. The 
 Bhyragee Wool, however, when imported was 
 found to be unsaleable; as of 189 bales of Shawl 
 and Bhyragee Wool, imported in the years 1821, ^gg^^g^J^"' 
 1822, and 1823, costing exclusive of freight and 
 charges, £5,444, the gross sale proceeds amounted 
 only to £809. This Wool was bought from the 
 Hooneas, who keep sheep with the Shawl Wool 
 Goats, by the people of Kunawur, and brought 
 by them to Rampore, the capital of Bissehur, on 
 the Sutlej. Specimens of the same kind of Wool, 
 procured by Mr. Hodgson from the Booteas, who specimens for- 
 visit Nepal, were forwarded to the Court of Di- Hodgson to 
 rectors of the East-India Company, in 1835, by rectors!* 
 
 * " This is caused by strict injunctions to all the owners of 
 flocks^ not to sell any shawl-wool except to the Cashmerians or 
 their agents, in consequence of a representation having been 
 made to the Government, that the Jouaree merchants had 
 bought some last year, and that the Cashmerians would suffer if 
 any of this kind of wool were to pass into other hands." Moor- 
 croft's Journey to Lake Manosarovara. — Asiatic Res., vol. xii. 
 
144 
 
 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 Wool imported 
 from Bombay; 
 
 BhyrageeWooi, J),.. WalHcli. Of tliis the soi'ted Wool was valued 
 
 value of. 
 
 here, at from 10c?. toWd. per pound ; some in the 
 unsorted state at 5d. to 7c?. ; and some was sold in 
 the London market in 1834, at from 2jc?. to 7c?. 
 per pound ; the low price was chiefly owing to 
 its dirty and mixed state. 
 
 Attention was turned in England to the sub- 
 ject of Indian Wool, by Mr. Southey, of Coleman 
 Street, addressing a letter, 24th November 1836, 
 to the Committee of Agriculture of the Royal 
 Asiatic Society, respecting some Wool imported 
 here from Bombay. He suggested more attention 
 being paid to the assortment of the Wool, and im- 
 provement in the breed of the sheep ; and stated 
 that last year there were imported into London 
 773 bags, and into Liverpool 624 bags of Indian 
 Wool, which were sold by Public Auction at 4Jc?. 
 to \s. 2ld. per pound. The Wool w^as chiefly white, 
 but with black hairs occasionally interspersed; 
 and he understood that it was produced in the 
 province of Guzerat. In the following year, Mr. 
 Southey again called attention to the subject, 
 stating that the quantity exported from Bombay 
 had enormously increased ; but that what came 
 here was entirely of middling and secondary qua- 
 lity, and had, consequently, realized no higher 
 prices than from 4^d. to lO^ci. per pound. 
 
 The great and rapid increase of the exports of 
 Wool from Bombay, is evident from an inspec- 
 tion of the following extract froni the otlicial 
 Report of the Commerce of Bombay, for 1836-37. 
 
 prices obtain- 
 ed; 
 
 great increase 
 in quantities 
 exported ; 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 145 
 
 It is there stated, that "the article Wool is par- Exports of 
 
 ^ * Wool from 
 
 ticiilarly deserving of attention, from having so Bombay; 
 lately become an export (the first shipment having 
 been made in 1833), and from the rapidity with 
 which it has risen into an extensive and valuable 
 staple ; as will appear from the following state- 
 ment, taken from the Records of the Custom 
 House : 
 
 " In the official year ending 30th April 
 
 1834 69,944 lbs. 
 
 1835 480,528 
 
 1836 1,196,664 
 
 1837 2,444,019." 
 
 The Report of 1837-38, goes on to say, "The 
 quantity of Wool exported has increased from 
 2,444,019 lbs. to 2,700,086 lbs., valued at 98,564 
 rupees." 
 
 It was rather hastily concluded that the whole supposed to be 
 
 '' from opening of 
 
 of this was the result of the opening of the Trade i°dus; 
 
 of the Indus ; for Col. Jervis, of the Bombay 
 
 service, has stated, " that the first exports of 
 
 Wool from Bombay were the produce exclusively 
 
 of the Deccan sheep. But the merchants of ^"*^'"^*^' 
 
 can, 
 
 Affghanistan, and other northern countries, who andAffgimn- 
 are in the habit of resorting to Bombay for trade, 
 perceiving Wool (an abundant produce of their 
 own country) a marketable article at that Pre- 
 sidency, turned their attention to it for the first 
 time." 
 
 A great part of this supply is derived from Sources of sup- 
 ply > 
 Cutch and Sinde, and from Marwar, via Gujerat, 
 
 L 
 
146 
 
 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 Sir A. Burnes 
 on Wools of 
 Cabool and 
 Bokhara; 
 
 Sources of and small quantities are also received from the 
 
 Bombay Wool. _ * 
 
 Persian Gulf and Red Sea. Capt., now Sir A. 
 Burnes has lately given an account of the quan- 
 tity and quality of the supply of Wool likely to 
 be derived from the great pastoral countries of 
 Cabool and Bokhara. These are — 
 
 1. The Wool of Toorkistan, obtained chiefly in 
 the neighbourhood of Bokhara and Samarcand, 
 is more celebrated than that of Cabool. This is 
 sent to Umritser in the Punjab, where it is used 
 to mix with the Shawl Wool of Tibet, in making 
 what are called Cashmere shawls. It is the pro- 
 duce of the Goat, and not of the Sheep, of Toor- 
 kistan, and is called put, in contradistinction to 
 pushm, which is used to express the fleece of 
 
 of Goat of ca- the Sheep. 2. The Wool or Put of Cabool, not at 
 present exported, being entirely consumed in the 
 Native Manufactures. It is procured from Goats, 
 and chiefly from the Hill Country of the Huzaras 
 to the West of Cabool, and between that city and 
 Herat, which has an elevation of about 6,000 or 
 8,000 feet above the level of the sea. 3. The count- 
 
 of Sheep of Ca- Icss flocks of flat-tailed Sheep in Cabool, which 
 produce an abundance of Wool. The fleece is 
 of a glossy white colour, and is in Cabool called 
 pushmi hurra, and the fabrics prepared from it 
 hurrah, in contradistinction to put too. It sells at 
 from two and a half to two Cabool rupees the 
 seer, or sixteen pounds. It is brought in from all 
 directions for sale in Cabool, and Sir A. Burnes 
 states, that he ** can scarcely put a limit to the 
 
 ■of Goat of 
 Bokhara. 
 
 iMOl; 
 
 bool 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 147 
 
 supply, since the extent of pasture land in these sir a. Burnes 
 
 ^^ •" _ ^ on Wool of Ca- 
 
 countries is not over-rated at four-fifths of the booi. 
 whole surface of the country, and a very large 
 portion of the population, such as the Lohanees 
 and Ghilgees, are shepherds, who remove from 
 pasture to pasture, and rear their flocks with 
 great care and attention. Nature, however, does 
 as much as the people; for aromatic plants in 
 which sheep delight, are exceedingly abundant, 
 and it is universally believed that they have con- 
 siderable effect on the quality of the Wool." — 
 Notice on the Wool of Cabool and SoJckara, hy 
 Sir A. Burnes. 
 
 The relative value of Wools, however, like that Market vaiueof 
 
 the above 
 
 of all other commercial products, can only be wools. 
 ascertained when submitted to the examination of 
 competent persons, or to the test of sale in an 
 open market where there is a demand for the 
 article. Thus, twenty-four bales of so-called 
 Cashmere Wool, shipped from Bombay on ac- 
 count of Maharajah Runjeet Singh, arrived in 
 London, valued at more than two rupees a pound. 
 But it was of such a description that the brokers 
 here could give no satisfactory report on it ; two 
 bales therefore were sold in order to ascertain 
 its value. One of Black Wool sold for 2*. 6J</., 
 and one of white at b^d. per pound. 
 
 The foregoing have been notices of the im- First introduc- 
 portation of the indigenous Wool of Asia for the iito india.^'' 
 use of the Manufacturers of Europe. The first 
 attempt at the introduction of Sheep for the 
 
 L 2 
 
148 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 Foreign shcop benefit of India, appears to have been previous 
 
 introduced into ' rr r 
 
 India. to the year 179(J. Mr. Lionel Place, collector 
 
 of the Jag hi re lands, now the coUectorate of 
 Chingleput, in a letter to Dr. Anderson, * ac- 
 knowledges his obliging offer of two Abyssinian 
 sheep, for which he states he would lose no time 
 in sending, adding, that "the three sheep you 
 before sent are doing well, the one of which I des- 
 paired, having recovered, — I have attached them 
 to a small flock of Coimbatore sheep." 
 
 A flock of Me- This very humble commencement was followed 
 
 nnos imported *^ _ 
 
 by the Bengal bv an experiment on a sufficiently larere scale, on 
 
 Government, >> r j o ^ 
 
 the part of Government. This was not attended 
 with any useful result, even in point of informa- 
 tion. It does not appear to have been any person's 
 special business to attend to the sheep, and the 
 public officers to whose care they were entrusted, 
 having their time fully occupied, had neither 
 the leisure to give attention, nor probably the 
 information to direct the measures, which a sub- 
 ject of this kind requires on its first introduction. 
 proposed by Mr. H. Wood, a Member of the Board of 
 
 Superintendence for the Improvement of the 
 Breed of Cattle in Bengal, when at the Cape of 
 Good Hope for the benefit of his health, conceived 
 the idea that " the introduction into India of the 
 Spanish Ram would probably produce Wool 
 
 • Letters on the subject of Cochineal, by Dr. James Ander- 
 son, Physician-genea-al. Madras, 1788 — 1791. 
 
 Miscellaneous Communications, by the same. 1794, p. 9. 
 
 Mr. H. Wood. 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 149 
 
 worthy of mercantile notice, and thereby add an Fiock of Me- 
 
 rinos imported 
 
 important article to the exports of the country." into Bengal. 
 The Bengal Government, in accordance with 
 the proposition of the Board of Superintendence, 
 and to give the experiment a fair trial, authorized 
 at an expense of 9,450 rupees, the provision, 
 either from the Cape or New South Wales, of 
 twenty Merino rams, and twenty Merino ewes ; 
 with 1,000 country ewes, to form the flock. 
 
 After a trial of two years, the soil and cli- cumateof} 
 
 _ north- weste^rn 
 
 mate of the north-western provinces not having indianotsuited 
 
 . r tothem; 
 
 proved so congenial as the Board had antici- 
 pated, the flock was divided, and removed to the 
 stations of Deyi*a Doon, and of Sabathoo. These 
 being within the Himalayas, sanguine anticipa- 
 tions were entertained of the result, from the 
 abundant and excellent pasturage, and the facility sent to Hima- 
 of changing the climate according to the season 
 of the year. But these were never realized, as 
 the Board of Superintendence were informed on 
 the 3d of August, 182.9, that the whole of the experiment 
 original stock of Merino sheep had died of old ^^'^ ""s"'^''^'"'- 
 age, and that diflBculty was experienced in rear- 
 ing the produce, from the delicate nature of the 
 animals and the exceeding moisture of the cli- 
 mate. To avoid this, it was suggested that the 
 sheep of Sabathoo should be annually sent to 
 the dry country beyond the snowy range, where 
 little or no rain falls, or where, at least, there is 
 no regular rainy season. In September, 1832, 
 the Government finally reported, that in conse- 
 
150 
 
 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 Merino flocks 
 in Himalayas ; 
 
 ordered to be 
 distributed ; 
 
 Mr. Moor- 
 croft's flock of 
 small Tibetan 
 sheep. 
 
 Improved 
 breeds of sheep 
 in the Madras 
 Presidency. 
 
 qiience of the large sums expended upon the 
 Sheep without any apparent corresponding be- 
 nefit, the Governor General (Lord William Ben- 
 tinck) directed that the flock of Sabathoo should 
 be gratuitously distributed among such of the 
 Hill Chiefs as might be disposed to receive them. 
 Also, that the flock in the Deyra Doon should be 
 transferred to Mr. Vet.-Surgeon Hodgson, of the 
 Hauper Stud, free of charge, on condition of his 
 furnishing periodical reports and specimens of 
 the Wool. 
 
 Mr. Moorcroft, in his journies to Tibet, had 
 also in view the improvement of the breed of 
 sheep in India, as in his letter respecting the 
 Prangos Hay Plant, from near Droz, he writes : 
 " I have purchased and made arrangements for 
 the keep of upwards of a hundred head of a race 
 of sheep, the smallest perhaps known, but which 
 in fineness of fleece may vie with the Merino, 
 under the advantages of a much hardier consti- 
 tution and of a better carcase." 
 
 Some little attention, we have seen, was early 
 paid to the improvement of the breed of sheep in 
 the Madras Presidency. In the beginning of 
 1838, the Government there sanctioned the pur- 
 chase of Merino rams which had been recently 
 imported from Australia by Col. Hazlewood, of 
 the Madras army. These were of the Saxon 
 breed, though imported from Sydney. Colonel 
 Hazlewood, in a letter to Captain Jacob, of the 
 Bombay Artillery, mentions that experiments had 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 151 
 
 been made in the Neilgherries by Mr. Sullivan improved 
 
 ^ '' breeds of sheep 
 
 with Merinos, and by Sir William Rumbold with >" the Madras 
 
 Presidency ; 
 
 South-downs, and that his own flock consisted 
 of 700 white- wooled country ewes with Saxon 
 rams. The ewes appear to have been obtain- 
 ed in Coimbatore and Baramahal ; but Jalna 
 and Beder are mentioned as the best places 
 whence to obtain the white-wooled breed. The 
 results obtained both at Bangalore and on the 
 Neilorherry Hills, from crossing the white-wooled in Mysore 
 
 n J ' o ajj(j on the 
 
 sheep of the country, with Saxon, Merino, and NeUghernes. 
 South-down rams, are stated to be most satis- 
 factory, both as to quantity and quality of Wool, 
 and size of carcase. 
 
 The most decisive results have been produced J° *® Bombay 
 
 ^ Presidency. 
 
 by Major (now Colonel) Jervis, of the Bombay 
 military service, who was first most active in urg- 
 ing the adoption of measures for the improve- 
 ment of the breed of sheep in that Presidency, 
 and has since submitted his improved fleeces to 
 the judgment of competent persons in London. 
 Colonel Jervis originally represented, in 1835, Proposed by 
 that many parts of the Deccan and of Gujerat 
 are well adapted to sheep pastures, and stated 
 that, ** if the Wool which is at present produced, 
 and which, though of an inferior sort, finds a 
 ready market, were improved by means of a su- 
 perior breed of sheep, there can be little doubt of 
 the benefit which would ultimately result to this 
 country." The Bombay Government, accord- 
 ingly, ordered rams and ewes of the Saxon breed 
 
152 PRODUCTION OF 
 
 Sheep import- from the CuDe of Good Hope ; and as the best 
 
 edfrom Cape 
 
 of Good Hope, Wool imported mto Bombay was understood 
 
 Aifglianistan, . a/^i'* ir^ii 
 
 and Cabooi; to be produccd in Aiighanistan and Cabool, 
 Colonel Pottinger, as well as Lieutenant, now 
 Sir A. Burnes, were each requested to obtain 
 three hundred ewes and eight rams of a pure 
 white colour from the pastoral districts in the 
 vicinity of the Indus. A few were also ordered 
 from Bussora, as the sheep there yield a very fine 
 and lengthy fleece. The Court of Directors of the 
 
 a flock sent out East-ludia Company, likewise, on being applied 
 
 from England , /. t /y> i i 
 
 by East-India to, Sent out 1*20 rams and ewes of dmerent breeds, 
 ompany. including the South-down, Leicester — Cotswold, 
 and Merino (Lord Western's) under the charge 
 of the son of a respectable farmer, who deli- 
 vered them, with but few losses, in good order in 
 Bombay. 
 sbeep Farms The Bombay Government subsequently report- 
 Bombay Presi. ed that " the Sheep obtained from England, the 
 
 dency. 
 
 Cape, and Cabool, have been distributed through- 
 out the country ; many of them having been 
 entrusted to the care of gentlemen who under- 
 stand the management of these animals, and take 
 an interest in the undertaking. A sheep farm 
 has been established at Ahmednugger, and 
 another at tlie fort of Jooner, where the climate is 
 good and pasturage plentiful; and these farms 
 have been entrusted to the charge of Mr. J. Webb, 
 of the Civil Service, who has a good practical 
 acquaintance with the management of Sheep.* 
 
 ♦ In the Proceedings of the Agricultural and Horticultural 
 
WOOL IN INDIA. 
 
 153 
 
 The natives in the interior who breed sheep are sheep Farms; 
 
 benefits of, par- 
 
 supplied from these farms with half-bred lambs, tidpated in by 
 
 * * _ natives. 
 
 and are allowed to send their ewes to the 
 Government farms to be kept with the rams. 
 Many of the rams have been given to wealthy 
 natives and Patells of villages (by whom they 
 appear to be much prized), who have flocks of 
 their own, and who breed sheep for the sake of 
 the wool and not for the market." 
 
 The result of the experiments have led to the Jesuit ofex- 
 
 r penments. 
 
 conclusion that the Cape-bred Merino sheep are 
 far better adapted to the country than those im- 
 ported from England ; so much so, that the Bom- 
 bay Government have determined to import for 
 the future only from the Cape of Good Hope. 
 The Report of the Commerce of Bombay for 
 1836-37 states, '* from the active measures taken 
 by Government to improve the fleeces of the 
 Sheep in the extensive pastoral country of the 
 Deccan, so well adapted for the carrying of such 
 an improvement into effect, the export trade in 
 Wool promises, in a few years, to be one of the 
 most important and valuable from Bombay." 
 
 Society of Bombay 1838, p. 4, it is stated that at Faria Bagh, 
 near Ahmednuggur, Major Byne is trying the cross betwixt the 
 Saxon ram and Cutch ewe. " The Wool of Cutch sheep is 
 particularly long in the staple, though not fine ; it is princi- 
 pally exported to Persia for the making of carpets. A gentle- 
 man conversant with the Wool trade in London has stated 
 that Wool of that sort is much wanted in this country ; it 
 will make Blankets, Carpets, and other coarse articles." — Com- 
 mittee of House of Commons. Ctwamerce and Finance, p. 467. 
 
164 WOOL IN INDIA. 
 
 aie/Fim. Colonel Jervis, at whose recommendation the 
 above experiments had been instituted, in the 
 mean time established a Sheep farm on his own 
 account in the Deccan ; and imported for the 
 native ewes of his flock a large number of the 
 finest Merino rams from the celebrated breed 
 
 Lorfwestem's ^^ j^ord Western. The results which he has ob- 
 tained have been most satisfactory, as is evident 
 from the following opinion of Messrs. Southey of 
 Coleman-street, eminent Wool-brokers. 1. The 
 wool or rather hair of the native ewe of the 
 Deccan may be set down as being of the value 
 in London of 3d. per pound. 2. The fleece 
 of a yearling shorn near Poonah, in February 
 1839, the produce of the Deccan ewe crossed 
 
 Greatly im. by the Mcriuo rams imported from Europe, 
 
 proved fleeces. ^^^ pronouuced "a remarkable clean well pre- 
 pared fleece of Wool, being fine in the hair, 
 longer in staple, and of a better quality, than we 
 have hitherto seen produced in the Indian 
 Peninsula, and worth 15d. per pound. 3. A 
 white fleece, inferior to the above, from having 
 some dead hairs interspersed through the fleece, 
 12d. to 12id. 4. A black fleece, with longer 
 staple than the ordinary breed of Indian wool, 
 7d. to Tid., having become more valuable from 
 the increased length of the staple. 
 
pasture grasses of india. 165 
 
 Pasture Grasses of India. 
 
 The production of Wool in India having so re- f^^"" •" 
 cently attracted attention, and the information 
 respecting it being scattered in publications not 
 easily accessible, has been treated of more in 
 detail, than other products of at least equal im- 
 portance. From the numerous flocks of Goats 
 and Sheep which we see spread over the Northern 
 parts of India : Camels traversing its deserts, 
 with Buffaloes and Bullocks employed in its 
 agriculture, and for draught carriage, as well as 
 for carrying burdens ; besides the Rhinoceros and 
 the Elephant, abounding in the jungles of the 
 Southern parts, as well as along the foot of the 
 Himalayas, and everywhere Deer and Antelopes, 
 it is evident that there must be abundance of food 
 for these various herbivorous quadrupeds in every 
 part of that widely-spread empire. 
 
 The Camel, it is well known, can feed upon FoodofdiflFe- 
 
 * rent herbivo- 
 
 the prickly shrubs of the desert, and the Cattle in rous animals. 
 the districts which border upon it are fed upon 
 the leaves and cut branches of the various plants 
 which thrive in such arid situations. In the pro- 
 vinces, besides grain. Camels and Elephants are 
 fed upon the leaves of various trees. The Goats, 
 Sheep, and Cattle are pastured upon what are 
 called the waste land or the jungles of the villages; 
 the last are fed also upon chopped straw, and 
 the stalks of the joar (Sorghum vulgare), cut into 
 small pieces ; while Horses, besides grain, are fed 
 
166 
 
 PASTURE GRASSES OF INDIA. 
 
 Pasturage in 
 India. 
 
 Doob-grass ; 
 
 Spikenard 
 grass ; 
 
 other Indian 
 grasses* 
 
 upon grass brought in by men called grass- 
 cutters, but who rather scrape off the ground the 
 creeping stems and young leaves of the grass called 
 Doob. 
 
 This Doob-grass (Cynodon Dactylon of Bota- 
 nists), which grows throughout the year, is fortu- 
 nately the most common species throughout India, 
 and succeeds particularly well in the Northern 
 parts where lawns and pastures of moderate ex- 
 tent are made by planting pieces of the creeping 
 stems of this grass. It is also much used for 
 forming a covering for the banks of rivers, ram- 
 parts, and esplanades. The high lands of the 
 Ballaghaut also possess a grass of which cattle 
 are amazingly fond, and which has so strong an 
 aromatic and pungent taste, that the flesh of the 
 animals, as well as their milk and butter, become 
 scented with it. This species is allied to the Le- 
 mon grass, and is very abundantly diffused towards 
 the North-west of India. There are, however, 
 numerous other grasses common in India which 
 cattle delight in; but the greater number of these 
 flourish most in the rainy season. Their rapid 
 growth, and the great height they attain, as well 
 as their withered and dry nature towards the 
 close of the year, soon however unfit them for 
 pasture grasses. The inhabitants of many parts 
 of India remedy this, by burning down the old 
 and dried up grass, when the young blade shoots 
 up and affords excellent pasturage. 
 
 India being at one season deluged with rain. 
 
PASTURE GRASSES OF INDIA. 1 57 
 
 and at another parched up with heat, with only a ^^^^^, 
 few months of temperate climate, cannot be ex- ture grasses. 
 pected to possess any pasture grasses similar to 
 those of European countries. But as grasses are 
 among the most universally diffused of plants, we 
 find some suited to every season, indigenous in 
 all parts of India, and affording food for its various 
 herbivorous animals. 
 
 For the purposes of pasturing improved breeds g^^""^."* 
 of Sheep, the hills and table-land, from Coimba- Pf^^^^pJ''^^ 
 tore to Kandeish, and the frontier provinces from 
 Gujerat to Hurriana and Saharunpore, seem 
 alone suited. But the Himalayas, enjoying a 
 temperate climate, and a European-like vegeta- 
 tion, have also abundant and excellent pasturage. 
 During the rainy season, when the temperature 
 is moist but equable, we have many grasses re- 
 sembling those in the plains. These are associ- 
 ated with others belonging to European genera, 
 which are able to withstand the winter's cold : so 
 that throughout the year nearly, there is abundant 
 pasturage in the neighbourhood of Himalayan ^^u^^*^ 
 villages. Of this the inhabitants avail themselves, 
 by driving their herds of cattle, and flocks of goats 
 and of sheep, to different ranges and elevations, 
 according to the season of the year. The sward 
 upon these mountains is short and thick, and 
 very closely resembles that which we meet with 
 on the mountains of Scotland and Wales; while 
 the Sheep are as much esteemed for their mutton 
 as those fed in the plains upon grain. 
 
158 PASTURE GRASSES OF INDIA. 
 
 Risture grasses These gTasses, the author has already elsewhere 
 
 of the Hima- '^ •' 
 
 layas. Stated,* belong to such genera as Agrostis, Fox- 
 
 tail grass, Cat's-tail, Meadow-grass, Fescue, 
 Cock's-foot, Bent-grass, Oat-grass, and others. 
 Also, that many of the same species which are 
 accounted the best pasture grasses in England 
 are among those found in the Himalayas, as 
 Cock's-foot grass ; Annual, Narrow-leaved, and 
 Smooth-stalked Meadow-grass ; Cat's-tail or Ti- 
 mothy-grass, Purple Fescue-grass, which from 
 its greater produce is considered preferable to 
 that specially called Sheep's Fescue-grass. In the 
 climate where these grow naturally, nothing would 
 be easier than the introduction of any other of 
 the superior pasture grasses of England ; but 
 this is hardly necessary where the natural pas- 
 turage is so good. 
 Pasture grasses But it would be of Considerable importance to 
 pSsand^Ibie find soiTic pasturc-grasscs suited to the plains of 
 an o n la. j^^jjg^^ qj. ^q |.jjg Table-land of the Peninsula and 
 of the Deccan, and such a series as would afford 
 pasturage, in the season of the year when defi- 
 ciency is most experienced, whether this be in the 
 cold, the hot, or the rainy weather. In England, 
 attention is paid to hay-grasses, both of temporary 
 and of permanent duration ; also to those adapted 
 for pasturage, and to these, as yielding early or 
 late pasturage, as well as to those suited to diffe- 
 
 • Illustrations of the Botany and other branches of the Na- 
 tural History of the Himalayan Mountains. 
 
PASTURE GRASSES OF INDIA. 159 
 
 rent kinds of soil. — Illustrations, &c. of Hima- 
 layan Botany, p. 423. 
 
 Though the Himalayas may thus be natu- If^^Zj^ 
 rally provided with the best pasture grasses, pastures; 
 and it may be unnecessary to introduce others, 
 yet, as dried leaves are stored up for winter fod- 
 der, and green food may be deficient at some 
 particular seasons of the year ; it might be ad- 
 visable to introduce in some situations an earlier 
 or a later variety of grass to fill up the gap be- 
 tween the seasons. Also some hay grasses, in case, 
 which is far from improbable, any Sheep Farms 
 are established by Europeans on these moun- 
 tains. 
 
 The table land of the Peninsula we have al- ?f those of the 
 
 Peninsula and 
 
 ready seen also possesses some excellent pasture Ceccan. 
 grasses. These were so much valued by the 
 Native Governments, that some of the pasture of 
 the Sandstone-hills, south of the Kistnah river, 
 where the lemon grass is found, were reserved for 
 their own cavalry, or the right to cut and sell it 
 was rented to the highest bidders. As we pos- 
 sess no account of the natural pasture of the tracts 
 where experiments are going on for improv- 
 ing the breed of Sheep, we are unable to say 
 whether it be desirable or possible to introduce 
 other pasture grasses. But it is probable that 
 in some parts of the year, as the hot weather, 
 any grass would be a valuable introduction which 
 was only later in the season. The warm parts 
 of Spain, or the pasture lands of Italy, per- 
 
160 
 
 PASTURE GRASSES OF INDIA. 
 
 Improvement 
 of the pasture ; 
 
 of the plains 
 of India. 
 
 Green food for 
 Camels and 
 Elephants. 
 
 haps also those of the neighbourhood of the 
 Indus, or of North America, of the Cape of Good 
 Hope, or of New Holland, might yield some 
 species which would be suited to the soil, or to the 
 season when the natural grasses of the country 
 were most deficient, and thus come in as a season- 
 able relief. 
 
 To improve the pastures or increase the quan- 
 tity of fodder in the warm and moist parts of 
 the plains of India, it will be necessary to have 
 recourse to the grasses of other climates, as to 
 those of the West-Indies and of South America. 
 Tlie Guinea grass and the Scott's grass of Jamaica 
 are both highly esteemed in that island, while 
 some of the pasture grasses of Brazil and of the 
 banks of the Amazon, are described as being of 
 a gigantic size, and at the same time perfectly 
 tender and delicate. 
 
 Closely connected with the subject of the pas- 
 ture grasses is that of providing green food for 
 horses, camels, and elephants, and one to which 
 little attention has been paid, though the supply 
 has much diminished in the neighbourhood of 
 towns and large stations. To this Dr. Wallich 
 called attention in his evidence before the Com- 
 mittee of the House of Commons in 1832, stating, 
 that for any number of animals, either for con- 
 veyance or for consumption, any quantity of food 
 might be produced in the utmost f)ossible abun- 
 dance in India, but suggested that a more ready 
 and plentiful supply of food for elephants and 
 
BREED OF SHEEP IN INDIA. 161 
 
 camels should be provided by planting those trees Green food for 
 (such as particular Indian fig-trees) which form SU' 
 the staff of life for them, and which are extremely 
 easily cultivated. On the Madras Presidency, 
 considerable exertions were made about the year 
 1796, in everywhere planting what was called the 
 Bastard Cedar (Guazuma ulmifolia) as green food 
 for cattle. 
 
 IiMPROVEMENT OF THE BrEED OF ShEEP 
 
 IN India. 
 
 The nature and abundance of the Pasturage improvement 
 being ascertained, the next, and also the most the introduc- 
 important points of consideration, are, whether shLp. °^^'^ 
 it is advisable to introduce new, and what varie- 
 ties, of foreign sheep into India, or whether it be 
 preferable to attempt improving those already so 
 abundant in the country ; and, in the latter case, 
 what are the best modes of effecting the object. 
 
 It is necessary, in the first place, to consider, not considerations 
 only the intrinsic merits of the breed of sheep to. 
 which it is proposed to introduce, but also their 
 suitableness to the pasture and climate into 
 which they are to be introduced. This, first in 
 the case of the pure breed being preserved, and 
 also for the produce of any cross breed which 
 it may be proposed to form. Sheep, we know, 
 are now spread over a great part of the world : 
 we may, therefore, infer their capability of sup- 
 
 M 
 
162 
 
 IMPROVEMENT OF THE BIIEED 
 
 Considerations 
 on improving 
 the breed of 
 Sheep. 
 
 Influence of 
 food on the 
 flavour of the 
 mutton. 
 
 Influence of 
 climate on 
 wooL 
 
 porting a great variety of climate. This is pro- 
 bably owing to their being able to adapt them- 
 selves by degrees to the circumstances in which 
 they are placed, rather than to any positive 
 indifference to the great diversities of climate 
 in which they are now found. The varieties 
 of sheep have, no doubt, arisen, in the first in- 
 stance, from peculiarities induced by differences 
 of soil, food, and climate. These having become 
 propagated by descent, now form our several 
 permanent varieties. Others have been created by 
 the arrangements of the different breeders who 
 have attended to this subject. 
 
 Every one acquainted with India knows the 
 great difference in flavour, of the ordinary grass- 
 fed and of the private grain-fed nmtton of that 
 country ; but it has been mentioned that the 
 grass-fed sheep of the Himalayas are equally 
 well -flavoured with those fed on grain in the 
 plains. Here the striking effects of different kinds 
 of food are very evident in the change produced 
 on a part which is less easily altered than the ex- 
 ternal covering, whether this be of hair or wool. 
 
 The effects of climate in altering the wool 
 may be seen in the differences of this covering 
 in the sheep of the plains, and in those of the Hi- 
 malayas, also between these and the sheep of Tibet. 
 The sheep of Southern India must evidently 
 have been introduced originally from the Moun- 
 tains, or from the countries to the north-west of 
 Hindoostan ; and yet the differences are as great 
 
OF SHEEP IN INDIA. 163 
 
 as any where, between some of the hairy sheep c"fmSL^^ 
 of Mysore, and the wool-bearing sheep of the "'°°'- 
 plains of north-western India. This can only 
 be ascribed to differences of pasture and of cli- 
 mate. 
 
 It is generally supposed that cold climates are 
 best suited to the production of fine wool ; but 
 in fact we find that fine wool countries, such as 
 Spain and Tibet, Australia, Van Diemen's Land, 
 and the Cape of Good Hope, rather have dry cli- Dry cUmate 
 
 . with warm 
 
 mates, with a warm summer and a cold winter, summer and 
 The culture in Germany is so peculiar, consisting preferable for 
 in great care and confinement of the sheep, that glie woou" * 
 it cannot be adduced as militating against, or as 
 favouring this view. Mr. Blacklock, in his ad- 
 mirable little '* Treatise on Sheep" has said, that 
 sheep, though capable of thriving in a great 
 variety of climates, seem to prefer such as are 
 temperate, and that "regular warmth is abso- wannthneces 
 lutely necessary for the production of a good ^*^* 
 animal and a fine fleece, and is only to be ob- 
 tained by attending to the drainage and clearing 
 of land, so as to dissipate moisture, and allow 
 currents of air to play freely across the country. 
 Hence one of the reasons why sheep thrive best 
 in a rather elevated situation." The Yolk, or thin The Yoik on 
 film which covers the other tunics of the skin, LTorsi'e^p 
 is most plentiful on fine-woolled sheep, those of of '•»« South, 
 the south possessing more than the sheep of the 
 north of Great Britain, while Merinos possess 
 most of all. So that there is apparently some 
 
 M 2 
 
164 
 
 IMPROVEMENT OF THE BREED 
 
 Influence of 
 Climate on 
 production of 
 wool. 
 
 Principles to 
 be attended to 
 in improving 
 the breed of 
 Sheep. 
 
 Breeding in 
 and in. 
 
 connection between a fine fleece and a good 
 supply of this Yolk. The Australians are said to 
 produce it by penning their sheep in roofed build- 
 ings, and thus producing heat, make them 
 sweat before they are shorn. These considera- 
 tions respecting temperature, and the fact of the 
 existence already, of wool-bearing sheep in India, 
 prove the country to be well adapted for the in- 
 troduction into it of some improved breeds of 
 sheep, or for attempting to improve those already 
 diffused throughout the country. 
 
 In reference to the improvement of the breeds; 
 the experiment, we have seen, is already being 
 carried on. The principles to be adhered to, re- 
 quire to be settled, both for the prosecution of the 
 present experiments and the institution of the new 
 ones, which will, no doubt, be attempted. The 
 different methods for improving the breed of 
 animals have their advocates in India as well as 
 in England. " The one most in vogue is that of 
 choosing individuals of the same family, and 
 breeding in and m," but the objections to this 
 system are very great ; and" though " no evil has 
 ever so clearly shown itself as such, yet it is only 
 recently that people have opened the intellectual 
 eye to the dangers of a practice against which 
 the ablest pens were long and vainly blunted." 
 (Blacklock, p. 106.) Mr. Dickson also says, *'The 
 evil of breeding in and «w, or, in other words, 
 producing too great refinement of tone, is mani- 
 fested, in tlie first instance, by a tenderness of 
 
OP SHEEP IN INDIA. 165 
 
 constitution ; the animals not being able to with- Breeding in 
 
 and in. 
 
 Stand the extremes of heat and cold, rain and 
 drought." These defects must necessarily attend 
 any attempt to keep pure whatever race is intro- 
 duced into India, with the additional disadvan- 
 tage of our not knowing whether the climate, soil, 
 and pasture are likely to be suitable either to the 
 new race or to their progeny. 
 
 The next mode of breeding, that from different Breeding from 
 
 . -IT** ditfcrent &mi- 
 
 families of the same race, is that which Mr. lies of the same 
 
 race. 
 
 Blacklock says, ** is of all methods deservedly the 
 best, as the males, which are interchanged, have 
 always had shades of difference impressed upon 
 them, by various soils and treatment, so that the 
 defects of each family have a good chance to be 
 counteracted by the perfections of the other, the 
 bad points are gradually exhausted, and their 
 valuable properties as gradually heightened.' 
 But this in India is more impracticable than the 
 first, inasmuch as it pre-supposes the establish- 
 ment of several varieties of the same race in 
 different parts of the country. This has yet to be 
 done ; but when it has been effected, advantage 
 will, no doubt, be taken of it, by the different 
 breeders, in continuing to keep up, as well as to 
 add to, the improvement of their flocks. 
 
 Some amelioration miorht, no doubt, be effected improvement 
 
 '-' of some Indian 
 
 in the wool-bearing flocks of North- Western In- breeds without 
 
 . . ... ^'^ of foreign 
 
 dia by judicious treatment, nutritious diet, and Wood. 
 careful selection of the healthiest and most per- 
 fect specimens procurable in the country. Yet, as 
 
166 IMPROVEMENT OF THE BREED 
 
 Improvement the progrcss ill this, though certain, would be 
 
 of some Indian i i i ^ ff ' A^^ ^ • j 
 
 Breeds with- slow, and pcrhaps not sumciently great in degree, 
 foreign^ siieep. ^^^ ^^e likely to attempt or to persevere in such 
 an undertaking. It may, however, be suggested 
 as an interesting subject for experiment to the 
 many intelligent gentlemen who are favourably 
 situated for the purpose on the north-western 
 frontier and in the Himalayas. It will be requi- 
 site, in the first instance, to consult some of the 
 treatises on the subject, that experimentalists 
 may be aware of the points requiring attention, 
 and thus benefit by the experience of those who 
 surmounted great difficulties, and obtained the 
 most signal success in this country. Mr. EUman, 
 of Glynde, it is well known, obtained his well- 
 earned fame from the zealous manner in which 
 he so materially improved the South-down sheep, 
 without any admixture of foreign blood. 
 ?nTa?5ith' The only method, therefore, which remains 
 shee ^*''^^'^" for improving the breed of the wool-bearing 
 sheep of India is, that of " crossing two distinct 
 races, one of which possesses the properties it 
 is desirable to acquire and wants the defects 
 we wish to remove." But here the difficulties 
 are as great, and require as many points of 
 consideration, as any of the other modes of breed- 
 ing which we have noticed. Mr. Blacklock's ob- 
 servations on the subject are marked with the 
 good sense which pervades his Treatise, where 
 he says, *' that if you wish to have a particular 
 kind of sheep, you must first of all be in posses- 
 
OF SHEEP IN INDIA. 167 
 
 sion of a pasture suitable for the new comers, considerations 
 You must consider the influence of the individual SoIi""»* 
 parents on the progeny, the size of the animals, ^ce wSuTmo- 
 their habits and dispositions, and their peculia- ^"' 
 rities in regard to the time of their maturity and 
 fattening properties. Having anticipated these 
 apparently trifling affairs, you must see that the 
 surface of your farm, its degree of exposure, and Aspect and 
 the quantity and quality of its productions, are form. 
 calculated for the profitable maintenance of the 
 animal in view," as " no animal can be made 
 to forego a long-used food, an ancient locality, 
 peculiarity of clime and season, and the instinc- 
 tive habits that have been long nurtured by these, 
 without both it and its progeny suffering from 
 the change." Having considered these prepa- 
 ratory measures, it is necessary to select well selection of 
 
 parents. 
 
 formed parents, not much disproportionate in size, 
 and such, that their progeny will be rather under 
 than above what the pasture is capable of sup- 
 porting. It is better, when some increase has 
 been attained, to bring the breed to the required Gradual im- 
 
 ^ provement. 
 
 size or fineness by one or two crossings, than 
 attempt at first what we may ultimately wish for, 
 as Nature abhors sudden extremes, and does 
 every thing in the most gradual maimer. (Black- 
 lock, on Sheep.) 
 
 In crossing:, the full effect can only be produced several cross- 
 
 ^ . "'Ss necessary. 
 
 by several years of constant exertion. It is 
 thought on the Continent, according to Mr. 
 Blacklock, that any race of ewes, however coarse 
 
168 
 
 IMPROVEMENT OF THE BREED 
 
 Number of 
 crossings ne- 
 cessary to at- 
 tain full effect. 
 
 Changes pro- 
 duced on Ben- 
 gal Sheep in 
 Australia. 
 
 and long in the fleece, will, on the fourth cross 
 of the Merino ram, give progeny with short wool 
 equal to the Spanish. Dr. Parry, of Bath, how- 
 ever, considers that one cross more is necessary 
 to produce the desired purpose. " If we sup- 
 pose," he says, " the result of the admixture of 
 the blood of the Merino ram to be always in an 
 exact arithmetical proportion, and state the na- 
 tive blood in the ewe as 64, then the first cross 
 would give |^| of the Merinos, the second || the 
 third H, the fourth |-|, the fifth ||, and so on. 
 In other words, the first cross would leave thirty- 
 two parts in sixty-four, or half of the English 
 quality ; the second, sixteen parts, or one-fourth ; 
 the third, eight parts, or one-eighth ; the fourth, 
 four parts, or one-sixteenth ; the fifth, two parts, 
 or one-thirty-second ; the sixth, one, or one-sixty- 
 fourth, and so on." Communication to the Board 
 of Agriculture. 
 
 Great changes may, no doubt, be produced in 
 the wool of the Indian Sheep, by crossing with 
 appropriate breeds. This is evident from what 
 has been effected in Australia* with Bengal sheep. 
 
 * New Holland had no sheep of its own, but a number were 
 procured from Bengal to provide the colonists with mutton and 
 wool, and to establish a permanent flock. They are described 
 as having " an accumulation of bad qualities." Yet such were 
 the primitive New Holland sheep, more, according to Mr. At- 
 kinson^ resembling goats than sheep, and from such animals 
 emanated all the improved flocks now in the colony. — Vide 
 Youatt's work on Sheep, their Breeds, Management, and 
 Diseases. London, 1837. 
 
OF SHEEF IN INDIA. 169 
 
 which were first crossed with South-down and changes ef- 
 
 . • T. -■ . fected on Ben- 
 
 Leicester rams, and, subsequently, with Mennos gai sheep in 
 
 ^ . iiii Australia, 
 
 from England and Germany. It is probable that 
 the sheep of Southern India were alone taken to 
 New Holland, and these, we know, are far in- 
 ferior to those in the Hurriana, Shekawatty, and 
 Jeypore districts ; where the country is naturally 
 favourable to flocks of sheep, and is therefore well 
 suited to breeding experiments. 
 
 The experiments already made in India seem Merino breed 
 to have decided, for the present at least, that the india. 
 Merino breed is the best fitted for introduction 
 into that country, though the South-down, and 
 some other English breeds, may eventually be 
 found eligible. The next subject for consideration 
 is the country from which they should be im- whence to be 
 ported into India; whether direct from Spain, 
 from England, or from Saxony, or whether from 
 the Cape of Good Hope or New Holland. Judg- Cape of Good 
 
 * . Hope and New 
 
 ing from the energetic zeal at present displayed, Holland, in the 
 it is probable that some will be introduced from 
 all these countries. But it is desirable, in the first 
 instance, to import a breed from the climates 
 most similar to that into which it is to be intro- 
 duced. The sheep of the Cape and of New 
 Holland being already much improved, and the 
 climate of both being more like that of Northern 
 India than is either that of England or of Ger- 
 many, it would appear preferable to import chiefly 
 from these two colonies, for introduction into the 
 Table-land or northern plains of India. But, as 
 
170 IMPROVED HORSES AND CATTLE. 
 
 English breeds the pasturage of the Himalayas, as well as the 
 
 of Sheep pro- 
 bably suited to temperature and moisture, more nearly resemble 
 
 the Himalayas. , /.t-iii- ii /•! 
 
 those of J^ngland, it would appear, for the same 
 reason, that some of the English breeds would 
 be better suited to the mountains than the Me- 
 rinos, which require both a warmer and a drier 
 climate. 
 Improvement That great improvement in the breed of sheep 
 
 in Sheep as mi i ti i i- 
 
 probable as may be effected m India, will be readily believed 
 
 that which has ,, ^ii'ii' i 
 
 already been ef- by thosc who havc secH the highly improved 
 and Cattle at breed of Horses now produced at the Govern- 
 ment Sabiish- ment Studs, for mounting both her Majesty's and 
 '"^"^^* the Company's regiments of cavalry, as well as 
 
 the horse artillery in India. So also the Breed of. 
 Cattle produced in the Government Establish- 
 ment at Hissar,* in the Hurrianah district, for 
 
 * The Cattle employed at the Hurrianah Establishment con- 
 sist of the Nagore, Guzerat, Angole, Hurrianah, Sinde, and 
 Mysore breeds. The qualities of the Nagore breed are height, 
 substance, and speed ; of the Guzerat, height, greater sub- 
 stance, but of a duller disposition than the Nagore. The 
 Angole has height, and very great substance ; can endure 
 great fatigue upon coarse food, and lives to a great age. The 
 Hurrianah can endure great fatigue upon coarse food, but has 
 not the height or substance of the former breeds. The Sinde 
 has great substance, but is low and lazy. The Mysore is strong, 
 and active for its size, but is too low for ordnance purposes. 
 
 The most successful crosses are from the Nagore, Guzerat, 
 and Angole tribes. The best draught cattle are from the Na- 
 gore ; Angole, Guzerat, Hurrianah ; and the Guzerat, Nagore, 
 Angole ; the latter promises to be the best cross we have made. 
 — Memoir by Capt. Parsons, Superintendent of the Hissar Es- 
 tablishment. Proceedings Agricultural Society of India, 1838, 
 
WOOL TRADE IN INDIA. 171 
 
 the ordnance and carriage department of the foot Jj^^^ug 
 artillery, are vastly superior to the ordinary cattle ^^^^^^2^'"'™' 
 of the country, in consequence of the great pains biishments. 
 taken to improve them. The cattle known as the 
 Mysore breed, and noted for their great activity and 
 spirit, are also the produce of a breeding establish- 
 ment kept up by Gk)vernment, and called the 
 Amrit Mahal, of which the object is to supply 
 bullocks for the gun-carriage department and 
 commissariat. It is, therefore, far from proble- 
 matical that sheep may be improved in the very 
 districts where these fine cattle are produced, and 
 be as superior to the ordinary sheep of India as 
 the Government bullocks are to the ordinary bul- 
 locks of the country. 
 
 That a trade in wool may be established even Trade in wool 
 
 . might be esta- 
 
 in the Benral Presidency by the produce of the wished from 
 
 „ „, . , . , , , , N.W. India. 
 
 JN. Western provinces being brought down the 
 Jumna and Ganges rivers, is quite as probable as 
 that in Hides and Horns, which is now fully esta- 
 blished. These were pointed out, in 1806, by 
 Mr. Colebroke only as articles which might be 
 exported from Bengal. From the circular of 
 Messrs. Whyte, Holmes, and Co., of the latest 
 date, we learn, that of Hides there were exported 
 to Great Britain in the year ending 29th February 
 1840, 904,755; to France, 132,430; to North Ame- 
 rica, 492,383 pieces: and of Buffalo horns, to 
 the same date, to Great Britain 317,082; and to 
 France, 269,788 pieces; and of Deer horns to the 
 former 3,076 raaunds, and of Horn tips 4,518 
 
172 WOOL TRADE IN INDIA. 
 
 Wool might be maunds. That wool might in the same way be- 
 
 exported from r ^-\ ^ • i i 
 
 Calcutta. come an export irom Calcutta, even without the 
 improvement of the breed of sheep, is evident, 
 from a portion of the Bombay exports being from 
 
 Procured from Marwar. The wool of the similar country more 
 
 vinces. to the north-wcst, and which would reach the 
 
 Jumna with less land carriage than does the Cot- 
 ton of Central India, would be found of at least 
 equal quality, and would probably yield a profit, as 
 
 Sheep abun- the fine shccp of the Shekawatty district sell for 
 
 dant and cheap. . <> i ^ i • 1 1 • 
 
 ten rupees a corge, or tor about a shiUmg a piece. 
 The exporters from Bombay expected to realize 
 5d. to Od. a pound for their wool, which, it is 
 stated, would give an ample return. Sheep wool 
 is already much employed for making the kumlees 
 Wool now ma- or native blankets. Some of these are even em- 
 
 nufactured into i j • i • i ^ i ^i /v 
 
 blankets, &c. ploycd in making rough coats by the officers m 
 by Natives. ]\orthern India, while the finest from Jyepore 
 sell for a high price among the natives. Blankets 
 also form a considerable article of trade between 
 the northern and southern provinces of India; 
 and we find blankets and rugs exported from 
 Calcutta to the extent of 27,517 pieces in the 
 years 18-29-30, and in 1837-38, 39,929 pieces, 
 chiefly to the Mauritius.* 
 
 • To show the importance of the Wool Trade, and the large 
 quantities which are annually imported, the Author extracts the 
 following, as containing the most recent information : — ** A re- 
 turn to an order of the House of Commons gives, as the total 
 quantity of sheep and lambs' wool imported in 1839 into the 
 United Kingdom, 57,395,944.1b». ; of which, 57,379,923lbs. are 
 
173 
 
 Labours of Dr. Roxburgh's Successors. 
 
 From the connection of the several cultures 
 with one another, we have been led to trace their 
 history further than is consistent with a due at- 
 tention to priority of date. But having com- 
 menced with stating that Dr. Roxburgh had paid 
 attention to the culture of all the great staple 
 products of India, we have shown that his ex- 
 periments, whether on Pepper, Sugar, Indigo, 
 Cotton, Flax, Hemp, or Mulberry, or his obser- 
 
 foreign, and the remaining 16,0211bs. the produce of the Isle of 
 Man. The total quantity of foreign wool retained for Home 
 Consumption was 52,959,221 lbs., and the quantity re-exported 
 695,0491bs. The quantity of foreign sheep and lambs' wool re- 
 maining warehoused under bond on the 5th of January 1840 
 was 7,451j0161bs. Of the foreign countries, by far the 
 greatest quantity of wool was imported from Grermany, being 
 23,837,8051bs. The second and third, as to quantity, were 
 Russia and New South Wales, from the former of which, 
 7,966,9541bs., and from the latter, 6,621,29Ilbs. were im- 
 ported. The quantity of British sheep and lambs' wool ex- 
 ported during the same year was 4,603,799 lbs., and the quan- 
 tity of yam (including that of wool mixed with other mate- 
 rials) was 3,320,441 lbs. Of the wool, the largest quantity, 
 being 3,625,8961bs., was sent to Belgium. Of the yam, the 
 largest quantity, being l,770,5361bs., was sent to Germany, 
 The total value of British woollen manufactures exported in 
 1839, was £6,271,645. The value of the manufactures sent 
 to the United States was considerably the highest, being 
 dC2, 142,352. The value of those sent to Germany, the East- 
 Indies and China, and the North- American Colonies, was also 
 high, bemg respectively £816,604, £530,687, and £511,190.'* 
 —Times, May 14, 1840. 
 
174 WORKS PUBLISHED BY 
 
 Dr.Roxburgh's vatioDS Oil the Droduction in India of Potash, 
 
 Expenments. , '^ 
 
 Barilla, Caoutchouc, or of Wood Oil, were con- 
 ducted on the soundest principles, and antici- 
 pated much of what has been subsequently done. 
 Dr. Buchanan Dr. Roxburgh, having proceeded to England 
 
 Hamilton sue- „ ,, /.i-i ii tii 
 
 ceeds Dr. lor the benefit of his health, died there in the year 
 1814.* He was succeeded in his office of Superin- 
 tendent of the Botanic Garden at Calcutta by 
 Dr. Francis Buchanan, of the Bengal Medical 
 Establishment, who afterwards assumed the name 
 of Hamilton. He was as distinguished for 
 laborious research as for the variety of his attain- 
 ments, and the zeal with which he endeavoured 
 to develop the resources of the various parts of 
 India which he visited, as displayed in his Jour- 
 ney to Nepal; his Surveys of Mysore, and of the 
 South-eastern Provinces of the Bengal Presi- 
 dency, in his account of the Fishes of the 
 
 ♦ Dr. Roxburgh's ' Coromandel Plants,' and his • Hortus Ben- 
 galensis', have been already mentioned, pp. 51 and 69. Besides 
 these he published several papers in the Transactions of the 
 Asiatic Society in Calcutta; and in those oftheLinnean Society 
 and of the Society of Arts in London. The work, ' Flora Indica,' 
 which would probably have had the most extensive influence, 
 unfortunately remained unpublished for a great many years. 
 An edition of this work was commenced by Dr. Carey, with Des- 
 criptions of the more recently discovered Plants, by Dr. N. 
 Wallich, and published at Serampore, the first volume in 1820, 
 and the second in 1824. Dr. Wallich having had, subsequently 
 to this, to visit the North-western provinces, and then Ava, 
 Pegu, and Tcnasserim ; after which he returned to Europe, in 
 
DR. BUCHANAN HAMILTON. 175 
 
 Gansres, and in his Commentaries on the Works ^/- Buchanan 
 
 ^ ^ Hamilton's 
 
 of Rheede and of Rumphius.* works. 
 
 consequence of continued attacks of fever ; delay took place in 
 the completion of the work. The sons of Dr. Roxburgh, 
 therefore, published an edition of the Flora Indica, as left by their 
 father, which was printed at Serampore, in 3 vols. 8vo. 1832. 
 
 I am informed by Mr. Brown, that it was intended to have 
 published an edition of the Flora Indica in this country, in con- 
 sequence of Mr. Colebrookeand himself, with two other gentle- 
 men, having been requested by Dr. Roxburgh, in his will, to 
 look over his manuscripts, and determine what was fit for pub- 
 lication. Dr. Fleming, who was then in England, having offered 
 to provide what money was necessary, it was determined to 
 publish the Flora Indica; but the appearance of the first volume 
 by Drs. Carey and Wallich from Serarapore, caused the idea to 
 be abandoned. 
 
 • Works of Dr. Buchanan Hamilton : — 
 
 1. A Journey from Madras through the countries of Mysore, 
 Canara, and ]Malabar, performed under the Orders of the Most 
 Noble the Marquis WeUesley, Governor-General of India. Lon- 
 don, 1807. 
 
 2. A Journey in Nepal, 1 vol. 4to. 
 
 3. A Statistical Survey of the Districts of Behar, Shahabad, 
 Bhagulpoor, Goruckpoor, Dinagepoor, Puraniya, Rungpoor, 
 and Assam, under the Orders of the Supreme Government, and 
 lately published by M. Martin, Esq., in 3 vols, thick 8vo. Lon- 
 don, 1838. 
 
 4. An Account of the Fishes found in the River Ganges and 
 its Branches, with a volume of Plates. In royal 4to. Edinburgh, 
 1822. 
 
 5. Commentaries on the Herbarium Amboinense of Rum- 
 phius, published in the Transactions of the Wemerian Society of 
 Edinburgh; 
 
 6. Commentaries on the Hortus Malabaricus of Rheede, pub- 
 lished in the Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. 
 
176 INVESTIGATIONS AND 
 
 Dr. Waiiich As Dr. B. Hamilton did not remain in India 
 
 appointed Su- 
 perintendent long after this, Dr. Wallich was, in 1815, ap- 
 
 of the Calcutta . . . . 
 
 Botanic Gar- Domted to succced him, and still continues the 
 
 den. ,. . . . 
 
 distmguished superintendent of the Calcutta 
 Botanic Garden. As we have shown that the 
 resources of a country depend so much upon the 
 vegetable kingdom, and as great extension of 
 territory had taken place, it was desirable that 
 the vegetable riches of the new acquisitions 
 should be ascertained. 
 Parts of India Dr. WalHch has effected this to a srreat extent, 
 
 visited, and in- , _ _ 
 
 restigated. as iu 1820 he made an excursion into Nepal, and 
 on his return commenced publishing an account 
 of the more conspicuous plants of that region, in a 
 work which is remarkable, as presenting us with 
 the first specimen of a Botanical work* with 
 lithographic drawings, published in Calcutta. A 
 severe illness having forced Dr. W. to seek bene- 
 fit from a voyage to sea, he visited the islands of 
 Penang and Singapore, and other places in the 
 Straits of Malacca. In 1 825 he was deputed by 
 the Indian Government to inspect the Timber 
 forests of the western provinces of Hindoostan, 
 when he had a favourable opportunity for examin- 
 ing and collecting the plants of the kingdom 
 of Oude, of the province of Rohilcund and the 
 Deyra valley, &c. In 1826 and 1827 he accom- 
 panied a mission from the Supreme Government 
 of British India to the court of Ava, and ascended 
 
 • Tentamen Florae Nepalensis illustratae. Folio. Calcuttai 
 1822. 
 
OF DR. WALLICH. 177 
 
 the Irrawaddy as far as its capital, and the moun- Parts of India 
 
 ... T r- 1 investigated. 
 
 tains in its vicinity ; proceeding afterwards to the 
 then lately acquired territories on the coasts of 
 Martaban and of Tenasserim. 
 
 Besides personal examination, Dr. Wallich has contributors 
 
 ^ and plant coU 
 
 stated that he further enioved all the advantages lectors in dif- 
 
 *' / ^ ^ ferent parts of 
 
 belonging to the institution over which he pre- India. 
 sides, and which, for extent and importance, he 
 believes to be unrivalled. These consist in the 
 co-operation of many distinguished individuals 
 residing in different parts of India, who are in 
 the habit of transmitting every object of interest 
 which the vegetable kingdom presents to their 
 notice. Thus he received contributions from 
 Penang, Singapore, and Bencoolen,* and from 
 Nepal nearly to the banks of the Sutlej from the 
 Himalayan mountains. Besides these a number 
 of plant-collectors connected with the Garden 
 are stationed in various parts of India, such as 
 Silhet, Nepal, Kemaon, Penang, &c. 
 
 From the strenuous and extended exertions 
 which have been made, a very complete idea has 
 necessarily been obtained of the vegetation of a Living and 
 
 -^ _ *^ _ ^ dried plants 
 
 great part of India. The number of indigenous collected. 
 plants cultivated in the Botanic Garden of Cal- 
 
 * Of the various contributors none deserve more notice 
 than Mr. W. Jack, assistant surgeon at Bencoolen, who contri- 
 buted much valuable information respecting the Botany of the 
 Malayan Peninsula, in the " Malayan Miscellanies," re-pub- 
 lished with a memoir and notice of his other writings, by Sir W. 
 J. Hooker, in the Companion to the Botanical Magazine, p. 121. 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 HERBARIUM COLLECTED. 
 
 Herbarium 
 collected. 
 
 Drawings 
 made. 
 
 Herbarium 
 brought to 
 England, 
 
 Descriptions 
 and 6gures of 
 new plants 
 published. 
 
 Useful plants. 
 
 cutta was greatly increased in the course of a few 
 years; and the Herbarium attached to it amounted 
 to upwards of 8,000 species, comprising a vast 
 number of duplicates, and coloured drawings 
 were made of upwards of 2,000 species. 
 
 Dr. Wallich's health having become impaired 
 from repeated attacks of illness, he obtained per- 
 mission to visit Europe, and to take with him the 
 collections which had been made, in order that 
 he might deliver them in person to the Court of 
 Directors. On arrival. Dr. W. commenced pub- 
 lishing his magnificent folio work,* containing 
 descriptions and coloured figures of a select num- 
 ber of unpublished East-Indian plants. Among 
 these are included many of the most ornamental 
 plants (such as the Amherstia nobilis), which 
 the vegetable kingdom produces ; and many cu- 
 rious for their structure, with otheis suited to 
 form the ornaments of the Shrubberies and 
 Forests of this country. Among those remark- 
 able for their useful or dangerous properties, is 
 the Aconite, yielding the famous Bikh or Bish 
 poison, which is used in India as a medicine, and 
 for nearly the same purposes as the Aconite of 
 Europe ; also the kind of Gentian of which the 
 dried plant forms the Cheretta, so celebrated as a 
 
 • Plantae Asiaticae Rariores, or Descriptions and Figures of a 
 select number of unpublished East-Indian Plants, by N. Wal- 
 lich, M.&Ph.D &c., 297 coloured plates. London, vol.1. 1830 ; 
 II. 1831 ; III. 1832 ; with a Map, which points out the places 
 examined by the several naturalists. 
 
FRANCOS HAY PLANT. 179 
 
 bitter ; likewise a substitute for the Ginseng of Useful plants. 
 the Chinese, which, though produced in their own 
 country, they also import from North America. 
 
 Besides these, the celebrated Prangos Hay Prangos Hay 
 
 - . . . Plant figured ; 
 
 plant is figured m pi. 205. This was discovered 
 by Mr. Moorcroft, in Tibet, and found by him to 
 be employed as winter fodder for sheep and goats, 
 and frequently for neat cattle. Mr. M., writing 
 from the neighbourhood of Droz, describes the discovered by 
 
 j^ Ti 1 i J • r i. • Mr.Moorcroft; 
 
 rrangos nay plant as producing fatness in a 
 space of time singularly short, and likewise as 
 being destructive to the Liver Fluke ; he there- 
 fore justly concluded that it would be an inva- 
 luable acquisition to any country to the climate of 
 which it was suited, ** as its highly nutritious 
 qualities, its vast yield, its easy culture, its great value of; 
 duration, its capability of flourishing on lands of 
 the most inferior quality and wholly unadapted 
 to tillage, impart to it a general character of pro- 
 bable utility unrivalled in the history of agricul- 
 tural productions. When once in the possession 
 of the ground, for which the preparation is easy, 
 it requires no subsequent ploughing, weeding, 
 manuring, or other operation, save that of cutting 
 and of converting the foliage into Hay." — (Moor- 
 croft in a letter to W. Butterworth Bay ley, Esq., 
 now Chairman of the Court of Directors.) 
 
 Various attempts have been made to introduce Attempts to in- 
 
 ^ troduce it into 
 
 the Prangos Hay plant into Great Britain, but Great Britain. 
 hitherto unsuccessfully ; and yet it is probable it 
 
 n2 
 
180 
 
 DUPLICATES OF HERBARIUM 
 
 Prangos Hay 
 Plant. 
 
 Duplicates 
 of Herbarium 
 
 will only succeed, and be valuable in a climate 
 similar to that where it is found indigenous. 
 
 The duplicates of the vast collections which had 
 been made and accumulated for a series of years, 
 having been brought to this country, were ordered 
 ordered to he to be distributed to the various scientific societies 
 
 distributed to 
 
 museums Qf Europc by the Court of Directors. '* That en- 
 lightened body," as Dr.Wallich has said, " with 
 a munificence never equalled, and which has 
 been already appreciated and gratefully acknow- 
 ledged, not only in this country but throughout 
 Europe, immediately directed me to proceed to 
 
 in Europe, the distribution of the duplicates among the prin- 
 cipal public and private museums * in Europe and 
 
 • This novel and most liberal determination was one most 
 unexpected by the nations of Europe, as each had hitherto 
 accumulated such collections only for the benefit of its own 
 subjects. But it was duly appreciated and acknowledged in 
 the scientific publications of all nations. It may be sufficient to 
 adduce one instance only, published in the Bulletin Universel, 
 July 1829, Paris. 
 
 " C'est avec une vive satisfaction que nous communiquons a 
 nos lecteurs une noble determination que vient de prendre la 
 Compagnie Anglaise des Indes orientales. ... La Com- 
 pagnie des Indes, jalouse de donner a ces decouvertes toute 
 I'utilite possible, a charg6 M. Wallich de composer des collec- 
 tions de plantes rares cueillies en Asie, non-seulement pour les 
 principaux etablissemens scientifiques de la Grande-Bretagne, 
 mais encore pour ceux du Continent Europ^en et des autres 
 parties du monde. Cette belle et gen6reuse idee merite la 
 reconnaissance de toutes les nations, et la Compagnie des Indes 
 s'honore infiniment en associant a ses speculations commerciales 
 un but aussi 61eve que celui de concourir ainsi a la propagation 
 
DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT EUROPE. 181 
 
 America. They were pleased to order a similar andAmerica. 
 distribution of the herbariums of Indian Con- 
 tinental Plants in their Museum, made by Drs. 
 Patrick Russell, Roxburgh, and Hamilton, the 
 Tranquebar Missionaries, the late Mr. Finlayson, 
 Dr. Wight, and myself." — (Preface to PI. Asiat. 
 Rar. p. ix.) 
 
 The Herbarium itself, "the fruits of there- original Her- 
 searches of the last half century, comprising about semed wLm- 
 1,300 genera and about 8,500 species," and in- Lo^ndon.'^^'* 
 valuable for consultation on all subjects relating 
 to Indian Botany, was presented by the Court of 
 Directors to the Linnean Society of London.* 
 
 des connaissances. Comme toutes les choses humaines, sa 
 prosperite actuelle peut passer; la politique de I'Angleterre elle- 
 meme peut amener de nouvelles combinaisons, qui changent 
 ou modifient beaucoup la nature de ses relations dans I'lnde : 
 aucun evenement ne peut lui ravir le m^rite qu'elle devra a de 
 pareilles communications." 
 
 * The correspondence ■which passed on this occasion. Dr. 
 Wallich has published in the Postscript, vol. III. p. vii. of his 
 great work. 
 
 Letter to the President of the Linnean Society : — 
 
 "East-India House, 19th June, 1832. 
 « My Lord, 
 
 '* The Court of Directors of the East- India Company have, 
 ■within the last four years, caused to be distributed to various 
 bodies in this country and in Europe, interested in the promo- 
 tion of science, between 7,000 and 8,000 species of plants, col- 
 lected by celebrated naturalists in the Company's service during 
 a series of years in India. 
 
 " The objects being attained for which the originals of these 
 specimens have been placed with Dr. Wallich in Frith Street J 
 
182 E.I. HERBARIUM PRESENTED 
 
 Herbarium. It is DOW, Conveniently arranged, named, and 
 deposited in an elegant cabinet in the same 
 
 the Court of Directors feel that this collection may not be an 
 unacceptable addition to the museum of the Linnean Society of 
 London, which already possesses the Herbarium of the cele- 
 brated Linnaeus. We have therefore the honour, at the instance 
 of the Court of Directors, and in the name of the East-India 
 Company, to proffer, through your Lordship, for the acceptance 
 of the Linnean Society, the collection in question ; and should 
 the Council of the Society be pleased to give effect to the in- 
 tentions of the Court, the necessary directions will be given to 
 Dr. Wallich to transfer the collection to the party who may be 
 authorized by the Council to receive the same. 
 
 " We have the honour to be, 
 " My Lord, 
 " Your Lordship's most obedient humble servants, 
 (Signed) " John G. Ravenshaw, 
 
 <' C. Mahjoribanks." 
 " To the Viscount Stanley, M.P." 
 
 Address presented to the Honourable Court of Directors. 
 
 " The Council of the Linnean Society having had a letter 
 laid before them by the President, addressed to his Lordship by 
 the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Court of Directors of 
 the East-India Company, in which that Honourable Court have 
 been pleased to offer for the acceptance of the Society the ex- 
 tensive collection of dried plants preserved in the Museum of 
 the India-House, take the earliest opportunity of expressing 
 their high sense of the distinguished honour conferred upon the 
 Society by this unexampled act of liberality. 
 
 " The Council, in behalf of the Society, accept with feelings 
 of profound gratitude the Collection thus proffered to them, and 
 beg to assure the Court that it shall be held as a trust for the 
 general benefit of science. 
 
TO LINNEAN SOCIETY'. 
 
 183 
 
 room with the Herbarium of the immortal Lin- Herbarium, 
 naeus and that of Sir J. £. Smith. 
 
 " The Council cannot avoid expressing their admiration of the 
 enh'ghtened policy shewn by the Honourable Court of Directors, 
 with relation to their collections in Natural History, in extend- 
 ing the advantage to be derived from them, by the most liberal 
 distribution of specimens throughout the scientific world, and 
 by this memorable instance of their munificence, in placing the 
 fruits of the labours of Konig, Roxburgh, Rottler, Russell, 
 Klein, Hamilton, Heyne, Wight, Finlayson, and Wallich, along 
 with those of the immortal Linnaeus. 
 
 " The East-India Company, by extending its patronage to 
 those distinguished naturalists who have cultivated science in 
 Asia, so much to their own honour and the credit of the service 
 to which they belonged, and by the generous use of the rich 
 materials in its possession, has deeply impressed the members of 
 every learned institution throughout Europe and America with 
 feelings of admiration and respect : and the council of the 
 Linnean Society can only re-echo the voice of general acknow- 
 ledgment for the great services which the Honourable Company 
 has thus rendered to the cause of science. 
 
 " An example of disinterestedness has been exhibited by the 
 Company which has already reflected, and will continue to re- 
 flect, deserved honour upon them and upon the country, and 
 which cannot fail to diffuse a spirit of emulation throughout the 
 
 world. 
 
 (Signed) 
 
 " A. B. Lambert, 
 " W. G. Maton, 
 " R. Brown, 
 
 " E. FORSTER, 
 
 " T. Hardwicke, 
 
 " Stanley. 
 
 G. Bentham, 
 
 W. NiCHOLL, 
 
 R. H. Solly, 
 W. Yarrell, 
 F. Boot." 
 
 London, June 23d, 1832." 
 
184 ' CULTIVATION OF 
 
 Coffee in India. 
 
 Ptenfanative Among the subjects of a practical nature to 
 
 of Arabia, which Dr. WalHch turned his attention, was the 
 
 cultivation of Coffee in Bengal. It is well known 
 
 that the Coffee plant is a native of Yemen, in 
 
 Arabia, whence it has been introduced into other 
 
 introducedinto parts of the world. All those in the West- 
 
 West- Indies * 
 
 by the French; Indics are supposcd to havc been produced from 
 a single plant which was presented to Louis 
 XIV. from the hot-houses of Amsterdam. The 
 plant has long been introduced into India, and 
 Coffee of a fine quality cultivated on the coast of 
 
 cultivated in Malabar: also to a considerable extent in Coim- 
 
 Inuiaonthe 
 
 Malabar coast; batorc, and the cultivation might, no doubt, be 
 easily extended elsewhere. It was early tried 
 in the Calcutta Botanic Garden, where it suc- 
 
 in the Calcutta cccdcd remarkably well under the shade of the 
 
 Botanic Gar- rri i -r* 
 
 Upq. leak Plantation, and nothing could be more 
 
 healthy looking, or in better bearing, than these 
 Coffee plants when seen by the Author in 1823. 
 Dr. Roxburgh had long previous to this ascer- 
 tained that two middling plants, at the age of six 
 or seven years, produced a crop in the Botanic 
 Garden in one year, of seven pounds of the dry 
 berries, which gave three pounds of clear Coffee, 
 equal to the Jamaica produce. 
 
 Quality of this Dr. Wallich, in his evidence before the Select 
 Committee of the House of Commons, described 
 the Coffee as excellent in quality, or, as he 
 graphically stated, " I will say for myself, 1 never 
 
 ' A 
 
COFFEE IN INDIA. 185 
 
 used to drink good Coffee, except that produced coAFee, good- 
 in the Company's garden at Calcutta." The Coffee 
 plant thrives well in the open air, and bears jJ^JJe^S^. 
 annually a few berries even one thousand miles 
 further to the north-west, that is, in the Botanic 
 Garden at Saharunpore, in 30° of north latitude. 
 But the cold in winter is too great for this culti- 
 vation so far north, though it might probably be 
 carried as far as the Rajmahl Hills, and into 
 Assam and the Silhet Hills, or south into the southern parts 
 
 alone suited to 
 
 Malayan Peninsula. A rocky substratum in a con- the culture of 
 
 . . Coffee; 
 
 genial climate would probably be found favour- 
 able for the production of fine-flavoured berries, 
 as is the case with the Pimento, for " a rich soil 
 and moist climate are said, both in Java and the 
 West-Indies, to produce luxuriant vegetation, and 
 a coarse-flavoured, though sufficiently abundant, 
 crop of berries." 
 
 The cultivation of Coffee was commenced on a puit'TOtion 
 
 m Bengal corn- 
 large scale by Dr. Wallich and Mr. Gordon, in menced by Dr. 
 
 ^ J ' Wallich and 
 
 the year 1823, when the Indian Government Mr. Gordon. 
 allowed Europeans to hold land on long leases. 
 In the evidence of the former, he states, that 
 in the year 1832, several plantations had been 
 established by a number of mercantile houses, as 
 well as private individuals, to the extent of about 
 four thousand acres. But, in establishing un- 
 tried cultures in new situations, and particularly 
 those like the Coffee, which require several years 
 to elapse before their success or failure can be 
 ascertained, some assurance or probability of sue- 
 
186 DUTY ON INDIAN COFFEE. 
 
 Coffee culture cess must be obtained before capitalists will be 
 induced to embark in the new undertaking. 
 But in this case assurance was in some measure 
 given, by the result of the experiments in the 
 Company's Botanic Garden. 
 
 Discourage- ^jj^ disadvantages under which Indian-grown 
 
 ments to In- ° ^ 
 
 dian Culture. Coffce has to labour are still considerable, as 
 Mr. Larpent, in his evidence before the Com- 
 mittee of the House of Lords, 4th March 1840, 
 states, that Coffee from British possessions within 
 Sil^ rown" *^^ Company's limits pays 9d. per pound duty. 
 Coffee; while that from British possessions, such as 
 
 Ceylon and the West-Indies, pays only 6d. 
 Thus, Ceylon Coffee sells in London from 100s. 
 to 112s. a cwt., and Malabar at 75s. to 86s. 
 This would appear to be owing to inferiority of 
 quality in the latter, but is, in fact, merely the 
 difference of duty, as 3d. a pound, or 28s. addi- 
 tional duty, added to these prices, will make 
 them 103s. and 114s., showing the Coffees to be 
 of at least equal quality, though so different a 
 price is obtained by the original importers. A 
 still higher duty, or Is. per pound, is levied if 
 the Coffee be the produce of places within the 
 Company's limits, such as Mysore, but which, 
 though not strictly British possessions, are under 
 British protection, and the affairs are managed 
 by British officers. British manufactures, how- 
 ever, such as Cotton Piece Goods imported into 
 India, at an ad valorem duty of only 3^ per cent., 
 having once paid this duty, are free to pass into 
 
TOBACCO FROM ARRACAN. 187 
 
 all such territories which the British Government Discourage- 
 
 ments to Inaiaii 
 
 however chooses to consider as foreign, whenever culture. 
 it has to admit even the produce of their soil, in 
 exchange for the British manufactures upon which 
 so light a duty is levied. 
 
 Tobacco from Arracan. 
 
 One of the results of Dr. Wallich's investiga- Tobacco, 
 tions was the bringing to notice some very superior 
 Tobacco, which obtained the name of Martaban 
 Tobacco. This the Author has already noticed 
 in another work, in the following words : " Dr. 
 Wallich states, that * the sort is from Arracan ^X^^'^pro"' 
 and not from Martaban:' and describes it ashav- ducedm Arra- 
 
 ' can ; 
 
 ing * a fine silky leaf : tried by many people, it 
 had been pronounced the very best they had ever 
 tasted, equal to, nay surpassing, the finest im- 
 ported from Turkey and Persia.' An extensive 
 tobacconist savs, ' a finer and better-flavoured 
 Tobacco he never saw or tasted in his life.' One E'ere^d 
 of the first brokers in the City says, ' the sample •^^^i^.*'" '" 
 of leaf Tobacco is certainly of a very fine quality, 
 and appears to have been produced from some 
 peculiar seed and a greatly-improved cultivation 
 and cure.' By many manufacturers ' it was sup- 
 posed to be from the seed of Havannah or St. 
 Domingo Tobacco.' For smoking, it is compared 
 with Maryland Tobacco, having the same quali- 
 ties, ' except the flavour, which is better, and 
 
188 
 
 TOBACCO FROM ARRACAN. 
 
 Arracan To- more like Havannah.' The colour and leaf are 
 
 bacco, quality 
 
 «£ moreover, pronounced excellent for cigar- making; 
 
 * but if anything is against it for that purpose, it 
 is the largeness of the principal stalk, and coarse- 
 ness of the small fibres in the leaf.' The com- 
 mercial gentleman by whom the Tobacco was 
 transmitted to the brokers pronounces it very 
 superior, and the leaf as very fine, adding, that 
 the price of 6d. or Sd. per lb., might readily be 
 obtained, perhaps more, with the improvements 
 suggested."* 
 shiS*Tob"^co "^^ ^^ purpose resuming this subject in the sub- 
 both produced sequent pages, it is at present only necessary to 
 
 near former . . 
 
 €ettiements of call attention to the remarkable fact of this 
 
 Europeans. rr* i • 
 
 lobacco, cultivated by the Burmese, bemg so 
 excellent in quality, while the only other Tobacco 
 of those regions which has a European reputa- 
 tion is that of Shiraz, where the climate, it is im- 
 portant to remark, is not at all like that of Arracan. 
 But in one point both places have enjoyed the 
 same advantage, that is, they have had Europeans 
 settled in their neighbourhood, by whom it is more 
 than probable that the improved culture of To- 
 bacco was taught. Shiraz we know is not far 
 from Ormuz, so long occupied by the Portuguese, 
 and Arracan was the seat of a Roman Catholic 
 mission in the beginning of the seventeenth cen- 
 tury. 
 
 • Illustrations of the Botany and other Branches of the 
 Natural History of the Himalayan Mountains. London, 1839, 
 p. 2ti5. 
 
forests of timber in india. 189 
 
 Forests of Timber in India. 
 The reports of Dr. Wallich are particularly Natural f<>- 
 
 , iT^ 11 rests in India. 
 
 valuable respecting the ISatural Jborests, both 
 of those within the British territories in India, 
 and also those of the neighbouring Powers. In 
 his visit to the Turai, or low and moist forest 
 land skirting the base of the Himalayas, he par- 
 ticularly recommends a vast extent of Forest 
 land in Oude, situated on the East side of the in oude, 
 Kowreala river, as holding out the prospects of 
 very valuable supplies in the course of ten or 
 twelve years, provided that means are adopted 
 for preventing wanton destruction, and of allow- 
 ing the young plants to grow up, and supply the 
 place of those which are cut down. Among the 
 forests in our own provinces, Dr. W. adverts par- 
 ticularly to those occupying the Islands of the 
 Gogra, commonly called Chandnee Choke. He in Rowicnnd, 
 represents them as extremely important, and in 
 every way deserving of being preserved for the 
 exclusive use of Government, and especially of 
 being emancipated from the destructive depreda- 
 tions which are annually committed. The Sissoo 
 and Saul forests of the Deyra Doon are also re- in the Deyra 
 commended to be preserved for the use of the 
 service ; though from these the facility of trans- 
 portation is represented as not equal to that from 
 the other quarters previously mentioned. But 
 they are nevertheless as important for the stations 
 in the north-west of India, as the forests of Oude Natural fo- 
 and Gorukpore are for those in the south. '^ * 
 
190 FORESTS OF TIMBER IN INDIA. 
 
 Destruction of ^g considerable deficiencies of Timber, at least 
 
 forests by na- ' 
 
 tives. of those kinds usually employed, such as Saul and 
 
 Sissoo, besides Bamboos, had been experienced, 
 and as the deficiency every day increased. Dr. 
 Wallich was induced to recommend that Govern- 
 ment should interfere in the management of the 
 forests : for the natives, from their extremely in- 
 judicious mode in felling forests, cut and carry 
 away all that is easily accessible, both young 
 and old plants, without planting anything new 
 in their place, or encouraging the growth of the 
 young seedlings. Another great defect in the na- 
 tive mode of managing timber, is their total neg- 
 lect of any regular system of seasoning — timber 
 ever being seasoned by them, depends entirely 
 upon the proprietor not having been able to sell it. 
 The Coast of Malabar has long been famous 
 for its forests, especially those of Teak, of which 
 the timber has always been remarkable for its 
 superiority to that of other places, and with 
 which the dock-yards of Bombay, as well as of 
 Calcutta, have been long supplied. The quantity, 
 however, has of late diminished, from the forests 
 being partially exhausted, and pains not having 
 been taken to keep up a supply. The Teak was 
 also long ago pointed out by Dr. Roxburgh as 
 abounding on the mountainous parts of the Coro- 
 mandel Coast and on the banks of the Godavery, 
 
 Teak Forests above Rajamuudry. It extends also far into Cen- 
 tral India, though there it is very dwarfish in 
 size. It was planted in the Calcutta Botanic 
 Garden, and plantations were established at se- 
 
 Malabar forests 
 of Teak. 
 
 of Circars. 
 
FORESTS OF TIMBER IN INDIA. 191 
 
 veral places in the interior of the Bengal Presi- Plantations in 
 
 dency. A new supply was, however, laid open, 
 
 on the acquisition of the territories along the East 
 
 Coast of the Bay of Bengal. The forests to the 
 
 eastward of the Saluen river, in Martaban, when 
 
 visited by Dr. Wallich, were very favourably re- ^eak Forests 
 
 •^ ' "^ ^ of Martaban. 
 
 ported on, for the supply of splendid Bamboos as 
 well as of Teak, for the extent of forests, the size of 
 timber, and the facility of procuring it, as the 
 timber could be procured within two miles of 
 the river. Teak is not generally considered of 
 so good a quality as that of Malabar, probably 
 owing to its being produced on an alluvial soil, 
 while the former is the produce of a mountain 
 range. 
 
 Besides the timbers commonly employed, India 
 produces a vast variety of trees which are pos- 
 sessed of every diversity of quality required in 
 wood, and which may, whenever attention is paid 
 to the subject, be applied to almost any purpose.* 
 
 * A very extensive collection of Indian Woods is contained 
 in the Museum of the India House. One of 117 specimens 
 was sent by Dr. Roxburgh, and one of 100 specimens from 
 Java was presented by Dr. Horsfield. A collection of 436 kinds 
 was also presented by Dr. Wallich, who gave the duplicates of 
 this collection to the Society of Arts, of which they published 
 a list in their '* Transactions," vol. xlviii. p. 439. 
 
 A Collection was also presented to the same Society by Capt. 
 Baker, late of the Bengal Artillery, who was Superintendent 
 of the half- wrought Timber-yard in Calcutta. 
 
 Col. 
 
192 practical benefits of 
 
 Practical Benefits of the Calcutta 
 Botanic Garden. 
 Practical bene- Besides the scientific services of the several 
 
 fits of Calcutta . • • , • i i j.- i.u 
 
 Botanic Gar- iSuperintendaiits, it IS desirable to notice tne 
 practical benefits which have been derived from 
 the Calcutta Botanic Garden ; and for these we 
 can refer to a report by Dr. Wallich, dated 1st 
 December 1836. But we may commence with a 
 few general observations on its peculiarities of 
 climate, as these are applicable to the gardening 
 in general of Bengal, as well as to the open 
 culture of the plains. 
 SiiufreS^ro! ^^ ^ tropical country, there exist few, and 
 picai climates, thcsc vcry limited, means of reducing the tem- 
 perature of the air during the hot season ; and 
 in the rains there is a still more unmanage- 
 
 Col. Frith, of the Madras service, sent to the United Service 
 Museum, 1836, from the peninsula of India, 111 specimens of 
 different kinds of wood in use in various parts of the country, 
 and which were collected in the course of a tour partly under- 
 taken for that purpose. The necessity of precision in the 
 names of such substances is noticed in their letter of acknow- 
 ment. " In returning you their thanks for your very interest- 
 ing collection of woods, the Council have desired me to request 
 as a particular favour, if attainable, a list of the botanical 
 names, corresponding to the native names affixed : this would 
 be of infinite value, as it would permanently identify the spe- 
 cimens which the native name may fail to do in futurejyears. 
 Such a list would be a most valuable document indeed for 
 many purposes." — Wight's Illustrations of Indian Botany. 
 Introd. 
 
THE CALCUTTA GARDEN. 193 
 
 able combination of excessive heat with all-per- ^^ema of ob. 
 
 viating heat of 
 
 vading moisture. The means of obviating exces- climate, 
 sive heat are confined to a cautious degree of 
 shading, combined with the admission of as large 
 a proportion as possible of the indirect rays of 
 the sun. This is attainable under the shade of 
 some tree, that does not too much interfere with 
 the influence of night dews ; or under that of 
 some narrow but lofty shed, from which the 
 plants must be removed when the sun has sunk 
 beneath the horizon. 
 
 The cultivation of extra tropical plants de- Principles of 
 pends therefore, on the combination of the maxi- 
 mum of light with the greatest reduction of heat; 
 and it is hopeless for the purposes of Agriculture 
 and Commerce, to cultivate shrubs and trees, the 
 perennial plants of such climates. But annuals, 
 which are exposed for a few months only, to the 
 climate of a place, may be varied according to 
 the seasons of the year. Hence we may see the 
 plants of various countries cultivated in the 
 same fields at different periods of the year. 
 Thus in India, Rice, Indigo, and Cotton are 
 cultivated during the hot weather and rains ; and 
 Wheat, Barley, and Millet in what are the 
 winter months of European latitudes. 
 
 Kitchen garden vegetables and other exotic Exotic An- 
 annuals are perfectly cultivated in India, though 
 frequent changes of seed have been required ; 
 partly because the climate is in some measure 
 unsuitable, and partly because all the modifica- 
 
 o 
 
194 
 
 PRACTICAL BENEFITS OF 
 
 degeneration 
 of exotic an- 
 nuals in India ; 
 
 acclimation ; 
 
 Annuals for 
 culture in In- 
 dia ; 
 
 Perennials for 
 Calcutta, 
 
 from hot coun- 
 tries. 
 
 Plants culti- 
 vated in CaU* 
 cutta Botanic 
 Garden. 
 
 tions required in culture in their new situation 
 have not been ascertained. Hence the plants have 
 been said to degenerate. But, in fact, they return 
 to the state in which they were found in nature, 
 when the causes are removed which produced 
 their artificial state ; that is, as they are when 
 in a high state of culture. When the mode of 
 cultivation is better understood, deterioration 
 does not take place, or, in other words, the 
 artificial state is retained. Dr. Wallich adduces 
 Oats as a remarkable instance of this, as annual 
 supplies used formerly to be imported from the 
 Cape of Good Hope, but it may be said now to 
 be acclimatized. Though in fact the present 
 success is probably only a simple consequence of 
 a better knowledge of its proper treatment, after 
 oft- repeated trials. 
 
 It is practicable, therefore, in the Calcutta 
 climate, and very successfully in the northern 
 parts, of India to cultivate the annuals of Euro- 
 pean countries in the cold weather, and those 
 of tropical ones in the hot and rainy seasons. 
 But the perennial plants of all parts of the 
 Tropics, such as those of many of the tropical 
 islands, of the countries from the Malayan Penin- 
 sula to the south of China, of the hot parts of 
 Africa, as well as those of South America and of 
 the West-Indies, are well suited to its climate. 
 
 The Calcutta Botanic Garden, thus situated in 
 a tropical climate which yields to none in its 
 vegetable resources, has had for its first and per- 
 
THE CALCUTTA GARDEN. 195 
 
 manent object, the accumulation of the greatest chief objects 
 
 •' ' . * of Calcutta Bo- 
 
 possible number of native Indian plants, and the tanic Garden. 
 subsequent dissemination, throughout the empire, 
 of such of them as are in any degree useful for 
 the purposes of Agriculture, Commerce, Medi- 
 cine, the Technical Arts, and Horticulture, or 
 can in any manner contribute to the comfort and 
 even to the luxuries of domestic life. 
 
 The number of species in the Garden in 1836, Number of 
 
 . species. 
 
 was double the number of what it contained 
 when the catalogue was published in 1814. 
 The whole includes plants of the mountains 
 and of the plains of India, besides others from 
 the Malayan Archipelasfo, China, the Mauri- Countries 
 
 •^ . . wlience ob- 
 
 tius, and the south of Africa, with some from tained. 
 Europe and America. The number of species 
 kept in cultivation for the purposes of general 
 distribution exceeds 1,200, comprising buds, 
 layers, and cuttings of the best sorts of fruits in 
 the country, of valuable timber, or otherwise use- 
 ful trees, and shrubs ; also medicinal plants, with 
 elegant flowering or ornamental trees, shrubs, and Extent of dis- 
 herbaceous plants. Commencing with the 12th 
 June 1835, to the same date in 1836; that is, 
 from the commencement of one rainy season (the 
 chief period for moving plants) to the beginning 
 of the next, sixteen thousand growing plants were about sixteen 
 
 . thousand plants 
 
 gratuitously supplied to three bund red individuals, annually; 
 both European and native, residing in all parts 
 of the country. Besides these, forty-two thousand 
 Tea plants were raised in the Garden from Chi- Tea plants 
 
 o2 
 
196 
 
 PRACTICAL BENEFITS OF 
 
 raised and dis- 
 tributed ; 
 
 also seeds. 
 
 Importance of 
 such distribu- 
 tions in a coun- 
 try without 
 nursery gar- 
 dens. 
 
 Botanic Gar- 
 dens nindia 
 perform the 
 offices of Nur- 
 sery Gardens. 
 
 nese seeds, and forwarded to Upper Assam, Ke- 
 maon, Sirniore, and the Peninsula. From the 
 J5th June to the 1st October 1836, nine thousand 
 plants were distributed to 170 individuals. 
 
 The difficulty of preserving seeds, combined 
 with the facility with which growing plants are 
 transported and preserved, during the rains and 
 the cold weather, induces most applicants to 
 prefer growing plants to seeds, though these are 
 also abundantly supplied. During the above 
 period sixteen thousand papers of seeds were 
 distributed, independently of large quantities of 
 seeds of timber trees and shrubs of extensive cul- 
 tivati(m, such as Teak, Sissoo, Coffee, &c. 
 
 The importance of such distributions may not 
 be obvious to those accustomed to the existence 
 of Botanic and Horticultural Gardens in every 
 town, with Nursery Gardens and seedsmen in 
 almostevery village, by which the wants of the pub- 
 lic are supplied with whatever is required either 
 for Horticultural or x4gricultural pursuits. But in 
 a country where no such facilities exist, the ser- 
 vices of the Government Institutions, labouring 
 incessantly, and successfully, in supplying wants 
 from which the country so materially benefits, are 
 most important and indispensable. 
 
 From the absence of the facilities which exist in 
 Europe, the Botanic Gardens in India are obliged 
 to unite in themselves the offices of Botanist, 
 Gardener, Nurseryman, and Seedsman ; and " the 
 inhabitants have been in the habit of looking to 
 
THE CALCUTTA GARDEN. 197 
 
 the Calcutta Botanic Garden, and havings their Calcutta Bo- 
 tanic Garden 
 wants supplied during: a period of fifty vears, with looked to by 
 
 ^^ ,. , • 1 the inhabitants 
 
 a degree of liberality and attention worthy at once for a supply of 
 of the paternal care of the Government and of the plants. 
 magnitude of this garden." 
 
 The result now is, that a complete change has Results of dis- 
 
 • 1 1 • <» T» 1 tribution of 
 
 been effected among the inhabitants of Bengal plants. 
 
 with respect to their gardening, the original state 
 
 of which has been alluded to at p. 26. Country 
 
 seats have risen in all directions, gardens have 
 
 been attached to the houses in town, in the 
 
 suburbs, and on the banks of the river, both 
 
 among natives and Europeans, all replete with 
 
 the choicest fruits and flowers. Similar improve- Gardens esta- 
 
 1 .1 1 • X /■ ^ 1 blished every- 
 
 ments have taken place in many parts oi the where. 
 interior of the country. The share which belongs 
 to the garden in producing this amelioration is 
 evident from its records, which show that scarcely 
 a garden exists in Bengal, certainly not within 
 twenty or thirty miles from Calcutta, that has not increased at- 
 received supplies of plants from it ; besides large natives. 
 collections being transmitted to all parts of Hin- 
 dostan. Such is the difference of feeling in this 
 respect among the natives of the country that it is 
 gratifying to find, that for one man who used in 
 former times to ask for plants, there are now ten 
 applicants ; and these chiefly among the middling 
 classes, both of Hindoos and Mahomedans. 
 
 Among the useful trees which have been dis- useful trees. 
 tributed, many hundred thousand timber trees, 
 some indigenous in the country, and others intro- 
 
]98 
 
 PRACTICAL BENEFITS OF 
 
 SrbutS' ^"ced from congenial climates, besides their 
 seeds, may be enumerated. Amongst them, the 
 Teak, Mahogany, Logwood, and Casiiarina, hold 
 a conspicuous place, and numbers of these may 
 now be seen growing in great luxuriance in the 
 northern provinces, at least as far as one thousand 
 
 Teak; miles from Calcutta. The Teak is of slow growth, 
 
 requiring from sixty to eighty years to attain the 
 proper size and maturity for ship-building ; but Dr. 
 Wallich states, that thelarge trees in the Calcutta 
 Garden, are equal in size to the generality of 
 those of probably similar age, which he saw in the 
 forests of Martaban, and little inferior to them 
 
 Mahogany; jq ^Jj^ quality of their wood. The Mahogany grows 
 as well in Bengal as in its native country,* and 
 though inferior in fineness of grain to the best 
 kinds, it is at least equal in quality to that of Ja- 
 
 * As an instance of the imperceptible manner in which use- 
 ful plants are introduced into, and distributed through a country, 
 we may adduce the Mahogany, as Dr. Roxburgh in a paper 
 presented to the Society of Arts in 1806, on the growth of Trees 
 in the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, mentions of Mahogany, that 
 two plants (and these were the first introduced into India,) 
 were sent by the Honourable the Court of Directors to the 
 Botanic Garden in 1795, and by the end of 1804, above five 
 hundred plants had been reared from these two. It succeeds 
 so perfectly well in the East Indies, that the tree will, without 
 doubt in a few years, form a valuable acquisition to that 
 country. — Soc. of Arts Trans, vol. xxiv. p. 154. — The tree is 
 now common in the Northern as well as Southern India, yet 
 so little is known of such subjects, that some seed was sent to 
 India only last year by the overland mail. 
 
THE CALCUTTA GARDEN. 199 
 
 maica. Of the native woods there are a great Mahogany, 
 variety, and of every quality, which it is unne- 
 cessary here even to mention further. To bring 
 as many as possible of these into general cultiva- 
 tion has been, and must always be, one of the 
 primary objects of the institution. 
 
 The Garden has likewise been extensively Fruit trees; 
 beneficial to the country in the distribution of 
 fruit trees; a fact best proved by comparing the 
 quantities that are annually sent from thence, 
 with the manifest improvement that has taken 
 place in the fruit-markets and gardens. Not only 
 have the indigenous plants been improved, but 
 foreign fruits of various kinds have been intro- 
 duced, as the Sapota, Otaheite Apple, Alligator 
 Pear, Litchee, Loquat, Wampee, Mabolo. Be- 
 sides, the Guava, Custard Apple, Soursop, Pum- introduced into 
 
 1 T-»' 1 lii -ii 1- and distributed 
 
 plemoose, rme-apple, and others, mtroduced at throughout in- 
 earlier periods, with its own indigenous fruits, 
 such as the Mangoe, Plantain, and Orange. But 
 it is not to be expected, as some seem inclined 
 to think, that with these, the Apple, Pear, Goose- 
 berry, and Currant, will be found growing; as if 
 Calcutta was a temperate climate. Many of the 
 above fruit trees, such as all the Chinese and 
 West-India fruits, were originally introduced into 
 India by the Calcutta Botanic Garden, and all 
 the others have been greatly improved. 
 
 The Lansa, a Malayan fruit of very delicate Fruit trees 
 
 n 1 111 \ ■ ^^ 1 f T-1 distributed. 
 
 flavour, has lately been multiplied for distribu- 
 tion ; and even the Mangosteen and Bread fruit- 
 trees have so far become accustomed to the cli- 
 
200 
 
 CALCUTTA GARDEN. 
 
 Botanic Gar- 
 den a place of 
 resort for in- 
 habitants of 
 Calcutta. 
 
 mate, as to endure the hot weather, and the fogs 
 of the cold season, without injury. The Nutmeg, 
 which during many years has existed in the Cal- 
 cutta Garden, and even produced ripe fruit, has, 
 by a slight modification of the treatment, become 
 less impatient of the climate. The Cherimolia, a 
 fruit of new Spain, which is described by Hum- 
 boldt as being of very excellent quality, thrives 
 well in Bengal ; but though it flowers annually, it 
 has not yet ripened its fruit. 
 
 As a magnificent garden, laid out in a beautiful 
 manner and stored with the choicest vegeta})le 
 productions, the Calcutta Garden has during 
 many years been visited by all classes of people 
 for the sake of harmless, rational, and useful 
 recreation. Persons of all nations and ranks, both 
 European and natives, resort to it, and are freely 
 admitted, having liberty to walk over all the 
 grounds, and to examine every plant and species 
 of cultivation. The Garden is accordingly much 
 frequented at all seasons of the year, but more 
 particularly in the hot and cold seasons, during 
 which on Sundays and Holydays, when public 
 offices are shut, and no business is transacted, it 
 is frequently crowded by individuals and families 
 who come down to enjoy a day of coolness, pure 
 air, and relaxation.* 
 
 * The substance of the above observations is extracted from 
 the report mentioned at p. 192, on the practicaKbenefits of the 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden by Dr. Wallich, its present superin- 
 tendent. 
 
201 
 
 Establishment of the Saharunpore 
 
 Botanic Garden. 
 In the preceding part of these observations, we British posses- 
 
 . 1 1^ 1 1 I I J. sions in India ; 
 
 have seen that 13engal and the south-eastern parts diversified na- 
 of India, where the great heat is tempered by the ^^^ ° ' 
 moisture of the climate, are suited to the culture 
 of the Silk-worm. That the table land of India, 
 and the tract along the north-western boundary, 
 alone appear suited to the pasturing of Merino- 
 bred Sheep, likely to be valuable for their Wool. 
 While the Himalayas, already supporting a breed, 
 valuable both for their carcass and for their 
 fleece, seem from their abundant pasturage, and 
 European, almost insular climate, to be better 
 suited to support the valued breeds of England. 
 These facts are sufficient to indicate the great 
 extent and diversified nature of the British domi- 
 nions in India. 
 
 We know that these possesions extend from extent of; 
 8° to 31° of north latitude; the long extended 
 coasts washed by a tropical ocean, the wide plains 
 stretching far to the north, the elevated table- 
 land and hilly regions, and the range of the loftiest 
 mountains in the world, rising from the tropical character of j 
 plains into elevated regions of the atmosphere, 
 give us as great a variety and gradation of tempe- 
 rature as is met with in proceeding from the 
 Equator to either Pole. 
 
 But as the whole of British India is under 
 the influence of the rainy season, a considerable 
 
202 
 
 ESTABLISHMENT OF THE 
 
 British Posses- degree of uniformity of temperature and of mois- 
 
 sions in India, '^ _ ^ i 
 
 climate of; tuie is produced throughout the country during 
 their prevalence. The northern plains being dry 
 and open, are both hotter in the summer and 
 colder in the winter than the moist climate of 
 Bengal ; but they have the advantage, with their 
 dryness and cold, of enjoying the latter for a 
 longer period. This produces a very delightful 
 and healthful climate from October to April, 
 which allows of the cultivation with great ease dur- 
 ing this season of the annuals of more temperate 
 culture of climatcs. Hence it is evident, that the horticul- 
 ferent from that tural experience of the garden situated near 
 provinces. Calcutta, will in a great measure be inapplicable 
 to the plains of Northern India, as the difficul- 
 ties in culture of the one situation will often prove 
 the most easy in the other. A different field, 
 therefore, is required to ascertain the effects of 
 physical agents on vegetation in the Worth, and to 
 introduce suitable plants from other countries for 
 subsequent distribution ; so as to produce the 
 same effects for the northern, as has been proved 
 to have been the case in the southern provinces. 
 
 To obviate the inconveniences of depending 
 only on the results of an institution situated in a 
 part of the country so distant, and in one wiiich 
 differs so much in climate, and to benefit by the 
 advantages of one placed in the midst of the 
 country which is to profit by it ; there is fortu- 
 nately a public Garden nearly at the most nor- 
 thern limit of the British territories, and in one of 
 
 Public garden 
 at Saharun- 
 pore ; 
 
£. I. Company. 
 
 SAHARUNPORE BOTANIC GARDEN. 203 
 
 the most eligible situations for such a purpose, ^^^"^^^'^g 
 This was established by the Native Governments established by 
 
 •^ natives ; 
 
 which preceded the British. Zabita Khan appro- 
 priated in 1779 the revenues of seven villages for 
 its maintenance. Gholam Khadir, as well as the 
 Mahratta princes after him, continued the same 
 revenue until the time of Bapoo Scindia, who re- 
 duced the establishment to two villages. The 
 Marquis of Hastings, on his visit to the Upper 
 Provinces, determined, with the enlightened views 
 for which he was distinguished, that what was 
 established with the limited views of an Asiatic formed into a 
 
 -I L botanic garden 
 
 prmce on such subjects, should contribute to the in isn, by the 
 advancement of Science, at the same time that 
 it increased the comforts of the people, and ad- 
 ministered to the tastes of the most civilized 
 European. He therefore recommended the insti- 
 tution to be formed into a Botanic Garden.* 
 
 * Extract from a Public General letter from the Honourable 
 the Court of Directors, dated the 28th June 1820. 
 
 "86. We have perused with great pleasure the very inte- 
 resting Memoir, by Dr. Govan, upon the advantages derivable 
 from the Botanic Garden at Saharunpore, connected with the 
 object of exploring the Natural History of the Himalayan 
 Mountains, near the base of which the Garden is said to be 
 situated. 
 
 " 87. Although it appears that at its first formation, in 1779, 
 a very liberal provision was made by the Maharattas for its 
 maintenance, which was continued till 1801, and then reduced 
 to a more moderate sum, yet there is but too much proof in the 
 documents now before us of the Garden having gone into a 
 
204 
 
 INTRODUCTION OF PLANTS 
 
 Dr. GiH'an ap- 
 pointed super 
 intendent. 
 
 Plants intro- 
 duced from 
 Calcutta and 
 Himalayas. 
 
 Dr. Govan was appofnted the first Superin- 
 tendent in June 1817. Many preliminary mea- 
 sures were required to be completed, before the 
 Garden could be made available, either as a use- 
 ful or a scientific institution. When first seen by 
 the Marquis of Hastings, in 1816, it had degene- 
 rated pretty nearly into a grove of self-sown 
 Mangoe trees ; and in a few clear patches kitchen 
 vegetables were cultivated. Much therefore re- 
 mained to be done after the rooting out of nume- 
 rous useless trees, before soil so exhausted could 
 be renovated, or the interrupted succession of 
 its valuable fruit trees restored by engrafting, and 
 its proper objects, as a Botanical establishment, 
 even entered upon. Many useful and ornamental 
 Plants and Trees were introduced, from the Cal- 
 cutta Botanic Garden, and from the Himalayan 
 Mountains, which Dr. Govan had opportuni- 
 ties of occasionally visiting and examining. — 
 Continued indisposition compelled him to leave 
 India, and visit, first, the Cape of Good Hope, 
 
 state of rapid decay whilst under the immediate charge of the 
 natives. 
 
 ** 88. As you entertain a strong impression from the various 
 local advantages of the Garden, especially in regard to climate 
 and soil, and the rich resources of the neighbouring countries, 
 that with proper management considerable advantages would 
 be derived, not only to science, but in the conduct of the affairs 
 of the Company, we shall not withhold our sanction to any 
 moderate expense which may be incurred in promoting the 
 objects of so useful and laudable an institution." 
 
INTO THE SXHARUNPORE GARDEN. 205 
 
 and, subsequently, England, for the recovery of Dr. Covan on 
 his health. While in Edinburgh he presented graphy of 
 
 Himalayas. 
 
 to the Royal Society there, a Memoir on the Na- 
 tural History and Physical Geography of the 
 Himalayas between the Sutlej and the Jumna, 
 which is published in the second volume of 
 Brewster's Journal of Science.* 
 
 * Dr. Go van, on his return to India in 1826, was at- 
 tached to the Geographical and INIinerological survey of the 
 Himalayas, which had been instituted in 1823, under charge of 
 Capt. Herbert, and was appointed to prosecute Botanical re- 
 searches in the same region ; that is from the Kali to the east- 
 ward, and the Sutlej to the westward, more especially with 
 respect to the Geographical distribution of plants ; respecting 
 which he wrote — *' The Geography of the plants and vegetable 
 productions of the Himalayan districts, a subject equally worthy 
 of attention, whether considered with reference to the foreign 
 vegetable products capable of being introduced there to the 
 manifest advantage and improvement of the districts them- 
 selves, and the direction of the industry of the population, to 
 the development of those resources over which their varied 
 clime and soil gives them power, or to the valuable shrubs and 
 trees capable of being furnished from thence to our native 
 Island, where I have been pleased to observe many of the 
 Himalayan plants flourishing as in the native soil." 
 
 Dr. Wallich in reference to the same subject states, " It is 
 not the mere investigation of vegetables with reference to the 
 absolute number, their structure, the endless variety of their 
 forms, their properties, their uses and artificial dissemination 
 in other countries, it is also necessary to attend to the relations 
 which the plants bear to the physical Geography of their res- 
 pective stations, to mark their absolute and relative properties, 
 to compare them with those of other regions, corresponding 
 either in the nature of their formation, or in the similarity 
 of their elevation or latitude, in one word, to fix their Geogra- 
 phical history." 
 
206 
 
 SITUATION OF THE 
 
 Garden subse- 
 quently neg- 
 lected. 
 
 The Author 
 appointed Su- 
 perintendent ; 
 
 succeeded by 
 Dr. Falconer. 
 
 Situation of 
 Saharunpore. 
 
 Subsequent to Dr. Govan's departure, the Gar- 
 den was left under the charge of the Medical 
 Officer of the station, and of the head native 
 gardener, who, being more solicitous respecting 
 the culture of saleable produce in the Garden 
 than of the ultimate objects of such an institution, 
 neglected much of what had been introduced, 
 and allowed it to return very nearly to the state 
 in which it had been found by the Marquis of 
 Hastings. 
 
 The Author was appointed Superintendent in 
 1823, and retained the appointment until the 
 rainy season of 1831. He was succeeded by Dr. 
 Falconer, who continues the present Superinten- 
 dent. The plans adopted for making the institu- 
 tion efficient for the several purposes contem- 
 plated in its establishment, have been detailed in 
 several reports, and are briefly recapitulated in 
 one presented by the Author to Lord William 
 Bentinck, then Governor-General, on his visiting 
 and inspecting the Garden in March 1831. This 
 was printed with a plan of the Garden in the 
 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Calcutta for 
 February 1832, and the results, in a Scientific 
 and Botanical point of view, have been more 
 fully dwelt upon in a work especially devoted to 
 illustrating the Botany and other Branches of the 
 Natural History of the Himalayan Mountains, 
 and of the Flora of Cashmere. 
 
 The situation of Saharunpore, in point of lati- 
 tude, its elevation, vicinity to the hills, the near- 
 ness of water to the surface, and facility of irriga- 
 
SAHAIIUNPORE BOTANIC GARDEN. 207 
 
 tiou from the Doab Caoal, make it particularly Eligibility of 
 
 , Saharunpore 
 
 eligible for the purpose of a Botanic Garden. The for a Botanic 
 parallel of latitude of 30®, or that which nearly 
 passes through it, embraces in its course a greater 
 variety of interesting country than any other, and 
 as temperature is dependant upon latitude, and 
 may be deduced by a formula, simple and suffi- 
 ciently accurate for practical purposes, it will be 
 found that the vegetable productions in the vici- 
 nity of this parallel, will have a considerable 
 general resemblance to each other. For the 
 vegetation of different countries depends in a 
 great measure upon their climate, and the plants 
 of one country will easily grow in another which 
 possesses a similar climate. 
 
 Besides the latitude and elevation, which is climate; 
 about 1000 feet, the climate of Saharunpore is 
 particularly favourable for the introduction into 
 India of the plants of more temperate countries. 
 The temperature for nearly six months in the 
 year is sufficiently European for the cultiva- 
 tion of most of the annuals of that part of the 
 globe, while the cold is not sufficiently great, nor 
 long enough continued, to destroy the plants of 
 southern countries, with the exception only of 
 such tropical ones as cannot bear any frost. 
 
 Though there may be some earlier, the best culture in coia 
 crops of European vegetables and medicinal plants months. 
 are those obtained from seed sown in November, 
 about which time Wheat and Barley are sown. 
 After this, the weather becomes steadily colder 
 
208 
 
 CLIMATE OF SAIIARUNPORE. 
 
 Climate of 
 Saharunpore 
 in cold wea- 
 ther; 
 
 in hot wea- 
 ther; 
 
 and rainy sea- 
 son. 
 
 Desirableness 
 of a nursery in 
 the mountains. 
 
 until Christmas, when some heavy rain usually 
 occurs^ but this is sometimes deferred to a later 
 period : the mean temperature of the months of 
 November, December, January, and February, 
 being 64°, 55°, 52°, and 55°. During this season 
 the growth of indigenous perennials is stopped, 
 as well as of the herbaceous plants of warm coun- 
 tries. In March, a rapid rise takes place in the 
 mean temperature of the month, and the increase 
 amounting to 12°, is a sufficiently powerful sti- 
 mulus, to accelerate rapidly the vegetation of the 
 Spring. About the beginning or middle of April 
 the hot winds begin to blow, and continue to do 
 so until the middle of June, when the maximum 
 of temperature, about 107°, is attained. The mean 
 temperature of the months of March, April, May, 
 and June, is 67°, 78°, 85°, 90°. About the 15th or 
 20th of June, the rainy season commences, the 
 temperature is then moderated, the means of the 
 months of July, August, September, and Octo- 
 ber, being 85°, 83°, 79°, 72°, but universal mois- 
 ture, suitable to the culture of Tropical annuals, as 
 Rice, &c., is diffused. The rains terminate about 
 the middle or end of September, and according 
 to this, the diminution of temperature whicli 
 ushers in the cold weather, is late or early. 
 
 Though the temperature at Saharunpore is 
 lower in winter, and the cool weather longer 
 continued, than in the more southern parts of 
 the Great Gangetic valley, yet the climate is 
 essentially Indian, and as such is unsuited to the 
 
ESTABLISHMENT OF HILL NURSERIES. 209 
 
 culture of many plants in their young state, climate of sa- 
 
 1 • I 1 n ti ' 1 1 • harunporeun- 
 
 wnich may yet be successiuily introduced into suited to many 
 the plains of India. These require to be taken ^^*' 
 care of when in a tender state, and to be brought 
 by degrees to bear the extremes of temperature. 
 It is therefore desirable to have the means of 
 giying protection, or of producing an artificial 
 climate, such as in Europe is effected by Green- 
 houses and Hot-houses, or to have the power of 
 makinsr our experiments in a cooler climate, dur- cooler cUma 
 
 ^ t' . ' desirable; 
 
 ing the seasons when heat and dryness, or heat 
 and moisture prevail in the plains. This, very for- 
 tunately, is easily attained, and in the most de- 
 sirable manner, that is, by a natural instead of attainable in 
 
 the moun- 
 
 an artificial climate. The Saharunpore Garden be- tains. 
 ing situated within thirty miles of the Himalayan 
 Mountains, the elevation of which affords us the 
 same diminution of temperature which we obtain 
 by proceeding to higher latitudes, whether in the 
 northern or the southern hemisphere. 
 
 The advantages of such a situation were too Nursery esta- 
 
 I • ^ 1 • ^ r i /• blished by Dr. 
 
 obvious to be lost sight of ; very soon, therefore GovanonSuen 
 after the establishment of the garden at Saha- 
 runpore, a site for a nursery was selected by 
 Dr. Govan on the Suen Range to the northward 
 of Nahn. Though eligible in point of climate 
 and from facility of irrigation, it had the disad- 
 vantage of having a large river like the Jumna 
 intervening between it and the Superintendence 
 at Saharunpore. This impeded the ready commu- 
 nication which is so necessary, from the impos- 
 
 p 
 
210 
 
 CLIMATE OP THE 
 
 Nursery esta- 
 blished by the 
 Author on 
 Mussooree 
 range. 
 
 Advantages to 
 inhabitants of 
 Himalayas ; 
 
 elevation of 
 from6 to 7,000 
 feet; 
 
 sibility of insuring the exertions of natives when 
 removed from inspection and control. The 
 range of the Himalayas which extends between 
 the Ganges and Jumna rivers, and which rises 
 immediately above the Deym Doon, having in late 
 years become better known and more accessible, 
 afforded all the advantages, without the disadvan- 
 tages, of the former site. A new site, therefore, 
 was selected in the year 1826 by the Author, for 
 a nursery, in the neighbourhood of the stations 
 in the Himalayas, now so well known as Mussoo- 
 ree and Landour. 
 
 The results of experiments made in such a 
 situation would be of trifling consequence, if 
 considered merely in reference to the Garden, of 
 which it is an accessory ; but they become of con- 
 siderable importance, when viewed as the source 
 whence plants and seeds suitable to the soil and 
 climate are to be distributed to the inhabited 
 parts of the Himalayan Mountains. The inha- 
 bitants of these, being enabled in their cool cli- 
 mate to produce more of the useful articles of 
 northern latitudes, which are in request in the 
 plains, would have the means, as they now have the 
 inclination, to purchase more of those products 
 which are analogous to, or identical with, those 
 of tropical countries in general, and which are 
 grown in the plains of India. 
 
 The above range, at an elevation of from six 
 to seven thousand feet, enjoys a delightful climate. 
 From the middle of November, and during the win- 
 
HIMALAYAN NUKSERY. 211 
 
 ter months of December, January, and February, Mussooree 
 
 range ; 
 
 the cold is moderate, that is, the thermometer sel- climate of ; 
 dom sinks below the freezing point, and the mean 
 temperature of these four months is 50°, 45°, 42°, "^ean tempe- 
 
 r ' rature of. 
 
 and 45°. The season of cultivation is from March 
 
 to October, the dry weather continuing until the dry weather." 
 
 middle of June, about which time the greatest 
 
 heat (80°) occurs. The mean temperature of the 
 
 months of March, April, May, and June, is 53°, 
 
 59°, 66"", and 67°. The accession of the rainy 
 
 season causes little diminution of temperature, rainy season. 
 
 and it continues remarkably equable ; the mean 
 
 temperature of the months of July, August, and 
 
 September, being 67°, 66% 64", and that of 
 
 October 57°. During the latter month, or at the 
 
 conclusion of the rainy season, the sky is clear 
 
 and serene, the air mild and still, and the climate 
 
 very delightful. 
 
 In the Plains, the rainy season is,^of course, Plains of n. 
 that in which Rice and other tropical grains and 
 vegetables may be sown. Some of them, as Rice rainy season 
 itself, may also be sown and attain perfection in 
 the mountains during the same period of the 
 year. The moderate temperature in the plains, moderate tem- 
 
 1 1 /. TVT 1 »« 1 1 peraturesof; 
 
 however, extends from JNovember to March, and 
 in the mountains from March till the middle of 
 June, and with rain from that to October. We aisoofhuisj 
 may take advantage of the months adapted for 
 cultivation in the hills and plains, and obtain 
 a complete year of moderate climate, suited to year of mode- 
 the germination of seeds, and for the growth obtained. 
 
 p2 
 
212 
 
 PLANS ADOPTED FOK 
 
 Plants thus 
 introduced into 
 Sabanuipore 
 Garden. 
 
 Plans adopted 
 for improving 
 the Garden ; 
 
 wells sunk ; 
 
 cut from Doab 
 Canal ; 
 
 ground 
 trenched ; 
 
 of the plants of temperate climates, of every 
 part of the globe. In fact, many plants were 
 thus actually introduced and preserved in the 
 Saharunpore Garden, which, if confined to either 
 situation, while young, would have been destroy- 
 ed by the hot winds of the plains, or killed in the 
 mountains, by the frost of winter. 
 
 On the Author taking charge of the Garden, it 
 required, first, to be cleared of much exuberant 
 vegetation, and then the plans upon which it was 
 laid out to be much modified, so as to adapt 
 it to the English style of gardening. The surface 
 was levelled or sloped, a free communication 
 effected with every part by means of new roads ; 
 and as irrigation is the object of primary impor- 
 tance in the north of India — as it is in the 
 south of Europe — additional wells were sunk, 
 and the Persian wheel introduced, to facilitate 
 the raising of water. These were all afterwards in 
 a great measure superseded, a cut from the Doab 
 Canal being obtained, which, running through 
 the garden, much facilitated the almost constant 
 irrigation, that at some seasons of the year is 
 indispensable to the existence even of herbaceous 
 vegetation in the upper provinces. Pieces of 
 water were also formed for aquatic plants. The 
 uncultivated parts of the garden were laid in 
 Doob grass, and the cultivated parts, as well as 
 the borders of the roads, were trenched to the 
 depth of two feet. By this means the clayey 
 substratum became well mixed with the sandy 
 
IMPROVING SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 213 
 
 surface, when the whole was improved and en- sahamnpore 
 
 Garden. 
 
 riched by the addition of vegetable and animal 
 manure. Some English tools were introduced, English tools 
 and the use of wheelbarrows made general. A '° 
 conservatory was also built, where the plants of Conservatory 
 warm countries could be protected from the cold 
 of winter, and those introduced from the hills, 
 equally saved from the scorching effects of solar 
 radiation, during the months of the hot weather. 
 
 In order to ensure due attention being paid to Garden divided 
 the respective objects contemplated in the insti- ments, 
 tution of the garden, it was divided into several 
 departments. In one, plants were arranged as 
 objects of Botanical investigation. In another. Botanical, 
 those devoted to Agricultural experiments, and Agricultural, 
 in a third, to Horticultural purposes. Of the andHorticui- 
 plants introduced from the Himalayas, some were 
 planted in nurseries, others in an artificial rock 
 work, and some in flower-pots in the conserva- 
 tory ; but in all the soil was enriched by the ad- 
 dition of decayed vegetable matter. Nurseries Nurseries 
 
 . 1 g-\ 1 formed, for 
 
 were likewise made for Fruit, and Ornamental Hiu plants. 
 Trees, and for Shrubs for general distribution, omamentsd 
 A portion of the garden was allotted for the Ex- nai plants, and 
 perimental Medicinal garden, and another as a 
 Nursery of Timber trees for the Delhi and Doab 
 canals. 
 
 As the climate has been shown, at different Sahanmpore. 
 seasons of the year, to partake of the nature climate. 
 both of tropical and of temperate parts of the 
 world, so it will be tbund that the vegetation. 
 
214 
 
 USEFUL PLANTS CULTIVATED 
 
 Sahanmpore. 
 Correspon- 
 dence of cli- 
 mate, vegeta^ 
 tion, and culti- 
 vation. 
 
 KhureeffOi rain 
 crop; 
 
 Rubbee crop. 
 
 Plants culti- 
 vated in cold 
 weather ; 
 
 in ramy season. 
 
 natural to the country, partakes of the same 
 double characteristic. We shall therefore be less 
 surprised at finding the cultivation participating 
 also in this double nature, and that the north- 
 ern like the southern part of India, enjoys two 
 crops during the year, the one called the khureef^ 
 or rain crop, sown in June, and reaped in Octo- 
 ber, the other sown in October, and reaped in 
 March and April, called the ruhbee crop. The 
 latter, embracing the months which approximate 
 in temperature to that of the seasons of cultivation 
 in colder countries, corresponds with them also 
 in the nature of the plants cultivated, as for in- 
 stance, Wheat, Barley, Oats, and Millet, Peas, 
 Beans, Vetch, Tares, Chick-peas, Pigeon-peas, 
 and Lentils ; Tobacco, SafBower, and Succory ; 
 Flax, and plants allied to Mustard and Rape, as 
 Oil Seeds ; Carrot, Coriander, Cummin, and other 
 seeds of a similar kind, as ajwainy sonf^ soya, 
 aneeson. Hemp exists in abundance in a wild 
 state, but is only used for making an intoxicating 
 drug. Almost all the esculent vegetables of 
 European countries succeed remarkably well in 
 the cold weather in India. 
 
 In the rainy season, a totally different set of 
 plants engages the agriculturist's attention, as 
 Rice, Cotton, Indigo, and Maize, with Sor- 
 ghum, joar, koda, most of the tropical legumes, 
 as well as several of the Cucumber and Gourd 
 tribe, together with the Sesamura for Oil, and 
 the varieties of the Egg plant, as a vegetable. 
 
IN THE SAHABUNPORE GARDEN. 215 
 
 The Sun and Sunnee, two cordage plants, are also 
 cultivated at this season. 
 
 As exemplifications of what has already been ^[^^.^J^^* 
 eflfected in the naturalization of plants, and as ^^j^^" 
 guides in the course which it would appear pro- 3^^°^. 
 per to follow, it may be useful to indicate some 
 of the plants of different countries which have 
 already been naturalized in the open air in the 
 Saharunpore Garden. We may now see there, 
 many of the plants and trees of very different 
 countries, as of India, China, Cabool, Europe, 
 and America collected together, and naturalized 
 in the open air. 
 
 Of those of southern latitudes, for which the ot soufliem 
 
 latitudes ; 
 cold of the Saharunpore climate is not too se- 
 vere, we may mention the Plantain, Shaddock, 
 Orange, Lemon, Mango, Tamarind, Jack fruit, 
 with the Cinnamon, Sweet Laurel, and many 
 others. 
 
 Of those from more northern climates, such as of northern 
 
 climates. 
 Cabool and Cashmere, for which the parching 
 
 heats of May and June, and the tepid moisture 
 of the rains have not been so unfavourable but 
 to allow of their naturalization in the Saharun- 
 pore climate, may be mentioned the Almond, 
 Peach, Nectarine, Plum, Pomegranate, Walnut, 
 Apple, Quince, Grape Vine, Mulberry, and Fig. 
 Of Chinese fruits, the Leechee, Loquat, Longan, 
 Wampee, Flat Peach, and digitated Citron are 
 perfectly naturalized. Where these plants not 
 only grow but flourish and perfect their fruit, 
 
216 
 
 PLA.NT8 NATURALIZED 
 
 Plants of 
 northern cli- 
 mates. 
 
 Acclimation of 
 
 Himalayan 
 
 plants. 
 
 there can be no difficulty in introducing others 
 from the same localities. 
 
 But the greatest variety of plants which have 
 been acclimated are those which have been pro- 
 cured from the Himalayas, and this does not pro- 
 ceed from their more easy naturaliization, but 
 from the greater facility of communication. The 
 difference between the climate of the hills and 
 that of the plains is much greater than what 
 occurs in places differing only in latitude, for not 
 only the temperature of the atmosphere, but also 
 its pressure and density differ, as do likewise 
 the quantity of light, and the variations between 
 dryness and moisture. The success has, notwith- 
 standing, been very considerable, and may, no 
 doubt, be much extended, as far as plants from 
 six and seven thousand feet of elevation are con- 
 cerned. 
 
 Trees and Shrubs. 
 
 
 Oak 
 
 Dogwood 
 
 Juniper 
 
 
 Fir 
 
 Service tree 
 
 Yew and Box 
 
 
 Maple 
 
 Horse Chesnut 
 
 Buck thorn 
 
 
 Holly 
 
 Black thorn 
 Fruits. 
 
 Spindle tree 
 
 
 Apple 
 
 Apricot 
 
 Walnut 
 
 
 Pear 
 
 Cherry 
 
 Flowers. 
 
 Barberry 
 
 
 Primula 
 
 Polentilla 
 
 Thyme 
 
 
 Viola 
 
 Geum 
 
 Gentian 
 
 
 Clematis 
 
 Delphinium 
 
 Hypericum 
 
 
 Anemone Aconitum 
 
 Spira?a 
 
 Climate of 
 
 As the 
 
 climate of the hills 
 
 rrsembles that of 
 
 hills. 
 
 European 
 
 countries, the transition is easy, from 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 217 
 
 consideration of the plants of the former to cultivation of 
 
 ^ _ plants of Eu- 
 
 that of those of the latter. The success in ac- ropeinnorth- 
 
 em India. 
 
 climating in the plains of the north of India 
 many of the perennial plants of the south of 
 Europe, or what botanists call the Mediterranean 
 region, would, no doubt, be considerable. But 
 Saharunpore is remote from the sea, the means 
 of obtaining European plants are few and diffi- 
 cult, and seeds in a vegetative state arrive but 
 seldom. The introduction, however, of the various 
 European kitchen garden vegetables, and the 
 successful cultivation of many of the flowers, as 
 well as of the Medicinal plants of Europe, affords 
 the most rational prospect of the eventual suc- 
 cess, being only limited by the means afforded for 
 insuring it. 
 
 In proceeding westward in the latitude of Sa- Plants of Per- 
 
 . - . . sia, Arabia, and 
 
 harunpore, the countries of which it is most de- Egypt. 
 sirable to acclimate the productions, are Arabia, 
 Egypt, and the lower parts of Persia. As there is 
 a considerable resemblance between the botany 
 of these and that of the upper provinces of India^ 
 and as some of their fruits have already been 
 introduced, while others, as well as many of their 
 vegetable and useful productions are the same as 
 those of India, there is no doubt that a consider- 
 able proportion of their valuable products, as 
 Assafcetida, Ammoniacum, Galbanum, Sagape- 
 mim, Opoponax, Myrrh, Aloes, and others might 
 be naturalized at Saharunpore, or between it and 
 its mountain nursery, as the Coffee plant flou- 
 
218 
 
 PLANTS NATURALIZED. 
 
 piantsof Mex- rishcs, and Senna is produced in the fullest per- 
 
 ico and North ' r * 
 
 America in fection in the former. 
 
 Himalayas. 
 
 From the similarity in the temperature of parts 
 of Mexico, as also of North America, and the 
 correspondence, in a general point of view, in 
 vegetation, between them and the Mussooree 
 range, it would be quite possible to acclimate in 
 the nursery there, many of the natural produc- 
 tions of the western world. Some of the plants 
 of America, though from very different parts of the 
 continent, have already succeeded remarkably well 
 in the Saharunpore Botanic Garden, such as the 
 Mahogany, Logwood, Sapota, Pimento or Allspice, 
 Cherimolia, and Ash-leaved Maple. It would, 
 therefore, be easy to naturalize many others. 
 
 The countries in the southern hemisphere, 
 which have the nearest approximation in latitude 
 and temperature to northern India, are the Cape 
 of Good Hope and New Holland ; the most popu- 
 lous parts of which are about the thirty-fourth 
 parallel of latitude. Though the vegetation of 
 each is distinguished from that of the other, by 
 possessing a number of genera peculiar to itself, 
 yet there is the closest affinity between that of 
 the two countries, and a marked difference from 
 that of every other. They possess indeed but few 
 plants in common, yet we must not, from this cir- 
 cumstance, conclude that the plants of the Cape 
 and of New Holland will not succeed in India. 
 We must rather consider the similarity of these 
 countries in latitude and temperature, with the 
 
 Of Cape of 
 Good Hope 
 and New Hol- 
 land. 
 
AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENTS. 219 
 
 northern parts of India ; and that having possessed Plants of Cape 
 themselves of every kind of vegetable and many land. 
 fruit trees known in other parts of the world, 
 some of which are natives of, and the greater 
 number flourish in, India ; so their own'peculiar 
 or useful productions may, no doubt, be as easily 
 transferred to the latter country. Those which 
 have been already attempted, in the open air, 
 in the Saharunpore Botanic Garden, have com- 
 pletely succeeded, such as species of Aloes, Pelar- 
 gonium, Stapelia, Amaryllis, Casuarina, and Me- 
 laleuca Cajeputi, or Kayapootee plant. 
 
 In the Asrricultural department less has been Agricoiturai 
 
 ° ^ * ezpenments. 
 
 done than perhaps might have been effected, but 
 here the chief difficulty to be contended with, is 
 the want of a population, ready to take advantage 
 of any objects of culture that are introduced. 
 Still, much good may be effected by introducing 
 improved kinds of the seeds which the natives 
 themselves are in the habit of sowing, as from 
 this they might be led to adopt new and un- 
 tried cultures. The finest kind of wheat now 
 in the Delhi market is said to have been intro- 
 duced by an European gentleman stationed at 
 Bareilly. The number of articles cultivated in 
 the open fields is very great ; the most impor- 
 tant have been already enumerated, but the ma- 
 jority of them are little known, and are usually 
 included under the term of small grains and 
 pulses. 
 As instances of what may be effected, it may be o^'* 
 
220 
 
 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENTS 
 
 Introduction 
 of Oats ; 
 
 arley ; 
 
 Fodder 
 
 grasses, 
 
 mentioned, that Oats were originally cultivated 
 by Dr. Go van in the Saharunpore Garden, and 
 were spread both in the district and in the hill 
 provinces, but a few gentlemen only employed 
 them for feeding their horses. The Barley of the 
 Himalayas, from ten thousand feet of elevation, 
 was introduced by the Author into the Saharun- 
 pore Garden, and produced finer crops than any 
 of that cultivated in the neighbouring plains. 
 The species from an equal elevation, on the 
 northern face, so remarkable for its permanent 
 monstrosity of form, was also cultivated, though 
 less successfully. Of plants affording fodder for 
 cattle which were introduced, and grown with 
 success, were the^ Guinea and Fiorin grasses, 
 as well as Lucern, Clover, and Succory. The 
 three last are particularly valuable, as affording 
 green food when there is little or no grass in the 
 country. 
 
 Dr. Falconer has since introduced the nume* 
 rous and fine varieties of Rice cultivated in the 
 Himalayas. Of these, some of the best sorts were 
 at his suggestion distributed to cultivators along 
 the Doab canal. Other grains, peculiar to the 
 Himalayas and the Tibetan region, have also 
 been grown, as well as the remarkable kind of 
 Wheat, mentioned by Mr. Elphinstone as the 
 Huzara wheat. Huzara Wheat, of which the seeds were ob- 
 otaheite Sugar taiucd by Sir A. Burnes. The Otaheite, or Mau- 
 ritius Sugar-cane, has also been introduced* 
 grown most successfully, and distributed in the 
 
 Further experi. 
 meuts by Dr. 
 Falconer. 
 
 Rice. 
 
 Cane. 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 221 
 
 Saharunpore and neighbouring districts. A Sugar-miu 
 sugar-mill, also, after the construction used in the 
 West-Indies, and turned by a water-wheel, was 
 erected, and kept some time in operation, and 
 trouble was taken to have it extensively shown, 
 with the object of enlightening the natives, and 
 removing the prejudice which they entertained 
 against the cultivation of this new variety of cane. 
 
 Attempts were also made by the Author, about cotton-expe- 
 
 * riments on ; 
 
 1829, to improve the cultivation of Cotton, by ex- 
 periments with the Bourbon Cotton, and also 
 with the Tree Cotton of India (Gossypium ar- 
 boreum), which is much esteemed by the natives, 
 for some of the finer kinds of muslin. Samples of 
 both having been submitted to Mr. Saunders, 
 Commercial Resident at Calpee, he pronounced 
 the staple of the Bourbon Cotton to be better Bourbon cot- 
 
 ^ ton; 
 
 than that of the common Cotton of the country 
 
 (G. indicum), which was also sent, and which he India cotton; 
 
 considered to be of very excellent quality. The 
 
 Cotton of the Tree species, however, from its '^"^C'*"^"' 
 
 staple and texture being both good, he considered 
 
 to be the best description of Cotton. But it is 
 
 doubtful whether this species would be profitable 
 
 for culture, and the soil of the garden was too 
 
 good for the Bourbon Cotton, as it always grew 
 
 to a large size, and, notwithstanding much cutting 
 
 down, ran very much into leaf. 
 
 Dr. Falconer has since had opportunities of cJnS!" ^'^' 
 continuing the experiments with other kinds of 
 cotton seed which have been introduced into India, 
 
222 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENTS. 
 
 Upland Geor- as the Upland Georgia, the Egyptian, some fresh 
 
 Peruvian; Barbadoes, and the Peruvian. "The Upland 
 Georgia," he states, "would most undoubtedly 
 be very successful " in the upper provinces, 
 as it ripens its seed before the Bourbon Cotton 
 
 Egyptian. evcn flowcrs. The Egyptian Cotton, also, seemed 
 likely to thrive; for though seed only reached 
 him on the 15th July, six weeks at least too late, 
 and it did not all ripen before the frosts came 
 on, yet what did so was long, fine, and strong 
 in the staple, with large bolls. 
 
 other subjects There are many other subjects of great impor- 
 
 worthy of at- 
 tention, tance which might be mentioned as worthy the 
 
 attention of the agriculturist, because yielding 
 products likely to become of commercial im- 
 portance; but we shall restrict our notice only to 
 those which have been introduced, and which are 
 likely to succeed. 
 Saffron. Saffron is a substance of high commercial value 
 
 in India, and consumed to the full extent which 
 the supply, even at the present high prices, can be 
 brought to, and a great portion of the Hindoo 
 population of India are debarred from its use, 
 though a favourite seasoning in all their dishes, 
 by the advanced price of the article. It is now 
 imported into India both from Persia and Cash- 
 mere ; into the north-western parts of India from 
 the latter only, whence the Author introduced the 
 bulbs which flowered in the Botanic Garden. Dr. 
 Falconer, who has since visited Cashmere, is of 
 opinion that Saffron could be successfully culti- 
 
COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS. 223 
 
 vated in the Himalayas, at heights varying from saffron might 
 six thousand to six thousand five hundred feet in Himalayas. 
 above the sea, and that if it were once brought 
 into the market, the demand for it would be 
 almost unlimited. 
 
 Assafoetida is a substance which, though used Assafoetida, 
 chiefly as a medicine in Europe, is of immense 
 consumption in India. Both Hindoos and Mus- 
 selmans use it as a seasoning to food, and it 
 is brought down in very large quantities to the 
 fair at Hurdwar. A species was found by Dr. 
 Falconer on the most western part of the course 
 of the Indus within the mountains. Plants and 
 seeds having been introduced, he thinks it may 
 be brought into cultivation in the Himalayas. 
 
 In the price currents of Bombay, Calcutta, and Putchuk, 
 Canton, an article is constantly seen under the 
 name of Putchuk y as an import into the last, 
 and an export from the two former places. Of 
 the Putchuk, 6697f bazar maunds, of the value 
 of 99,.903 rupees, were exported from Calcutta in 
 the year 1 837-38 ; it would appear, therefore, that 
 it is a product of some part of the Indian territory. 
 The Author, in comparing specimens of Putchuk 
 procured in Calcutta, with those of a substance 
 which in the northern provinces was called Or- 
 ris-root by some Europeans, and koot by the na- 
 tives, found that they were identical. When in 
 the northern provinces he had learnt that koot or Koot 
 was imported from Lahore. Subsequently he 
 was informed by Mr. Becket, who was long en- 
 
224 
 
 COSTUS OF THE ANCIENTS. 
 
 Koot. 
 
 Costus of the 
 Ancients 
 
 discovered in 
 Cashmere ; 
 
 introduced 
 into Hima- 
 layas. 
 
 gaged in mercantile transactions at Allyghur, 
 that what he bought in northern India by the 
 name of koot, was sold in Calcutta as putchuk^ 
 On consulting the works now in use among the 
 natives in northern India, it was seen that koot 
 was without doubt the Costus of the Ancients. 
 This was highly esteemed by the latter, burnt as 
 incense on their altars, and described by them as 
 being procured from India ; affording a remark- 
 able confirmation, with many others, of the know- 
 ledge which they possessed of the useful products 
 of even remote parts of India. 
 
 On Dr. Falconer's proceeding on his journey 
 to Cashmere, the Author requested him to make 
 inquiries respecting this substance, and he dis- 
 covered that it was exported from the valley in 
 large quantities to the Punjab, whence it finds 
 its way to Bombay and Calcutta : and that it is 
 sold in China at an advance of about three 
 thousand per cent, on the price at which it is 
 gathered in Cashmere. Dr. F. subsequently found 
 it growing in great abundance all round the 
 elevated summits of Cashmere. From the plants 
 with which it is associated, and the circumstances 
 under which the Koot grows, being one of the 
 Compositae, or Thistle tribe, with feathered seed, 
 of which, when once established, the dissemination 
 becomes easy ; Dr. F. has no hesitation in think- 
 ing that it could be produced to an unlimited 
 extent, of the best quality, in the Himalayas at 
 elevations of from seven thousand five hundred 
 
SAHARUNPOKE BOTANIC GARDEN. 225 
 
 to nine thousand feet above the sea, and that the Koot, or Cos- 
 
 r-M • I -111 . tusof the An- 
 
 Choor mountain alone might be broaght m a tew cients. 
 years to produce thousands of maunds of it. 
 Preparatory to diffusing the Koot, or Costus, he 
 has introduced it into the Mussooree nursery. 
 
 The Prangos is another vegetable product Ppngos Hay 
 highly valued in the cold and arid region of 
 Tibet, where it is indigenous, and which Mr. 
 Moorcroft (v. p. 179) thought would be valuable as 
 fodder for sheep and cattle in European countries. 
 Dr. F. found it in Tibet, and also most abun- 
 dantly on Ahatoong, a low trap hill in the valley 
 of Cashmere ; but here it was not so vigorous 
 as in its Tibetan habitat. Though abundant 
 in various directions, the Cashmerians do not 
 esteem it of any value, and Dr. F. is of opinion 
 that its importance has been much over-estimated, 
 in consequence of its being the only food in many 
 of the bleak and barren tracts of Tibet. In Cash- 
 mere, where, far from a deficiency of herbage, 
 there is actually a superabundance of pasture 
 grasses, it is necessarily much less esteemed. 
 The Prangos will, therefore, most probably be a 
 valuable acquisition only in countries devoid of 
 good natural pasturage, and of which the cli- 
 mate is favourable to its growth. 
 
 Fruit trees and vesretables, thougrh of consider- Fruit trees and 
 
 . * . .„ Vegetables. 
 
 able importance in European countries, are still 
 more so in such as derive much of their sub- 
 sistence from the vegetable kingdom. Some of 
 the former also, are likewise important, as form- 
 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 INTRODUCTION OF FRUIT TREES 
 
 Fruits, com- 
 merce of, in 
 Europe ; 
 
 in India; 
 
 Fruits culti-" 
 
 vated in Saba- 
 
 runpore Gar- 
 
 den; 
 
 of India and 
 
 Himalayas, 
 
 China and 
 
 America; 
 
 Cabool and 
 Cashmere. 
 
 Fruit trees of 
 Cashmere in- 
 troduced into 
 Mussooree 
 Nursery; 
 
 ing articles of commerce. We know that fruits 
 which are now cultivated in England, were for- 
 merly imported from France. Even at the pre- 
 sent time, besides dried fruits, we have a consider- 
 able commerce in Oranges from the Azores, and 
 Apples are now imported from New York. So 
 there are great importations of Cocoa and Betel 
 Nuts from more southern countries into India. 
 From the northward also, which is so much 
 cooler in climate, there are importations of those 
 very fruits which have been naturalized in Eu- 
 rope, from the same parts of the world, such as 
 Grapes, Apples, and Quinces: besides others 
 which we receive from the south, as Raisins, 
 Figs, Almonds, Pistachio, and Pine-Nuts. 
 
 The fruit trees of the country, of the finest sorts, 
 were introduced, improved, and distributed, as 
 well as those, of the Himalayas ; also those of 
 China and America, procured originally from the 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden. Some of the fruits 
 of Cabool and Cashmere were obtained by sow- 
 ing the seeds ; others were introduced by send- 
 ing, in 1828, gardeners belonging to the Saha- 
 runpore establishment with the northern mer- 
 chants who bring down fruit for sale. In this 
 way living bulbs of the Saffron of commerce 
 were obtained, as M^ell as of the plant furnishing 
 the true Salep; together with many fruit trees of 
 Cashmere, such as the Apple, Pear, Peach, 
 Nectarine, Plum, Cherry, Walnut, and Grape- 
 Vine. Attempts were also made to obtain some 
 
INTO THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 227 
 
 of the fruit trees of Ensrland, which were at that Fmit trees in- 
 
 ^ ^ troduced into 
 
 time annually imported by the Aorricultural and the Mussooree 
 
 • T» 1 !• nursery. 
 
 Horticultural Society of Calcutta. But the dis- 
 tances are so great, and the modes of transport 
 were so little understood, that only one apple tree 
 arrived alive at Saharunpore, and thus cost no 
 less than £70. It was planted, as well as the 
 Cashmere plants, in the Mussooree Nursery. 
 
 Dr. Falconer, in his visit to Cashmere, had the Farther impor- 
 tations by Dr. 
 best opportunities for obtaining a complete as- Falconer, 
 
 sortment of the Fruit trees of that valley. These 
 he did not fail to introduce into the Saharunpore 
 Grarden and Mussooree Nursery. He has continued 
 the experiments on the improvement of fixiits, 
 introduced additional methods of grafting, and 
 more extensively adopted the indigenous trees 
 of the country as Stocks, such as the Himalayan 
 Pear for European Apples and Pears. He has and improve. 
 also made arrangements for an exchange of the 
 more rare plants of the garden, for the fruit trees 
 of Europe. Dr. F. observes, as, indeed, the Au- 
 thor has also observed, that large quantities of 
 Apples, Pears, and other fruits are annually 
 imported into all the north-western parts of 
 Hindoostan from Cabool and Cashmere. It ad- commerce in 
 mits of little doubt that these fruits could be 
 cultivated to perfection in the Himalayan moun- might be ex- 
 
 • • , ^j'j_ J /• i* ■ J.V J A. tended between 
 
 tarns, at altitudes of from six thousand to seven hiiis and plains, 
 thousand feet above the sea, and an advantage- 
 ous traffic in them established in the hills. An 
 increased supply would lead to cheaper prices, 
 
 q2 
 
228 
 
 CULTURE OF VEGETABLE!^ 
 
 Commerce of 
 fruits might 
 be established. 
 
 Horticulture, 
 
 in the rainy 
 season, 
 
 tropical in 
 nature ; 
 
 in the cold 
 weather, 
 
 like that of Eu- 
 ropean coun- 
 tries. 
 
 Potfttoe!!. 
 
 and beget a greater demand, so that the con- 
 sumption might be augmented to many multi- 
 ples of what it is at present. The speediest mode 
 of accomplishing this desirable end would be 
 by the introduction of all the best cultivated 
 varieties of the Apples, Pears, &c. of England. 
 
 As far as Annual plants are concerned, the 
 Horticulture, like the Agriculture, partakes both 
 of a European and of a Tropical nature. In the 
 rainy season great equability of warmth and mois- 
 ture being diffused over the whole of the plains of 
 India, the same vegetables may then be cultivated 
 at Saharunpore, as in the most southern parts of 
 India. These are all necessarily of a tropical 
 nature, and pains have been taken to bring toge- 
 ther as many as possible of such as are cultivated 
 in different parts of the country. 
 
 In the cold weather, the temperature, as we 
 have seen, approximating in a great measure 
 to that of European countries, most of the 
 vegetables which are common in England, and 
 many of which were introduced by means of the 
 Garden, are cultivated with almost equal success : 
 in the plains of Northern India during the cold 
 weather, but in the Himalayas in the same months 
 as in Europe. 
 
 The Potatoe, that most useful product, may be 
 mentioned as being produced as fine as in any 
 other part of the world, both in the plains and 
 mountains. It was first introduced into the latter 
 by Lieut. Col.Young, who induced the Hill people 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE OARDEiV. 229 
 
 to cultivate this new produce by taking it in Potatoes intro- 
 part payment of their land-tax. He afterwards Himalayas, 
 found a sale for them, among the Europeans 
 in the stations of Deyra, Saharunpore, Kurnaul, 
 and Meerut. It is fortunate also, both for culti- 
 vator and purchasers, that the Potatoes of the 
 Hills come into use about the time that those in 
 the Plains are going out of season. As the 
 Potatoe ripens its seed in the mountains with 
 great facility, advantage has frequently been taken 
 to grow seedling plants, which in the second 
 year have produced very fine and very large 
 potatoes. 
 
 Though the subject is hardly less important, it ^^^tPj^^ 
 would lead into too much detail to notice parti- Saharunpore 
 
 * Garden. 
 
 cularly the many other useful kinds of plants 
 which are cultivated in the Saharunpore Garden, 
 though many general observations are equally 
 applicable to those of the Garden at Calcutta. 
 It may be briefly stated, that there are few of the 
 proximate principles of vesretables which are not proximate 
 
 ^ ' . ? , ^ , principles of 
 
 secreted m large quantities, and of the purest vegetables; 
 quality, by many of the plants cultivated in both 
 gardens, and from thence distributed through- 
 out the country. The products of such plant-s are 
 not only useful for the arts and manufactures of »»«'"* »" art^ 
 
 ^ and form arti- 
 
 the country, but also for those of other parts of cies of com- 
 merce. 
 the world to which they are exported, and thus 
 
 serve to give an impulse to the commerce of 
 
 India. 
 
 Taking these according to the nature of their 
 
230 
 
 USEFUL PLANTS CULTIVATED 
 
 Fecula, or 
 Starch; 
 
 Arrow -root; 
 
 Plants yielding principles, we have whole tribes of plants, in 
 
 Mucilage. f r » i 
 
 which' Mucilage abounds, and which may be 
 used as substitutes for such plants as the Mallow 
 and Linseed. The fine Sugar for which the 
 Saharunpore district is celebrated, is chiefly re- 
 fined by the aid of two plants which are found in 
 most parts of India, these are Kydia calycina, 
 and Hibiscus Abel Moschus. A number of trees 
 
 Gum; yield Gum, which is used in India for a variety of 
 
 purposes, and is likewise exported to foreign coun- 
 tries; but from the careless way in which the 
 natives collect it, as well as from their mixing 
 together the produce of several different trees, 
 the East India Gums are not so much valued in 
 > the market as they otherwise would be. The 
 more common trees yielding Gum, are species of 
 Acacia, as the Babool and Seriss, with the Sera, 
 the Toon, and many others. 
 
 Of plants which yield fecula or Starch, besides 
 Wheat, Barley, Rice, Maize, and the small grains, 
 there are several others with tuberous roots or 
 Root-stocks, which, like the Potatoe, abound in 
 this principle, as the Curcuma or Arrow-root of 
 India ; the Yam, Sweet Potatoe, and species o f 
 Arum and Dioscorea, as well as the stems of 
 
 Sago; species of Phcenix. The Sago Palm and the 
 
 true West India Maranta have been introduced 
 into Calcutta, and very excellent Arrow-root 
 prepared there ; and the Tapioca or Cassava 
 plant is now common in Gardens in most parts 
 of India, Those which abound in Saccharine 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 231 
 
 principle are of less importance, as the Sugar sugar Cane; 
 Cane is so easily cultivated, and with care, ex- 
 cellent sugar is produced almost every where. In 
 Bengal, large quantities of Sugar are prepared Date—sugar 
 from the wild Date tree of India, and might be 
 obtained from other species of Palms. Very good 
 Salep is yielded by a plant of the Kheree jungle saiep; 
 in the neighbourhood of Saharunpore, and the 
 true Salep plant was introduced from near Cash- 
 mere into the Mussooree Nursery. 
 
 A multitude of plants yield fixed oils by expres- Fatty oUsj 
 sion of their seeds; of these, some are well known, 
 as Sesamum, Poppy, and Linseed, with substi- 
 tutes for Mustard and Rape. The seeds of Saf- 
 flower, Sunflower, and Jerusalem Artichoke also 
 yield oil in large quantities. That of the Apricot 
 of the Himalayas, which is cheap and abun- 
 dant, was sent down to Calcutta, and highly ap- 
 proved of, and the oil of Prinsepia utilis is also of 
 fine quality. Some plants yield a fatty substance, of 
 the consistence of butter, as the Phulwa or Ghee- 
 tree of Almora. Of Volatile oils, the number is Voiatae oUs. 
 nearly as great as that of the plants which have 
 odorous flowers or leaves, though but few of them 
 are employed for obtaining the oils in a separate 
 state]; yet the attar of the rose is distilled almost 
 every where. The Kayapoottee succeeds in gar- 
 dens, even as far north as Saharunpore, and the 
 Spikenard oil grass is common in the jungles of 
 the neighbourhood. 
 
 The Himalayan Pines almost all abound in Turpentine* 
 
232 
 
 rsEFl'L PLANTS CULTIVATFCD 
 
 Resins ; 
 
 Gum Resins; 
 
 Dyes; 
 
 Turpentine: turpentiiie, and yield tar. One species of these, 
 Pinus long'i folia, succeeds equally well in the 
 plains, and yields turpentine of a very fine qua- 
 lity, from which an excellent Oil of Turpentine 
 may be distilled ; an equally good Resin is left 
 as a residue. Besides this, there are many other 
 trees which yield resins valuable for the diffe- 
 rent arts ; amongst these, that of the Saul tree, 
 and the Olibanum of Boswellia thurifera, are 
 even imported into Europe. Of gum resins, there 
 is the Bdellium, which may be described as an 
 inferior kind of Myrrh. 
 
 Many of the plants are used as dyes, as the 
 flowers of the Dhak, of the Nyctanthes, Safflower, 
 and Toon. Also Turmeric, Pomegranate rind, 
 Myrobolans, Marking Nut, Acacia bark, Lodh, 
 the roots of Al and Munjeet, the Lichen called 
 Chulchelira, and others. Several in tanning, as 
 species of Acacia, Conocarpus, the gum of the 
 Dhak and others. The ashes of almost all will 
 yield Potash, though that of the Plantain seems 
 most valued by the Natives. Acetic acid may 
 be procured from the fermentation of a variety of 
 vegetables. The Lemons and Limes are abundant 
 enough to yield a prolific supply of Citric acid ; 
 the Tartaric may be obtained from the juice of 
 the grape, and the Oxalic from a species of 
 Runiex, as well as from the stalks of the gram 
 or Cicer Arietinum. 
 Cordage plants. Many plants are valued for their Woody fibre, 
 when this is strong and flexible enough to be 
 
 Tanning mate- 
 rials; 
 
 Alkali ; 
 
 Acids; 
 
IN THE SAHAllUNPORE GARDEN. 233 
 
 used for cordage; as the Hemp, Flax, Sun and Hemp, Fiai, 
 
 . __ ^ and cordage 
 
 Sunuee, (the two latter are called Indian Hemp), plants. 
 Chonch, and Isbund, of which the fibre is com- 
 monly called Jute. The Maljhun, Bihul, Koom- 
 bhee, Dhak, are all used for such purposes, as 
 well as the Bhabhur, Dab, andSurkura, kinds of 
 Sedge and of Grass. The Maljhun, Simbhaloo, 
 Jhuo, and Furash, with a species of Willow, have 
 their osiers employed in making baskets, and the 
 leaves and leafstalks of Palms for making fans, 
 &c. Among the timber trees the Saul, Sissoo, Timber trees, 
 and Bamboo are the most valuable, and the most 
 extensively used ; but the Toon, Seriss, Jamoon, 
 Mulberry, and Babool are also much employed. 
 The Teak, Maple, and Casuarina, have become 
 so completely naturalized, that they are exten- 
 sively planted along the Doab canal, and are 
 distributed throughout the upper provinces. 
 
 The system introduced into the Calcutta Bo- Plants distn- 
 tanic Garden of distributing plants and seeds 
 to whoever applies for them, for the purpose of 
 planting, whether Europeans or Natives, is also 
 practised in the Company's Garden at Saharun- 
 pore. It may be interesting to observe the num- 
 bers distributed from a smaller establishment, 
 and in a district less populous, though some of 
 the dispatches were to distant stations, as Deyra, 
 i\ahn, Sabathoo, Kurnaul, xMeerut, Loodhiana, Numbers of 
 Delhi, Hansi, Allygurh. In the year 1829, 3214 and other trees 
 fruit trees and plants were distributed. In 1830, ^ 
 4064, with 10,307 timber trees, to the Doab Canal, 
 
234 MEDICAL PLANTS GROWN 
 
 piTntsTstri^ ^ during the months of July and August. In the 
 
 buted. year 1831, 1509 fruit trees and 6025 other plants 
 
 and timber trees. In 1837, 1269 fruit trees and 
 
 7367 other plants, besides numerous parcels of 
 
 seeds at all times. 
 
 Medicines Grown or Prepared in the Sa- 
 
 HARUNPORE GaRDEN OR ITS HiLL NuRSERY. 
 Medicinal t i t 
 
 plants cuiti- " lu the list of Medicinal Plants* will be observed 
 
 vated. 
 
 many which form the most powerful articles of 
 the European Materia Medica, while others, per- 
 
 * This passage is quoted from the report of 1831 (v. p. 206.) 
 The attention of the Author was more particularly directed to 
 the subject of the Materia Medica of India, at the request of 
 the Medical Board of Bengal. He proceeded to investigate the 
 subject, by having several Persian works on' the subject, col- 
 lated, and in order to get acquainted with things instead of 
 words, made a collection of every article he was able to procure 
 in the bazars, whether used in Medicine or in the Arts. To the 
 Asiatic synonymes he added the Natural History names, so as 
 to connect the science of the West with the products of the 
 East. A rough catalogue of a portion of his Collection was 
 published in the Journal of the Asiatic Society, vol. I., Calcutta 
 1832, and the Medical and Physical Society of Calcutta adopted 
 the Author's suggestion to form a collection of native Materia 
 Medica, to which he contributed the first one hundred speci- 
 mens. The subject has since been attended to, by many of the 
 medical officers of the Establishment, and copious lists pub- 
 lished in the Medical Journals of Calcutta, and great progress 
 is making towards an accurate knowledge of kidian Materia 
 Medica, by the chemical analyses of various substances by Dr. 
 O'Shaughnessy. 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 235 
 
 haps not less valuable, are known only lo native 
 hakeems. So much time has been occupied in 
 preliminary investigations that it is not easy to 
 give an idea of the results that may finally be 
 obtained ; but it may at present be stated in gene- 
 ral terms, that the Materia Medica in use among Indian Materia 
 
 . ... Medica Tery 
 
 the natives of India is very extensive in the num- extensive. 
 ber of its articles. These, according as the know- 
 ledge of them has been derived from the Greeks, 
 through the Arabs and Persians, or from ancient 
 Hindoo works, are the produce either of European 
 or of Asiatic countries. To one unacquainted 
 with the subject, it would appear surprising to be 
 told that the natives of India are in the habit of 
 administering, or rather of prescribing, such me- 
 dicines as Hemlock, Hellebore, Henbane, and 
 Colchicum." 
 
 " But, having derived much of their knowledge Some know- 
 of Medicine from the Greeks, they are naturally derived from 
 anxious to prescribe that which they find praised 
 in their works. Most of the articles, however, being 
 of European growth, and the distances which they 
 have to travel great, the adulterations are propor- 
 tionally numerous; and the natives, both physi- 
 cians and patients, are too ignorant of the ori- 
 ginal article to be able to detect the falsification. 
 As considerable anxiety, however, is now dis- 
 played, and expense incurred, by the Government 
 in the instruction of native doctors for the public 
 service, the benefit of this must eventually ex- 
 
236 MEDICINAL PLANTS (iROWN IN THE 
 
 Desirable to tend to the class of practitioners who administer 
 
 examine native . 
 
 drugs, and to the Hiass of the population. It would appear 
 
 grow others , ^ . , • ^ n • i i 
 
 in India. the part 01 a wise and provident foresight, that, 
 
 as a more correct knowledge of medicine is im- 
 parted, and as the art of detecting the impostures 
 in drugs is acquired, means should be adopted 
 for more genuine articles being provided. This 
 might be effected by first investigating the true 
 value of genuine Indian medicines, and then na- 
 turalizing in the hills or plains such articles as 
 they are deficient in, or which are now of foreign 
 growth." 
 
 " That the success would be considerable, I feel 
 warranted in assuming, from the results of the 
 experiments I have already made, even in intro- 
 ducing medicines for the use of the public ser- 
 vice. These have borne the test of comparative 
 trials with the best from European depots. The 
 
 Difficulties i^n difficulties to be surmounted may not be so obvi- 
 
 growing and •' 
 
 preparing me- qus, cxcept to thosc who havc made similar at- 
 
 dicines. 
 
 tempts. But, if it be considered that not only the 
 seed or plant is first to be procured, and grown 
 with all the care of an exotic, then extended into 
 a crop, and converted into a form fit for exhibi- 
 tion as a medicine, and, lastly, proved equal in me- 
 dical virtues, and at the same time cheaper than 
 those already in use, the attempt will not appear 
 so easy. It must also be remembered that not 
 an oil can be distilled without first makins: a 
 still, nor an extract prepared without first con- 
 
SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 237 
 
 structinsr an apparatus for expressing tlie juice, f/epa^t'O'? of 
 
 ® ^'^ _ "^ , Medicines in 
 
 and then evaporating it to a proper consistence India. 
 in an apparatus of steam." 
 
 " Among the articles which have been intro- 
 duced, and reported upon by Mr. Twining, after 
 experiments made at the General Hospital, it 
 appears, that ' the cultivation of Rhubarb at the Rhubarb. 
 Mussooree Tibba is expected to afford a very valu- 
 able remedy, which is less disagreeable to take 
 than the best Turkey Rhubarb, nearly equally effi- 
 cacious as a purge, and very superior in small 
 doses as a tonic, and astringent in profluvia ;' and 
 Mr. Twining concludes his report with saying, 
 that ' the acquisition of this remedy to the Ma- 
 teria Medica of this country will be of the utmost 
 importance.' The medicine has been introduced, 
 and 115 lbs. supplied to the depots. The Oil of ouof Turpen. 
 Turpentine, distilled from the Turpentine of the 
 common long- leaved Fir, is considered, in a letter 
 from Mr. Hutchinson, to be of * very superior 
 quality.' The extract of Henbane has been pro- Henbane. 
 nounced by many, from its freshness, to be supe- 
 rior to that imported from Europe, and by Mr. 
 Twining to be of ' most excellent quality.' It 
 has even been sent to Madras ; 190 lbs. have 
 been sent to the depots, and the supply discon- 
 tinued from Europe. Senna has only this year senmu 
 been introduced into practice. The Medical 
 Board, after the trials made at the General Hos- 
 pital, express their gratification at the result, 
 and direct that its cultivation be extended as 
 
238 SCIENTIFIC OBJECTS ATTENDED TO 
 
 Medicines pre- much as Dossible for the public service. Mr. 
 
 pared m India. ^ * ^ 
 
 Twining pronounces the Senna cultivated at Sa- 
 harunpore very superior to that commonly sup- 
 plied for hospital use, possessing in a high degree 
 the peculiar aroma of the best Senna ; and after 
 forty-five trials considers it equal to the best 
 Senna he has ever seen." The other articles 
 which were cultivated or prepared for hospital 
 use were exhibited in the catalogue, which formed 
 an appendix to the report. 
 Eligibility of " In Considering the cultivation of medicines in 
 
 growing Medi- ^ ,. . i • . /. . -. i 
 
 cin^ Plants in India m an economical point of view, it may be 
 safely assumed, that by cultivating a sufficient 
 number of articles to keep in full employment 
 whatever establishment may be entertained, a 
 very considerable saving will eventually be ef- 
 fected. For the cost of the production of medi- 
 cines, must, like every other product of the soil 
 in India, be less than what they can be produced 
 in, and exported from Europe for ; particularly if 
 some machinery be employed for the grinding of 
 powders, and the expressing of oils and extracts, 
 which might easily be done by the water-mill in 
 the garden." 
 
 India. 
 
in the saharunpore garden. 239 
 
 Scientific Objects attended to in the 
 
 Saharunpore Garden. 
 In our notice of the Botanic Garden of Calcutta Advantages of 
 
 results obtain- 
 
 an account was given both of the services render- ed in the go- 
 
 j o • 1 /• 1 • 1 1 rr'L vemment Oar- 
 
 ed to Science, and of the practical results. 1 hese dens. 
 
 are important, because they are applicable to the 
 general culture of the provinces which approxi- 
 mate to it in soil and climate. The practical re- 
 sults obtained at the Saharunpore Garden have 
 been detailed before the scientific investigations: 
 though the latter preceded the former. They are 
 valuable, not only for the above reasons, but also Practical ap. 
 
 '' ^ plication of 
 
 because the two gardens being placed at the ex- scientific in- 
 
 1- . - , , . - 1 vestigations. 
 
 treme limits of an extended territory, many of the 
 results are applicable to much of the intermedi- 
 ate tract of country. 
 
 As the experiments in a scientific institution Experiments 
 
 * ... require to be 
 
 require to be conducted on principle, instead of made on pnnci- 
 according to the chance system which is usually 
 adopted, so in a new country many preliminary 
 inquiries require to be completed before any 
 practically useful experiments can be instituted. 
 These preliminary investigations, consisting of 
 the identification of old, and the description 
 of new species of plants, with a notice of the soil 
 and climate in which they are found, are consi- 
 dered by many as useless for practical purposes. 
 The very same individuals would probably con- 
 sider it essential that any one wishing to improve 
 the breed of horses, of cattle, or of sheep should 
 
240 SCIENTIFIC OBJECTS ATTENDED TO 
 
 Experiments be able to distinguish a liorse from an ass, or 
 
 made in con- 
 
 formitytoprin. a shecD from a goat. In what respect the sys- 
 
 cipl6s. ^ 
 
 tematic investigation of plants differs, it would 
 not be easy to describe. We know that they are 
 more numerous, and less obviously different from 
 each other, and, consequently, require much time 
 and care accurately to distinguish. 
 
 Blunders often That as great blunders have been committed 
 with plants, as if a breeder were to mistake a camel 
 or a buffalo for a cow, will be evident to any one 
 who will examine the accounts given by several 
 otherwise intelligent gentlemen, of their attempts 
 to cultivate various vegetables in different parts 
 
 Errors com- of the world. In India, when it was desired to 
 
 mitted from 
 
 wantofscien- cultivate the Hemp plant, several plants were so 
 called, which had no greater resemblance to one 
 another than that each yielded tibre fit for cordage, 
 as if all woods were oak, or the flesh of all herbi- 
 vorous animals was beef or mutton. So, a very 
 intelligent merchant, as the Author has elsewliere 
 mentioned, wishing to improve the culture of Rice, 
 actually sent out to India some American Rice, 
 which in the process of cleaning, had had the 
 embryo removed, for which, in the process of 
 germination, the rest of the grain is intended as 
 nourishment, and which therefore was not more 
 capable of growing, than is pearl barley or kiln- 
 dried hops. 
 
 Measures FoT the purposc of obtaining as perfect a know- 
 
 adopted for . 1 1 /. 1 • ^ 1 
 
 combining ledge as possiblc of the vegetation oi the coun- 
 
 pJi!!2e! *' ' tries in the neighbourhood of which the Garden 
 
IN THE SAHARINPORE GARDEiN. 241 
 
 was situated, a Herbarium was formed of the Herbarium 
 
 plauts of the plains of the northern provinces, of 
 
 the Himalayan mountains, of Kunawur on the 
 
 northern face of those mountains, and of the 
 
 valley of Cashmere ; amounting in all to about 
 
 four thousand species. Of the more remarkable 
 
 of these about five hundred drawings were made Drawings 
 
 by the East- India Company's establishment of 
 
 painters. A set of specimens was left with Dr. 
 
 Falconer at Saharunpore, and the duplicates have DnpUcatespre- 
 
 , sented by 
 
 been presented by the Court of Directors of the courtof Direc- 
 East-India Company to the Linnean Society of Linnean So- 
 London, for general distribution, in the same 
 manner that the former East-India collections 
 were distributed. 
 
 The usual course with a collection of Natural ^°^.^ °^ "- 
 
 ranging objects 
 
 History, has been to examine accurately, and to of Natural His- 
 describe with more or less minuteness, the several 
 objects of which it consists, arranging them at 
 the same time systematically in one or other of 
 the systems of classification in use among natu- 
 ralists. Botanists used, till of late years, chiefly 
 to employ the artificial system of Linnaeus, in Artificial me- 
 which the stamens and pistils are employed for 
 the purpose of forming a simple, and, like the 
 alphabetical arrangement of words in a dic- 
 tionary, in many respects a convenient method of 
 classification. In a general point of view, how- 
 ever, this method has the defect of bringing toge- 
 ther many plants which have no resemblance to 
 each other, either in appearance or in structure, 
 
 R 
 
242 SCIENTIFIC OBJECTS ATTENDED TO 
 
 Mode of ar- and tiic stili j^reatcF objection of separating some, 
 
 ranging plants. ^ ■ • i i j 
 
 such as grasses, which are most mtimately related 
 Natural ciassU to One another. In the INatural classification, 
 
 fication ; 
 
 on the contrary, the characters are taken from as 
 great a number as possible of the parts of plants, 
 and resemblance is observed, therefore, not only 
 in the organs of re-production, but also in those 
 of nutrition. Hence we find among plants of the 
 same family a similarity of structure, and also a 
 similarity both of constitution and in the secre- 
 tions which they prepare ; so that it is not 
 surprising to find plants of the same family 
 delighting in the same soil, flourishing in the 
 same climate, and abounding in the same pro- 
 Li "practical, ducts. This mode of classification is therefore not 
 only advantageous as presenting a philosophical 
 method of arrangement, but also as affording 
 many important practical results. 
 Means adopted To obtain the advantages of the natural classi- 
 
 for attaining its . , i i • • 
 
 advantages for fication, it was ueccssary, though requiring a 
 good deal of time and labour, to arrange not only 
 the plants in the Author's collection, but also 
 those which had been collected by Dr. Rox- 
 burgh and other botanists, in order to be able to 
 compare the vegetation of the Northern with that 
 of the Southern parts of India ;* also of both, 
 with that of other hot countries having similar cli- 
 mates, as some parts of Africa and America. The 
 
 • In this labour the Author has been much assisted, since his 
 return to this country, by the lithographed Catalogue formed 
 by Dr. Wallich, of the East-India Herbarium, v. p. 178. 
 
 India. 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 243 
 
 mountains, also, havinor at successive elevations a y^etation of 
 
 ' ' » India com- 
 
 different climate, from the reduction in tempera- pared with 
 
 ' *■ that of other 
 
 ture as we ascend, have also a gradual change of parts of the 
 
 . world; 
 
 vegetation, and the occurrence of forms similar to 
 such as are found in Europe, China, Japan, Si- 
 beria, and North America, is observed. 
 
 To show the connection, therefore, between 
 the different branches of Natural History, and 
 their dependence on the Physical features. Soil, 
 and Climate of the country, the Author, in his ^^^J^^th'^X^ 
 work* illustrating the Botany and other Branches ^°^' 
 of the Natural History of the Himalayan Moun- 
 tains, divided it into two parts. The introductory 
 portion treats of the Physical Geography of the Physical Geo-. 
 Plains and Mountains of India, and is followed Geology as 
 by a view of their Geological structure. The S.'"*'^'^'^ 
 Meteorology is next treated of, and the climate Meteoroi<^ 
 
 ^ . . with climate. 
 
 of the Tropics compared with that of India and 
 of the Himalayas. Tabular views are given of the 
 monthly and diurnal range of the barometer and 
 thermometer in the former. The characteristics 
 of Himalayan climate, consisting of mildness and 
 equability of temperature and of pressure, are 
 next treated of, especially at such elevations as 
 Simla and Mussooree, resorted to by European 
 officers and their families for the recovery of health. 
 The physical features, soil, and climate, hav- 
 
 • Illustrations of the Botany and other Branches of the Na- 
 tural History of the Himalayan Mountains, and of the Rora 
 of Cashmere. London, 1833-1839. 
 
 r2 
 
244 
 
 SCIENTIFIC OBJECTS ATTENDED TO 
 
 Geographical 
 distribution of 
 plants and ani- 
 mals. 
 
 Cultivation in 
 plains and 
 mountains. 
 
 Vegetation ac. 
 cording to soil 
 and climate ; 
 
 as found in' In- 
 dia and other 
 parts of the 
 world. 
 
 Influenced by 
 physical agents. 
 
 Practical re- 
 suits. 
 
 Useful plants 
 of other coun- 
 tries suited to 
 India. 
 
 ing been noticed, a general view of the Geogra- 
 phical distribution of the Plants and Animals 
 which these are calculated to support, is treated 
 of in connection with the Cultivation, both in 
 the plains, and in the mountains at different ele- 
 vations, as well in the cold weather as in the 
 rainy season. 
 
 The account of the vegetation is then detailed, 
 according to the natural method of arrangement, 
 under the head of two hundred and seven fami- 
 lies, of plants. The observations on each family 
 consist of a notice of its geographical distribution 
 in different parts of the world, an enumeration of 
 the genera and remarkable species found either 
 in the plains and hot vallies, or in the mountains 
 of India, and the vegetation natural to different 
 parts of India is compared with that of other 
 countries enjoying similar climates. This plan 
 was adopted in consequence of its affording, as 
 has been stated, the most interesting and impor- 
 tant general results, and naturally leading to a 
 just appreciation of the influence of physical 
 agents on vegetation, and as elucidating those 
 principles which require to be attended to, not 
 only in the culture of new plants, but also in the 
 improvement of that of old plants in new situa- 
 tions. After an examination of the Geographical 
 distribution of the Natural Families to which they 
 belong, the Useful Plants of other parts of the 
 world are usually noticed immediately after the 
 Properties and Uses of the family have been given, 
 
IN THE SAHARUNPORE GARDEN. 245 
 
 and the particular parts of India pointed out, 
 to which, from such considerations, they appear 
 suited. This method thus affords great facilities 
 in treating of the properties of plants, as con- 
 nected with structure, and for showing the im- 
 mense resources of British-India, and the proba- ?«??^ces of 
 
 ' * British India. 
 
 ble means of still further increasing them. 
 
 A detailed account has been given of the me- ^eg^f^ffj"" 
 thod adopted in publishing the results of the in- nSr^tlSiT 
 vestigations made at the Saharunpore Botanic 
 Garden, in consequence of the prevalent notion, 
 among many otherwise well informed people, of the 
 inutility for practical purposes of scientific inves- 
 tigations; while, in fact, they are the only means 
 we possess of obtaining any principles for our 
 guidance in experimentina: on the improvement are in fact the 
 
 o r o 1 Qjjly ones 
 
 of old products, or in the introduction of new which give 
 
 * ^ principles and 
 
 ones into the culture of a country, and by which successful 
 
 practice. 
 
 we can have anything like certainty in the results 
 we are likely to obtain. The absence of such guides 
 in the numerous experiments which have been 
 made in India may explain the almost constant 
 want of success ; the experimentalist having been 
 unable to explain either the causes of the some- 
 times partial success, or of the far more ordi- 
 nary total failure. He also was incapacitated 
 from perceiving that a modification of treatment, 
 to which he might easily have been led by a con- 
 sideration of the influence of physical agents on 
 vegetation, would certainly have produced very 
 different, and at the same time the very results he 
 desired. 
 
246 
 
 PRACTICAL RESULTS OF 
 
 Tndia capable 
 of growing the 
 useful products 
 of most parts 
 of the globe. 
 
 Countries of 
 which the 
 plants may be 
 grown in dif- 
 ferent parts of 
 India. 
 
 After an extended consideration of the peculia- 
 rities of Climate and of Vegetation, the Author has 
 no doubt that the Plants of almost every botani- 
 cal region may be grown in some one, or more, of 
 the diversified soils and climates of India and its 
 mountains, and that the useful products of most 
 parts of the world may be profitably cultivated 
 there for the benefit every where of the people. 
 Also for the establishment of much enlarged means 
 of profitable interchange between the nearest as 
 well as the most distant provinces, and likewise 
 for affording materials for a very widely diffused 
 external commerce. 
 
 Reserving the right, when time will permit, to 
 go into the necessary details for the comparison of 
 the climate and vegetation in each country, and 
 to make any modifications in the following sug- 
 gestions, it may be stated that the plants of the 
 following countries may be successfully grown in 
 those parts of India placed opposite them in the 
 accompanying table. It cannot be expected that 
 all such plants, if attempted, will be cultivated 
 with equal success ; for even to ensure that suc- 
 cess which certainly is attainable with many, it 
 would be necessary to enter into the details of 
 their respective peculiarities. The statement must 
 at present therefore be considered only as a ge- 
 neral one. 
 
 Tropical and East-Indian Is- 
 lands, Tropical Africa, Bra- 
 zil, Guiana, West-Indies, 
 and Florida. 
 
 Travancore, Cocliin, Malabar, 
 Ceylon, JMalayan Peninsula, 
 Chittagong, Bengal, Lower 
 Assam. 
 
SCIENTI FIC I N V ESllG ATIONS. 
 
 247 
 
 East and West coast of Africa. 
 
 Southern States of North Ame- 
 rica, Egypt, north of Africa, 
 Syria. 
 
 Mexican Highlands, Lower 
 Jlountains of Spain. 
 
 South of Africa, Extra-Tropi- 
 cal New Holland, South 
 America beyond 23 J ° S. lat. 
 
 Mediterranean Region. 
 
 Chino- Japanese region. Middle 
 Andes, Peru, and Moun- 
 tains of Brazil. 
 
 North of Europe, North of 
 Asia, and North America. 
 
 Arctic regions. Mountains of 
 Europe, Elevated Andes. 
 
 Coromandel Coast, Northern Countries of 
 . which the 
 
 Circars, Concan. plants wiU 
 
 Gujerat, Behar, Doab, Delhi, grS^'^**'^, 
 J ' ' ' ' different parts 
 
 Malwa. of India. 
 
 Mysore, Hilly ranges in Dec- 
 can, Rajpootana. 
 
 Saharunpore and Northern 
 Doab. 
 
 DejTa Doon, and Himalayan 
 Valleys to moderate eleva- 
 tions. 
 
 Neilgherries, Upper Assam, 
 Himalayan Mountains. 
 
 Himalayan Mountains, Region 
 
 of Oaks and Pines. 
 Himalayas above Region of 
 
 Forest. 
 
 From these different regions, we may proceed 
 to import their various seeds or plants, and intro- 
 duce them with considerable confidence into the 
 analogous parts of India. For practical purposes J^ge?^ 
 we may arrange the plants according to their son?ofSff&f*" 
 capability of bearing the extremes of climate in ""' p"^' 
 different localities — as 
 
 Tropical Perennials suited to the southern parts of India. 
 Tropical Annuals suited to the rainy season of every part of 
 
 the plains, and even of some of the mountains of India. 
 Annuals fit for cultivation in the plains of India during the 
 
 cold weather, and in the Himalayas during the summer 
 
 months. 
 Perennials suited to the drier and more northern parts of 
 
 India. 
 
248 
 
 PRACTICAL INFERENCES. 
 
 Practical in- 
 ferences. 
 
 Some of tlie 
 plants which 
 might be grown 
 in India ; 
 
 in southern 
 parts ; 
 
 in northern 
 parts ; 
 
 in the hills. 
 
 Cultivation in 
 India of To- 
 bacco, Tea, 
 and Cotton. 
 
 Perennials suited to the summer, and able to withstand the 
 cold of the Himalayan winter. 
 
 From these considerations, therefore, the Au- 
 thor has inferred, that in the southern parts of 
 India, especially in the neighbourhood of moun- 
 tains, many valuable products of the New World, 
 such as the Cinchona, Ipecacuanha, Brazil Wood, 
 and others enumerated in the Appendix, might 
 be successfully grown. So in the higher latitudes 
 of the north-western provinces, the Carob and 
 Olive trees, the Cork tree, and some others of the 
 south of Europe Oaks might be easily cultivated. 
 In the hill provinces many of the Fruit and Tim- 
 ber trees of northern Europeand of North America 
 might be naturalized : these also being mentioned 
 in the Appendix, it is unnecessary further to de- 
 tail. 
 
 From a consideration of the geographical dis- 
 tribution of the families to which they belong, as 
 well as the vegetation with which they are asso- 
 ciated, considering also the soil and climate they 
 require, the Author inferred that India was capa^ 
 ble of producing of the best quality in its wide- 
 spread plains. Tobacco during the cold weather 
 months, and Cotton in tlie rainy season ; and 
 that the mountains would aftbrd suitable locali- 
 ties for the cultivation of tlie Tea plant. 
 
CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 249 
 
 Culture of Tobacco in India. 
 Tobacco, it is well known, is a produce of the Tobacco na- 
 
 tiv'6 of New 
 
 New World, which was introduced into Europe worid; 
 soon after the discovery of America. The largest 
 quantities are now imported from Maryland and 
 Virginia, and the finest qualities from Cuba and 
 Cumana. Good Tobacco is not, however, con- 
 fined to America, as some Turkish and German 
 Tobaccos bring higher prices than the great mass 
 of that which is imported from the United States. 
 The Tobacco plant was introduced into India in introduced 
 
 1 1 • 1 • /• 4 1 1 T • '"'° India; 
 
 the year 1605, during the reign of Akbar. It is now 
 cultivated there in every part, and must be so, 
 to a considerable extent, as it is smoked by 
 almost all classes throughout that thickly-peo- 
 pled country. As a commercial article, however, 
 Indian Tobacco holds a very inferior place, being 
 frequently unsaleable,and bringing only the lowest 
 prices. It fetches only one-third of the price of 
 the American, selling from Id. to 2d. a pound* 
 It is complained of as being too high-dried, or 
 as all stalk and powder, and fit only for the infe- 
 rior kinds of snuff, or for re-exportation to the 
 continent. 
 
 Tobacco being so extensively consumed in In- extensively 
 
 consumed. 
 
 dia, it is probable that the best which the country 
 produces is never exported ; though the inconve- 
 niences of its imperfect preparation cannot be 
 
250 
 
 CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 
 
 Some good 
 Tobacco pro- 
 duced in In- 
 dia; 
 Chunar ; 
 
 Bbilsa ; 
 
 felt there as in other countries, in consequence of 
 its being always smoked in the hooqqa, after 
 being beaten up with conserves or molasses. 
 
 That India however can and does produce some 
 good Tobacco, may easily be proved. That of 
 Chunar, on the Ganges, and more especially that 
 of Bhilsa, near Nagpore, are celebrated through- 
 out India, while Dr. Ainslie states, that " the 
 finest kinds in India, and perhaps in the world, 
 are grown near the village of Woodanum, in the 
 Northern Circars, and in some of those low sandy 
 islands formed at the mouth of the river Krishna, 
 Masuiipatam; (from this is made the famous Masulipatam 
 snuff,) also in the Delta of the Godavery, where 
 the soil is peculiarly rich and fertile." But as the 
 commercial value of these has not been ascer- 
 tained, they might be found very inferior to Ame- 
 rican Tobaccos. Mr. Ritchie, however, in his Evi- 
 dence before the Committee of *the House of 
 Commons, in 1831, states, that Tobacco of very 
 fine quality is produced extensively in Guzerat, 
 and the northern districts of the Bombay Pre- 
 sidency. One bale imported, sold higher than any 
 American, as it brought 0d. when the latter was 
 sold for 5d. a pound ; but the average of an ex- 
 perimental exportation was found to be defective 
 in the curing, and did not pay. Besides this, we 
 have seen, that excellent Tobacco is grown at 
 Sandaway, in Arracan, (p. 187,) and that this 
 
 Guzerat; 
 
 Sandaway, in 
 Arracan ; 
 
 when brought to London was valued at from 6d. 
 
CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 251 
 
 to 8d. a pound. Mr. Piddington mentions the Tobacco of 
 Tobacco of Singour, in Burdwan, near Chander- ^'"s^"'* 
 nagur, as selling at the price of the Arracan sort, 
 though of the same species as that cultivated in 
 the surrounding country ; and that the best Ben- ^"^ 
 gal tobacco is grown at and about Haiglee, in the 
 Kishnagar district. All these were specimens of 
 Tobacco grown and cured by natives from seed of 
 plants which have no doubt been long introduced 
 into these countries. 
 
 The above specimens of Tobacco having been indi* capable 
 
 r <^ of growing 
 
 pronounced to be of good quality by the best good Tobacco. 
 judges in London, is suflScient evidence that In- 
 dia is capable of producing Tobacco very supe- 
 rior to what is usually imported from that coun- 
 try. The facts are still more important as having 
 been results produced by the natives themselves, 
 and without the aid of any foreign seed ; and are 
 of yet greater consequence, if we consider the 
 very distant situations, and the very different cli- 
 mates of Arracan, Bengal, the Northern Circars, 
 Nagpore, and Guzerat, in which they were pro- 
 duced. 
 
 About the year 1829, the Court of Directors of American To- 
 
 bacco seed 
 
 the East-India Company sent out Tobacco seed, sent out by 
 
 111/' -»/r 1 1 1 XT- • • -1 •'^^ India 
 
 procured both from Maryland and Virginia, and company. 
 a Paper on the culture of Tobacco in Virginia, 
 sent by their Agent along with the seeds. These 
 were distributed to Calcutta, Madras, and Bom- 
 bay. The Agricultural Society of Calcutta were 
 the first to obtain successful results. Having 
 
252 
 
 CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 
 
 Tobacco culti- 
 vated by Agri- 
 cultural So- 
 ciety of Cal- 
 cutta; 
 
 excellent in 
 quality; 
 
 grown in Ma- 
 dras Presi- 
 dency ; 
 
 inferior in qua^ 
 lity; 
 
 cultivated and prepared the Tobacco according 
 to the American method, they sent specimens to 
 England, which were submitted by the Court of 
 Directors to dealers and manufacturers in Lon- 
 don, who pronounced it to be " the best sample 
 of Indian Tobacco they had ever seen. In flavour 
 and general appearance of the leaf, it approaches 
 the descriptions which are usually selected here 
 for manufacturing into cigars, and for smoking 
 in a pipe, viz.y Havannah, St. Domingo, and 
 Amersforth, and which command high prices in 
 relation to other kinds of leaf tobacco." It was 
 considered equivalent in value to 6d. or 8d. a 
 pound. 
 
 In the Madras Presidency, several experimen- 
 talists endeavoured to grow good Tobacco from 
 the American seed. But the situations they se- 
 lected were evidently unfavourable ; either from 
 unsuitableness, or over-richness of soil, or too 
 great moisture of climate, or perhaps from too 
 highly manured and close cultivation. The faults 
 appeared to be those of over-luxuriance, for the 
 stalks and fibres had attained great size and coarse- 
 ness. The tobaccos had, moreover, been badly 
 packed, and worse cured, and were pronounced 
 by the brokers to be "not marketable," and 
 " of no value;" and of the best, it was said, that 
 some from Holland, of much better quality, had 
 been sold under 'Id. per pound. 
 
 The Author Iiaving had an opportunity, tlirough 
 the kindness of Mr. W. Johnson, of examining 
 
CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 253 
 
 the documents, and inspectinp: the experimen- Tobacco might 
 
 , . be {jrot^Ti in 
 
 tal specimens of Tobacco in the India Hous,e, India; 
 had no doubt that good Tobacco might be 
 grown in India, in spite even of the mass of un- 
 successful experiments. The faults, being those faults are luxu- 
 of rankness in flavour, and over-luxuriance ofrankness; 
 growth, might evidently in a poorer soil and drier 
 atmosphere, with equal attention in other respects 
 to the culture and curing, be most easily reme- 
 died. The Author was highly gratified in being 
 shortly afterwards informed by Mr. Johnson, that 
 one of the very experimentalists who had so sig- 
 nally failed before, on having the causes of failure 
 pointed out to him, made fresh experiments, and 
 grew his tobacco, as was understood, in a more i^ucce^sfuff 
 elevated situation, and prepared it in so superior Jgnc^^'^^'' 
 a manner that it actually sold in the London 
 market for 8d. a pound. 
 
 These successful results with American seed, ^tended^tSln 
 especially when considered in connection with =">^"'^« ^ ^o- 
 
 r J bacco. 
 
 the superior Tobaccos which are already pro- 
 duced in several very widely-separated parts of 
 India, are suflScient proofs that the country is ca- 
 pable of growing the best kinds of Tobacco. So 
 there is no doubt that, if cultivators will pay at- 
 tention, not only to the selection of the soil and 
 of the seed, and to careful culture, but also to the 
 subsequent preparation and packing of the to- 
 bacco, that it may be grown in India with as 
 much certainty of success as any other crop in 
 any other country. At present, though rich soils 
 
254 
 
 CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 
 
 Defects in In- are usually selected in the neighbourhood of vil- 
 
 dian culture. iii/. •••ii 
 
 lages, and a good deal of attention is paid to the 
 culture, yet the ground is not sufficiently weeded 
 nor worked. Neither is the plant prevented from 
 shooting too much into stalk, nor are the super- 
 fluous leaves taken off, so that the remainder may 
 expand and produce size with softness, and fine 
 flavour from full exposure to air and light. But 
 the subsequent preparation is much more defec- 
 tive than the culture of the plant. Nothing seems 
 to be done but to expose Tobacco when gathered 
 to the full influence of a very powerful sun, which 
 with the drying eflects of a parching and dusty 
 wind, makes it not surprising that the Tobacco 
 is complained of here, if not all stalk, as being 
 over-dried, and ready to crumble into dust. 
 
 The kinds of Tobacco cultivated, no doubt 
 vary according to situation and the mode of cul- 
 ture. Some distinct species are also cultivated 
 in different countries, but Nicotiana Tabacum 
 and its varieties are so, most extensively. N. rus- 
 tica is chiefly cultivated in western Africa and 
 Egypt, also near Salonica and Latakia, and like- 
 wise in some parts of Europe. Dr. Lindley con- 
 siders the Persian Tobacco to be a distinct spe- 
 cies, which he has named N. persica. The seed 
 of these several species is well worthy of trial in 
 different parts of India, as well as seed from 
 those places which are already celebrated for 
 their tobacco, as the Author has already recom- 
 mended in his article on this subject. 
 
 Tobacco— 
 
 kinds of culti- 
 vated ; 
 
CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDU. 255 
 
 The soil forTobacco in North America, and also Tobacco, soil 
 
 suited to; 
 
 in European latitudes, requn-es to be of the richest 
 nature, but it is doubtful whether this would be 
 necessary to the same extent in a warmer climate, 
 and more moist atmosphere. In Virginia, " the 
 light red, or chocolate-coloured, mountain lands, 
 the light black soil in the coves of mountains, and 
 the richest low grounds" are particularly spe- 
 cified. Mr. Piddington states that the Tobacco 
 soils of the Hayannah, as well as those of 
 Manilla, are red sorts, and that the red and 
 reddish brown soils contain most of their iron in 
 the state of peroxide, or the reddish brown oxide 
 of iron, while the light grey soils contain it only 
 in the state of protoxide, or the black oxide of 
 iron. He believes the quality of the tobacco to de- 
 pend mainly on the state and quantity of the iron 
 in the soil.* 
 
 The climate of India is no doubt suitable, as climate suited 
 good Tobacco, we have seen, is produced in very 
 different parts of that empire, and the mean tem- 
 perature of the cold weather months there, is 
 about equal to that of the summer temperature of 
 those other countries where good Tobacco is 
 grown. But the temperature of other places, as of 
 
 • We shall probably soon have more accurate information 
 respecting the Tobacco and Sugar soils of America, as the 
 China and East-India Association have applied to Lord John 
 RusseU, Secretary for the Colonies, to obtain specimens of the 
 above soils irova. the West Indies and America in the same way 
 
266 CULTURE OF TOBACCO IN INDIA. 
 
 Havannah, Cumana, &c. is modified by local pecu- 
 liarities of climate. 
 AmeS;^" '" In America, the greatest care is taken with the 
 gathering of the plants, when the leaves are what 
 is considered fully ripe ; and then only those which 
 are so, are individually selected. The largest plants 
 are split down the centre, that the air may be 
 more freely admitted to every part of the leaves 
 during the process of drying. The plants when 
 sufficiently pliable to bear handling, are removed 
 to and hung up in large barns, or tobacco houses, 
 the sides of which are left partially open to allow 
 of a free circulation of air, where they remain for 
 four or five weeks. The leaves are then separated 
 from the stalks, and thrown together in heaps, 
 where they undergo the process of sweating, after 
 which, when in case, equal pains are bestowed 
 on the packing, 
 "rown ancT^ If any ouc wiU compare this careful culture and 
 inXr '" preparation with that practised in India, they 
 will not be surprised that the Tobacco of the lat- 
 ter country should bear so little comparison with 
 that of the former, where so much pains is taken 
 with every part of the process. There is little 
 doubt that if any one practically acquainted with 
 every thing that is requisite, were seriously to 
 
 that the Cotton soils had been procured by Lord Palmerston 
 for the Royal Asiatic Society ; the Court of Directors of the 
 East-India Company having been applied to for payment of the 
 expenses^ authorized a sum adequate to the purpose. 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 257 
 
 turn his attention to the culture of Tobacco in Tobaccoofthe 
 India, that he would obtain the most successful might be 
 results, and be able to grow the best Tobacco. He fir™ '" 
 might also realize the full profit, and obtain the 
 highest prices if he could send his goods to the 
 open markets of England, instead of depend- 
 ing on tlie more limited competition of the Pre- 
 sidencies, where the buyers are all interested in 
 keeping down the prices of Indian produce. It 
 must never be forgotten (vide p. 43) that Ameri- 
 can Tobacco did not attain its pre-eminence, un- 
 til after years of unremitting attention both on 
 the part of the Government and of the Cultivators 
 of Virginia. 
 
 Culture of Tea in the Himalayas. 
 The Tea plant is one of those which has long Tea plant of 
 
 , . . great interest 
 
 attracted public attention, both, as giving us the 
 means of forming a most grateful beverage, which 
 has detached nations almost from the use of in- 
 toxicating liquors, and from its being the produce 
 of a country, which, though anciently civilized, 
 we know so little, that great curiosity is attached 
 to all its productions. Tea is not more remarkable 
 for being a source of profit to the Chinese, by 
 whom it is cultivated, than for the extent to which as source of 
 it has yielded profit to the merchants and re- 
 venue to the Governments of those nations who 
 have imported it. 
 
 revenue. 
 
258 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Tea plant 
 thought to be 
 confined in dis. 
 tribution. 
 
 The Author 
 conceives it 
 might be cuiti- 
 vated in the 
 Himalayas ; 
 
 recommends rt 
 to the Govern, 
 ment. 
 
 Natural locali- 
 ties of Tea 
 plant 
 
 The Tea plant has usually been considered 
 very peculiar in its nature, and, like the Cin- 
 namon, Nutmeg, Clove, and Mangosteen, very 
 confined in its distribution, and therefore very 
 difficult of cultivation in other countries. The 
 Author, when investigating the vegetation of the 
 Himalayas in the general manner which has been 
 described, and studying the practical application 
 of the scientific information he had obtained, long 
 ago conceived that, from the peculiarity of climate 
 and of vegetation of the Himalayan Mountains, 
 it was possible there, at certain elevations, and in 
 suitable localities, to cultivate the Tea plant suc- 
 cessfully as a commercial article. This also, so as 
 to retain the present proportion of astringent and 
 of stimulant properties which makes the infusion 
 of its leaves so grateful as a beverage. 
 
 Towards the end of the year 1827, in a report 
 to the Indian Government, the Author recom- 
 mended the culture of Tea in the north-western 
 portion of the Himalayas, because included within 
 the British territories, and stated, that the Tea 
 plant " does noi appear by any means so deli- 
 cate or so limited in geographical distribution as 
 is generally supposed. It is said to delight parti- 
 cularly in sheltered vallies, the declivities of hills, 
 or the banks of rivers, where it enjoys a southern 
 exposure to the sun. These warm situations do 
 not, however, appear to be essential to its wel- 
 fare, as it is found to grow on the rugged tops of 
 mountains ; and, although it appears to attain 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 259 
 
 the s^reatest perfection in the mild climate about Tea plant— 
 
 ^ II- natural locali 
 
 Nankin, yet it flourishes in the northern lati- ties of. 
 tude of Pekin and in Japan, as well as about 
 Canton ; and thus appears to be confined within 
 the parallels of 20° and 40° of north latitude." 
 
 That this opinion respecting the practicability Cultivation of. 
 of cultivating the Tea plant in the Himalayas was commenlerbj 
 not accidental, but the result of deliberate con- 
 viction, is evident from the Author recurring to 
 it in his report to the Governor-general, Lord 
 William Bentinck, when he visited the Saharun- 
 pore Garden in March 1831. This was pub- 
 lished in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of 
 Calcutta in February 1832. Again, in 1833, in 
 the introductory chapter to the " Illustrations 
 of the Botany of the Himalayan Mountains," 
 he adverted to this ; and stated, p. 5, " Some- 
 where in the vallies at the foot of these hills, or at 
 moderate elevations, the more generally useful 
 productions ot European countries might be suc- 
 cessfully introduced." " Here, also, as I have re- 
 commended in a report to Government, there is 
 considerable prospect of success in the cultivation 
 of the Tea plant, for the different elevations al- 
 low of every variety of climate being selected, and 
 the geographical distribution of this plant is suf- 
 ficiently extended, and the natural sites suffi- 
 ciently varied, to warrant its being beneficially 
 cultivated." 
 
 The Author, not havinor had any favourable Reasons for 
 
 , . ^ *^ the opinion. 
 
 opportunity for giving in detail his reasons for 
 
 s2 
 
260 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Essay on the the Opinion he had so frequently promulgated, 
 
 cultivation of . . . i i* i j 
 
 Tea in the Hi- did SO in the " lUustrations, p. 107, published 
 in September 1834, on the occasion oi his treat- 
 ing of the natural family of Ternstroemiaceae, to 
 which the Tea plant is usually referred; of this, the 
 genera Cleyera and Eurya are common to China, 
 Japan, and the Himalayas. The Camelliese form a 
 tribe of TernstrcEmiaceaB,and are sometimes called 
 Theaceae, and considered a distinct family. 
 
 Geographical In the first place, it was shown that the species 
 
 distribution of . 
 
 the Tea family of the abovc family are found m the warm parts 
 of Asia and America, but that the Asiatic species 
 are chiefly confined to China and the mountains 
 which divide it from India. The Camellias, for 
 instance, were originally found only in China 
 and Japan, but afterwards in the Indian moun- 
 tains, from Munnipoor, in about 25° N. lat., to 
 those which surround the valley of Nepal, be- 
 tween 27^* and 28** IN. lat. The genus Thea had 
 then been found only in China and Japan, chiefly 
 in a cultivated state, but had been supposed, as 
 stated in the above Essay, p. 109, to be indigenous 
 in the mountains which separate China from the 
 Burmese territories. Dr. Wallich had also seen a 
 Tea plant ten feet high at Katmandoo in Nepal, 
 where it had been growing for many years in the 
 open air. That is, at an elevation of 4,784 feet 
 above Bengal, in 27" 42' of N. latitude, and in a 
 mean temperature of 64° of Fahr. 
 
 Cultivation re- J)r. Wallich, in 1832, presented a paper to the 
 
 commended by ^ * * 
 
 Dr.wauich. Committee of the House of Commons on the 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 261 
 
 Affairs of India, recommending the cultivation of cultivation in 
 
 . Tx. »» • • I 1- • British Hima- 
 
 Tea m the Himalayan Mountams, m the districts layas. 
 of Kemaon, Gurhwal, and Sirmore. 
 
 So much had already been proposed, when the 
 Author proceeded to point out in detail the parts 
 of the Himalayas where he had so frequently stated 
 that the Tea plant might be successfully culti- 
 Tated. These did not appear the only, or the most 
 favourable localities, for such a purpose ; for in 
 that case the valley of Nepal, where the Tea plant 
 was already growing, would have been the most 
 eligible for the first experiment, but this is not in- 
 cluded within the British territories. 
 
 The Himalayan Mountains extend from near Extent of Hi- 
 Cashmere in a south-east, and afterwards in an " ^^' 
 easterly direction, to Bootan (forming between 27° 
 and 'IS" the northern boundary of Assam) : thence 
 one branch crossing the Chinese province of Yu- « branch ex- 
 
 ^ _ ^ tending mto 
 
 nan, penetrates to Fokien, opposite to which China; 
 
 the island of Formosa may be considered the 
 
 termination of the chain. The late Mr. Calder, 
 
 in a letter, written after his return from China, to 
 
 the Author, stated that the geological structure similarity of 
 
 this in geolo- 
 
 of this termination was the same as that of the gjcai structure; 
 
 Himalayas. Taking the extreme limits, we have 
 
 the chain extending over 45° of longitude, but 
 
 not making more than 10° of northing in its 
 
 whole extent. Though variation in longitude, no 
 
 doubt, produces differences in Climate, yet, as 
 
 this is chiefly influenced by latitude and elevation, larity in cu- 
 
 it is evident that along the whole extent of this 
 
 mountainous country there must be many locali- 
 
^62 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Extent of Hi- 
 maluyas. 
 
 Infornnation 
 obtained from 
 Mr. Reeves. 
 
 Valuable from 
 the attention 
 he paid to Na- 
 tural History. 
 
 One kind of 
 Tea plant more 
 hardy than the 
 other. 
 
 Species and 
 varieties of 
 Tea plant 
 
 ties which differ but little in latitude and in 
 elevation, and which must consequently resemble 
 each other in Climate, and therefore, probably, 
 also in Vegetation. 
 
 From the foregoing notice respecting the vari- 
 ous localities in which the Tea plant is found to 
 flourish, it is evident that it can bear consider- 
 able differences of dryness and of moisture, as 
 well as of heat and of cold. Being in the metro- 
 polis, the Author endeavoured to obtain, as far 
 as was possible, the fullest and most correct in- 
 formation on so important a subject. He was 
 fortunate in being favoured by Mr. Reeves with 
 some new information, the result of inquiries ob- 
 tained from the Chinese, and when in the em- 
 ployment of the East-India Company at Canton. 
 This was the more valuable from the attention 
 which Mr. Reeves had paid, when there, to sub- 
 jects of Natural History, as may be seen from the 
 result of his labours in the library of the Horti- 
 cultural Society. From him the Author learnt 
 that one of the kinds of Tea plant was able to 
 bear a greater degree of cold than he had pre- 
 viously supposed. This was confirmed by the 
 experience of Messrs. Loddiges m their Nursery 
 grounds, and by the testimony of Sir W. J. 
 Hooker, and of Mr. George Loddiges. 
 
 Before proceeding in the inquiry, it would be 
 desirable to ascertain whether one or several spe- 
 cies. of Thea yield the several varieties of tea ; as 
 this might explain some of the discrepancies in 
 the accounts respecting the soil and climate re- 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 263 
 
 quired for its cultivation. Some authors consider Species and 
 
 ^ varieties of 
 
 that all the varieties of tea may be prepared Tea. 
 from the same plant, and that the differences are 
 therefore due to the age of the leaf and the mode 
 of preparation. Others are of opinion that they 
 are dependent on variations in soil and climate, 
 as well as on distinctness in the plant, whether 
 this be a species or a permanent variety. 
 
 Dr. Abel, when passing through the country, Green and 
 
 . . /.rn Black Tea 
 
 had little doubt of there being two species of lea plants distinct. 
 plant, and mentions that the plants from the Mack Dr. Abel's 
 
 opinion. 
 
 and green tea districts differ in the form, colour, 
 and texture of their leaves ; those of the green 
 tea being larger, thinner, and of a lighter colour 
 than those of the black, though growing in the 
 same soil. These characters may be seen in the 
 plants in the Kew or Chiswick Gardens, or in 
 that of the Messrs. Loddiges, and known as the 
 green and black tea plants in this country. Both 
 have been figured and described by Sir W. J. 
 Hooker and by Mr. Loddiges. 
 
 Mr. Reeves expresses his surprise, " that any Mr. Reeves's, 
 person who has been in China, or, indeed, any 
 one who has seen the difference in the colour of 
 the infusion of black and green tea, could sup- 
 pose for a moment that they were the produce of 
 the same plants, differing only in the mode of 
 curing ; particularly as they do not grow in the 
 neighbourhood of each other;" and he further 
 says that the Chinese manufacturers do not, and 
 they say they cannot, make black tea into green, 
 
^4 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 and vice versa ; and this I believe to be true : in- 
 deed, the colour of the infusion is alone suffi- 
 Biack Teas cieut evideuce." Mr. Pigou, on the contrary, 
 from the same adduccs the cvideuce of a Chinese, as stating 
 ^*°'* that " Bohea may be cured as Hyson, and Hyson 
 
 as Bohea." The discrepancy in the information 
 SpSd"by ^^' I^^Gves explains by adding, that " there is a 
 Mr.Reeves. spccics of tea growu in the province of Canton, 
 of a pale-coloured leaf (occasionally mixed with 
 Congou tea, to make the tea imported under the 
 name of Bohea), and this tea can be coloured and 
 made up to imitate various qualities of green tea, 
 and large quantities are yearly thus made ; but 
 still it is only an appearance that can be given : 
 the deception is detected as soon as it is put 
 into water." (Illustrations, p. 111.) 
 Green Tea As there are several acknowledged species of 
 
 plant more '^ '■ 
 
 hardy than the Thca, thcTc sccuis uo Tcasou why morc than one 
 
 Black. . "^ 
 
 species may not be employed in manufacturmg 
 into tea. There is no doubt that the plants known 
 here as green and black tea plants retain perma- 
 nently their characteristics, and that their leaves 
 respectively resemble those obtained after infusing 
 good specimens of green and of black tea. The 
 green tea plant is, moreover, much more hardy 
 than the black tea plant; one of the former lived 
 for twenty years in the open air, nailed against 
 the common wall of the garden in Mr. Loddiges' 
 Nursery grounds at Hackney, and was only killed 
 in the very severe winter of 1837-8, when the ther- 
 mometer fell to 4^' Fahr., which proved fatal to 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 265 
 
 SO many of the old established trees and shrubs of ^la^k Tea 
 
 •' _ _ converted into 
 
 our gardens. From the fact of artificial means Green artifi- 
 
 *^ ciaUy. 
 
 beingadopted,to change the colour of the common 
 tea from blffck to green, we might infer that there 
 is naturally a kind of tea which this was intended 
 to resemble. A gentleman, well known in Lon- 
 don, for his knowledge acquired when at Canton, 
 of the teas of China, has been in the habit of show- 
 ing, by experiment, in one vessel divided by a par- 
 tition, how the black may be converted into 
 green tea.* 
 
 From the great extent of territory over which, soils suited to 
 
 , ^ , . „ . . . 1 • 1 • the Tea plant. 
 
 and the variety of situations in which, tea is pro- 
 duced, there can be little doubt that it is grown 
 in a variety of soils, though there are, no doubt, 
 certain physical states which are best suited to 
 the production of the finest flavoured teas. The 
 principal cultivation of teas for the foreign trade 
 is between 27° and 31** of N. lat. Dr. Abel was 
 of opinion that the tea plant succeeds best on the 
 sides of mountains, where there can be little 
 accumulation of vegetable mould. The plantations 
 which he saw were in a kind of gravelly soil, 
 formed either of disintegrated sandstone or pri- 
 mary rocks. " Judging from specimens," says Dr. 
 A., "collected in our route through the province 
 
 * Mr. Bruce has lately described the process, which, besides 
 an extra degree of preparation, requires the addition of indigo 
 and of sulphate of lime. He is of opinion that the different 
 kinds of tea are prepared from the same plant. 
 
266 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 soUof Tea of Keang-nan, whence the green tea is procured, 
 its rocks consist chiefly of sandstone, schistus and 
 granite ;" and he was inclined to think that those 
 of Fokien must besimilar. This coincides also with 
 the testimony of others. (Illustrations, p. 113.) 
 Extent of cui- The tea plant is cultivated in China over a 
 irTchina? ^ vcrv large extent of territory. Dr. Wallich men- 
 tions it in Cochin-China in N. lat. 17°, and in 
 dhina in the southern provinces of Yunan and of 
 Quang-tung. Mr. Reeves informed the Author 
 that, in a Chinese Herbal, tea is said to be pro- 
 duced, among other places to the northward of 
 From 17° to 31**, in nine places in Hoo-Quang, three places in 
 * ■ Ho-nan, one place in Shensi, and two places in 
 Shan-tung ; one of these latter, and the most 
 northward of the whole, is Tang-chow-Foo, in 
 36** 30' N. lat. — and in the Japan islands, which 
 extend from 30° to 41° of N. lat.. Dr. Abel states 
 having found it in an apparently wild state at 
 See-chou, in the province of Kiang-see, about 
 N. lat. 26°, where the hills were covered with 
 At cheusan, piucs. The Author has, since the publication of 
 Mountains."" ^is obscrvations, seen an excellent specimen in 
 flower in the British Museum, collected bv an- 
 other botanist (Mr. Cunningham) near Cheusan, 
 which is in 30° of N. lat., and where, he say, it 
 delights on the tops of mountains like the Pine.* 
 The information which we possess respecting 
 
 * This specimen was pointed out to the Author by Mr. R. 
 firown, distinguished as the first botanist of the day. The 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 267 
 
 the climate of the tea districts is, like that of the Climate <rf Tea 
 
 . . districts. 
 
 soil, rather of an inferential than of a positive 
 nature ; so the Author adopted the plan of taking 
 the extremes of that of Canton and of Pekin, 
 and considering that of the tea districts as a me- 
 dium between them. The mean annual tempera- 
 ture at Canton is about 69^ 7. ; the greatest cold. Of Canton. 
 29°, occurs in January, and the greatest heat, 94°, 
 in July. At Pekin, in N. lat. 39° 54', the mean Of Pekin. 
 temperature of the three winter months is 26"* 
 42, that is below the freezing-point, as at Copen- 
 hagen, while the summer is as warm as that at 
 Naples, with a mean temperature of 82° 58. — 
 (Vide Humboldt on Isothermal lines, or Illus- 
 trations, p. 113, where some of the details are 
 given.) 
 
 The Author then proceeded to give an abstract Thermometric 
 of the observations of the thermometer, made in by British 
 the progress of the British Embassy, from the ^" 
 
 8th September to the 24th of November, from 
 Tiensing, near lat. 39°, to Nanchangfoo, about 
 lat. 28° 40'. During this time, 44° was the lowest, 
 and 80° the highest temperature observed. 
 
 Mr. Reeves, moreover, informed the Author, CoWnessof 
 that "snow has been on the ground for days 
 together upon the green teas, and the manufac- 
 turers of the black tea complain of the coldness 
 
 note attached to it is in the hand-writing ot Cunningham. 
 '* Tea frutex flore albo rosaceo sununitatibus montium gaudens 
 uti Pinus." — Herb. Mus., vol. xciii., fol. 146. 
 
268 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 cjimateof of their country at times." — The extremes of 
 
 Lbina. 
 
 temperature are, however, well known to be 
 considerable in all the parts of China with which 
 we are acquainted when compared either with 
 India or with Europe, as indicated in the " Illus- 
 S'S^SeT" Orations," p. 1 16. Humboldt has observed: "The 
 and summer whole of Europc, Compared with the eastern and 
 
 temperature. 
 
 western parts of America and Asia, has an in- 
 sular climate. Also, that the northern part of 
 China, like the Atlantic region of the United 
 States, exhibits excessive climates, as BufTon indi- 
 cated, and seasons strongly contrasted, while the 
 coasts of New California and the embouchure 
 of the Columbia, have winters and summers al- 
 most equally temperate." This great contrast of 
 climates between summer and winter is most 
 conspicuous in the north, and diminishes, proba- 
 bly by degrees, as we proceed to the south. If we 
 compare the climate of Canton with that of 
 fheTmttes of Calcutta, which is not a degree to the southward, 
 g,"^ton^^dof we shall find that the latter, with a maximum 
 temperature of 93° 6, being 3°. 6 above that re- 
 corded at Canton, has a minimum of only 56°. 8, 
 which is 'IT. 8 above that at Canton. The annual 
 range of the thermometer at Calcutta, therefore, 
 is about 36° ; that at Canton being upwards of 60°, 
 and characteristic of an excessive climate. 
 Difference be- The greatest difference between the climate of 
 
 tween Indian » j* j xi ^ /• /~ii • 
 
 and Chinese India and that of Chma is, probably, in the ab- 
 
 *" """**• sence in the latter of a regular rainy season, which 
 
 fertilizes the former during one period of the year. 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 269 
 
 The northern parts of China enjoy upon the ^""J^**^ 
 whole a very dry climate ; but the months of 
 June, July, and August, are stated to be often 
 very rainy, and the average of rainy days to be "^'* 
 fifty-eight. At Macao the quantity of rain on an at Macao ; 
 average of eighteen years is about 69^ inches an- 
 nually ; or 107 inches is the largest, and 49 inches 
 the smallest quantity which fell in any year. 
 Mr. Reeves informed the Author that he has inXeadistricts. 
 known the black tea manufacturers complain 
 " that their first picking, in May and June, often 
 suffers from rains and cold easterly winds." This 
 indicates frequent but not periodical rains. 
 
 Having noticed the extent of distribution, and, J^^etotiorfoT" 
 as far as practicable, the soil and climate, of 
 the tea districts, it is desirable to ascertain the 
 vegetation natural to the same regions. This 
 may be distinguished into that which is Peren- Perennial and 
 
 *' *^ ^ ^ ^ Annual. 
 
 nial, and that which is Annual ; and into the for- 
 mer as characterizing both the southern and the 
 northern provinces. The Perennial plants of the ^uXl^pro- 
 southern provinces are exposed to no great ex- ^^""^^^ • 
 tremes of temperature as great or long-continued 
 cold is not to be expected in the latitude, and ex- 
 cess of heat is moderated by the greater moisture. resemWe those 
 There is, therefore, considerable resemblance to nountSes; 
 the vegetation of tropical countries in general, 
 and to the southern parts of India in particular. 
 
 The Perennials of mountainous situations, as Perennials 
 well as of the northern provinces of China, being pro,^nceT" 
 exposed to the extreme severity of the winter of 
 
1 
 
 270 
 
 CULTURE OP TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Perennials of 
 northern pro- 
 vinces. 
 
 resemble those 
 of Himalayas. 
 
 A few tropical 
 species found 
 as far north as 
 in India. 
 
 Comparison of 
 Flora of China 
 with that of 
 other coun- 
 tries. 
 
 Annuals of 
 China. 
 
 that country (notwithstanding that they have to 
 bear the heats of summer), have a resemblance 
 to the plants of northern latitudes, and to such as 
 are found on the slope ot the Himalayas. Some 
 genera are associated with these, of which the 
 species are most prevalent about the centre of the 
 temperate zone, and to which great extremes of 
 temperature may be supposed to be obnoxious. 
 With these occur some other genera, the species of 
 which are chiefly diffused through tropical coun- 
 tries : " but ot these only single species have in 
 general been enumerated in the northern pro- 
 vinces of China, in the same way that we have seen 
 species of the same genera extending to the most 
 northern parts of India, and ascending up the 
 sides of the Himalayas within the thick covering 
 of jungle and forest, when they could not exist in 
 the moderate cold even of the open plains of 
 northern India." — Illustrations, p. 120. 
 
 Great resemblance of the Flora of the north of 
 China to that of Europe, of Tartary and Siberia, 
 likewise to that of Japan, and in some genera to 
 that of North America, is also observed. But the 
 analogy is the greatest between the Flora of the 
 Himalayas and that of China, and some species 
 even, which were first discovered in the Hima- 
 layas, are now enumerated in the Flora of China, 
 while others, which were only known as Chinese 
 and Japan plants, are found in abundance within 
 the Himalayas. 
 
 Though congenial with the vegetation of 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 271 
 
 southern latitudes, we are far from expecting Modifying 
 
 , effects of rain 
 
 with the shrubby and arboreous vegetation of the and moisture 
 •^ on tempera- 
 
 northern provinces, the prevalence of many An- ture. 
 
 nuals, or of such cultivation as we expect only in 
 tropical countries. But the temperature of rainy 
 countries, or of moist situations, varies less 
 than that of dry ones, even when their lati- 
 tudes differ to a considerable extent. The summer 
 maximum of temperature also increases with 
 the latitude to a certain extent, owing to the 
 greater dryness of the countries immediately be- 
 yond the influence of moisture and the rains. Thus 
 Bruce, in Abyssinia, found the climate, on ac- 
 count of the rain, was 12° cooler when the sun was 
 over head than when he was 36° to the south- 
 ward. So, in India, the mean temperature of the 
 hot weather exceeds that of the rainy season 
 months, though the latter extend over those 
 months which in drier countries are the hottest 
 in the year, that is, from the middle of June to 
 the middle of September. The temperature of the 
 warmest months at Canton is 83°.6, and at Pekin 
 as high as 82°.58, that is less by only 1°.02, though 
 it is 15° more north in latitude. 
 
 Hence, we may find the lakes abounding in vegetation and 
 
 •; , ° Cultivation de- 
 
 the same vegetation in the northern as in the pendent on 
 
 j~^, . water. 
 
 southern provinces of Chma, as we may see 
 some of the plants of England in the vicinity of 
 water in India. In a regularly warm and steady 
 climate, therefore, if water be applied artifi- 
 cially, as by irrigation, whether from wells, 
 
272 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 EflFects of 
 water on culti- 
 vation. 
 
 Cold weather 
 cultivation of 
 China. 
 
 The Author 
 recommends 
 experiments in 
 the Himalayas. 
 
 rivers, or canals, so that it be sufficiently abun- 
 dant, the same plants may be as successfully cul- 
 tivated as in tropical countries. Therefore we have 
 all along the canals of China the cultivation of 
 Rice, Sorghum, &c. in the summer months, as 
 we observe in India during the rainy season. 
 The similarity in culture is still greater, for at 
 the termination of the Rice and Millet crop we 
 find wheat, barley, buckwheat, peas, beans, lu- 
 cerne, and tobacco are grown. But we must not 
 from this conclude that there is identity of cli- 
 mate, for the openness of the extended coast, 
 backed by ranges of hills, must give it the advan- 
 tage of having its climate modified by sea breezes 
 and more frequent showers of rain. The latter 
 are well known to be absent from India for many 
 months, almost from October to June, with the 
 exception of some rain at Christmas. The differ- 
 ence of climate is, however, strikingly manifest 
 in the more northern latitudes to which the Silk 
 culture is extended in China, while in India it 
 is confined to the province of Bengal, where mois- 
 ture modifies the great heat. 
 
 Such being the extent of distribution, soil, 
 climate, and vegetation associated with the Tea 
 plant, and the similarity in these respects to what 
 is found in the Himalayas being considerable, the 
 Author proceeded to recommend that experiments 
 should be made to cultivate Tea in suitable situa- 
 tions in these mountains. 
 
 The British territories in the Himalayas, 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 273 
 
 such as Kemaon, or those which are under Extent of Bn- 
 
 _, . tish posses- 
 
 British protection, as Gurhwal and Sirmore, ex- sionsinHima- 
 
 tend from 28° to 31 J° of N. lat., and present every 
 diversity of climate and vegetation from their 
 tropical bases to their snow-clad summits. But 
 as the same latitudes are warmer in India than in temperature; 
 China, we must go further north, or ascend 
 higher, to obtain a similar temperature. With 
 regard to soil, since that derived from the disinte- son. 
 gration of primary rocks, or what is meagre in na- 
 ture, is said to be suitable to the tea plant, (or, 
 as according to one Author, "leaves of a fine 
 flower are only produced in light stony ground,") 
 there would be no difficulty in findino; such as is 
 suitable in the primary-structured Himalayas. 
 
 Dr. Wallich has stated, that a temperature be- Temperature, 
 
 requisite for 
 
 tween 30° and 80° (meaning that with a summer Tea culture. 
 heat of 80° there should not be a greater degree 
 of cold than 30* in ^jinter) is requisite. This the 
 Author was disposed to coincide in ; he therefore 
 mentioned that Deyra, at the foot of the Hima- 
 layas, in 30° of N. lat. has a range of the ther- 
 mometer of from 37° to 101°, while Mussooree, 
 nearly immediately above, but at the top of the 
 range, and about 4,500 feet more elevated, one idealities 
 
 pointed out as 
 
 from 27° to 80° ; but that Jurreepanee, about mid- desirable by 
 way between the two, seemed the most eligible 
 situation, from having a favoumble climate be- 
 yond the hot winds, facility of irrigation, and a 
 decided change in the vegetation. A moist and 
 warm situation, near the lake called Bheemtal, 
 
 T 
 
274 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 liOcalities 
 pointed out as 
 desirable for 
 Tea cultivation 
 
 varied in situa> 
 tion and cli- 
 mate. 
 
 Probability of 
 success. 
 
 Same tracts re- 
 commended by 
 Dr. Waliich. 
 
 another in the valley of Hawulbagh, and a third 
 at Almora, elevated 5,400 feet, were recommended 
 in Kemaon. Further to the north-west, one in 
 the garden of Shalimar in the Pinjore valley, and 
 two others at Nahn and Sabathoo, both elevated 
 about four thousand feet. 
 
 The whole of these situations being spread 
 along the tract above described as within British 
 influence, gave as great an extent of latitude as 
 was then attainable (Assam being unknown, ex- 
 cept as abounding in jungles), and a sufficient 
 variety of elevation and of climate. So that with 
 the requisite attention to selection of open and of 
 shady, moist or dry localities, &c. at these several 
 places, a sufficient number of results would be 
 insured as data for future cultivation. 
 
 The Author concluded by stating, that from the 
 latitude, elevation, soil, climate, and the course of 
 the seasons in the Himalayas, as well as from the 
 considerable identity of the vegetation, with that 
 of China, there could not be a doubt of success 
 in introducing the cultivation of tea, with the 
 strongest probability of all its properties remain- 
 ing unchanged, as every requisite is so similar to 
 what it experiences in its native country. 
 
 Such was the state of information, and such the 
 results to which it led. Dr. Waliich having re- 
 commended, in February 1832, the same tract of 
 the Himalayas which the Author had pointed out 
 in 1827, and which, after entering more fully into 
 the details of the subject, and after obtaining the 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 275 
 
 best information that was procurable in this Tracu for Tea 
 
 1 1 J • J 1 culture. 
 
 country, besides consulting' those who had resided 
 in China, he again recommended in 1834, 
 
 Lord W. Bentinck, with the sanction of the 
 Court of Directors, had, in the beo-inning of 1834, petermination 
 
 ' ' o o 'to attempt Tea 
 
 determined upon attempting the cultivation of culture in in- 
 Tea in India. A Committee was appointed for the committee 
 purpose of submitting to government a plan for 
 the accomplishment of this object. 
 
 The first conclusion to which the Committee 
 came was, that "the proposed experiment may be 
 made, with great probability of success, in the 
 lower hills and vallies of the Himalayan range. Localities re- 
 
 commended 
 
 Next to them, those of our Eastern frontier offer forexperi- 
 
 ments. 
 
 the best prospects, and after them, the Neilgherry 
 and other lofty mountains in Southern and Cen- 
 tral India." "To the former part of this conclu- 
 sion they were led," according to their report, "by 
 a very able and interesting letter of Dr. Falconer 
 on the subject," and also by the fact, "that in the 
 mountainous tracts of our northern and eeistem 
 frontier, several species of plants are found indige- 
 nous, which are also natives of China, and are 
 not met with in other parts of the world." 
 
 Circulars, with specific inquiries, respectins; cli- inquiries res- 
 
 '^ T. ' jr o pectmg climate 
 
 mate, soil, &c., were addressed in March 1834 to and soil. 
 several gentlemen. Mr. Gordon, the secretary, was Mr. Gordon 
 
 deputed to 
 
 directed to proceed to China, to procure plants, China. 
 seeds, and Chinese cultivators, to carry on the ex- 
 periment. Dr. Wallich offered his gratuitous ser- 
 vices as secretary. It was then stated, that " after 
 
 t2 
 
276 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Tea culture 
 when success- 
 ful may be left 
 to private en- 
 terprize. 
 
 Tea districts 
 visited by 
 Messrs. Gor- 
 don and Gutz- 
 laff. 
 
 Ankoy Tea 
 HiUs. 
 
 Bohea Tea 
 Hills. 
 
 Seeds of Bohea 
 Tea plants ob- 
 tained. 
 
 the practicability of producing Tea lit for com- 
 mercial purposes shall have been ascertained, it 
 may safely be left to the enterprise of individuals 
 to pursue the business as an object of specu- 
 lation." 
 
 Mr. Gordon left Calcutta in June 1834, and 
 in his progress obtained some account of the tea 
 cultivation in Java. After his arrival in China 
 he was accompanied by Mr. Gutzlaff, with whom 
 he visited the Ankoy tea hills. In their account 
 it is related they had to ascend a pass of 1,200 
 feet of elevation, and to descend again about 
 1,000 feet on the other side. The plantations 
 were mostly at the foot of, and on hills 700 feet 
 high ; and the tea plants were found forming small 
 bushes, in a sandy soil, without shade, and not 
 irrigated. They learnt also that hoar frost is 
 common in the locality, and that snow falls occa- 
 sionally to the thickness of three or four inches, 
 but does" not lie long on the ground, and that 
 the plant is sufficiently hardy to bear any degree 
 of dry cold. Messrs. Gordon and Gutzlaff also 
 made an unsuccessful attempt to reach the Bo- 
 hea tea hills, and they intended to endeavour to 
 reach the Green tea districts, but the former was 
 recalled to Bengal in consequence of the finding 
 of the tea plant in the British Indian province of 
 Assam. (Journ. Asiatic Soc, vol. iv., pp. 95, 553.) 
 
 Mr. Gordon, however, obtained abundance of 
 seed, of the Bohea tea plants. These arrived in Cal- 
 cutta in January 1835, and being sown, produced 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 277 
 
 numerous plants, which were distributed to the Young Tea 
 
 IT' n- c 111 plants distri- 
 
 several districts thought to oner favourable loca- buted to Ma- 
 
 dr&s Pre SI* 
 
 lities for the growth of the tea plant. dency. 
 
 Twenty boxes of seedling plants were sent to 
 Madras, and thence still further distributed; six 
 boxes being sent to the Neilgherries, to Coorg, 
 and to Mysore, and two to the Agricultural 
 and Horticultural Society of Madras. Res- 
 pecting all these, we learn by a letter from the 
 chief secretary to the Government of Fort St. 
 George, dated S'id August 1836, that " the expe- failure of 
 
 . many; 
 
 nment has almost entirely failed ; with the excep- 
 tion of a few plants on the Neilgherry hills, and 
 in the Nuggur country, the rest have withered 
 away." The causes of failure, however, whether 
 owing to soil, climate, or imperfect culture, are 
 not assigned in any of the letters. 
 
 A few, apparently, of the same plants, which did 
 not succeed in the Neilgherries, were given by the 
 officer commanding there to Captain Minchin, 
 who w^as stationed at Mannantoddy in Wynaad, a success in 
 
 J • . » , . Wynaad. 
 
 district of the western Ghauts belonging to the pro- 
 vince of Malabar. These have been described to 
 thrive, and become bushy and fine plants, and as 
 coming out in full bloom in June. It is probable, 
 therefore, that some of the districts possessing the 
 same soil and climate will be able to grow the tea 
 plant ; but whether so as to retain the same degree 
 of astringent and stimulant property as the tea 
 of China, can only be ascertained by experiment. 
 Seeds and young plants were also sent to the 
 
278 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Seeds and north-westem parts of the Bengal presidency. 
 
 young plants ,^, • i i i i i 
 
 sent to the Ihese wcFC at one time thought to be the only 
 part of the favourable places for the cultivation of the tea 
 im ayas. pjan^^ ^nd they had been frequently recom- 
 mended by the Author, as well as by Dr. Fal- 
 coner,* in a report (Tea papers, p. 21,) which is 
 remarkable for coincidence in argument and in 
 opinion with that of the Author, though the two 
 Essays crossed each other in their passage to and 
 from India. 
 Tea nurseries Chejoorce, Rama Serai, and Koth, at elevations 
 
 established in " /. i r. i • 
 
 Kemaon, of 4,000, 5,000, and 5,300 feet, the first havmg a 
 sirmore.' northerly and the two latter a south-west aspect, 
 were selected for experiment in Gurhwal by Dr. 
 Falconer. A few plants were, moreover, tried 
 above the Chejoorie nursery, at an elevation of 
 6,400 feet. Rama Serai presented the advantages 
 or disadvantages of being a flat and open valley, 
 which, though elevated, is extremely hot in the 
 summer months. Two situations were selected in 
 Sirmore, one at Ruroo, 5,400 feet, and the other 
 at 5,100 feet of elevation, the former with an east- 
 south-east and the latter with a southerly aspect. 
 Result of first Sincc ihc institution of the experimental tea 
 nurseries. Dr. Falconer has been deputed to inves- 
 tigate the natural history of Cashmere and Tibet, 
 and no report has yet been published on the result 
 
 * The Author has since learnt, that the same tract had been 
 recommended by Dr. Govan in 1815, and at a much earlier 
 period by Sir Joseph Banks. All botanists know that the latter 
 had within his reach the best advice on botanical subjects. 
 
 experiments. 
 
CULTURE OP TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 279 
 
 of the Tea experiments. In a letter to the Author, Result of ex- 
 periments in 
 dated the 1st of December 1838, he says that the Himalayas. 
 
 " the tea plant was thriving vigorously in two, and 
 
 had flowered in three, of the above nurseries ;" and 
 
 in another, dated the 18th of May, he writes — *'I 
 
 have now plants growing at Saharunpore, the 
 
 produce of seeds from the Koth nursery. This is no 
 
 contemptible progress. They have not yet got a 
 
 step further in Assam, with the materials afforded 
 
 by the tea committee. The tea which has gone 
 
 home is the leaf of the Assam jungle stock." 
 
 Of the replies to the circular of the 3rd March, Reply of capt. 
 
 . . . - . . Jenkins. 
 
 the most important for its information, and m its 
 consequences, was that of Capt. Jenkins, agent 
 to the Governor-general on the north-eastern 
 frontier, dated 7th May 1834. In this he re- Recommends 
 commends the district of Assam for the cultiva- Tea culture; 
 tion of tea. He mentions that " the part directly 
 under us ranges from six thousand to eight thou- 
 sand feet: and that further east the mountains 
 attain a height of ten thousand feet, and the val- 
 lies and beds of streams are from two thousand 
 five hundred to four thousand feet above the 
 sea." "Camellias are found in every part of 
 this hill country ; and within our jurisdiction, 
 in the Singpho district of Beesa, a coarse variety 
 of the tea plant is, as I am informed, undoubt- 
 edly indigenous." He further informs us, that " a states that* 
 
 ,. ciiT i-iiii Tea plant is 
 
 plant was given to him at Suddiya, which he had indigenous. 
 reason to suppose was a genuine tea tree.'* 
 
 Lieut. Charlton writes, on the 17th May, that 
 
280 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Letter he had been informed three years previously of 
 
 of Lieutenant . • i i * i-» i i 
 
 Charlton on the tea plant grownig wild near iSneesa, whence, 
 
 tiic tliscovcrv 
 
 oftheTeapiant indeed, he obtained three or four young trees, 
 sSm.''^*'^ * which he gave to Dr. John Tytler, to be planted 
 in the Government Botanical Garden. But these 
 arrived in a sickly state, were thought to be Ca- 
 mellias, and soon died. Lieutenant C. further 
 writes, that on the Putkoye range of hills, which 
 divide the waters of the Burhampooter from 
 those of the Kuendwan, " the trees are said to 
 grow in abundance, and are described to reach 
 the size of small forest trees or very large shrubs." 
 Sends seeds On the 8th Novcmbcr, he sent to Calcutta some 
 
 and leaves to i -• i /. i /» a i • i 
 
 Calcutta. seeds and leaves of the tea tree oi Assam, which 
 were forwarded on the 24th December to the 
 Government by the Tea Committee, who an- 
 nounced that " the tea shrub is beyond all doubt 
 indigenous in Upper Assam, being found there, 
 through an extent of country of one month's 
 march within the Honourable Company's terri- 
 tories, from Suddiya and Beesa to the Chinese 
 frontier province of Yunnan, where the shrub is 
 cultivated for the sake of its leaf." 
 Assam Tea So far back, howcvcr, as 1826, the zealous and 
 
 toRiiND. ingenious Mr. D. Scott sent from Munnipore, to 
 Mr. G. Swinton, then chief secretary to the India 
 Government, specimens of the leaves of a shrub 
 discovered by which he insisted was a real tea. These we find 
 Mr. race. ^^qyc fiist discoveicd by Mr. Bruce, wlio was tlien 
 in command at Suddiya. Me sent tea s-eeds and 
 plants to Mr. Scott, having been previously in- 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 281 
 
 formed of their existence by his brother, the late Existence of 
 
 . . Tea in Assam 
 
 Major Bruce; and he subsequently, in 1833, known to Ma- 
 jor Bruce, 
 brought it to the notice of Capt. Jenkins. — (Tea 
 
 Cultivation in India, p. 91.) 
 
 The history of this discovery is instructive, as Remarks ou 
 
 discovery of 
 
 showinghow long facts of the most important na- TeaandCaout- 
 
 . . cbouc in As- 
 
 ture often remain unnoticed, even among those sam. 
 most interested in the information. If the evidence 
 were not so conclusive, it would hardly be cre- 
 dited as occurring with a commercial people like 
 the English, that Tea and Caoutchouc, should 
 both have so long remained neglected after having 
 been discovered in British India. Nor was there 
 any thing very remarkable in the tea plant being 
 found in Upper Assam ; as it is mentioned by 
 some authors as indigenous in the mountains 
 which separate Burma from China. 
 
 In consequence of this important discovery, a a scientific de- 
 
 . - *. putation sent 
 
 scientific deputation was, at the recommendation to upper a*. 
 of the Tea Committee, sent by the Indian Govern- 
 ment, for the investigation of Upper Assam, and 
 for the collecting on the spot the greatest variety of 
 botanical, geological, and other details ; as such 
 preliminary information was absolutely necessary 
 before ulterior measures could be successfully 
 taken with regard to the cultivation of the tea 
 shrub of that country. Seldom has a deputation 
 been better qualified for the task it had to per- 
 form, as Dr. Wallich was aided by Mr. Griffith, 
 already distinguished as a Botanist, and by Mr 
 M*Clelland, who had paid great attention to, and 
 
282 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Descriptio n of 
 the Tea and its 
 sites in Upper 
 Assam by Dr, 
 WaUich. 
 
 Scientific depu- published a work on, the Geology of Kemaon. 
 
 Assam. They were met and accompanied in their visit 
 
 to the tea localities by Mr. Bruce, who was sub- 
 sequently appointed Superintendent of the Tea 
 Plantations in Assam. 
 
 Descriptions have been published by these 
 gentlemen of the several tea tracts which they had 
 at that time an opportunity of examining. These, 
 according to Dr. WaUich, were five in number, — 
 Koojo and Niggroo, among the Singpho, Nud- 
 dooa (Noadwar) and Tengrae, in the Muttuck 
 country, and Gubroo, at the foot of the Na- 
 ga Hills, in the territories of Rajah Purundur 
 Singh. The last, Dr. Wallich supposes, is con- 
 nected with others to the southward, and with 
 the tea plant originally announced as existing in 
 Munnipore, and this, he says, may have origi- 
 nated from the plant at Hookum, and that all may 
 have *' originally travelled from the frontiers of 
 China," where we know that a kind of tea is cul- 
 tivated in the province of Yunan. Dr. Wallich 
 describes the boundary of these tea tracts as very 
 irregular, and their surface as much undulated ; 
 the plants as generally overwhelmed by a thick 
 jungle of shrubs, climbers, &c., and amongst 
 them numerous bamboos, with large trees over- 
 topping the whole. The tea plants, he says, 
 are remarkably healthy and vigorous, and of all 
 ages, between quite young seedlings and tall 
 shrubs of twelve, sixteen, to twenty feet m height, 
 with stems mostly under an inch iu diameter, 
 
 Supposes it 
 has travelled 
 from China. 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 283 
 
 and in no instance reachinsr beyond two inches. Description of 
 
 , ^ ,, Assam Tea 
 
 When seen in February, almost all the full grown plants by Dr. 
 plants had abundance of seed-buds ; a few had 
 still some flowers on them. The older foliage was 
 large, and of a fine dark-green colour. 
 
 It was observed that where the forest trees had 
 been felled, the tea plants, by exposure to a 
 sudden excess of light and heat, had the colour ESfectsof 
 
 light; 
 
 of their leaves changed from a dark, to a pale, 
 somewhat yellowish green colour. In many in- 
 stances, where tea plants had been cut down, Ti^^/^J"* 
 vigorous and frequent shoots were observed at 
 the base and top of the stumps that had been left 
 
 Dr. Wallich's 
 
 standing on the ground. Dr. Wallich concluded, opinion that 
 that though the Assam forests hold out the fairest uon and coid 
 prospects of being " made to yield a very valuable Si^wg^ 
 supply of good and potable tea," yet he suspects ^^'^ ^' 
 that " we shall have to ascend much higher eleva- 
 tions than those where the tea has been hitherto 
 seen in Assam, to meet with localities subject to 
 a decided winter of six weeks or two months' 
 duration, before we can expect to find the more 
 valued and superior sorts of teas, and that it is to 
 such localities that we must chiefly direct our at- 
 tention in the establishment of our new plan- 
 tations." — (Papers, Tea Culture in India, pp. 58 
 
 and 67.) Reports by 
 
 Mr. Bruce, in his communication 1st October 
 1836, describes the tea tracts as consisting of 
 little mounds or hillocks of earth, on which large 
 trees had grown, whose roots alone appeared 
 to save them from being washed away. One 
 
 Mr. Bruce. 
 
284 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Report by 
 Mr. Bruce on 
 Tea of Upper 
 Assam; 
 fondness for 
 water ; 
 
 effects of ex- 
 posure and 
 cutting down. 
 
 Completely 
 ■uccessful. 
 
 Report of Tea 
 Committee. 
 
 thing he observes as worthy of notice, that all the 
 Assam tea grows near water, of which it appears 
 to be very fond, for wherever there is a small 
 stream or jheel, tea is sm'e to be there. He de- 
 scribes also the results of cutting down the tea 
 plant with the other trees of the forest, when the 
 ground was cleared from weeds and hoed in 
 January for the purpose of sowing rice in Febru- 
 ary. This came up, ripened, and was cut down ; 
 after which, the tea sprung up, and displayed 
 numerous young leaves in March, which had 
 rather a yellowish appearance ; but in October 
 the plants had grown from three to ten feet high, 
 and the leaves were of a fine healthy green. 
 Those tea plants which had only been cut down 
 to about four feet from the ground had abundant 
 shoots springing up a little below the part that 
 had been cut, and some of them were full of 
 flower-buds. All those that had been cut on a 
 level with the ground threw out more shoots and 
 leaves than those that had been allowed to remain 
 four feet high. This experiment, though acci- 
 dental, and to a small extent, Mr. B. concludes, 
 was " quite sufficient to show us that the experi- 
 ments so long desired (to know whether these 
 trees would grow in the sun or not) have been 
 crowned with the greatest success." 
 
 The Tea Committee report to the Government 
 in January 1837, that " the plant is now found 
 to be much more generally diffused over the 
 Muttuck country than he (Mr. Bruce) had sup- 
 posed, seven new spots having been brought to 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 285 
 
 Mr. Briice's notice during his last trip ; and fur- Mr. Brace's 
 
 .1 1 •! i/'ii iT-11 reports on Tea 
 
 tner observation has served fully to establish the plant of as- 
 
 expediency of clearing away the jungle, and 
 
 cutting down the tea trees close to the ground, 
 
 in order to improve the quality of the foliage. 
 
 From the new shoots of plants that had been 
 
 thus treated, Mr. Bruce has prepared five boxes Tea prepared, 
 
 , * and sent to 
 
 of tea, a sample of which he has forwarded to Calcutta. 
 Capt. Jenkins, for despatch to Calcutta." — (Pa- 
 pers, Tea Cultivation, p. 85.) 
 
 Mr. Bruce, in his latest account, published in Tea plant 
 
 . , T A • • o • • found on the 
 
 August 1839, in the Journ. Asiatic society, gives hiiis in Assam ; 
 an account of the further discovery of tea tracts, 
 which then amounted to no less than " one hun- 
 dred and twenty, some of them very extensive, 
 both on the hills, and in the plains." The hills 
 on which tea has been found by Mr. Bruce are 
 the Naga Hills, and those of Gubroo and Tipum. 
 " The flowers of the tea on these hills (Gubroo) 
 are of a pleasant, delicate fragrance, unlike the 
 smell of our other tea plants ; but the leaves and 
 fruit appear the same." The tea was described to 
 Mr. B. as having been brought from Munkum to 
 the Tipum Hills, and that the plant was cut down 
 every third year to get the young leaves. On a account of. 
 hill, three hundred feet high behind Jaipore, a tea 
 tract two or three miles in length was found : the 
 trees were in most parts as thick as they could 
 grow, and the tea seeds (smaller than what Mr. 
 Bruce had seen before), fine and fresh, literally 
 covered the ground. This was in the middle of 
 
286 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Mr. Brace's November, and the trees had abundance of fruit 
 
 reports on Tea i y-^, /• i i 
 
 plant of Assam and flower on them. One of the largest trees he 
 found to be two cubits in circumference, and full 
 forty cubits in height. The Namsong tract, on the 
 Naga Hills, Mr. B. describes as the largest that 
 has yet been seen, and its extent as not having 
 been yet ascertained. — (Report, p. 8.) 
 
 Productive- " With Tcspcct to the tea plant being most pro- 
 
 low grounds, ductivc ou high or low ground, I cannot well 
 say, as all our tracts are on the plains ; but from 
 what little I have seen of the hill tracts, I should 
 suppose they were not more productive. In 
 China, the hill tracts produce the best teas, and 
 they may do the same here." With regard to the 
 tracts in the plains, Mr. Bruce believes they are 
 equally productive, " although if I leaned towards 
 any side with my limited experience, I should 
 say that the low land, such as at Kahung, which 
 is not so low as ever to be inundated by the 
 strongest rise in the river, is the best. The plants 
 seem to love and court moisture, not from stag- 
 nant pools, but running streams. " 
 
 Effects of Sun Mr. Brucc further observes, that " the sun has 
 
 on Tea plants. i •, c i 
 
 a material effect on the leaves ; for as soon as the 
 trees that shade the plants are removed, the leaf, 
 from a fine deep green, begins to turn into a yel- 
 lowish colour, which it retains for some months, 
 and then again gradually changes to a healthy 
 green, but now becomes thicker, and the plant 
 throws out far more numerous leaves th^n when 
 in the shade. The more the leaves are plucked, 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 287 
 
 the srreater niimljer of them are produced : if the Eflfects on the 
 
 ^ Tea plant of 
 
 leaves of the first crop were not gathered, you plucking its 
 
 might look in vain for the leaves of the second 
 
 crop. The tea made from the leaves in the shade of shade and of 
 
 r sun; 
 
 is not near so good as that from leaves exposed to 
 the sun. These also are much earlier in season, 
 and give out a less watery liquid when rolled. 
 When the leaves of either are rolled on a sunny 
 day, they emit less of this liquid than on a rainy 
 day. This juice decreases as the season advances. 
 The plants in the sun have flowers and fruit 
 much earlier than those in the shade, and are far 
 more numerous ; they have flowers and seeds in 
 July, and fruit in November. The rain also ^eatly of rain- 
 affects the leaves, for some sorts of tea cannot be 
 made on a rainy day. The Chinese dislike ga- 
 thering leaves on a rainy day for any description 
 of tea, and never will do so, unless necessity re- 
 quires it. Some pretend to distinguish the teas Teas made on 
 
 * * "^ ^ rainy days in- 
 
 made on a rainy and on a sunny day, much in the fenor. 
 same manner as they can distinguish the shady 
 from the sunny teas — by their inferiority. The 
 season for making tea in Assam generally com- seasons for 
 
 . making Teas in 
 
 mences about the middle of March ; the second Assam. 
 crop in the middle of May ; the third crop about 
 the 1st of July; but the time varies according to 
 the rains setting in, sooner or later." — (Report 
 of 1839, pp. 10 and 11.) 
 
 In both the reports which Mr. B. has published 
 valuable details are given respecting the modes 
 of preparation of the different kinds of tea; many 
 
288 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Mr. Bruce on of tliem are dependent on the a^e of the tea 
 
 the manufac 
 
 tureofXeas. leavcs, others on the mode of preparation. He 
 says, that " the leaves of the green tea are not 
 plucked the same as the black, although the tree 
 or plant is one and the same, which has been 
 proved beyond a shadow of doubt ; for I am now 
 
 Black and plucking leavcs for both green and black from 
 
 green Teas 
 
 from the same the samc tract and from the same plants ; the 
 difference lies in the manufacture, and nothing 
 else." It may be so; but a question which has 
 been so long disputed at Canton, is not likely to 
 be satisfactorily settled, and at once, in Assam. 
 As the question will always occur to every one 
 acquainted with the history of the subject, is this 
 
 Tea oTthe^^" ^^^ modc of making the real high-flavoured green 
 
 substitute? ^g^, or is it that of preparing the substitute which 
 Mr. Reeves describes (p. 264) as yearly made in 
 large quantities in the province of Canton, and in 
 the manufacture of which the people there are 
 such proficients? 
 
 Coloured by Mr. Brucc briefly states, that " in the latter 
 
 indigo and sul- /. i • r ^ t o 
 
 phateofiimc. part of the proccss a mixture of sulphate of 
 lime and indigo, very finely pulverized, and sifted 
 through fine muslin, in the proportion of three 
 of the former to one of the latter, is added to a 
 pan of tea, containing about seven pounds ; about 
 half a tea spoonful of this mixture is put, and 
 rubbed and rolled along with the tea in the pan 
 about one hour." This is not added for the pur- 
 pose of improving " the flavour of the tea, but 
 merely to give it a uniform colour and appear- 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 289 
 
 ance, as without it some of the tea would belisfht Theprcpara- 
 
 ^ tion of Greeu 
 
 and some dark." Tea consi- 
 
 dered. 
 
 It does not seem reconcilable with our know- 
 ledge of the effects of heat, that increased ex- 
 posure to high temperature should elicit finer fla- 
 vour, and more stimulant properties, which we 
 know to be characteristic of green tea. But this 
 would be of no weight in opposition to positive 
 testimony from China. Mr. Bruce's is decisive re- n Green Tea 
 specting the mode of manufacturing it in Assam, ^^di*v/may^" 
 and seems to be corroborated by reports from In- ^emiStesS 
 dia respecting the good quality of the green tea 
 which has been prepared there. In the absence of 
 trustworthy testimony from the green tea district 
 of China, it will propably be possible by means 
 of chemical tests, to detect the difference between 
 the best green tea of China, and that of Assam, 
 if they should be differently prepared. Mr. Reeves* 
 opinion is so positive respecting the substitute pre- 
 pared at Canton ; tlie leaves of the best green and 
 black teas of commerce are so different from each Probabilities 
 other; each so like the plant known by its name Screen Tea 
 in this country, and the green is so much more samfpiam. 
 hardy than the black tea plant, that we cannot 
 consider the question decided, and must wait for 
 more positive information than we have yet had, 
 from the green tea district of China. 
 
 Mr. M'Clelland has furnished a very valuable Mr.M'Cieiiand 
 report on the geological features and the climate &c. of Assam.' 
 of Assam, as well as minute observations on 
 the chemical analysis of the soils, in which the 
 
 u 
 
290 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 Geology of. 
 
 Kassia — 
 mountains. 
 
 Mountains on 
 the north and 
 south of Assanii 
 
 Breadth of the 
 valley of As- 
 sam. 
 
 Upper Assam 
 an alluvial 
 plain; 
 
 geological 
 structure of, 
 
 tea plant was found in a flourishing condition, in 
 the five tracts or patches which were visited by 
 the deputation. In ascending the Kassia moun- 
 tains, he found, at an elevation of one thousand 
 five hundred feet, the well marked remains of a 
 raised beach, characterized by a deposit of marine 
 tertiary shells. The valley of Assam, he repre- 
 sents, is interposed between two distinct systems 
 of mountains. Porphyry, Primitive Limestone, 
 Serpentine, Granite, and Talcose slates, com- 
 pose the mountains on the northern side of the 
 valley,while Tertiary sandstones. Shell limestones, 
 and Coal, in conjunction with Metamorphosed 
 Gneiss, Green stone, and Syenite, compose the 
 southern group. The valley contracts towards 
 its outlet, to a breadth of only twenty miles in 
 Lower Assam; but is extended to a breadth of 
 fifty miles in Upper Assam, where it forms an ex- 
 tensive alluvial plain, about eighty miles in length, 
 elevated about 650 feet, surrounded by lofty 
 mountains, and watered by four enormous rivers, 
 beside six or seven smaller ones, the least of which 
 is as large as the greatest river in England . 
 
 With respect to the formation of Upper As- 
 sam, Mr. M'Clelland observes, that the lowest 
 deposit is a reddish yellow clay, which lies in 
 contact with the rocky masses in Lower Assam, 
 forming the surface of that part of the country. 
 A short distance above Bishnath, this clay dips 
 beneath the alluvial deposits. These, succeed 
 each other in the following order from below 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 291 
 
 upwards ; first, fine clays ; second, sandy clay, Upper Assam. 
 containing gravel ; and thirdly, sand and gravel. 
 
 The climate of Upper Assam is characterized by climate of. 
 equability, in consequence of its moisture as well 
 as of its cloudiness in the cold weather. The for- 
 mer diminishing the summer heat, and the latter, 
 combined with the effect of its forest-covered 
 surface, the cold of winter. The wind in As- 
 sam is north-east at all seasons, and the whole 
 valley lies in the direction of its current. It 
 would appear, that 82° Fahr. at Suddya is con- 
 sidered as excessive as 96° in Calcutta, while Range of Ther- 
 the greatest cold of winter seems to be from 42° ™**""^*^'"- 
 to 38° ; (but a temperature of 32° and of 92° have 
 been observed. Vide p. 301.) The absence of 
 any season of perfect drought, and an excessively Moisture. 
 humid atmosphere, are the peculiar features of 
 the climate. Throughout the cold season, dense 
 vapours arise, and form mists, which have a ten- 
 dency to occupy the south side of the valley. 
 
 The observations of Mr. M'Clelland on the soil soii of Tea 
 in which the tea plant is found in Assam are ^*"^' 
 particularly valuable. At the Kujoo tea tract, he 
 describes the soil as " perfectly loose, and sink- 
 ing under the feet with a certain degree of elasti- 
 city, derived from dense meshes of succulent 
 fibres, prolonged in every direction from various 
 roots. Its colour is light gray, perfectly dry and dry and sandy 
 dusty, although the surrounding country was still ** ^"•'"°' 
 wet, from the effects of rain that had fallen for 
 several days immediately prior to our visit." He 
 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 
 
 soil dryandsan- 
 dyat Kujoo; 
 
 less so where 
 drainage more 
 perfect. 
 
 At Tingrai in 
 udark soil. 
 
 Upper Assam 
 Tea soil. 
 
 Chemical ana- 
 lysis of 
 
 further found the peculiarities of the soil disap- 
 pear with the tea plant itself, beyond the extent 
 of a circular space of about three hundred yards 
 in diameter. At Nigroo, the plants were found to 
 disappear towards the brow of the mound, the 
 soil becoming gray and sandy — "a fact which 
 first suggested the idea, that where the drainage 
 is more powerful on the summit of an elevation, 
 the plant requires a different soil from that in 
 which it flourishes in low ground." At Gubroo, 
 the elevation is sandy on which the tea plant is 
 found, but it is surrounded with inundation. At 
 Tingrai, the first plants were seen in a dark soil. 
 *' The number of young plants found in this soil 
 aflfords an encouraging instance of the disposition 
 of the plant to accommodate itself to any soil, as 
 far at least as its vegetative powers are concerned." 
 But the plants were found to increase in size and 
 number as they approached the light sandy soil. 
 In the analysis of the soils, Mr. M'Clelland 
 found that at Kujoo, the tea soil in the state 
 in which it exists in nature contained only 18J per 
 cent., while the common soil contained 26 per 
 cent, of water. The Kujoo tea soil contained in 
 200 parts — water, 37 ; fresh fibres, 1 ; vegetable 
 matter, 5^ ; silex, 135 ; alumina, 1 1 ; oxide of iron, 
 4 J. The black soil contained less silex, and more 
 water and vegetable matter; some of the latter 
 was in the form of extractive, which "operates by 
 affording coherency and solidity to the surface, 
 while a portion of the vegetable matter, united 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN UPPER ASSAM. 293 
 
 with the extractive, assists in retaining moisture upper Assam 
 
 at the surface." Where the vegetable matter is ^^ ^''* 
 
 greatest, alumina, the common absorbent principle 
 
 of soils, is least, and the quantity of alumina is 
 
 also in proportion to the degree of insulation of 
 
 the soil with regard to moisture, and the greater 
 
 drainage to which it is exposed : whence Mr. 
 
 M'C. concludes that " the narrowest inference we 
 
 can draw from this is, that the same soil would 
 
 not be suitable to the plant in every situation." 
 
 An examination of some soil in which the tea ^ea soU from 
 plant is cultivated in China, yielded in 200 parts ^^'^ 
 — of silex, 135; alumina, 36; carbonate of mag- 
 nesia, 6 ; carbonate of lime, 4 ; oxide of iron, 13 ; 
 roots and fibres of plants, 2 ; water of absorption, 
 4. But in the recent state, this soil no doubt con- 
 tained a larger proportion of water. 
 
 In conclusion, Mr.M*Clelland observes, with re- goiis and situa- 
 spect to the soils and situations, that the tea plant p,^t bif* 
 is found in Assam, first, on the level plain, and Assam, 
 second, on mounds somewhat raised above the 
 plain.* The first situations are distinguished from 
 the rest of the plain by a porous structure, and the 
 peculiar character of maintaining a dry surface 
 under exposure to excessive moisture ; the second, 
 by a structure less porous than the first. In both, 
 the plants are situated above the range of inunda- 
 tions which prevail during the greater portion of 
 the year on the adjoining lands. 
 
 ♦ Since then many localities of the tea plant have been dis- 
 covered by Mr. Bruce on the hills in Upper Assam, vide p. 285. 
 
294 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Sites secured 
 from excess of 
 moisture by 
 their porous 
 nature. 
 
 Tea plant 
 found in a bar- 
 ren soil and 
 moist climate. 
 
 Mr. Griffith's 
 report 
 
 "The important peculiarity of these sites is, 
 that they are less secure from inundations by 
 their elevations than by their structure. Indeed, 
 the lower sites are scarcely raised more than a yard 
 above the adjoining flat plains, which are exposed 
 to inundations, not merely during falls of rain, but 
 also from the overflowings of the great rivers. 
 But these circumstances, which are sources of 
 fertility to the adjoining lands, appear to pro- 
 duce an opposite effect on the sites of the tea 
 plant, thus causing the peculiar condition on 
 which the presence of the plant in some measure 
 depends. Protected in Assam under the shades 
 of dense forests, and a gloomy and excessively 
 humid atmosphere, the tea plant flourishes in its 
 barren soil along the verge of rivers, lakes, and 
 marshy lands." 
 
 Mr. Griffith has also published a valuable re- 
 port on the tea plant of Upper Assam*, in wliich 
 the movements of the Deputation, the enume- 
 
 • Transactions Agricultural Society of Calcutta, vol. v., p. 
 xcvi., 1838 Mr. G. has also published several profound papers 
 on the structure of different families of plants in the Transac- 
 tions of the Asiatic and Linnean Societies, and will, no doubt, 
 enrich science with many more. The Herbarium collected by 
 him in his different joumies on which he has been employed by 
 the Indian Government since 1836 has arrived at the India 
 House in excellent order. The collections are — from the Kha- 
 siya Mountains, 1,756 species, Assam, 1,763, Mishmee Moun- 
 tains, 1,186, Bootan, 1,595, Naga Mountains and Burma 
 1,200 ; in all, 7,500 species. But Mr. G. sUites that the amount 
 will have to be considerably reduced when a general catalogue 
 of the whole is formed. 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 295 
 
 ration of the Tea localities, and the appearance of Mr. Griffith's 
 
 the Tea plants are described. Comparisons are 
 
 also made on the Vegetation associated with the 
 
 tea plant in Assam and in China, as well as 
 
 between the climate of Upper Assam and that of 
 
 the tea provinces of Central China. Many of 
 
 the observations are necessarily the same in the 
 
 several reports, as the different observers describe 
 
 the same things at the same time. But we find DiflFerenceof 
 
 j'rr. ... . . . opinion among 
 
 a diiierence m their opinions respecting the loca- obseners in 
 
 -,• . /•! 1 -/-ii- 1 1 Assam respect- 
 
 11 ties 01 the tea plant m China, and consequently jng best sites 
 as to what situations are best suited to the tea cul- 
 ture in India. Dr. Wallich, as we have seen. Dr. waiiich 
 (p. 283) considers higher elevations to be neces- greater eieva- 
 sary in Assam for the cultivation of the superior '""' 
 kinds of tea. Mr. Bruce, from the results of his Mr. Bmce 
 
 , 1-1 advocates ex- 
 
 experience, advocates greater exposure to light posure to light 
 and sun, which will necessarily subject the plants 
 to greater vicissitudes of temperature. For open 
 places we know are warmer in summer from the 
 unchecked absorption of the solar rays, while they 
 are colder in winter from the more free radiation. 
 This is checked in shady situations and cloudy 
 nights, and therefore the cold is not so great. 
 
 It is unfortunate that we have so little positive 
 information respecting the principal tea tracts 
 of China, and are unacquainted with the nature 
 of their localities, their climate and the vegetation 
 associated with the tea plant. Mr. M'Clelland Messrs.nrciei- 
 considers the notions erroneous regarding the fith consider 
 mountain habit of the plant; and Mr. GriflSth erroneous re- 
 
296 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 specting the 
 inountain iiabit 
 of the 'J'ca 
 plant. 
 
 Most Botanists 
 have recom- 
 mended the 
 Himalayas. 
 
 Dr. Abel re- 
 commended 
 Table moun- 
 tain for the 
 culture of Tea. 
 
 Extent of dis- 
 tribution of 
 Tea plant 
 
 says, p. 52, that " all the evidence points out 
 the visionai'y nature of the views of the aptitude 
 of the Himalayas, &c. for the cultivation of the 
 tea plant ;" though at p. 83 he also states, " that 
 the tea plant may succeed in certain portions of 
 the Himalayas is probable enough." If it did not 
 require more time and space than can be spared 
 on the present occasion, it would be curious to 
 trace how these views, if erroneous, should have 
 been entertained by all those who have written on 
 the subject, previous to these two gentlemen, and 
 how so many botanists, without any communica- 
 tion with one another, should have recommended 
 the same part of the Himalayas for the culture of 
 tea. Also why Dr. Abel, after passing through 
 China, should say, " it appears from every ac- 
 count given of the tea plant, that it succeeds best 
 on the sides of mountains, where there can be 
 but little accumulation of vegetable mould ;" and 
 why he should have recommended "Table Moun- 
 tain at the Cape of Good Hope as a particularly 
 eligible situation." 
 
 If we contemplate the extent over which tea is 
 cultivated, we see with Mr. Griffith that " it grows 
 in great abundance in Cochin-China, between 
 10° and 10° of N. lat.," and that Mr. M'Clelland 
 admits that it is indigenous over 28° of latitude. 
 "But in order to avoid exaggeration, I will con- 
 fine my observations (he says) to the limits within 
 which it is known to be cultivated with success, 
 that its, from Fokien in 24° N. lat. to Meaco in 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 297 
 
 the Isles of Japan, in about 35° N. lat." Mr. Distribution of 
 
 All T®* plant. 
 
 Reeves has, however, informed the Author that 
 the most northern place at which tea is cultivated 
 in China is Tang-chow-Foo, in 36° 30^ N. lat. 
 These extreme limits, Mr. G. considers "only AWetowitb- 
 interesting, as pointing out the hardy nature of sund heat and 
 the plant ;" while Mr. M*C. says, " we may sup- 
 pose temperature to have little influence on its 
 distribution." The Tea being thus cultivated 
 over so great an extent of territory, must neces- 
 sarily be able to bear considerable vicissitudes of 
 temperature, and probably also of moisture. It is 
 not remarkable, therefore, that flourishing in 10** ^^ therefore 
 and 36° of latitude, it should also be found inter- *^i°"°^^°:i^ 
 
 ' and moist situa- 
 
 mediately in low and comparatively moist situa- ^°°^* 
 tions, and that it should be seen only in such, 
 by British embassies travelling along Chinese 
 canals. This has, however, been long well known, 
 and eight years before the tea deputation visited 
 Assam, the Author had stated that the tea plant 
 delights in " sheltered vallies, the declivities of 
 hills and the banks of rivers." (Vide p. 258.) That 
 it may also succeed on the mountains of the same Tea plant may 
 latitudes is not more remarkable ; for if it is capa- 
 ble of bearing the extremes of temperature of still 
 more northern plains, such as 36°, it will very 
 easily be able to bear those of moderate elevations 
 in lower latitudes, such as from 24° to 31°. On 
 these the range of the thermometer will be found 
 to be less than in the plains at their base, for 
 the cold of winter is not in proportion to the 
 
 also be found 
 on mountains. 
 
298 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Tea plant of 
 Ciiina. 
 
 Found on 
 mountains by 
 Dr. Abel and 
 Mr. Cunning- 
 ham. 
 
 Information 
 obtained by 
 Mr. Reeves, 
 Mr. Gordon, 
 &c. 
 
 coolness of summer, as the Author has endea- 
 voured briefly to show in his Observations on the 
 Meteorology of the Plains and Mountains of 
 North-western India, in " Illustrations of Hima- 
 layan Botany," p. xxx. 
 
 That the tea plant is found on mountai ns as well 
 as in plains in China, there can be no doubt, as 
 all the accounts we have concur in placing the 
 tea districts in the midst of hills; and though Dr. 
 Abel may not have seen the tea plant in all the 
 situations he has mentioned in his book, yet he 
 seems only to have adhered to the general im- 
 pression on the subject when he ascribed hilly 
 situations as most favourable to its culture ; and 
 at See-chow, about 26° N. lat., where he did see 
 it, it was on hills which were covered with pines. 
 Mr. Cunningham, the only other botanist who has 
 given us his personal testimony on the subject, 
 states, that it delights " summitatibus montium," 
 in 30° N. lat. So the information obtained by Mr. 
 Reeves, also by Mr. Gordon from Mr. Daniell 
 and others, all point to hills and hilly situations. 
 Mr. Gordon himself visited the Ankoy tea hills, 
 where he found it on the top and sides of some 
 that are seven hundred feet high ; and attempted 
 unsuccessfully to reach the Bohea tea hills. But 
 in Assam itself the tea plant has been found to a 
 great extent on the hills of Naga, Gubroo, and 
 Tipum since the tea deputation left the country. 
 (Vide p. 285.) 
 
 No one has attempted to assign the elevation at 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS, 299 
 
 which the tea is, or may be, cultivated in China, Height of chi- 
 
 ... . 1 1 • "^^^ mountmns 
 
 for we have no positive information on the subject, unknown. 
 
 But it has been argued, and argued justly, that 
 
 the hilly districts are alone suited to its culture in 
 
 India. Assam itself is one of the vallies included 
 
 within these mountains, and partaking as much 
 
 of their characteristic climate, as of that of the 
 
 plains. (Vide p. 302.) Hills of even moderate ele- Peculiarities of 
 
 ^ . , . . . 1 • 1 climate on hiUs. 
 
 vation oner certain peculiarities, which may or may 
 not be suited to particular plants. They present di- 
 minished temperature in proportion to their eleva- 
 tion ; with a moderate degree of equability. There is 
 a certain degree of moisture, in consequence of the 
 more frequent showers of rain, accompanied with 
 more free drainage, and usually greater poverty of 
 soil than on flat plains. There is exposure to the 
 sun and light, and more free circulation of air, 
 which though they may restrain the plant shoot- 
 ing up, as in Assam, yet will favour the pro- 
 duction of finer flavoured leaves. Mr. M'Clel- 
 land has thought that the moisture of many of 
 the situations in China may be useful, from the 
 equalizing effects of water on temperature. If 
 so, it will be found that being surrounded by the 
 atmosphere, is fully as effectual, and will there- 
 fore be equally beneficial. 
 
 The most important consideration with respect ThecUmateof 
 
 1 • 1-11 1 I 1 /• ^"^ recom- 
 
 to the sites which have been recommended tor mended for 
 the cultivation of tea, is not, what is the lati- 
 tude or the elevation, but what is the climate, 
 including temperature and moisture, of these 
 
300 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 The climate of Situations, and what the vegetation they support. 
 
 sites recom- . , • ' r ^' j.i 
 
 mended for As we have uo precise information on these 
 points respecting the tea districts of China, the 
 method was adopted of taking Pekin and Canton 
 as extreme points, and drawing inferences from 
 these and the few facts we possess, respecting the 
 climate and vegetation of the tea districts, by the 
 passage near them of the British embassies. But 
 as this method is liable to the objection that 
 different writers have come to different and 
 almost opposite conclusions, we may for the pre- 
 
 compared with sent take the climate of Assam where tlie tea- 
 
 that of Upper /» i • i 
 
 Assam. plant has actually been found growing, and com- 
 
 pare this with that of some of the situations where 
 it was recommended that tea should be cultivated, 
 before it was known that it existed in Upper 
 Assam. 
 
 Tea districts of The principal tea districts of China are situ- 
 ated between the parallels of 27" and 31° N. lat. 
 
 Tea district of The tea district of Upper Assam is scarcely a 
 
 ssam. degree of latitude in breadth, and is situated 
 
 between 26**45' and 27^35' N. lat. (Griffith,p.45). 
 
 The tract recommended by the author included 
 
 British Hima- the British territories in the Himalayas from 28** to 
 
 to 31 i° N. lat. 31 J° of N. latitude; so that there is identity of lati- 
 tude with the tea districts of China, and no great 
 excess over that of Upper Assam. As so much was 
 inferred, rather than known, respecting the phy- 
 sical condition of the tea plant in China, no pre- 
 cise locality was dogmatically fixed upon within 
 the above tract; but several were|)ointcd out, be- 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 301 
 
 cause experiments might be conveniently made sites pointed 
 in them, in consequence of the vicinity of Euro- Himalayas. 
 pean stations. 
 
 Of the situations pointed out, Bheemtal, Hawul- 
 bagh, Deyra Doon, and Pinjore were in vallies. 
 Almora, Jurreepanee, Nahn, andSabathoo, at ele- 
 vations of from four thousand to five thousand feet, 
 and one localitv, Mussooree, where the nurserv of 
 the Saharunpore Garden is established, at six thou- 
 sand five hundred of elevation, in 30°ofN. latitude. 
 It might be thought desirable to have mentioned 
 some places in the plains, but the Botanic Grarden 
 was too obvious to be included in the above enu- 
 meration, as had any one who had charge of the 
 experiment in the hills, omitted sending seeds or 
 plants, Dr. Falconer is too zealous to have omitted 
 applying for them. But those who are acquainted Plains too hot 
 with the great heat, dry atmosphere, and hot ^iture. °^ ^ 
 winds of the plains of India, will perceive it 
 would be hopeless without the aid of copious 
 irrigation to grow the tea-plant in them. The 
 above localities were pointed out, as enabling the 
 advantages of various elevations to be ascertained, 
 though the author was of opinion that an eleva- 
 tion of about five thousand feet, as at Jurreepanee, 
 (runnifig tvater) was most desirable. 
 
 Neither time nor space permit that we compare 
 the climate of all these localities with that of 
 Upper Assam. But to give the objectors the full 
 advantage of the argument, we will compare the 
 extremes of temperature observed in Upper 
 
302 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 The climate of Assam, With those of the most elevated, and 
 
 the highest, 
 
 and therefore therefore the Coldest of the positions pointed 
 
 the coldest, of 
 
 these sites out by the author. The observations on the 
 
 compared with . 
 
 that of Upper JVlussooree range during several years, give a 
 range of the thermometer of 53° from a maximum 
 of 80° to a minimum of 27°, giving a mean of SS^'S, 
 which is 3° -5 lower than 57° -04, the mean tem- 
 perature deduced from all the observations. How 
 much higher is the mean temperature at Nankin? 
 Climate of The greatest degree of cold which has 
 
 been recorded at Suddya was by Major White, 
 who observed it on one occasion, at 6 a. m., 
 to be so low as 32°. On another occasion 
 it fell to 37°, but 42° is not uncommon. The 
 highest range during the hot months was 92°, 
 in 1836. At Gowahatty it was never observed 
 above 90° by Captain Jenkins, (Griffith, p. 47). 
 Taking the extremes, we have an annual range 
 of the thermometer of 60°, which is 7° more than 
 that at Mussoorree ; the mean is 62°, which is 
 5° -2 less than the mean 67° -2 of all the observa- 
 tions, which is only 10° higher than at Mussooree. 
 Temperatures Mr. Griffith has Compared the mean annual tem- 
 ton.'neyra, Mui pcraturc, as well as that of the four warmest, and 
 JJmp^eT of the four coldest months of Suddya and of Can- 
 ton, which is about 4^° more to the Southward. 
 To the means which he has adduced, we add 
 similar ones for Deyra and Mussooree, in 30° of 
 N. latitude ; the former elevated about two thou- 
 sand, and the latter six thousand five hundred 
 feet. The climate of Jureepanee, elevated five 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 303 
 
 thousand feet, and midway between the two, and Temperatures 
 
 . of Suddya,Can- 
 
 which the author thought ehgible for the expe- ton, Deyra, and 
 riment, as well as easily accessible, may be in- compared. 
 ferred from that of the upper and lower stations. 
 
 Canton. Stiddya. Deyra. Mussooree. 
 
 Mean Annual Temperature 70 67.2 70.65 57.04. 
 
 „ of four hottest months 82.2 80 82.75 66.72 
 
 „ of four coldest months 54 57.8 56.45 45.45 
 
 If the object had been to find a climate similar Deyra most 
 to that of Canton, N. lat. 23° 8', we could hardly Canton. 
 have found any thing to correspond with it more 
 closely than does that of Deyra, compared, at least, 
 in this method. But the author was well aware 
 that it was absolutely necessary for all purposes 
 of culture to give the extremes, as well as the 
 means of temperature, as one night's frost, or a 
 few days of hot winds, might destroy the la- 
 bours of a year of careful cultivation. Canton 
 is some degrees south of the principal tea dis- 
 tricts, and yet the minimum of the thermometer 
 there is 29°, or 3° below the freezing point. If Canton, cold of. 
 we suppose the rate of diminution of tempera- 
 ture to be equal to what takes place in the 
 cold weather in India, we should have it some- 
 times several degrees below 29°, in N. lat. 31°, 
 or 8° further north. But we have every reason 
 to believe that the whole of the coast of China, coid of china 
 
 1 • 1 /• TVT 1 4 • • • . , in winter. 
 
 like that of JNorth America, participates, in de- 
 gree, in what is so strikingly characteristic of 
 the northern parts of China, that is, a climate 
 strongly contrasted, or where there are hot sum- 
 
304 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Cold of Can. 
 ton in compari- 
 son with that 
 of Calcutta. 
 
 Humidity of 
 Mountain cli- 
 mate. 
 
 mers with very cold winters. That this charac- 
 teristic extends even as far south as Canton is 
 evident, if we compare its minimum 29° with that 
 of Calcutta, 56° -8, which is only a degree to the 
 southward, and yet we have a difference in their 
 lowest temperatures of 27° -8. In such a country, 
 therefore, there is nothing incredible in there 
 being frost in 31° of latitude, as there is in the 
 plains of India in winter. Also, as there is, no 
 doubt, a good deal of moisture, that this should 
 occasionally descend in the form of snow. That 
 this indeed is the case, we have the united testi- 
 mony of several accounts, which state that snow 
 storms occur in the green tea districts, and this 
 we can easily believe, from the cold which tliat 
 plant is capable of withstanding in this country 
 even as far north as Forfar. 
 
 Next to temperature, and, perhaps, equally 
 important, is the humidity of the climate of the 
 mountains. In this it might be tliought by those 
 unacquainted with the Himalayas that there 
 would be some deficiency. But the author, when 
 writing upon the subject, thought that its excess 
 would be the chief point of difficulty. He was sa- 
 tisfied only after considering that the baneful 
 effects of excessive moisture would be less felt, 
 where evaporation was favoured by the rarity of the 
 atmosphere : also after ascertaining that rain was 
 frequent in Canton, and extended to the tea 
 districts, especially of Fokien. 
 
 Assam may be considered as enjoying the 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 305 
 
 maximum of humidity. The rains are of lon<^ con- Moisture of 
 
 Assam. 
 
 tmuance ; they commence m March, and last till 
 about the middle of October. November and 
 January are the only months throughout the year 
 on which tolerable reliance can be placed for a 
 continuance of fine weather, as rain always falls 
 about the middle of December (GriflSth, p.4.9). 
 
 Contrast this with what Dr. Falconer wrote. Moisture of 
 respecting the Himalayan climate, long before ""^*>'^ 
 the tea deputation reached Assam : ** The climate 
 of the Himalayas is decidedly damp," and " as a 
 general fact it may be stated, what with rain, snow, 
 and dew, that moisture, in one shape or other, 
 falls abundantly every unclouded day during the 
 year; and the cloudy days without rain do not 
 amount to a week in the year," (Tea Report, p. 
 25). We have no data concerning the humidity 
 of the tea districts of China, but Mr. M'Clelland 
 has shown the great probability of there being con- 
 siderable humidity in some of them, and that this 
 may in some degree modify the temperature. 
 
 The vegetation of the Himalayas was com- comparison of 
 pared by the author with that of China, as far as of the Hima- 
 materials were procurable. The same has been up^er^Asim 
 done by Mr. Griffith with regard to that of Upper cwna. 
 Assam. The vegetation is, no doubt, chiefly tro- 
 pical, all along the base of the Himalayas from 
 Assam to the Deyra Doon. Mr. Griffith states 
 that neither latitude nor elevation account for the 
 northern forms in Assam. But the moisture and 
 equability of the climate seem to explain this 
 
306 
 
 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Climate of 
 Assam moist 
 and equable, 
 supports a va- 
 riety of vegeta- 
 ble forms. 
 
 Northern val- 
 lies hot and 
 dry. 
 
 Assam more 
 moist than Tea 
 districts of 
 China. 
 
 Tea plants of 
 Assam much 
 larger than 
 those of China. 
 
 satisfactorily. The valley being surrounded by 
 mountains, and covered with dense forests, wa- 
 tered by large rivers, and also kept damp by nu- 
 merous showers, as well as by the cloudiness of 
 the atmosphere, resembles, in a great measure, 
 to compare great things with small, Mr. Ward's 
 mode of growing plants in glass cases, in which 
 we may often see both Tropical and European 
 plants growing nearly equally well in the same 
 case. To the climate, therefore, it is probably 
 owing that many of the peculiar genera and spe- 
 cies of the Himalayas and of China are found in 
 Assam, in the forest-covered vallies, but which 
 in the Himalayas can only exist, especially in the 
 northern parts, at considerable elevations ; in 
 consequence of the heat and dryness of the val- 
 lies there at some seasons of the year. 
 
 The climate of Assam in the uncleared 
 parts is undoubtedly much more moist than 
 that of the tea districts of China, as is evident 
 from the great height which many of the Tea 
 plants attain, having slender stems, of often forty 
 to fifty feet, with leaves four to eight inches in 
 length. The China tea makers expressed their 
 astonishment on seeing them. Mr. Bruce de- 
 scribes the great difference, by stating, *' that our 
 trees or plants are certainly more than four or 
 five times the size of theirs, and must conse- 
 quently yield so many times more produce — 
 theirs is the dwarf, ours the giant tea." The 
 Chinamen, moreover, on seeing the plants wjiich 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 307 
 
 had been produced from Chinese seeds, " de- Great sizeof 
 
 ^ ^ ' China Tea 
 
 clared that the China plants now at Deenjov plants in as- 
 
 , sam. 
 
 would never have attained half the perfection they 
 now have, under ten years in their own country." 
 Even in Assam those growing on hills attain less Assam Tea 
 height, as even the kind found originally at Gu- huis. 
 broo, though only on a hillock forty or fifty feet 
 high, "exists only as a moderate sized shrub, and 
 was hence pointed out as a new variety, and was 
 even dignified with the name of dwarf tea." Those 
 obtained from the Nigroo Hill tracts, Mr. Bruce 
 thinks will never attain any size, but be dwarfish 
 like the China plants ; but it is probable that if 
 they were planted in the shady tea tracts of the 
 Assam plains, they would attain the same height 
 as the others, as their difference in size probably 
 depends upon the influence of physical agents. 
 That excessive moisture, both of soil and at- 
 mosphere, is not suitable, is evident by the pre- 
 ference the Tea plant has for sandy and porous 
 soil, and for mounds in the moist climate of As- 
 sam, but which would probably not be requisite 
 in a drier climate. 
 
 The foregoing examination of the habits, of the comparison of 
 tea plant in Upper Assam, and of the peculiari- witrnima^"* 
 ties of the climate and vegetation of that province, *^^' 
 and of the Himalayas, show the resemblance of 
 both in these points to the tea districts of China. 
 Whether this is to the extent desirable, can only 
 be ascertained when we have positive information 
 from thence. But it might be said that things 
 
 x2 
 
308 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 Resemblance which RFC cqual to the Same thing, are equal 
 mate of Upper to One another. The mid region of the Hima- 
 
 Assam and that ■, j tt a t rr- i i j.i 
 
 of mid region layas and Upper Assam diner much less than 
 imaayas. j^jg|^|. j^^yg ^ccn anticipated, considering that the 
 one has an open and the other a close climate, 
 and from the difference in latitude and elevation. 
 From the heat and dryness of the plains and vallies 
 of north-western India, from March to the middle 
 of June, the influence of the hot winds extends 
 much higher than in more southern latitudes ; 
 where, in fact, they are absent even from the 
 plains. Hence we have to ascend above their ut- 
 most limits to obtain a cool climate and congenial 
 moisture; or where "the air, charged with moisture 
 in the heated vallies, in rising may deposit it on the 
 mountains, when it reaches an elevation where it 
 is cooled below the point of saturation." 
 Tea from Tca, howcvcr, it is now well known has been 
 
 manufactured of a good and sound quality from 
 the tea plants of Assam ; and it has been very 
 favourably reported on by experienced judges in 
 this country. From the great curiosity which 
 was excited on the subject, it, however, sold at 
 such high prices, that it is difficult to form a very 
 correct judgment on its true value when com- 
 Theeuitiire pared with the teas of China. The Court of 
 AsJim'com-'^ Dircctors and the Government of India having 
 pany- brought this important experiment to so success- 
 
 ful an issue, have handed over its further exten- 
 sion to a private company, who will no doubt 
 carry it forward witli the requisite vigour, and we 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS, 309 
 
 shall see Assam tea imported in large quantities Tea culture in 
 
 , . , , • • /. I Upper Assam. 
 
 into this country, and as the requisites tor the 
 culture of the plant are better understood, of a still 
 higher flavour. 
 
 From the facts we have enumerated, there is. Tea may also 
 
 be cultivated 
 
 however, no necessity that the tea culture should »" ^long the 
 
 •' ^ Himalayas. 
 
 be restricted to the province of Assam. A tea 
 plant has for many years lived in the open air in 
 Nepal, and Dr. Falconer, who has had to carry 
 the experiment into execution, so far from ob- 
 jecting, had, like the Author, formed an opi- 
 nion that Tea could be cultivated in the Hima- 
 layas. He has in fact, already, at elevations of 
 five thousand feet, obtained seedlings {vide p. 279) 
 from the Chinese plants which were introduced 
 into the Gurhwal and Sirmore nurseries. Those of 
 Kemaon have also been placed under his charge. 
 We might wait patiently, therefore, for the result 
 of the experiments ; but as he has expressed his 
 confidence in the success of the culture in these 
 northern parts of the Himalayas, several hun- 
 dred miles from Upper Assam, and that of the 
 Author remains undiminished, we may confi- 
 dently look forward to having tea cultivated all 
 along these mountains. Thus affording profita- 
 ble employment to the inhabitants, and to them as 
 well as to the dwellers in the plains, the means of 
 obtaining a cheap and refreshing beverage, which 
 they already highly esteem ; and by this means 
 giving an impulse to the Commerce and Agricul- 
 ture both of the Plains and of the Mountains. 
 
310 CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 
 
 The Com- The Court of Directors of the East- India Com- 
 
 mittee of the 
 
 HouseofLords panv wiU havc the high orratitication of having 
 
 on the Tea cul- ^ "^ . & fe> ^ 
 
 ture in India, fostcrcd in its infancy a culture which in its ma- 
 turity will benefit to an incalculable extent the 
 country and people committed to their charge, or 
 as the Committee of the House of Lords on the 
 petition of the East-India Company for relief ex- 
 press it, "The Government of India appear to 
 have exercised a sound discretion in giving facili- 
 ties to an experiment which, if successful, would 
 make an important addition to the commercial re- 
 sources of India, and confer a national benefit upon 
 the consumers of tea in the United Kingdom." 
 —•2d March 1840.* 
 
 * The deductions derivable from the Botany of the Hima- 
 layas, of Upper Assam, and of China, though omitted in the 
 foregoing observations, are not less important. Mr. Griffith has 
 united Thea with the genus Camellia, and there is no good 
 reason for keeping them separate. With regard to the Green, 
 Black, and Assam Tea plants being distinct species or perma- 
 ment varieties of one species, it is impossible to give a de- 
 cided opinion. The Assam Tea plant may be seen in Messrs. 
 Loddiges' hot houses, and the others in their green houses, or 
 in the open air in summer. The author was disposed to con- 
 sider the Green and Black Teas as distinct species, and has not 
 yet seen sufficient to change his opinion. The Assam Tea 
 plant resembles the Green Tea in the size and form of its 
 leaves, but they are thicker, and darker coloured. They are 
 very much larger than the leaves of the Tea plant collected by 
 Mr. Cunningham in China. (Vide p. 266.) The question can 
 only be decided by those competent to the task in China, or 
 by submitting the plants known as such to experimait in 
 
CULTURE OF TEA IN THE HIMALAYAS. 311 
 
 the tea nurseries of Assam and the Himalayas. Of the genera 
 of Ternstroemiaceae, to which the Camellias and Tea belong, 
 Cochlospermum is found on the Hills of the Sewalic range. 
 A Saurauja is found at the foot, and Eurya at the top of the 
 Mussoree range. Cleyera is found in Nepal and the Khasiya 
 range. The Camellias are found on the Khasiya and Naga 
 hills, in the vallies and hills of Assam, and extend to Nepal, 
 where C. Kissi is found at 4,600 feet of elevation. It is re- 
 markable that so many genera and species, which are charac- 
 teristic of the flora of China, and which were found by the 
 Author at 6,500 feet of elevation, in 30° of N. lat., occur in 
 Assam in the valley. These are Eurya, Stauntonia, Kad- 
 sura, or Sphoerosterama, andHovenia; so also of genera more 
 generally diffused, Coriaria, Cerasus, one of the Chrysobalaneae, 
 and Sabia, Lonicera, Viburnum, Sambucus, ^sculus, Engel- 
 hardtia, and Oaks. The other genera characteristic of China 
 mentioned by the Author, as found all along the Himalayas, 
 (Illustrations, p. 123, &c.), are Deutzia, Abelia, Marlea, 
 Houttuynia, Chloranthus, Incarvillea, Hiptage, Euphoria, and 
 Pardanthus. lUicium and Goniocarpus have been found by 
 Mr. Griffith, the former on the Khasiya Hills at five thou- 
 sand feet in shady, damp places, and the latter at Churia Pun- 
 gee. Salamonia also has been found on the Khasiya Hills and 
 the Tenasserim Coast, as well in Nepal, and about Canton. Ham- 
 mamelidese, widely diffused, were found in China by Dr. Abel, 
 and by Mr. Griffith in Assam, Khasiya, and Mishmee Hills ; but 
 a species has also been found by Dr. Falconer, as far north as 
 Cashmere. The botanical results confirm those deduced from 
 the climate, that the tea plant may be cultivated as well in 
 the mid region of the Himalayas, as in Upper Assam. The 
 growth will no doubt be more slow, but the leaves will probably 
 not be less high flavoured. 
 
312 , 
 
 Cotton, 
 
 a Native of In- 
 dia, 
 
 also of Ame- 
 rica, 
 
 Faults of In- 
 dian Cotton. 
 
 Cultivation of Cotton in India. 
 
 Cotton, we have seen, p.75, has been produced 
 in India from the most remote antiquity ; that it 
 is naturally of a good quality is evident from the 
 fine muslins which were manufactured with it, as 
 well as from the durability of the Indian cotton 
 piece-goods, now driven out of the markets, not 
 only of Europe but even of India itself, by the 
 cheaper manufactures of English cotton mills. 
 
 Cotton is also a natural product of America; it 
 has been found in the ancient Peruvian tombs, 
 together with specimens of their early manufac- 
 tures. That American cotton is also of excellent 
 quality is evident from the high prices which it 
 sells for in the English market ; at the same time 
 that the Indian cotton brings only very infe- 
 rior prices, notwithstanding that the Indian ma- 
 nufacturer is able to prepare with it such supe- 
 rior fabrics. 
 
 The chief faults of the Indian cotton are great 
 carelessness in collection, and shortness of sta- 
 ple, in consequence of very imperfect culture. 
 By this carelessness, from the quantity of dirt 
 which is allowed to intermix with it, it is pre- 
 sented to the manufacturer in a less perfect state 
 than that in which it was produced. There is rea- 
 son also to believe that the cotton itself deterio- 
 rates in quality from the imperfect drying it re- 
 ceives, after being collected. The imperfect cul- 
 
CULTIVATION OF COTTON IN INDIA. 313 
 
 ture allowing the plants to run too much into Indian Cotton, 
 
 defects in its 
 
 Stalk and leaf, and thus diminishing the sup- culture. 
 ply of sap to the flowers and seeds, consequently 
 curtails, not only the quantity of cotton, but 
 also the length and strength of its staple. Thus 
 everything combines to diminish the value of the 
 produce, as well as its quantity per acre, and to 
 keep down the profits of the planter. 
 
 The cottons which bring the highest prices in Localities of 
 
 , , , , . - commercial 
 
 the market are produced over a wide expanse of cottons. 
 territory, in different parts of the world, from 0*' to 
 S4**, and in particular situations, even to 40" of 
 latitude ; and also in the mountains of South Ame- 
 rica and of Mexico at considerable elevations. 
 
 The British territories in India, extending from Extent of Bn- 
 8« to 31* of north latitude, and including the sites suited to 
 loftiest mountains in the world, afford every di- 
 versity of soil and climate that is attainable else- 
 where. In fact, cotton is produced in every part 
 of British India, and complaint is made more 
 against the mode in which it is brought to mar- 
 ket than against the cotton itself. 
 
 The soils in which the best cottons arrow dif- pifference of 
 
 *=' Soil suited to 
 
 fer much more both in physical and chemical the growth of 
 
 ... Cotton. 
 
 nature than is generally supposed. This is evi- 
 dent if we examine the soil of the Sea-Island 
 cotton, and compare it with that of the sandy 
 cotton farms of Georgia ; or both with the rich 
 alluvial deposits of the Mississippi, or the prairie 
 lands of Southern Alabama. The difference is not 
 greater, however, than that which we observe be- 
 
314 
 
 CULTIVATION OF CQTTON 
 
 Cotton Soils. 
 
 Climate of India 
 suited togrowth 
 of Cotton. 
 
 Temperature. 
 Moisture. 
 
 Difficulties of 
 Culture. 
 
 Why is not bet- 
 ter Cotton 
 grown in In- 
 dia? 
 
 tween the granite soil of the Coromandel coast 
 and the black cotton soil of central India, or than 
 that between the rich alluvium of Bengal and 
 the sandy plains of North-western India. 
 
 The climate of India is congenial throughout 
 to the growth of cotton. In the most northern 
 provinces, frost sometimes destroys the young- 
 branches before the whole of the crop of cotton 
 has been collected, but this is useful to some 
 of the species as a kind of natural pruning. 
 The temperature being sufficient, the next most 
 important consideration is the degree of moisture, 
 both of the soil and of the atmosphere ; as on this, 
 in a congenial soil and climate, will depend the 
 more or less rapid development of the stems, 
 branches, and leaves, and, if not carried to ex- 
 cess, an healthy state of the plant for the abundant 
 production of flowers and of fruit, as well as of 
 cotton. 
 
 Too great richness of the soil, combined with ex- 
 treme moisture of the atmosphere, are frequently 
 in excess in India. The season of cultivation is 
 during the rains, and the methods consisting in a 
 mixture of crops, close sowing, and unchecked 
 growth of the plant, all assist in developing leaves 
 instead of flowers. 
 
 The soil and climate of so large a tract of 
 country being favourable to the growth of a 
 plant, which is indeed indigenous in the country, 
 it does appear unaccoutable why the cotton of 
 Indian growth siiould be so low in esteem. Also 
 
IN INDIA. 315 
 
 if the circumstances are so favourable, why, it why is not 
 may be asked, is not better cotton grown? We groi^inin" 
 see it is obviously the interest of the planter to im- 
 prove an article, for the production of which the 
 exti-a expense and labour will bear but a small 
 proportion to the increased produce, and to the 
 high price which it will bring. 
 
 Various causes have been assigned for this; causes assign- 
 some are not true, others are contradictory, and 
 the whole combined to the extent assumed, would 
 have some effect, but are quite insufficient to 
 account for the continued inferiority of Indian 
 cotton, and the slight effect produced by the 
 experiments instituted for its improvement. The 
 native cultivators, cramped by the usurious rates Natives satis- 
 of money-lenders, are satisfied with the culture present culture. 
 taught them by their forefathers, and have too 
 little knowledge of the results which would fol- 
 low from any change in the practice, to adopt 
 others, with the sacrifice of their prejudices. 
 
 Few Europeans until lately have attempted FewEuropeans 
 
 • 1 • have attempted 
 
 the culture of cotton, probably because mdigo to improve it. 
 and other products offered them more profitable 
 employment. The merchants have found that 
 the cotton of India would be bought both in 
 China and England, and yield a profit without 
 the risk of making larger advances on an uncer- 
 tain result. The planters in the interior have thus Planters have 
 
 received little 
 
 had little encouragement to bestow extra labour encouragement 
 
 from merchants 
 
 and expense, on improving a produce which they 
 find the buyers at the Presidencies only purchase 
 
316 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 at the ordinary prices of that which, though 
 
 inferior, is at the same time produced by the 
 Results pro- nativcs at less expense. Yet considerable results 
 verame/tcot have bccn obtained in the Bengal Presidency, 
 on arms. chiefly by the energy of amateur experimentalists, 
 
 and in Bombay and Madras by the Government 
 
 farms. 
 Experimental- In the experiments which have been instituted 
 
 ists often igno- . 
 
 rant of practice on the improvement of the culture, it is extraor- 
 
 and inattentive , . i i • i • i 
 
 to principles, dmary to observe how little attention has been 
 paid, or, at least, how little information is given us 
 respecting the attention that was paid, to all the 
 points essential to insure success in culture and 
 improvement in produce. Also, how seldom any 
 attempts are made, or reasons given, to explain 
 the causes of failure. We find, as was to be ex- 
 pected, a general want of knowledge in the prac- 
 tical details of culture, but also, which was not 
 to be expected, equal inattention to, if not igno- 
 rance of, principles. The majority also appear wise 
 only after personal experience, and paying little 
 attention to that of their predecessors. For we 
 find that the same course is followed, the same 
 faults are committed, the same results are obtained 
 and continue to be announced as new, though we 
 have had them on record for a series of years. 
 Plants, living It sccms to be forgottcn, that plants are living 
 encedbyphysi- bodics, influenced by the media in which they 
 ca agents. ^^^ placed ; having their roots in the soil, and 
 their leaves in the atmosphere, taking in watery 
 fluid holding various substances in solution by 
 
IN INDIA. 317 
 
 tlie one, and both absorbing and giving off Plants influ- 
 
 , 1^11 enced by physi- 
 
 aqueous vapour and gaseous elements by the cai agents. 
 other. Growing also more or less vigorously, and 
 producing better or inferior seeds or fruit, ac- 
 cording as they are affected by the richness or 
 poverty, moisture or dryness, warmth or coldness, 
 of the medium in w hich they are placed, as well 
 as by the influence of light and the action of the 
 atmosphere. 
 
 In the animal kingdom it is considered essen- Treatment of 
 tial for those who have to recommend measures quires know- 
 for the preservation of the health, or for the treat- ture^and of 
 ment of the diseases of man, that they should 
 study both the structure and the functions of 
 animals in general, and of the species in particu- 
 lar, as well as the peculiarities of constitution in 
 the individual. Plants are equally living beings. Equally neces. 
 
 . . sary with 
 
 and equally require attention, both to principles plants. 
 and to practice, in their treatment, whether we 
 wish to ascertain how they will succeed in a new 
 soil or situation, or how we are to remedy any 
 defects which are produced. Also what measures 
 are to be adopted, when we wish to increase the 
 size or particular qualities of the parts of vegeta- 
 tion, that is, what refers to the individual; or what 
 should be done, when we desire only the perfection 
 of the seed and fruit, which, we know, are required 
 for the propagation of the species. 
 
 As the Author endeavoured to grow cotton, Experimentson 
 
 . culture of Cot- 
 
 though on a small scale, m the Saharunpore ton. 
 Botanic Garden, paying attention at the same 
 
318 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 time to the practices of the natives, he early con- 
 ceived that the chief causes of failure were of a 
 physical nature ; and that the culture was to be 
 remedied only by attention to principles. These 
 Essay on the he endcavoured to elucidate in an Essay on 
 culture of Cot- ^j^^ Culturc of Cotton in India;* where, after 
 noticing the native country and early history of 
 cotton, as well as the various places in which it 
 is at present cultivated, both in respect to latitude 
 and climate, he compared these with the extent 
 and varied climate of British India. He then 
 examined into the influence of physical agents 
 as affecting the production of cotton ; and first 
 conceived, that the chief faults in India had been 
 Overproduc. ovcr-production of the parts of vegetation at 
 
 tion of parts of n \ f c • n • mi 
 
 vegetation. the cxpcnsc of thosc of fructification. Ihe 
 Author at the same time recommended particular 
 attention to the selection of seed, not only of 
 that which is foreign, but also of that which is 
 indigenous ; and after noticing the principal 
 kinds of cotton cultivated in America, those of 
 India were similarly enumerated. The culture 
 in America was compared with that practised in 
 India, and the results of some of the experiments, 
 which had then been made known on the Indian 
 cultivation of American cottons were referred to. 
 The improvement of the indigenous cottons was 
 recommended, and the parts of the Bengal presi- 
 
 * Published in June 1834, in his ** Illustrations of the Botany, 
 &c., of the Himalayan Mountains.'' 
 
IN INDIA. 319 
 
 dency best suited to the culture of cotton were Parts of n. w. 
 
 ,.,,,/.,, T India suited to 
 
 pointed out, that is, the banks oi the Jumna culture of cot- 
 between Agra and Allahabad, with Bundlecund 
 above the Ghauts and Malwa. He came to the 
 conclusion that there could be " no doubt that by conclusion of 
 the importation of foreign and the selection of f^^^^l,^^^ 
 native seed, attention to the peculiarities not only J^SilTindfJ.' 
 of soil, but also of climate, as regards the course 
 of the seasons, and the temperature, dryness, and 
 moisture of the atmosphere, as well as attention 
 to the mode of cultivation; such as preparing 
 the soil, sowing in lines, so as to facilitate the 
 circulation of air, weeding, ascertaining whether 
 the mixture of other crops with the cotton be 
 injurious or otherwise, pruning, picking the cotton 
 as it ripens and keeping it clean : great improve- 
 ment must take place in the quality of the cotton." 
 
 We have already seen, p. 81, that the attention Means adopted 
 of the Court of Directors of the East-India Com- Direc^torsofthe 
 pany was turned, at as early a period as 1788, company ^o 
 to the improved cultivation of cotton in India, ^ume^^lou 
 and that measures were adopted, apparently well ^"' 
 calculated, to insure the object in view, as these 
 consisted, in the first place, in obtaining reports Reports re- 
 from India on the state of the culture and com- *^""^ 
 merce of cotton in the different provinces of that 
 country. Subsequently, instructions were sent instructions 
 out for the culture of cotton, as well as seeds of American 
 the West-Indian and American cotton, and ma- ^^^^' 
 chines for cleaning it. A cotton farm was esta- cieanmg ma- 
 blished, and rewards oftered for improved speci- 
 
320 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Measures mens of cotton. In the " Report of the Proceedino^s 
 
 adopted liy the ^ 
 
 Court of Direc- of the East-India Company in regard to the pro- 
 tors for im- , . ^ r . J3 r 
 proving the cui- duction of Cotton in India," published in 1836, 
 
 ture of Cotton i m /• i i • i i 
 
 in India. wc havc a detail of the measures which have been 
 
 Cotton Farm coutiuued to be taken from the above time to the 
 
 1794.' '" date of the publication ; many of these have been 
 
 and are briefly noticed in the following pages, 
 
 under the heads of the Presidencies wliere they 
 
 were undertaken, consisting, with the repetition 
 
 American of somc of the prcvious mcasurcs, in the sending:, 
 
 cleaner of Cot- . . . ^ "^ 
 
 ton sent to In- m 1813, of a person experienced m the cleaning 
 
 dia. , . ■ 
 
 Cotton Farms of cottou from Amci'ica to India, and of the esta- 
 ms^'^^^ '" blishment of Cotton farms in 1818. 
 
 A general view of the measures adopted is taken 
 
 in the letter from the Secretary to the Court of 
 
 Directors, (Reports, p. 117), dated 5th September 
 
 1828. Lord EUenborough, then President of the 
 
 Suggestion of Board of Control, sufferested, on the 7th October 
 
 Lord Ellenho- . . 
 
 rough. 1828, " the cultivation of all the finer sorts of 
 
 foreign cotton in different and distant parts of 
 India, under very different circumstances of soil 
 and climate, and of transmitting to England, 
 cleaned in the American manner, and with every 
 precaution to protect them from the weather, 
 samples of the cotton so raised, for the purpose of 
 comparison with the cottons of other countries.'* 
 
 Propositions of Qn the 17th November following, a compre- 
 
 Mr. Tucker. ^ ^ . 
 
 hensive view of the whole question of the 
 supply of cotton from British India was taken 
 by H. St. George Tucker, Esq., a member of 
 the Court of Directors, in which, among other 
 
IN INDIA. 321 
 
 propositions, ten in number, it was suggested. Propositions of 
 
 * ^ • 1 1 *^'^* Tucker. 
 
 that ** two or more plantations, on a large scale, 
 should be established, and that persons ac- 
 quainted with the mode of cultivating cotton in 
 America should be sent out to India to manage 
 the experimental farms," v. p. 29. 
 
 Capt. Bavles of the Indian army havinor care- capt. Bayies 
 
 '^ . ' . . . deputed to 
 
 fully considered the subject, offered his services, America; 
 and was deputed by the Court of Directors, in 
 March 1839, to proceed toAmericafor the purpose 
 of obtaining information, seeds, and machines for 
 cleaning cotton, and of endeavouring to induce per- 
 sons well acquainted with the culture of cotton to 
 proceed with him to India. Capt. B. having fully 
 effected his mission, has returned with ten Ameri- returns with 
 
 1 . n • /•j^i ji 1 ten experienced 
 
 can planters oi experience : of these, three nave planters ; 
 already proceeded to Bombay, and three to Ma- 
 dras, and the remaining four are to accompany 
 him by the overland route to the Bengal Presi- 
 dency. 
 
 The measure adopted by the Court of Direc- to be sent by 
 tors of inducing experienced American planters Directors to 
 
 J -J - . . India to culti- 
 
 to proceed to India, and to grow cotton in vate cotton. 
 the different parts of that empire, seems the 
 best calculated to insure the experiment being 
 made in the most complete and satisfactory 
 manner. The mechanical part, that of pick- 
 ing, drying, and keeping clean the cotton, and 
 separating it effectually from the seed without Cleaning will 
 
 . . . *" be perfectly per- 
 
 mjuring the staple, will undoubtedly be perfectly formed. 
 performed. One source of difficulty will thus be 
 
322 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Culture of Cot- 
 ton in India by 
 American 
 planters 
 
 will be perfect 
 wherever prac- 
 ticable. 
 
 American cul- 
 ture'wiil require 
 modification in 
 some situations. 
 
 Dependent on 
 physical agents. 
 
 The influence 
 of physical 
 agents under- 
 stood by scien- 
 tific men. 
 
 removed— that of forming a correct opinion re- 
 specting the natural qualities of the Indian cot- 
 ton. The culture also being perfectly under- 
 stood, will no doubt produce the largest return 
 of cotton that is possible, and fineness, strength, 
 and length of staple will be insured, as far 
 as dependent on culture. This especially, wher- 
 ever the soil and climate are most similar to that 
 in which the planters have been in the habit of 
 adopting a similar mode of culture, with the same 
 kind of seed. 
 
 But in many situations it will happen that the 
 soil and climate differ considerably from that 
 which characterizes the banks of the Mississippi, 
 or of the Alabama, or the prairies of the latter. 
 The same treatment therefore may not be exactly 
 suitable to the new situations ; though these may, 
 with some modification of the culture, be ca- 
 pable of growing as fine cotton as any other 
 part of the world. The modification will depend 
 in some measure on the chemical and physical 
 properties of the soil, the peculiarities of the cli- 
 mate, and the course of the seasons ; the effects of 
 all of which may have been ascertained by some of 
 the numerous experiments which have been made 
 for a series of years in the different Presidencies. 
 
 The full influence of physical agents, such as 
 light, heat, air, and moisture, will be clearly 
 understood only by those who are acquainted with 
 the principles of some of the physical sciences ; 
 while the information respecting the experimental 
 
IN INDIA. 323 
 
 results is scattered through a variety of European American cui. 
 and Indian publications. It is highly desirable in India. 
 however, that the experience of the planters in 
 their own country should be made as available 
 as possible in the country to which they have re- 
 moved, and this without the loss of valuable time, 
 or the repetition of useless experiments. This Desirable that 
 will probably be best effected by putting them put in commu- 
 
 . , , , nication with 
 
 in communication with gentlemen who are ac- gentlemen of 
 
 • j^i'.i,! ••! c ij. 11 scientific and 
 
 quainted with the principles oi culture, as well practical know- 
 as in some measure with the practices adopted in ^^' 
 the cultivation of cotton, and who are at the same 
 time not ignorant of the history of what has al- 
 ready been done in India. There are, fortunately, 
 gentlemen with the necessary qualifications in all 
 the three presidencies, whose present appoint- 
 ments require in them the possession of such in- 
 formation, and who from their occupations will 
 take great interest in the successful result of the 
 important experiment which is in course of being 
 tried. These are, Dr. Falconer in the north- 
 western provinces of India, Dr. Wight at Madras, 
 and Dr. Gibson at Bombay. 
 
 The planters being strangers in a new country. Useful also for 
 
 . , 1 '.i -^ 1 T communicating 
 
 unacquainted with its language, manners, and with natives and 
 customs, will, moreover, require some medium of office™.™^"' 
 communication, not only with the natives with 
 whom they will constantly have to act, but also 
 in the first instance with the government oflScers, 
 who will have to institute negotiations respecting 
 the land they are to occupy. The above gen- 
 
 Y 2 
 
824 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Importance of tlcmeii Will be useful foF such piirposes, as well 
 
 scientific with . . . . . „ . ^ . , , 
 
 practical infor- as 111 imparting- scieiitiiic miormation and the 
 results of the experiments in and the practices of 
 India, without interfering in any way with the 
 management of the farms, or the cultivation of 
 the cotton. 
 
 Choice of Iocs- In choosing; the localities for the farms in each 
 
 lities. -r» . . 
 
 Presidency, attention must be paid not only 
 to its being a favourable site for the growth of 
 cotton, but also one that is not unhealthy, and of 
 which the example will have influence over as 
 Mode of expe- large a space as possible. It is next necessary to 
 
 riment. . i • i • i i 
 
 determine the mode in which the experiment is to 
 
 Kind of Cotton, be tried, and the kind of cotton which is to be 
 
 cultivated. In the first place, it is desirable that 
 
 a small farm should be held by the planter, to 
 
 Personal farm, whatever cxtcut he thinks he can personally 
 
 superintend, in which with his own establishment 
 
 of workmen, horses or bullocks, and tools, he 
 
 should be able to cultivate cotton in every respect 
 
 Forexperi- exactly as he desires. In this he mio^ht vary the 
 
 ments. '' . 
 
 culture, so as to see the effects of earlier or later 
 sowing, more or less open planting, the degree 
 of ploughing and weeding that is requisite, or the 
 extent and times of topping or pruning that are 
 Picking, &c. beneficial. The careful system of picking, drying, 
 •aw-ging under and cleaning will be equally applicable to all, 
 and the latter will require to be carried on under 
 cover, and by the aid of the perfect machinery 
 which Captain Bayles is conveying to India. But 
 the buildings ought not to be more expensive 
 
IN INDIA. 325 
 
 than is absolutely necessary, or, at least, what is Buildings for 
 essential ought to be distinguished from what is F°^ **"*^^^"- 
 optional, in order that the expense and experi- 
 ence may serve as useful guides for others. In 
 this respect, however, the best advice will be that 
 of the planters themselves. 
 
 As there will in the first instance necessarily Desirable that 
 be considerable difficulties to be overcome, and each Presiden- 
 several modifications of culture may be required together at 
 to meet the varieties of soil, of climate, and of 
 season, so these will probably be best surmount- 
 ed by mutual consultation. It will, therefore, 
 be advisable that the planters in each Presi- 
 dency should at first make their experiments in 
 localities so situated that the same saw-gin 
 would answer for them all. When a know- Might after- 
 
 wards separate. 
 
 ledge of climate and seasons has been acquired, 
 separation might then take place to a greater or 
 less distance, as might be thought advisable, and 
 each planter would then be fully able to adapt 
 his culture to the soil and climate of his own 
 locality. 
 
 The kinds of cotton to be cultivated will de- Kinds of Cot- 
 
 , . ^ 1 • ^ I ton to be culti- 
 
 pend, in some measure, upon the views of the rated. 
 planters themselves, but in a great degree upon 
 the places where they are located. There is no 
 doubt that some of the kinds, as the Sea-Island, 
 Bourbon, and Pernambuco, succeed best in the 
 south, while the Upland Georgian, and perhaps 
 the Egyptian, flourish best in the northern pro- 
 vinces. The success of these will also depend 
 
326 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Kinds of Cot- upon the soil, as it is well known that the peren- 
 vated. nial species have not succeeded in the black cotton 
 
 soil of India, though this is well adapted to 
 the annual cotton plant of the country. It may 
 perhaps, wherever not too retentive of mois- 
 ture, be found suitable with improved culture 
 Must depend to the Mcxican plant, now exclusively cultivated 
 
 on soil and cli- ... ^- , /•ii-i 
 
 mate. m Louisiana. Independent oi the kinds, whe- 
 
 ther foreign or native, which it may be deter- 
 The most suit- mined to cultivate most extensively, it will be 
 siveiy. cxtrcmcly desirable, nay essential, that a small 
 
 Every kind in portion of gTOund, say a beegah or an acre, should 
 
 small quanti- . . i • i 
 
 ties. be devoted to each of the principal kinds of 
 
 cotton which have been enumerated, besides 
 to the Tree and Herbaceous cottons of India. Of 
 the latter, picked seed from the places where the 
 best cotton is now grown, should be tried. 
 
 Persons em- The pcoplc employed under the planters 
 
 ployed under iii /.i -iii n /• 
 
 planters to be should, as many of them as possible, be at first of 
 rather a superior class of labourers or cultivators. 
 It may be also suggested as worthy of considera- 
 tion, whether some apprentices from the Orphan 
 Schools may not be beneficially placed at each 
 farm, who, as well as the former, might be after- 
 wards useful in more extensively diffusing the 
 benefit of the improved practice, which will no 
 doubt be successfully introduced. 
 
 Successful prac When the culture best suited to each part of 
 
 tice to be made , t i i • n • » • -n 
 
 known to na- India has bccu practically ascertained, it will 
 then be extremely desirable to endeavour to in- 
 duce the natives of the district to adopt the im- 
 
IN INDIA. 327 
 
 proved modes, both of cultivating and of cleaning 
 
 cotton. This, by inviting them to inspect the new instructions for 
 
 , , culture in na- 
 
 culture, sending round the natives who may have tive languages 
 been instructed, and by distributing plain in- buted. 
 structions in the native languages, describing the 
 processes of culture and of cleaning, as well as, if 
 possible, givinga comparative view of the expenses, 
 quantity of produce, and the prices obtained for 
 the improved cotton. In all these operations, the 
 officer who is supposed to be the medium of com- 
 munication between the planters and others, will 
 be able to render the most essential service. 
 Specimens of the cotton as grown should be sent Specimens of 
 
 1 T^ • 1 • 1 1 I 1 Cotton grown 
 
 to the Fresidencies, where they may be sub- to be submitted 
 mitted by the governments to the several Agri- 
 cultural societies and commercial men ; so that 
 early opinions might be obtained respecting the 
 different kinds of cotton which are produced, and 
 the utmost publicity given to the progress of the 
 experiments. It would be desirable also that The planters 
 the planters should themselves be provided with nishedwith 
 specimens of the different kinds of cotton which ffaiiThe'kinds 
 are brought to the English market, and which "^ ^°"°"- 
 would serve for comparison with the several kinds 
 of cotton grown on their plantations. 
 
 Planters in the interior of India complain compiaintof 
 that they have no encouragement to bestow extra planters. 
 labour, and incur greater expense in growing su- 
 perior cottons, as these when brought to market superior, bring 
 at the Presidency bring only the same prices as o"OTdinan"cot- 
 the ordinary cotton of the country. The cot- dency. 
 
328 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Complaint of toii Committee of the Agricultural Society of 
 
 Indian Planters ^^ . , . 
 
 that extra la- Calcutta admit, that parties there are interested m 
 
 bourisnotre- , . . , . . i • i -n ^ 
 
 paid by im- Keeping down the prices of staples, which will not 
 be properly valued until their prices are established 
 in Europe. The Secretary writes to Colonel Skin- 
 ner, who had planted and sold Georgia cotton, and 
 obtained only the price which good country cotton 
 realized — " It appears to me that you have not 
 given your new cotton a fair trial, and that if you 
 had sent it to England direct, you would have 
 reaped better returns than in Calcutta ; and I 
 ground my opinion upon the circumstance, that 
 had your cotton been equal to the first quality 
 
 Theexperi- American, the result of a sale in this country 
 
 mental Cottons i • i i • i • 
 
 should be sent would have been the same, inasmuch as it was 
 
 Liverpool. a new article." It is, therefore, necessary that a 
 
 portion, or the whole, of the produce of each 
 
 of the new farms should be sent regularly for 
 
 sale to the markets of London and Liverpool. 
 
 As the object of these extensive experiments is 
 not only to grow superior cotton, but also to ob- 
 tain accurate information for still more extensive 
 Reports from application, SO it is desirable to have reports 
 
 Planters. ff > ^ 
 
 from the planters, however brief, respecting the 
 details of their culture, from the different parts 
 of India in which they may be situated. The 
 scientific officer, who may be in communication 
 with the planters, should furnish, at least, a 
 general annual report, including notices of the 
 soil, climate, and peculiarities of seasons, as by 
 this means some general data will be obtained of 
 
IN INDIA. 329 
 
 extensive application. The defects will thus be Reports on the 
 
 . . /> 1 1 -1 experimental 
 
 avoided of previous experiments, of the details culture. 
 and particular results of which we know too 
 little to be able to rank them amon^ successful 
 investigations, or as partial or complete failures. 
 
 Bengal Presidency. 
 Cotton is cultivated in the Madras presi- Extent over 
 
 * which Cotton 
 
 dencv from 8° to 17** of north latitude, in that of >« cultivated in 
 
 " -r* 1 India. 
 
 Bombay from 1 6® to 24°, and in the Bengal pre- 
 sidency excellent cotton has been grown in the 
 neighbourhood both of Calcutta and of Dacca, as 
 well as near Delhi, that is, from 2^° to 30° of 
 north latitude. So that there would appear to be 
 favourable sites in India for the culture of cotton 
 over an extent of 22° of latitude. 
 
 The muslins of Dacca, so Ions: celebrated. Cotton of 
 
 ' ° ' Dacca 
 
 have always been manufactured from a cotton 
 grown to the eastward and south-east of the 
 city of Dacca, and a few miles inland from the 
 banks of the Burrampooter ; the plant has been 
 figured by Dr. Roxburgh in vol. 3, t. 269, of his 
 Coromandel Plants. It has often been doubted 
 whether the superiority of the manufacture was 
 dependent on the skill of the workmen or the 
 goodness of the cotton; but from Mr. Lamb's ac- ^^Jj''^ •^"''*- 
 count it appears to be carefully cultivated. It will 
 probably be found that both have some influence, 
 and it is certain that the workmen prefer the 
 
330 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Cotton prefer- Dacca cottoD, because, as Mr. Bebb long ago ex- 
 red as its thread i.,. i ii ii*ii i* 
 does not swell, plained, its thread does not swell m bleaching, 
 
 as is the case with the cotton grown in North- 
 Western and Central India. (Vide Reports of 
 East-India Company on Cotton, p. 350.) 
 Cotton of N. Of the cotton which is ffrown further north, 
 
 W. India. ^ 
 
 Mr. Duncan, as early as 1789, relates, that 
 the greatest part of the cotton produced in Be- 
 nares (N. lat. 25°) is spun into thread, as the 
 spinners there prefer such cotton to the gene- 
 rality of that imported from foreign countries. 
 Of this, the cotton imported from Nagpore was 
 held in the highest estimation, and considered 
 nearly equal to that from Surat, though that 
 grown near Benares is described as being very 
 cottonofN.w. little inferior to it. Previous to 1802, we learn, 
 indla^TwS from a report on the cotton trade of India by 
 the Bengal Government, that the average annual 
 quantity of cotton imported into the Honourable 
 East-India Company's provinces on that side of 
 India by the Ganges, had been for many years 
 450,000 maunds of ninety-six pounds, for the 
 manufacturers of Benares, Bengal, Behar, and 
 Orissa. Of these, 180,000 maunds were the pro- 
 duce of the Deccan, and 270,000 maunds from 
 the northward, principally from the country 
 along the banks of the Jumna. This tract, in- 
 cluding the three districts of Currah, Carah, and 
 Etawah, which had always produced a consider- 
 able quantity of cotton, subsequently <jame into 
 
IN INDIA. 333 
 
 the possession of the Honourable East-India 
 Company. The estimated produce at that time 
 was 1 50 to 1 75 pounds of clean cotton per acre. 
 
 The author in proceeding down the Jumna in Cotton of the 
 January 1B32, observed that the cotton plants Bundiecund, 
 
 1832 
 
 on its banks, especially below Agra, though 
 smaller, were very prolific bearers, the bolls were 
 larger, and the cotton better than he had seen 
 either higher up or lower down the river. Sub- 
 sequently, he was informed, that the best cotton 
 was grown in Bundiecund, in the neighbourhood 
 of Jalown, not far inland from Calpee ; that the 
 next best was that of Raja-Kh era, below Agra. 
 Good cotton is produced all along the banks of 
 the Jumna, as far north as 30°. In the selection Cotton of the 
 of sites and during the experiments, occasional Jumna. 
 visits by Dr. Falconer would be valuable, in com- 
 municating scientific information as well as the 
 results of his experience. 
 
 That the country in northern India is well suited cotton of the 
 to yield abundant crops of cotton is evident, from ^^^' 
 Mr. Vincent, of Nudjuffghur, stating that, in the 
 tract of country lying to the north of Allahabad, 
 " the produce of a begah (one-third of an acre) produce per 
 is, on an average, about a maund of cotton, 
 and two maunds of seed, which is as readily 
 sold as the cotton itself, being an excellent 
 food for cattle." This alone is at the rate of 
 246lbs. per acre, taking the maund as equal to 
 821 bs., but as the Allahabad maund contains 
 96 siccas, and is equal to 96lbs., the produce 
 
332 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Crop not sub- 
 ject to failure, 
 and saleable. 
 
 Cotton of 
 Bundlecund, 
 
 quality o^ 
 
 produce per 
 acre, 
 
 expence of 
 culture and 
 profit. 
 
 Cotton of 
 Central India, 
 
 much esteem- 
 ed. 
 
 obtained will be 294lbs. per acre. Mr. V. fur- 
 ther observes, that the cotton crop is not so 
 subject to failure as the grain crop in general, 
 and is preferred, because it is always saleable, 
 which the latter is not." But " the cotton culti- 
 vation on the right bank of the river Jumna being 
 so far superior to the Doab cotton, the latter is 
 extensively imported into Bundlecund, for the 
 fraudulent purpose of being mixed up with the 
 Banda and Jalown cotton." This is produced 
 not only of a fine quality, but also in large quan- 
 tities, as Mr. Bruce of Calpee writes, that though 
 sown broad-cast and with other grains, yet that 
 the average produce is upwards of 350lbs. per 
 acre, and that the best black cotton soils yield as 
 high as 617lbs. of cotton to the acre. Alluding 
 to the crops sown with the cotton, he also states, 
 that *' very often these extraneous mixtures more 
 than pay for the land-rent and labour of the whole 
 cultivation." The Cotton Committee of the Agri- 
 cultural Society of Calcutta, from the accounts 
 of the Akra farm, estimated the profits on the 
 culture of Georgian cotton at about 30 per cent. 
 The cotton of the interior or Central India, whe- 
 ther we consider the opinions of the native manu- 
 facturers on the Madras coast, or those of Benares 
 or Bengal, or the exporters at Bombay, has always 
 been highly esteemed. It . was bought also at 
 Dacca, and they paid 19 rupees a maund for the 
 cotton of Sironje in Malwa at the^ time that 
 their own cotton was selling for about six ru- 
 
IN INDIA. 333 
 
 pees, which was about the same price, as the 
 former was cleaned and the latter uncleaned 
 cotton. 
 
 The soil of Central India is peculiar, consisting SoU and climate 
 
 r » ^ & of Central 
 
 in many places of the black cotton soil ; the ^^dia. 
 climate also differs from that of the Lower 
 Provinces. It is more than probable, therefore, causes pro- 
 that the causes are physical and may be dis- whidi^favour 
 covered, which will account for the superiority as cotton!"*" ° 
 well as the facility of culture of cotton in these 
 districts. 
 
 It would be very desirable, therefore, to esta- i^<x»i>ties for 
 
 •' ' ' _ Cotton Farms. 
 
 blish the first experimental farms near the locali- 
 ties where good cotton, and in abundant enough 
 crops, is already grown. The banks of the Jumna Banksof 
 
 Jumna. 
 
 present the most desirable locality, as at no 
 great distance, they afford abundance of the 
 black soil as well as of the ordinary poorer soil 
 of northern India. Localities must be searched 
 for all along this tract ; the neighbourhood of 
 Banda is eligible, both on its own account, as Banda, 
 
 * ' 11 Eligible locali- 
 
 from the nearness of the country above the ties for cotton 
 
 Farms, 
 
 Ghauts, where the soil and climate are nearly also above the 
 identical with that of the cotton districts of 
 Central India. An experiment might at the same 
 time be instituted on the opposite side of the 
 Jumna, that is in the Doab, where cotton has so ^" °* ' 
 long been cultivated to a considerable extent, 
 and where, as we have seen, very large returns 
 per acre have in late years been obtained. 
 
 As it would be desirable to ascertain the possi- 
 
334 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Desirable to 
 bring the Cot- 
 ton into earlier 
 bearing. 
 
 Cultivating by 
 irrigation. 
 
 Caltivated 
 along Delhi 
 Canal, by Col. 
 Colvin. 
 
 Deterioration 
 of Cotton if 
 improperly 
 cultivated. 
 
 Desirable to 
 establish farms 
 in Central 
 India. 
 
 Objections 
 obviated of diffi> 
 culty of access. 
 
 bility of bringing cotton into earlier bearing, so 
 that the whole crop might be collected before the 
 frosts come on in December, it has been sug- 
 gested that this might be done by sowing in 
 April, and bringing the plants forward by irriga- 
 tion. In such a case, the Delhi Canal affords 
 great facilities and eligible situations. Colonel 
 Colvin introduced the culture of the Upland 
 Georgia cotton into upwards of one hundred 
 villages along its banks. The cotton he himself 
 cultivated in a sandy soil, which was useless for 
 every other purpose ; the produce, after five years 
 of culture, was thought to be deteriorated ; but 
 even then it was 30 per cent, more valuable than 
 the cotton of the country. The culture was 
 necessarily imperfect, and with imperfect cul- 
 ture, cotton deteriorates in America quite as readily 
 as in India. 
 
 As it is possible that the black cotton soil may 
 be found suitable not only to the cotton indigenous 
 in the country, but also with modified culture to 
 the Upland Georgian or the Mexican, so it will 
 be desirable to introduce the improved and modi- 
 fied culture and the best seed still further into the 
 interior. For such a purpose the tracts above the 
 Ghauts, as round Lohargaon, Jubbulpore, and 
 Saugor, afford numerous favourable sites. The 
 other tracts are near a navigable river, down 
 which the cotton may be conveyed at all sea- 
 sons of the year. A farm far in the interior may 
 be considered ineligible; but the Cotton Com- 
 
IN INDIA. 335 
 
 mittee of the Agricultural Society of Calcutta 
 justly observe, " It is obvious that there can 
 be no reasonable objection made to the exten- Means of access 
 
 to and from 
 
 sion of operations by the Society to those dis- the interior of 
 tricts, from which private speculators can with 
 profit transport cotton to Calcutta for sale, on 
 the score of difficulty of access, or deficiency of 
 transport, and other similar impediments ; but 
 the facilities and the selected stations, it is known 
 to your Committee much exceed any difficulties 
 which may be expected to arise, for Agra and 
 Bundlecund are situated close to the river Jumna, 
 and from Jubbulpore to Mirzapore, on the banks Road from 
 of the Ganges, the great cotton mart of the jubbu?pore. 
 North-western Provinces, a bridged and metalled 
 road of 269 miles in length, equal to any in 
 England, has been made by Government; and at 
 all the stations the means of transport, namely, 
 to the river, hackeries (carts), camels, and bul- 
 locks, and on the river boats of every description, 
 abound." (Vide Report, Calcutta 1839.) 
 
 The experiments with seed distributed by the Good cotton 
 CourtofDirectorsof theEast-IndiaCompany,and 
 by the Agricultural Society of Calcutta, have been 
 carried on over an immense extent of territory, 
 and the information which has been elicited is so 
 varied and valuable, that little doubt remains but 
 that good cotton may be grown in the southern 
 as in the northern parts of the Presidency. The 
 kinds which succeeded in the south are the Sear 
 Island and the Pernambuco, while the Georgian 
 
 has been grown 
 over a great 
 extent. 
 
336 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 is suited to the north, though some of excellent 
 SmtluTtedin" ^^^^^^Y ^^^ t>een grown by the Agricultural Society 
 the Southern jn ^jjg Akra farm, as well as by several gentlemen 
 
 provinces. *^ 
 
 in the neighbourhood of Calcutta. It would be 
 desirable therefore to test the effects of an im- 
 proved culture and one modified so as to be suited 
 to the climate, in the southern provinces, or on 
 the Tenasserim coast, and in the Muttuck coun- 
 try, as the results would be important and appli- 
 cable to a vast extent of territory. 
 
 Cotton long 
 exported from 
 Bombay. 
 
 Surat and 
 Broach Cot- 
 tons highly 
 valued. 
 
 Measures 
 adopted by E. 
 I. Company. 
 Cleaning ma- 
 chine sent in 
 1794. 
 
 Farm esta- 
 blished. 
 Foreign seed 
 and instructions 
 distributed. 
 
 Bombay Presidency. 
 
 The Bombay Presidency has long exported 
 large quantities of cotton both to Europe and to 
 China. Some of this, usually quoted in price- 
 currents under the names of Surat and Broach, 
 brings higher prices than any other cottons culti- 
 vated in India by the natives, and the best Surats 
 are often quoted at prices only a little inferior to 
 the great mass of short staple American cotton. 
 Both brokers and manufacturers have frequently 
 given very favourable reports on the quality of 
 this cotton, but much of that exported from 
 Bombay is the produce of Mahratta countries in 
 the interior or Central India. 
 
 Attempts have long been made by the East- 
 India Company, both in the Madras and Bombay 
 Presidencies, to improve Indian cotton. A clean- 
 ing machine was sent out, and a cotton-farm es- 
 tablished at Rhaudaterra, as early as 1794. Foreign 
 seeds were dispatched, instructions on the culture 
 
IN INDIA. , 337 
 
 of cotton were distributed, and rewards offered Rewards 
 for the improved specimens of it. But as the 
 produce of these provinces still continued in- 
 ferior to what was required by the manufacturers, 
 cotton-farms were directed to be established in Cotton Fanns 
 
 . established in 
 
 1829 ; those in Guzerat were placed under the 1829. 
 superintendence of Mr. Finey, after his decease 
 under that of Mr. Martin, and the experimen- 
 tal farms in the Deccan, Candeish, and Dhar- 
 war, under Dr. Lush. The cotton grown at the 
 several farms having been sent to England, was 
 reported on by experienced brokers, and the re- 
 sults prove that the cotton of these provinces can 
 be much improved ; for though these experimental 
 cottons had been injured in the process of cleaning, 
 probably from inexperience in the use of the saw- 
 gin, they are described as being worth from 6jd. cotton pro- 
 to 9|d. per pound. There is no doubt that ft^meirfti 
 in suitable soil, and with the careful culture of the ^^^^^^ *• 
 
 Probable im- 
 
 Broach districts, the improved processes of Ame- provementsin 
 
 -11 • Cotton culture. 
 
 rican agriculture would produce still greater im- 
 provement, and at all events a greater return of 
 cotton per acre. 
 
 Keeping in view the principle stated under the Localities for 
 
 experimental 
 
 head of Bengal, it would be desirable to have culture. 
 the experience of the American planters extended 
 in the Bombay presidency over as wide a surface 
 of country as possible. The best cotton districts 
 are widely separated from each other, and at op- 
 posite points of the Bombay territory. These are 
 the southern Mahratta country, about 16** N. lat., ^ Maimttm 
 
 • ' ' country. 
 
 Z 
 
338 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 where the experimental farms were established, 
 because presenting tracts considered by Dr. Lush 
 Guzeratand Well suitcd for the purposc. Guzerat and Cat- 
 tywar are the districts where the well known 
 superior cottons are already grown by the na- 
 tives; in consequence of which, these were se- 
 lected as the sites of the northern experimental 
 farms, and much favourable land for the purpose is 
 found between the latitudes of 21° and 24° North. 
 Experiments This part of the couutry was the site of the expe- 
 nearicaira.^ rimcnts of Mr. Assistaut Surgeon Gilders in 
 1816-17, who, having observed the causes which 
 led to the failure in the attempt to introduce the 
 cultivation of Bourbon cotton into the western 
 districts, considered the obstacles to have been 
 exclusively of a physical nature. He at the same 
 time stated, that both the soil and climate of the 
 districts lying between the Subermuttee and the 
 
 Excellent Cot- Myhcc promiscd a favourable result. The cot- 
 ton produced i ««• z^m i • i i ^ 
 
 by Mr. Gilders, ton grown by Mr. Gilders was considered at 
 Bombay fully equal to any produced in Bourbon, 
 and in London as the best specimen that had been 
 imported from Bombay raised from Bourbon seed. 
 It sold for lod. per lb. With so much saga- 
 city had Mr. Gilders selected the site of his expe- 
 
 by Dr. Bums, rimcuts, that fifteen years afterwards Dr. Burns 
 collected seed from trees growing apparently wild. 
 These being sown, produced plants of which the 
 cotton was pronounced equal to the best from 
 
 Cotton of New Orleans. The cotton grown at Laberkowa, 
 within two miles of Mongrole, though confined to 
 
IN INDIA. 339 
 
 a space of 200 bee^ahs, or thereabouts, is so hi«jhly cotton of La- 
 
 ^ o ' o ^ berkowa, near 
 
 valued, that on the spot it will fetch six-sevenths Mongroie; 
 of a rupee per maund more than any other kind 
 in that part of the country ; yet the natives say they 
 frequently use seed from Guzerat, or any part of 
 the country. The superiority must therefore de- 
 pend either upon peculiarity of soil and climate or 
 excellency of culture. One point only of the latter £7^^^^°^""^' 
 is related, but that is one of great consequence. 
 For instance, the people are in the habit of care- 
 fully extracting the cotton alone from the pod in 
 the field; and this is, probably, of considerable 
 importance, as some of the American planters 
 are of opinion, that the staple of Indian cotton is 
 much injured after it is collected, by being al- 
 lowed to heat when piled up, often for a long 
 time, before it is cleaned. 
 
 As the poorer soils of India have been found Different sofls 
 
 * _ to be included 
 
 to suit the American cottons better than the in experiments, 
 black soil, and this latter to agree with the in- 
 digenous cotton, it is desirable in the Bombay, 
 as in the other Presidencies, to include, in the 
 experiments, both the black and the other soils 
 of the country. Though the cotton is good, 
 and very abundantly produced, the chief diifi- 
 culty seems to be the shortness of the season shortness of 
 for ripening the cotton, conveying it to the out- ripening cotton 
 ports, and shipping it before the accession of the ^ ^'*^ ^' 
 rains. This might probably be obviated by earlier 
 sowing, perhaps, also, by bringing forward the 
 crop by irrigation, and for this the rivers in the 
 
 z 2 
 
340 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Profits of Cot- northern parts of Guzerat afford srreat facilities. 
 
 ton culture in 
 
 Bombay Pre- 
 sidency. 
 
 The profits attending the culture of cotton appear 
 to be considerable, as Dr. Lush says he is " con- 
 vinced that the grower and the merchant may 
 get ample profit when the best India cottons are 
 at 5d. per lb." No one is better acquainted than 
 Dr. Gibson with the various localities best suited 
 to the culture of cotton in the Bombay presi- 
 dency, as well as with the practices of the natives. 
 
 Cotton manU' 
 factures of 
 Madras coast. 
 
 Madras Presidency. 
 
 The cotton piece goods which were so exten- 
 sively exported, and so well known by the name 
 of Madras Long Cloths, would appear to indicate 
 the probability of parts of this presidency being- 
 favourable for the production of good cotton ; but 
 it has been ascertained that these cloths were 
 chiefly manufactured from cotton brought to the 
 coast from the interior of India. 
 
 Cotton is, however, extensively cultivated 
 within the limits of the Madras presidency, and 
 attempts have for a long time been made to im- 
 prove its cultivation. As early as 1790, we find 
 by Dr. Ander- that Dr. Andcrson was employed in sending 
 Mauritius cotton seeds, as well as " Brown Cot- 
 ton Seeds," imported from Malta, to different 
 parts of the peninsula ; and Dr. Roxburgh, who 
 left Samulcotta in the Northern Circars and 
 took charge of the Calcutta Botanic Garden in 
 1793, had already ascertained that the elevated, 
 dry, and less fertile soil of Coromandel was 
 
 Attempts to 
 improve Cot- 
 ton, 
 
 son. 
 
 by Dr. Rox- 
 burgh, 
 
IN INDIA. 341 
 
 better suited than that of Bengal to the Bour- 
 bon cotton. Mr. B. Metcalfe, who had resided the Court of 
 
 ' Directors send 
 
 several years in Georsria and New Orleans in the Mr-BMetcaife 
 
 •' c out to India. 
 
 capacity of merchant and a cleaner of cotton, 
 was sent, in 1813, by the East- India Company 
 with American machines for cleaning cotton, and 
 directed to be employed at one of the factories in 
 the Ceded Districts in Tinneveily, or wherever 
 his services might be thought most useful. Cot- Cotton Farms 
 
 . established in 
 
 ton farms were directed by the Government, in isia 
 1818, to be established at Tinneveily, Coimbatore, Cultivated by 
 
 •'' 'Mr. Heath, 
 
 Masulipatam, and Vizagapatam. To Mr. Heath, 
 who was commercial resident at Coimbatore, we 
 are indebted for the publication of the best in- 
 structions on the Culture of Cotton in India. 
 These refer tothe sevei-al subjects of Soil, Climate, 
 Culture, Pruning, and Cleaning. He obtained 
 them from Mr. Hughes, who had for some time byMr.Hu^es. 
 been engaged in the culture of cotton in the Tin- 
 neveily district, and whose success was so con- 
 siderable with the Bourbon cotton, that for 
 twenty years " Hughes's Tinneveily Cotton" con- Goodness of 
 tinned to be quoted in the Liverpool market as cotton^ ^ 
 the best from India, and sold at higher prices than 
 the American short staple cottons, and 3d. per lb. 
 above the best Surats. The fact is important, on 
 account of the latitude of Tinneveily being only 
 8A°, and because the success was evidently the '^e result of 
 
 •^ skill applied to 
 
 result of skill applied to the culture. The pro- the culture. 
 duce, though only 100 lbs. per acre, was fine in 
 quality and much esteemed. 
 
342 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Dr. Wight In March 1836, Dr. Wiarht was appointed by 
 
 appointed to i i./r i /-i . . 
 
 report on the Madras Government to inquire into the state 
 
 Cotton culture /. • i • o i t t 
 
 in Madras oi agriculturc m iSouthem India, and to report on 
 
 I^rc sid 6n c v» 
 
 the best methods of cultivating cotton and the 
 other valuable products of the country. The 
 collectors of districts having been required to 
 send in reports on the statistics and peculiarities 
 of the culture of cotton in their respective col- 
 lectorates, have furnished materials for a valu- 
 able report. From this, we learn that in Vizaga- 
 patam, about north latitude 17°, the return is 
 much greater than in any other district, as the 
 Produce per producc is Said to amount to " forty-six maunds, or 
 
 acre in Vizaga- *^ *' 
 
 patam, 1,150 Ibs., of sccd cotton per acre, nearly equal to 
 
 the best, and exceeding the ordinary American 
 crops." The culture here is peculiar, as very 
 
 jnTrichinopoiy. liberal pruning is practised. In Trichinopoly, 
 with a fertile soil, 783 lbs. which is the next 
 highest, is the greatest return, which, though 
 so much less than the above, is still more than 
 double the average return from other districts. 
 But no reports had then been received from North 
 Arcot, Bellary, and Cuddapah ; the two last are 
 stated by Dr. Wight to be the principal cotton 
 districts of the peninsula. 
 
 Experiments As the objccts in establishing experimental 
 
 over a wide ^ . 
 
 space of terri. farms, Under the superintendence of experienced 
 American planters, are not only to find the best lo- 
 calities for growing good cotton, but also to ascer- 
 tain the modifications of culture which may be 
 best suited to different soils andclimates, it would 
 
IN INDIA. 343 
 
 be desirable to have these farms established over ^^lure'orcot- 
 
 as wide a space of territory as possible. It is fortu- *°"* 
 
 nate, therefore, that two of the districts which now Localities for 
 
 yield the largest produce are also the most widely **™^^' 
 
 separated, Vizagapatam being in the north, and 
 
 Trichinopoly in the south ; while Bellary or Cud- 
 
 dapah, intermediate in position, may with] them 
 
 be indicated as eligible sites for the farms. The 
 
 best of these may be selected as that in which the 
 
 joint experiment should be made in the first 
 
 year. 
 
 Dr. Wight's scientific knowledge and practical 
 acquaintance with the subject would be ex- 
 tremely valuable, as affording information res- 
 pecting the peculiarities of soil, climate, and cu - 
 ture in each district. He has published a valu- 
 able paper and a table, embracing the results of 
 his investigations of the reports sent in by the 
 officers of Government of thirteen districts in the 
 Madras Presidency. This embraces the several 
 items of the kind of cotton cultivated, the times of 
 sowing and of obtaining the produce, produce 
 per acre, charges on the culture, the amount of 
 the assessment or the land-tax, and the profit of 
 the cultivator. Every item differs very consider- 
 ably in the different districts. In Masulipatam, 
 where the expenses are Rs. 2.11.6, and the as- 
 sessment Rs. 2.17.7, and the produce of clean 
 cotton 150lbs. per acre, the profit is stated as 
 being only 8 anas and 11 pice, while in Vizaga- 
 patam the expenses are Rs. 18.8, the assessment 
 
344 
 
 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 in different 
 soils. 
 
 Rs. 14, the return per acre 290lbs., and the profit 
 is Rs. 12.8. 
 
 As the native species of cotton succeeded only 
 in the black cotton soils, and the foieign species 
 in the poorer sandy soil, it would be desirable 
 to make the experiments in a situation where both 
 soils might be tried. 
 
 Good Cotton 
 cultivated all 
 over India. 
 
 In southern 
 latitudes chiefly 
 from the influ- 
 ence of Euro- 
 peans ; 
 
 by natives in 
 northern lati- 
 tudes. 
 
 Causes which 
 favour the 
 production of 
 Cotton. 
 
 We perceive that cotton is produced of good 
 quality over vast tracts of Indian territory, by the 
 application of European skill and energy, as far 
 south as Tinnivelly; and in Vizagapatam, eight 
 degrees further north, in large quantities per acre, 
 chiefly through the introduction of American modes 
 of culture. This was one of the sites of the former 
 Cotton Farms, and a part of its effects, as well 
 as of the example of Europeans, is evident in the 
 liberal pruning which is there practised. The 
 fine cottons produced by the unaided efforts of 
 the natives are in the more northern provinces 
 both of the Bombay and Bengal Presidencies. 
 
 The cotton of Central India finds its way on 
 the west to Surat, and on the east to Mirzapore, 
 which has long been the great Cotton mart of that 
 side of India. The causes which favour the 
 growth of cotton, asteemed both in India and 
 England, in the tract of country extending from 
 Surat and Ahmedabad, or from about lat. 21° and 
 23^, in a broad band across Malwa to Banda and 
 Rajakhaira,in about 25° and 27°, near the banks of 
 
IN INDIA. 345 
 
 the Jumna, are no doubt physical. The black cot- sonrndcompa- 
 
 rative dryness 
 
 ton soil which is spread over a great portion of this ofcHmate&- 
 tract has undoubtedly a considerable share in pro- cotton in the 
 ducing the effect; but good crops of cotton are pro- 
 duced in some parts where there is no black soil,as 
 immediately on the banks of the Jumna and in the 
 Doab. It will therefore probably be found, that 
 the comparative dryness of the climate after the 
 plant has got well established in the ground, 
 checks the vegetative vigour, and favours the pro- 
 duction of proliBc fruit. The native modes of Native modes 
 
 * of culture best 
 
 culture are chiefly characterized by close sowiner, suited to such 
 
 •'^ 1 o situations. 
 
 crowded plantations, and unchecked growth. 
 These and the mixture of crops even, are better 
 suited to a dry soil and climate, than to a rich 
 soil and moist atmosphere. Hence the culture 
 has proved more successful in the hands of the 
 natives in the northern than in the more sou- 
 thern latitudes of India. 
 
 The same effects may, however, be produced The same 
 
 effects fljid 
 
 by culture in a rich soil and climate. Frequent successful re- 
 ploughing and turning up of the ground will pro- produced every 
 duce dryness of the soil ; open planting and the free m adtmer^^ 
 admission of air will equally increase evaporation 
 from the leaves. These, combined with topping 
 the plant and pruning, will check its tendency to 
 run into stalk and leaf, but favour the production 
 of flower-buds, fruit, and abundance of cotton. 
 It may therefore, perhaps, be grown as well in 
 the southern as in the northern parts of India. 
 Taking into consideration the facts we have 
 
346 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 Conclusion. before US respecting the native culture of Cotton, 
 and the results of the numerous experiments which 
 have been made to improve it, there is sufficient 
 satisfactory evidence to justify confidence in the 
 complete and profitable success of the cultivation 
 of very superior kinds of cotton in various parts of 
 India. But the American or European Planters 
 who thoroughly understand the Practice, must 
 also pay sufficient attention to the Principles, so 
 as to be able to modify the former to suit it to 
 the soil and situation in which they are placed. 
 They must also make it their principal business 
 to establish the Culture, and to succeed as Cot- 
 ton Planters. But attention is necessary to soil 
 and climate, and every part of the improved 
 culture of the present day, as well as to careful 
 picking, early drying, and complete cleaning by 
 effective machinery, before Cotton is packed and 
 can be presented to the Merchant for transmis- 
 sion to the Manufacturer.* 
 
 * The foregoing observations having been written to accom- 
 pany documents referring to the important experiment which 
 is in course of being tried, to improve the culture of Cotton in 
 India, the means by which it is to be effected, have rather 
 been referred to, than detailed. This will account also for 
 some of the repetitions of what had been before treated of, 
 and for a few alterations subsequently made, to suit the pur- 
 poses of this work. It has been seen that various measures 
 have been adopted for a series of years by the Court of Direc- 
 tors and the Indian Governments to improve the culture and 
 cleaning of Cotton. Notwithstanding the success which has 
 attended many of the experiments, no permanent improve- 
 
IN INDIA. 347 
 
 ment has yet taken place in the Cottons of India ; in fact, ac- 
 cording to the testimony of practical men^ both in Liverpool and 
 Manchester, it has even deteriorated, as they are unable to pur- 
 chase as good and as clean Cotton now as they used to do fifteen 
 years ago. A more complete experiment than any that had been 
 instituted was yet required, before the question could be con- 
 sidered as finally settled, of the capability of India for produc- 
 ing superior kinds of Cotton. This was determined upon, as 
 related at p;> 9, and is so complete in every point as to leave 
 nothing more to be desired for the satisfactory settlement of 
 this imjwrtant culture. 
 
 Captain Bayles, with the ten experienced American planters, 
 has also brought seed of the best kinds, especially of the Mexi- 
 can Plant, now the most valued in Louisiana and Southern Ala- 
 bama. Also Saw-gins by several makers, as Brookes, Carver, 
 Idler; but the instrument of Mr. Jones seems best adapted to 
 the Indian cotton seed. 
 
 The author has derived much valuable infbrmatioa on the 
 culture of Cotton in America from Mr. Mercer and the other 
 planters, who he has no doubt will succeed in growing it equally 
 well in India. 
 
 The opportunity being too favourable not to be taken advan- 
 tage of. Captain Bayles, with Messrs. Mercer, Finney, Blunt, 
 and Terry, the American Planters for Bengal, accompanied by 
 the Author, visited brokers, spinners, and manufacturers, in 
 London, LiverpocJ, and Manchester, to make inquiries on va- 
 rious points relating both to Indian and the other Cott(ms which 
 are imported. 
 
 A few preliminary experiments were also made on the powCTS 
 of the American Machines in cleaning Indian Cotton. All 
 experiments on cleaning cotton are however made here rfnder 
 the most unfavourable circumstances, as the Indian Kupas (that 
 is cotton with the seed) has been imperfectly dried, and this of 
 itself injures the staple. It has also been kept for many years, 
 which has further dried up both the seed and the staple, 
 making the latter more brittle and easily injured by the process 
 of cleaning. 
 
348 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 From inquiries made to ascertain what kinds of cotton it is 
 most desirable to cultivate in India, it appears best, as a general 
 rule, to imitate the American short and long staple cottons as 
 nearly as possible. It has by some been thought unadvisable to 
 increase the supply of long staple cottons, such as Sea Island, 
 Pernambuco, &c., to a great degree ; but of this there is no 
 fear. If the supply were abundant and regular, the prices might 
 fall, and long staple Cottons would be used for many of those 
 purposes for which short staple cottons are now alone em- 
 ployed. But it will not be easy to increase the supply, if regu- 
 lar, beyond the demand. 
 
 With regard to Indian Cotton, satisfactory information was 
 obtained respecting its qualities, and that it is not its cheapness 
 only which causes it to be employed in our cotton manufactures. 
 The objections to it are no doubt great, inasmuch as there is 
 always one-fourth, and often more, of loss from the intermixture 
 of dirt, and yet more from waste in consequence of the very 
 short staple or nap being mixed with the long staple. These, 
 in the process of cleaning by the saw-gin, are separated by 
 the great draught created by the rapid revolution of the clean- 
 ing brush. The Indian Cotton is also short in its staple, and 
 liable to break, apparently from the imperfect drying it receives 
 at the time that it is picked. Notwithstanding these imperfec- 
 tions, it is extensively employed in our manufactures, partly 
 no doubt owing to its cheapness, but also in consequence of 
 possessing some positive good qualities, and which distinguish 
 it from the American short staple cottons. The first of these 
 is colour, by which yarn and cloth in which it is employed are 
 much improved in appearance ; the second, with which the 
 manufacturers of Dacca* are as well acquainted as those of 
 
 * " The general distinction in quality, the natives of Dacca 
 make, is whether the thread made therefrom swells or not in 
 the bleaching." — Bebb on Cotton of Dacca, in Reports, p. 350. — 
 This property, which is not possessed by the Cotton of Dacca, 
 makes this preferable for the fine muslins of that city, but 
 
IN INDIA. 349 
 
 Manchester, is, the swelling of its thread, which, when the cloth 
 is bleached, enables the intermediate vacancies to be filled up, 
 giving the whole a more substantial appearance. The third 
 good quality is, that in dyeing, it takes the colour more uni- 
 formly than the other cottons. 
 
 The great importance attached by the Court of Directors of 
 the East-India Company to this great experiment in all its 
 bearings is evident, from the pains which have been taken, and 
 the expense which has been incurred in rendering it complete 
 in every point. As the saw-gins had arrived at Liverpool, it 
 was determined that their powers of cleaning Indian Cotton 
 should be carefully tested before they were dispatched to their 
 destination : the results were reported in the Liverpool TimeSf 
 Sec. and in the London Journal of Commerce, which says, — 
 " We perceive, by the accounts from Liverpool, that, on Friday 
 the 17th ultimo, the Chairman and Deputy-chairman (W. BuT- 
 TERWOBTH Bayley, Esq., and George Lyall, Esq.) accom- 
 panied by Sir Robert Campbell, Sir J. L. Lushington, Sir 
 Richard Jenkins, M. P., and John Loch, Esq., Directors of 
 the East-India Company, James C. MELviLL,Esq., Secretary to 
 the Court, Dr, Royle, and Mr. Greene, of the Correspondence 
 Branch, arrived at that time, where the machinery had been 
 previously landed from America, for the purpose of witnessing 
 certain experiments which the Directors had ordered to be made 
 with the saw-gins procured by Captain Bayles. The immediate 
 object being to ascertain whether the action of so powerful an 
 instrument could, without alteration, be made available in clean- 
 ing the Cotton of India, which is of a staple somewhat shorter, 
 and possessing less tenacity than that of the United States. 
 
 ** The experiments were conducted at the manufactory of 
 Messrs. Fawcett and Co., and the result proved to the satisfac- 
 
 the cotton of northern India, which does possess this property, 
 seems to be valued by the manufacturers of piece goods of Be- 
 nares, V. p. 19, as it is in the present day by those of Man- 
 chester. 
 
360 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 tion of the party assembled on the occasion, consisting of the 
 principal manufacturers, brokers, spinners, and mechanics of 
 Liverpool and Manchester, that, with some trifling modifica- 
 tions in the saws and plates, the machines in question may be 
 used in India, under proper superintendence, with complete 
 success. 
 
 " We have been favoured with samples of the cotton produced 
 on this interesting occasion. The Surat Kupas selected for the 
 gins is in a dirtier condition than any we have before met with, 
 but when ginned, although evidently cut in the staple, presents 
 a fair sample of " prime Surat ;" it appears also to have come 
 freely through the cards. We understand that the average time 
 consumed in ginning eighty-four pounds of the Kupas (equal 
 to an Indian maund), by one gin containing sixty saws, may be 
 taken at twenty-five minutes ; the average quantity of clean 
 Cotton produced being 201bs. ; seed, 601bs. ; waste, 31bs. ; and 
 the average price placed by the valuers on the clean cotton, 
 4^d. per lb. 
 
 " We shall most probably have occasion shortly to recur again 
 to this subject ; in the mean time, we cannot but sincerely con- 
 gratulate the public on the fair promise which the liberal 
 measures adopted by the East-India Company hold out, if 
 vigorously prosecuted, of securing to this country a supply of 
 cotton from our own possessions, at a considerably reduced 
 cost, and to an almost unlimited extent." 
 
 The success was complete, much more so indeed than would 
 appear from the above quoted average price, as some experi- 
 enced brokers were of opinion that the cotton cleaned by the 
 gins had been under rather than over-estimated, and that the 
 best might fairly be valued at 5|d. per lb. One sample, sent to 
 a broker, without any notice of the mode of cleaning or any 
 other particulars respecting it, was pronounced worth 6d. a 
 pound, and that several hundred bales might be sold at that 
 price. Of the cotton cleaned by the saw-gins, the staple is, no 
 doubt, slightly injured, but much less so than could have been 
 anticipated from the former accounts of the action of the saw- 
 gin on Indian Cotton. That the injury was then exaggerated. 
 
IN INDIA. 351 
 
 or proceeded from inexperience in the use of the saw-gin, is 
 evident from one of Whitney's machines, which had been re- 
 turned from India, having been included in the experiments. 
 It must not be omitted, that one of the instruments did not act 
 so well as was expected, in consequence of the newness of the 
 saws. This is always obviated by the planters in America, by 
 making new saws act in the first instance upon seeds mixed 
 with sand, which reduces the rough and fine edges so as to 
 injure the cotton in the least degree. This precaution had been 
 taken with two of the instruments, but not with the third, 
 which will account for the average value of the cotton not 
 being so high as it otherwise would have been. An engineer 
 was heard to observe, that the teeth of the saws should be ap- 
 proximated as nearly as possible to the curved thorn of a rose, 
 which with its sharp point would lay hold of and carry forward 
 without injuring the staple of the cotton. 
 
 The benefit of the introduction of such an instrument as the 
 present American saw-gin, will undoubtedly be considerable, as 
 it is easily able to turn out 600 pounds of clean cotton a day. 
 The Indian planter will thus receive the full value of his article, 
 instead of having it depreciated, in consequence of its being 
 mixed up with one-foiu-th of dirt, upon which he has to pay 
 expenses in packing, conveyance to the sea-port, freight, and 
 insurance, as well as upon the cotton. He will at the same time 
 not lose the sale in India of the waste and short nap, which 
 will be as useful as better cotton for quilting garments, &c in 
 that country. The demand in England will, at the same time, 
 very considerably increase, as a manufacturer stated, that in- 
 stead of using it only in small quantities, it would be preferred 
 and employed in millions of pounds, if only brought to them 
 in the state it was turned out before them by the saw -gin. 
 
 The satisfactory nature of the result is still further proved by 
 the following documents. The first and second, referring to cot- 
 ton cleaned at Liverpool ; and the third, to the opinion of the 
 Merchants, Manufacturers, and Spinners of Manchester, where 
 the saw-gins had been sent by the Court of Directors to be 
 submitted to a further trial. It is important to notice that a press 
 
352 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 was at the same time exhibited by Mr. William Laird, of Li- 
 verpoolj in which 4001bs. of cotton was pressed in twelve 
 minutes by four men to the ordinary size of a Surat bale. 
 
 " To the Directors of the Honourable East-India Company. 
 ''Honorable Sirs, 
 
 " In compliance with the request of the Chairman for my 
 report and opinion on the recent experiments made at Liverpool 
 with the American saw-gins, &c. upon East-India Cotton, I 
 beg respectfully to state, that I concur generally in the Report 
 made at Liverpool, and forwarded to London on Tuesday last, 
 which renders any lengthened one from me unnecessary. I 
 think the valuations therein given might fairly have been 
 stated yd. to ^d. per lb. higher, as the present relative value 
 with American Cotton; in which opinion I am confirmed by 
 several brokers who examined the samples more at leisure than 
 could well be done at the time the experiments were made, and 
 whose valuations were chiefly at 4|d. to 5^d. per lb. ; but in 
 drawing up the Report, it was deemed best to use great caution, 
 and adopt the first estimate. Had the experiments been tried 
 upon new cotton instead of old, I think the result would have 
 been still more satisfactory. 
 
 " I am decidedly of opinion, that the American saw-gins, 
 under the superintendence and management of American 
 planters, are calculated to accomplish the great object contem- 
 plated, the obtaining a large supply of a desirable and useful 
 quality of cotton, presuming the gins are to be used in the 
 districts or farms where the cotton is grown, and the cotton 
 there secured from the influence of weather by being packed 
 into bales ; judging from the appearances of East-India Cotton 
 there is much injury done by exposure, and bad management. 
 These remarks have more immediate reference to cotton from 
 Bombay, which is of longer staple, and consequently, in much 
 greater demand than cotton from Calcutta and Madras. 
 ** I remain, Honorable Sirs, 
 
 " Your most obedient Servant, 
 (Signed) «'« Jas. R. Tetlet." 
 
 "72dJuly 1840." 
 
IN INDIA. 353 
 
 " To Capl. Baj/les, H.E.I.Co, S., Adelphi Hotel. 
 
 " Liverpool, 22d Jul^y 1840. 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " Herewith we send you 3 hanks Twist spun from your own 
 Cotton, vis. : — One hank No. 12 Throstle Twist; one hank No. 
 16 Mule Twist; one hank No. 32 Mule Twist. 
 
 " Our object is to show you what quality of Twist your Cot- 
 ton produces on coarse as well as fine numbers ; No. 12 Throstle 
 Twist and No. 16 Mule Twist we consider to be very good, 
 and the No. 32 Mule Twist very fair yarn, considering the 
 quality of Cotton. 
 
 " The Cotton (yours ginned) when compared with Surats ot 
 an ordinary quality, is about |d to Id. per lb. better, owing 
 to its being much cleaner and free from seeds; it cards free, and 
 in general works well. The Cotton is obviously cut and nipt 
 in the ginning to a small extent, which would be a great im- 
 provement if obviated. We rate it equal to fair Orleans or prime 
 Surats. If such Cottons could be produced so cleaned, a very 
 great preference would be given it to ordinary East-India and 
 Surats, which is commonly full of sand, seeds, and shell : it 
 would also be preferred to low Americans for its very bright 
 colour. 
 
 " We value this ginned Cotton with 5d. Bowd's or Orleans, 
 and Id. per lb. better than 4d. Surats. 
 
 " We are. Sir, your very obedient Servants, 
 
 *' The North Shorb Mills Company. 
 
 " We consider this Cotton to lose less weight in spinning 
 than common East-India Surats." 
 
 2 A 
 
354 CULTIVATION OF COTTON 
 
 *' According to the notice put up in the Exchange room on 
 Thursday, the experiments ordered by the Hon. East India 
 Company to be made on ginning East India Cotton, by means 
 of the American Saw Gin, were exhibited, on Saturday last, 
 at the manufactory of Messrs. Lilly and Sons, Stone-street, 
 Manchester, under the able superintendence of Capt. Bayles, 
 assisted by the American gentlemen who are about to proceed 
 with him to India. The result cannot be better shown than by 
 reference to the annexed letter written on the spot, and signed 
 by most of the first spinners and merchants in Manchester : — 
 
 " Lillys' Engineering Establishment, 
 
 "Manchester, 1st August, 1840. 
 
 *' The Merchants, Manufacturers, Spinners, and others in- 
 terested in the various branches of the Cotton Trade, having 
 been this day invited to witness experiments by Saw-Gins im- 
 ported from America, upon the cleaning and ginning of East 
 India Cotton, imported in the natural state of boll or pod, with 
 the view of ascertaining the practical application of the clean- 
 ing machinery of the United States, to cotton grown in the 
 East Indies, record with great pleasure their conviction, that 
 the experiments now made, clearly establish the fact, that this 
 machinery has been successfully applied for the purpose desired 
 and intended. 
 
 " The national importance of a supply of raw material, to 
 maintain the industry of Great Britain is admitted; and the 
 parties immediately interested in the Cotton Trade hail 
 with extreme satisfaction any attempts made to increase the 
 supply of raw cotton in particular, and the manufacturing 
 community of this town and neighbourhood beg thus to ex- 
 press their approbation of the conduct of the Directory of the 
 Hon. East India Company, and of Capt. Bayles and the gen- 
 tlemen associated with him, in the attempts they are making to 
 improve the cultivation, and to enlarge the supply of East 
 India Cotton, and it is hoped that every support will be given 
 
IN INDIA. 
 
 355 
 
 by the Hon. Company here, and by Lord Auckland and the 
 authorities in India to accomplish this most desirable object. 
 
 J. B. SMITH, President of the Chamber of Commerce. 
 H. HOOLE, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce. 
 
 HoRRicKs, Jacson & Co. 
 J. Macvicak. 
 Lambert, Hoole, Jack- 
 son, & Co. 
 R. CoBDEN & Company. 
 D. Price. 
 J. P. Westhead. 
 Wood & Westheads. 
 J. LiLLiE & Sons. 
 Waterhouse & Thompson. 
 
 S. RiGGS. 
 
 J. Massey & Son. 
 S. M. Moore & Son. 
 J. Kershaw. 
 Gardner & Bazley. 
 Langworthy, Bro. & Co. 
 T. Barton. 
 R. Roberts, Engineer. 
 J. Potter. 
 
 KeLI.Y & GiLMOOR. 
 
 J. Nicholson, for Thomas 
 
 Holdsworth, 
 W. HiGGiNs & Sons. 
 J. Shawcross. 
 T. Ogden & Sons. 
 
 N. GOUGH. 
 McCONNILS & Co. 
 
 J. PooLEY & Son. 
 
 C. GiMONY. 
 
 T. & R. Barnes. 
 
 G. Cheelham & Sons, 
 
 per J. Hill. 
 T. Kay & Son. 
 T. Bannerbian & Co. 
 M. Kennedy. 
 
 M. ASHTON. 
 G. SiDBOTTOM . 
 
 C. Smith. 
 
 T. Fernley, Jun. 
 
 T. Fernley & Son." 
 
 The original information on the Cotton culture of India is 
 contained in the following works : — The Reports on the 
 Proceedings of the East India Company, in regard to the pro- 
 duction of Cotton Wool, 1836. Transactions of the Agricul- 
 tural Society of India. Vol. II— VI. 1836—39. Dr. Lush on 
 the Cultivation and Preservation of Cotton in the districts un- 
 der the Bombay Presidency, 1837. Dr. Wight on the Cultiva- 
 tion of the Foreign Varieties of Cotton in the Madras Presi- 
 dency, 1837. Minute of the Govenor-general of India on 
 the Cultivation of Cotton in the East Indies, 1839. 
 
 z A i: 
 
35G 
 
 Experimental 
 culture of sta- 
 ples of com- 
 Hierce, 
 
 in Madras Pre- 
 Bidenpy; 
 
 in Bengal Pre- 
 sidency; 
 
 in Bombay 
 Presidency. 
 
 Botanic Gar- 
 den established 
 near Poona. 
 
 Botanic Garden established at Dapooree 
 IN Western India. 
 
 In the preceeding notices of the experimental 
 cultures instituted for the improvement of the 
 great staples, not only of Indian commerce, but 
 of that of the world in general, we have seen 
 that with great extent of territory, there is also 
 great diversity of soil and of climate, within the 
 limits of British India. Hence there are great 
 capabilities of successfully cultivating the valued 
 productions of many different parts of the world. 
 The localities which have been chiefly dwelt upon 
 are in the Madras presidency; also in the Southern 
 and Northern parts, as well as in the Mountains 
 of the Bengal presidency; but some of the results 
 which have been obtained in Western India, have 
 also been noticed under the heads of Silli and 
 Cotton. But in the Bombay presidency, besides 
 the experiments on Silk and Wool which are in 
 course of being carried on, and the Cotton Farms 
 which have been at different times established, 
 there is also a Botanic garden where experiments 
 are instituted on the introduction of useful plants 
 into that side of India. 
 
 The house, garden, and grounds of Dapooree, 
 near Poona, were purchased in 1828, by Sir J. Mal- 
 colm* for the use of Government. This property 
 
 * Sir John Malcolm in proposing its establishment says, " I 
 am anxious for the promotion of liberal science, and I am much 
 
BOTANIC GARDEN IN WESTERN INDIA. 357 
 
 contained 71 J acres of land, of which 1 IJ are not EstaWishment 
 arable, and 12J were occupied by the buildings, Garden at Da- 
 &c,, and 48 acres of good land, all under irriga- ^^^^' 
 tion, were left to be formed into a botanic garden. 
 Mr. Williamson was appointed its first super- 
 intendent, but died shortly afterwards. Dr. Lush Dapooree Bo- 
 succeeded him. The latter describes the climate ^""^ " ^"' 
 as being^ that of the Deccan. To its variability, 
 and the range of temperature and the moderate cumate; 
 monsoons, he ascribes the great extent of vegetable 
 productions of other countries, tropical and tem- 
 perate, which have succeeded at various times and 
 places in the Deccan, wherever the least attention 
 has been paid to horticultural pursuits. The depth SoU. 
 of soil is considerable, and a great portion of it, 
 the coarse black soil of the country. In the im- 
 mediate vicinity there are beds of limestone in 
 the trap rocks around, together with red chalk 
 
 alive to the expediency and policy of every measure (however 
 trifling it may seem), that can, without imjustifiable expendi- 
 ture, benefit the country, and add to the peaceable occupation 
 and enjoyment of its inhabitants, of whose habits and charac- 
 ter I have sufficient knowledge to be convinced that not exam- 
 ple, but every stimulus we can apply, is necessary to rouse 
 them to exertion in the pursuit of objects which are obviously 
 for their own advantage ; and I believe the establishment I 
 have proposed, to be quite essential to accelerate their advance 
 in that branch of useful improvement to which it belongs." 
 Sir John relates, that one Mahratta chief, speaking of his suc- 
 cess in rearing potatoes, said with truth, ** a new vegetable is a 
 trifle to you Europeans, compared to what it is to us Brahmins." 
 
358 BOTANIC GARDEN IN 
 
 Botanic Gar- and coarse river sand. The garden contained a 
 ree. number of useful and ornamental, and among 
 
 them a considerable number of timber trees, 
 TimbeTtrees. ^^^^ ^^^^^ trces cousisted of peaches, guavas, 
 loquats, mangoes, apples, quinces, and apricots; 
 besides the remains of a once celebrated vine- 
 yard. There were also specimens of the rose ja- 
 mon, alligator pear, Indian almond, with others 
 characteristic of the country. That is, we have 
 here, as in other parts of India, the fruit trees of 
 various parts of the world congregated together. 
 It was proposed to pay attention to these as well 
 Proposed sub- as to Horticultural subjects in general, as also 
 men't^at^m" to the culturc of pasturc and fodder Grasses ; the 
 P*^'*^' planting of the Mulberry for the Silk culture, to- 
 
 gether with the cultivation of Medicinal plants. 
 The results of the experiments which were made 
 on the culture of Cotton and the planting of Mul- 
 berries, we have already seen under the heads of 
 the former and of Silk. 
 Dr. Gibson ap- Dr. Gibsou haviug succeeded to the Superin- 
 iluendent"^'^' tendency of the Dapooree Garden, has zealously 
 prosecuted the objects contemplated in its institu- 
 Nurseries esta- tiou. Two or three Small nurseries, as at Hewra, 
 Neergoree, and Seonere, were established in 
 the district in furtherance of the same objects. 
 Such establishments are especially useful, as 
 speaking everywhere to the eyes of the natives, 
 and advantageous to the country, as useful plants 
 are distributed gratis to those who agree to 
 cultivate them. The importance of such intro- 
 
WESTERN INDIA. 359 
 
 ductions will be clearly manifest, when it is con- Nurseries esu- 
 
 •^ blished. 
 
 sidered, as Dr. Gibson says, that the great com- observations 
 plaint of the cultivators, is tlie exceeding cheap- o»th"'-"^>"ty- 
 ness of all the present articles of cultivation, con- 
 sisting principally of grains, with which the 
 markets are usually overstocked. The necessity, 
 therefore, is proportionately great, of finding 
 other employment for a portion of the people, 
 and of introducing the culture of articles which 
 may meet with a ready sale for exportation. 
 Hence, we see one reason why Cotton is so ex- 
 tensively cultivated, and Opium so rapidly in- 
 creased in quantity throughout Central India. 
 
 All measures calculated to forward the increased important ob- 
 culture of useful objects received the utmost en- ture. 
 couragement from the unwearied and enlightened 
 zeal of the Revenue Commissioner, Mr. T. Wil- 
 liamson, who has particularly directed attention 
 to the cultivation of Foreign Cottons and he 
 Mauritius Sugar Cane, Mulberry planting, Coffee, 
 Tobacco, and Tea, (the last he mentions as suc- 
 ceeding at ]\uggur,) the Cochineal Insect, Culi- 
 nary Vegetables, and Fruit-trees. But we cannot 
 avoid remarking that many objects of culture 
 which have long been naturalized in other parts, 
 are only now being introduced into the west of 
 India. 
 
 Among the subjects to which Dr. Gibson, as planting of 
 
 , Mulberry and 
 
 well as others, have been paymg attention, is the culture of siiit. 
 planting of Mulberries and the Culture of Silk, 
 and it is gratifying to find that the specimens of 
 
360 
 
 BOTANIC GARDEN IN 
 
 Potatoes. 
 
 Western India, silk which have been sent home are highly ap- 
 proved of.* Dr. G. has also been introducing the 
 culture of Arrow-root, Tapioca, and of Potatoes. 
 The last he planted in November, and dug up at 
 the end of February, and found them to be of 
 very good quality. He states that they thrive 
 best in the red soil, where the grain crops are 
 comparatively scanty and precarious, and that 
 they would yield a remuneration superior to that 
 afforded by the Rubbee crops, even at one-third 
 of their present price. From his example and 
 advice many of the natives were become as anxi- 
 ous, as they were before averse from potatoe cul- 
 tivation, and he had consequently supplied seed 
 to a number of cultivators. 
 
 Dr. Gibson conceives that many of the hill lo- 
 calities are eminently fitted for the naturalization 
 of the products of the south of Europe, as the 
 Olive, &c ; others for the culture of Coffee, and 
 some for many of the useful plants and trees of 
 the New World. He was endeavouring to direct 
 attention to the culture of Linseed, and also to 
 
 Adopted by 
 Natives. 
 
 Olive, Coflfee, 
 &c. 
 
 • But it is mortifying to learn, at the same time, as the Au- 
 thor did, in one of the most extensive silk mills in Manchester, 
 that Bengal silk had fallen off very much in quality in the last 
 few years. By the latest accounts, we learn that " the Calcutta 
 exports of silk are now three thousand maunds less than last 
 year, and are not likely soon to increase. One lot of superior 
 European Filature Cossimbazar has been sold at 15s. 8d. per 
 factory maund ; but it was the finest we have ever seen." — Cir- 
 cular of Messrs. MMiyte and Holmes. Calcutta, 6th June 1840, 
 
WESTERN INDIA. 361 
 
 that of Safflower, Lucern, Guinea Grass, &c., 
 which were known in some, but not so common 
 in all the districts as they might easily be made. 
 The Grape Vine, Dr. G. mentions, as common The Grape 
 
 '^ . Vine. 
 
 in the easern parts of the Deccan, where it af- 
 forded a cheap and delicious article of food, sold 
 in some bazars, and yet that it was uncultivated 
 in many places well suited to it. Into Candeish 
 it had been introduced by the Collector of Reve- 
 nue, and was quite naturalized, though it had 
 at one time been said that the air of this district 
 was unfavourable to it. 
 
 The Mauritius Sugar Cane had been intro- Mauritius su- 
 gar Cane. 
 duced into Bombay by the zeal and energy of 
 
 Mr. Brownrigg, and had been extensively distri- 
 buted by Mr. Williamson. Dr. Gibson was also 
 employed in cultivating, extensively distributing, 
 and in endeavouring to induce the natives to 
 take an interest in the culture. He had made 
 an agreement with one cultivator, to whom he 
 supplied the ground, and half the seed, on con- 
 dition of his furnishing labour, and the water for 
 irrigation, and that they were to divide the pro- 
 duce equally. He had succeeded in making su- 
 gar after the West-Indian method, and the speci- 
 mens of sugar which he has sent to this country 
 are excellent in quality. 
 
 He had also turned his attention to the subject Medicines and 
 
 /. 1 • • 1 1 • i_ other Drugs. 
 
 of medicinal and other drugs, and mentions that 
 those from the Deccan and Candeish were col- 
 lected in the Chandore range. The forests which 
 
362 BOTANIC GARDEN IN 
 
 Western India. He close Under the ghauts in Candeish and the 
 Timber. ^ Deccau, he is of opinion, require being attended 
 to, as on these forests the Deccan is completely 
 dependent for timber. He fears, as destruction, 
 of Teak timber especially, vastly exceeds produc- 
 tion, that in a few years considerable deficiency 
 will be experienced. 
 Dr. Bums on At the Same time that these experiments were 
 
 experiments at . i -rx /~i'i • i ta rv 
 
 Kairaincui- camed ou by Dr. Gibson m the Deccan, Dr. 
 
 ture _^ . . T^ • • >i 
 
 rJurns was paymg attention at Kaira, in the 
 of Medicines, northern parts of Guzerat, to the culture of Sen- 
 na, Scammony, and of Colocynth, the last being 
 indigenous in that part of India ; to the planting 
 Mulberry, and of the Mulberry and the culture of Silk, where 
 he had succeeded in producing some of the last of 
 very good quality, as well as the Cotton men- 
 tioned at p. 339, as being considered equal to New 
 Orleans, from seed obtained from plants which 
 had been planted for more than fifteen years. 
 Botany of The Botauy of the Bombay presidency is less 
 
 dia!* ^"' ' known than that of the other parts of India ; 
 and, therefore, the comparisons which we are 
 able to make with its vegetation and that of 
 other countries, is less definite. Colonel Sykes, 
 however, brought home a collection of plants, of 
 which the Author has engaged to give an ac- 
 count, and which, as it is the first and only one 
 which has been brought to this country from that 
 side of India, will be proportionately valuable when 
 its contents have been» compared with the Her- 
 baria in the metropolis, in ascertaining the pecu- 
 
WESTERN INDIA. 363 
 
 liarities of the Flora of the West of India. This, BotanyofWe«- 
 
 tern India. 
 
 the more so, as Col. Sykes has already published 
 the results of his observations on the Geology, 
 Meteorology, and Zoology of the tract of coun- 
 try where his plants were collected. We have at 
 present sufficient data for stating, that the botany 
 of the Bombay side of India resembles that which 
 characterizes that of the Peninsula in general, 
 and such as is generally found in the plains 
 and jungles of India.* 
 
 The Productive Resources of the 
 Madras Presidency. 
 
 In a former part of this work we have seen the 
 early attention which was paid in the Madras 
 Presidency to the improvement of the culture of 
 various staple products. These efforts were not 
 followed by the successful results which might 
 reasonably have been anticipated ; as we find the 
 Governor, Sir F. Adam, in an able minute, re- Minute of sir 
 
 ,. ,. F.Adam. 
 
 marking m 1836 on " the extraordinary dispropor- Disj,roportion 
 tion which has been long felt to exist between the ^^iYgJilr** 
 state of the trade and ajjriculture of the provinces \»re, and capa- 
 
 ^ • ^ bilities of the 
 
 under this Presidency, as compared with the Presidency. 
 
 *A very valuable catalogue of the plants of the West of India 
 has lately been prepared by Messrs. Graham and Nimmo, and 
 published by the Agricultural Society of Western India. Bom- 
 bay, 1839. 
 
364 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF THE 
 
 Madras Presi- extent and fertility of the soil, and its adaptation 
 
 dency. 
 
 for the successful cultivation of many of the most 
 ReportsofGo- valuable productions." "The able and voluminous 
 
 vemmentoffi- /» • i i i i t-» rc 
 
 cers on To- rcports fumishcd by the Revenue officers on the 
 ton experi- rcsults of the cxcrtious made by the Government 
 to introduce the cultivation of American Cotton 
 and Tobacco, and on the means best calculated 
 for improvement of the culture and preparation 
 of these and other articles, adapted to secure to 
 this country a due share in external commerce, 
 which have been elicited by the queries circulated 
 by order of Government, afford much information 
 which will be useful to Government and its officers, 
 in originating and carrying into effect the mea- 
 sures proper to be adopted in future attempts to 
 promote these important objects." 
 Value of accu- Sir F. Adam further observes, that it will be 
 
 rate infonna- •t-ii 
 
 tion. of great benefit to the public and to individuals 
 
 to be furnished with accurate information on the 
 circumstances in which the successful prosecu- 
 tion of the cultivation of articles for export and 
 for home consumption must depend. Also, on the 
 advantages and defects of the native processes, 
 and the modifications in the methods of cultiva- 
 tion and preparation which must be adopted to 
 secure a remunerating price in Europe or in India 
 for the country or exotic Cottons, Tobacco, Dye- 
 stuffs, and numerous other articles for which the 
 soil and climate of the Peninsula are peculiarly 
 adapted. 
 
 It also appears, that the little success that has 
 
MADRAS PRESIDENCY. 365 
 
 hitherto attended the exertions of Government Little success. 
 
 . /. ^Jn consequence 
 
 and of individuals, has arisen from the want of of deficient in- 
 
 1 • (. ' 1111 formation. 
 
 the mtorraation necessary to enable tlie latter to 
 pursue the proper course of exertion, and the Go- 
 vernment to afford the requisite encouragement 
 to induce and enable the Farmers to cultivate 
 successfully new kinds of produce, or to improve 
 the quality of indigenous productions. 
 
 From the extent and varietv of the facts and varied and 
 
 ' valuable facts 
 
 statements contained in these papers, and the contained in 
 
 - . . Government 
 
 paramount importance, that what is to direct the Reports, 
 measures of Government and the exertions of in- 
 dividuals, should be subjected to rigid investi- 
 gation, it was felt necessary that an individual 
 should be selected for the task of their examina- 
 tion and condensation, whose pursuits have ren- 
 dered him familiarly acquainted with the subject, 
 and who could ascertain and correct, by personal 
 observation and w^ell-directed inquiry, whatever 
 might appear either doubtful or erroneous. 
 
 To do justice to the subject and to the authors Dr. wight ap- 
 
 T-v ttr- 1 /• 1 mr 1 -m r pointed to con- 
 
 of these reports, JJr. Wight, of the Madras Me- dense informa- 
 dical Service, a gentleman of distinguished sci- 
 entific acquirements, and whose pursuits have 
 been directed to these subjects, " was appointed 
 to make a useful condensation of the whole of the 
 documents, and of the replies to such enquiries 
 as he may address to the several revenue officers, 
 who will be directed to afford every information 
 in their power." To this he was expected to add 
 the results of his own observations on the methods 
 
366 
 
 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF THE 
 
 Dr. Wight ap- 
 pointed to con- 
 dense Reports, 
 &c. 
 
 Queries pre- 
 pared by Dr. 
 Malcolmson. 
 
 Papers on va- 
 rious useful 
 products. 
 
 Cotton, Nuth 
 Grass, Mudar, 
 Senna, Gam- 
 boge. 
 
 On the plants 
 which yield the 
 Cassia of Cora- 
 
 of culture of the great staple products of the 
 country. His attention was in the first instance 
 more particularly directed to the subject of Cot- 
 ton, Tobacco, Coffee, Pasture Grasses, and Tim- 
 ber Trees, and the selection of sites best fitted 
 for the introduction of many valued products of 
 foreign countries. 
 
 A series of queries were promulgated by order 
 of Sir F.Adam throughout the Madras presidency, 
 which were prepared by Dr. J. G. Malcolmson, 
 now of Bombay, but at that time Secretary of 
 the Medical Board at Madras. Those queries re 
 fer particularly to the subjects of Cotton,Tobacco, 
 Senna, Turmeric, Grasses, and Soils. They evince 
 the author's comprehensiveness of view, as they 
 embrace every point calculated to elicit such infor- 
 mation as will be valuable in establishing prin- 
 ciples, or elucidating the causes, both of success- 
 ful and of unsuccessful practice. 
 
 Dr. Wight, in prosecution of the duties of his 
 appointment, has published a series of valuable 
 papers, as that already noticed (p. 341), on the 
 cultivation of Cotton in the several districts of 
 the Madras presidency ; others on the Nuth Grass 
 of the Ceded districts; on the cultivation of 
 Senna ; on the Mudar ; on the plant which yields 
 the Gamboge of Ceylon ; on the several plants 
 which yield the Cassia of commerce. ** The first 
 of these," he states, ** is the Malabar Carua of 
 Rheede, the second Nees von Esenbeck's Cinna- 
 momum aromaticum . The list, however, of Cassia- 
 
MADRAS PRESIDENCY. 367 
 
 producing plants is not limited to these tvro, but Plants yielding 
 
 --,'"',. , - . - Cassia of com- 
 
 1 tirmly believe extends to nearly every spexiies of merce. 
 the genus. A set of specimens, submitted for my 
 examination, of the trees furnishing Cassia on the 
 Malabar Coast, presented no fewer than four dis- 
 tinct species ; including among them the genuine 
 Cinnamon plant, the bark of the older branches 
 of which, it would appear, are exported from that 
 coast as Cassia. Three or four more species are 
 natives of Ceylon, exclusive of the Cinnamon pro- 
 per, all of which greatly resemble the cinnamon 
 plant, and in the woods might easily be mistaken 
 for it, and peeled, though the produce might be 
 inferior. Thus we have from Western India and 
 Ceylon alone, probably not less than six plants 
 producing Cassia ; add to these nearly twice as 
 many more species of Cinnamomum, the pro- 
 duce of the more eastern states of Asia and the 
 Islands of the Eastern Archipelgo, all remarkable 
 for their striking family likeness ; all I believe en- 
 dowed with aromatic properties, and probably the 
 greater part, if not the whole, contributing some- 
 thing towards the general result, and we at once 
 see the impossibility of awarding to any one indi- 
 vidual species the credit of being the source 
 whence the Cassia Lignea of commerce is derived ; 
 and equally the impropriety of applying to any 
 one of them the comprehensive specific appellation 
 of Cassia, since all sorts of Cinnamon-like plants, 
 yielding bark of a quality unfit to bear the desig- 
 nation of Cinnamon in the market, are passed off 
 as Cassia." 
 
368 
 
 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF THE 
 
 On Flora of 
 Courtallumand 
 Pulney moun- 
 tains. 
 
 On grafting 
 tropical plants. 
 
 On the Ho- 
 mSothermal 
 method of ac- 
 climating 
 plants. 
 
 Besides several papers denominated Contribu- 
 tions to Indian Botany, Dr. Wight has some ex- 
 tremely interesting observations on the Flora of 
 the Courtallum, as well as on that of the Pulney 
 mountains. In the former much valuable infor- 
 mation is given on several of the Natural families 
 of plants found there. On the Pulney mountains 
 he finds European together with tropical forms, 
 and suggests the cultivation of Coffee. The soil 
 is fit for the production of grain of the first qua- 
 lity, if a little more care was bestowed on its 
 culture. *' This the inhabitants do not think it 
 worth, because, they say, they cannot sell it, 
 and what is the use of taking so much trouble 
 with what we have to eat ourselves ?" 
 
 A valuable proposition is made in his paper, 
 on an application of grafting so as to render it a 
 means of naturalizing new fruits. Conceiving that, 
 in the introduction of tropical plants, the chances 
 against success depend more on the soil than on 
 local differences of climate, he suggests as one of 
 the means to be tried, that of grafting the trees 
 under experiment, on hardy country stocks that 
 are known to thrive in nearly all kinds of soils. 
 The only precaution to be observed, as indispen- 
 sibly necessary to success in grafting, is that of 
 always using stocks of the same genus or natural 
 order with the scion to be grafted. 
 
 A very ingenious suggestion is that which Dr, 
 Wight calls the homoothermal method of accli- 
 mating extra-tropical plants within the tropics, in 
 which by altering entirely the constitution, and 
 
Works. 
 
 MADRAS PRESIDENCY, 369 
 
 thus qualifving the plant, though originally from a Homsother- 
 
 . , mal method of 
 
 cold or temperate climate, to endure, unmjured,the acclimating 
 extreme heat of the tropics. This is similar to Mr. 
 Speed's method of germinating, and at first grow- 
 ing such plants with the assistance of artificial 
 heat, until they become accustomed to the natural 
 heat of the climate; and rests on the supposi- 
 tion, that plants raised from seeds, sprouted under 
 a high temperature, have their constitutions so 
 modified, as to better fit them for successful culture 
 in higher temperatures than if raised in the usual 
 manner under shade. 
 
 Dr. Wight has recorded the results of his bo- Dr. wights 
 tanical investigations in a series of works * now 
 in coui*se of publication, which forming valuable 
 contributions to science, are extremely important 
 
 * Prodromus Florae Peninsulae Indise OrientaliSjby R, Wight, 
 M. D., and by G. A. W. Arnott, A.M. Vol I. London, 1834. 
 
 Contributions to the Botany of India, by R. Wight, M.D 
 London, 1834. 
 
 Illustrations of Indian Botany, or Figures Illustrative of each 
 of the Natural Orders of Indian Plants, with observations on 
 their Botanical Relations, Economical Uses, and Medicinal Pro- 
 perties, including descriptions of recently discovered or imper- 
 fectly known plants. Madras. Parts I— XI. 1838-39. 
 
 Icones Plantarum IntHae Orientalis, or Figures of Indian 
 Plants. Madras. Parts I— XI. 1838-39. 
 
 For this work, Dr. Wight says, ♦' Dr. Wallich, the indefatigable 
 Superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden, has most libe- 
 rally undertaken to supply me with copies of the rich collection 
 of drawings appertaining to that establishment, left by the late 
 Dr. Roxburgh." 
 
 2 B 
 
370 AGRICULTURAL AND HORTICULTURAL 
 
 Botany of the as aids to all who wish to become acquainted with 
 
 Indian Penin- x t t» i • • i 
 
 silk. Indian Botany, and who desire to be convinced 
 
 of the extensive practical applications of the 
 scientific investigations of the present day. In his 
 work, Illustrations of Indian Botany, with co- 
 loured plates of various plants, he gives general 
 observations on the geographical distribution, 
 properties, and uses of the plants belonging to the 
 several natural orders. His separate Papers are 
 published in the Madras Journal of Literature and 
 Science. 
 
 Agricultural and Horticultural 
 Society of India. 
 
 In a survey of the means which have been 
 adopted for developing the resources of India, it 
 
 Institution of would bc Unpardonable to omit noticing a body, 
 ocie , ^^ which the Author is proud of having been 
 one of the early members, and which has ex- 
 erted itself vigorously in directing attention to 
 improvements in the cultivation of the great sta- 
 ples of Indian commerce — that is, the Agricultural 
 and Horticultural Society of India, to whose Tran- 
 sactions he has so frequently referred. This Society 
 was established on the 14th September, 1820, 
 subsequent to the distribution of a prospectus by 
 
 on the pro- the Venerable Dr. Carey, whose views on the ad- 
 
 posal of Dr. 
 
 Carey. vautagcs of such an institution we have already 
 
 mentioned at p. 71. Mr. W. Leycester, of the 
 Civil service, was appointed President, and Dr. 
 
SOCIETY OF INDIA. 371 
 
 Carey, Secretary, when he prepared a series of Agricultural 
 
 ,., -Ill 1 1 ^"<' Horticul. 
 
 queries which were circulated throughout the turai society. 
 
 country, respecting some of the interesting points 
 
 of Indian Agriculture. On the 21st November ratronizedby 
 
 I y-i 1 • .#-1 •! ^^^ Govem- 
 
 1821, the Governor-general in Council, "to mark, ment. 
 by a public act, the interest which he takes in its 
 progress," granted one thousand rupees to be dis- 
 tributed in prizes, promising that it should be 
 continued annually, subject to the approval of the 
 Court of Directors. 
 
 The Society first directed their attention to, objects first 
 and offered prizes for, improved specimens of Cof- the* society. ^ 
 fee and of Cotton, as also of European and Indian 
 fruits. They imported fruit trees from Liverpool, 
 and seeds from Europe, the Cape of Good Hope, 
 and New South Wales. In 1827, they began distri- 
 buting medals for the best specimens of European 
 vegetables, if cultivated by natives. We observe 
 that on the 16th January 1828, no less than 109 
 maieeSy or native gardeners, attended to have prizes 
 awarded. The Society afterwards offered to grant 
 medals for the best essays on a variety of agricul- 
 tural subjects, such as Indian soils, manures, the 
 acclimating of foreign plants, on the cultivation 
 of indigo, sugar-cane, and coffee. 
 
 The first volume of their Transactions was not Publication of 
 
 Transactions. 
 
 published until 1829, and the second in 1836. 
 But since then four more volumes have been pub- 
 lished, as well as the monthly proceedings of their 
 Meetings. As it is interesting to know the num- 
 ber of Members, and the classes of society to 
 
 2 B 2 
 
372 
 
 AGRICULTURAL AND HORTICULTURAL 
 
 Classes of so- 
 ciety to which 
 the Members 
 belong. 
 
 Attention to 
 Horticultural 
 subjects. 
 
 which they belong, so in later years we have had 
 an analysis of the whole given. After the Society 
 had been established nine years, we find that 
 there were only 97 members : of these, 34 be- 
 longed to the Civil service, 17 were clergymen, 
 lawyers, or medical men, 6 military men, 11 na- 
 tives of rank, and 29 agents, merchants, planters, 
 &c. ; that is, 57 were unconnected with, and 40 
 were interested in, trade or the produce of the 
 land. In the year 1839, we find there were 460 
 members ; 98 of the Civil service, 69 military, and 
 40 medical officers, 20 law officers, 9 clergymen, 
 14 Europeans of no particular profession, 7 
 honorary members ; in all, 257 ; with merchants 
 and others engaged in commerce, 85; indigo 
 planters, and other tropical agriculturists, 89 ; 
 Asiatics, 29; in all, 203. The President com- 
 plains in regard " to the natives of the country, 
 who would ultimately be the greatest gainers by 
 the labours of the Society, that so few had joined 
 it, and that its objects had not met from them 
 a more cordial support." 
 
 The Society, though they did not at first neg- 
 lect agricultural subjects, as is evident from their 
 prospectus and queries, and the premiums which 
 they presented for the cultivation of coffee, yet 
 chiefly attended to horticultural objects, includ- 
 ing fruit trees, for the furtherance of wiiich they 
 established a garden. This seems to have swal- 
 lowed up too much of the funds, and to have di- 
 verted the attention of the members from the 
 
SOCIETY OF INDIA. 373 
 
 meetings, and the publication of their proceed- 
 ings. The Society has been blamed for this, but 
 we have seen that all culture must partake at 
 first of the nature of gardening ; but the members 
 generally were then too apathetic to take much 
 interest in the aarriculture of the country. It was increased at- 
 
 ~ •' tention paid to 
 
 thought, however, and justly by many, about the Agriculture 
 beginning of 1829, that the efforts and funds of an 
 Indian Agricultural Society might be better ap- 
 plied — in a word, that the sugar, cotton, coffee, 
 silk, and other great staples of commerce, were far 
 more legitimate objects of its special encourage- 
 ment, than European fruit trees, &c. A further 
 stimulus was given to the proceedings of the 
 Society in November 1829, when it was intimated, 
 that Government were desirous of co-operating Co-operatk>n of 
 
 ... , t • I' • 1 r OovenimenL 
 
 With it, to promote the production oi articles oi 
 
 raw produce of an improved description. • 
 
 The Society, in their reply, recommended the Experimental 
 more immediate means of improvement, consisting bUshed; 
 in the distribution of seeds, plants, useful informa- 
 tion, and rewards. The government immediately 
 granted 20,000 rupees for premiums, and in fur- 
 ther aid of the Society's efforts, they were autho- 
 rized to establish an experimental farm, for which 
 the annual sum of 10,000 rupees, exclusive of 
 rent, was allowed, and 4,500 for buildings, and 
 stock for the firet year. A special report was de- Reported on. 
 livered to the Society, on the 12th August 1835, 
 on the experiments made at the Akra farm on the 
 cultivation of Cotton, Tobacco, and Sugar cane, 
 which is published at the end of the second vo- 
 
374 AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 
 
 Recent Pro- lume of their Transactions This has been al- 
 
 gress of the 
 
 Society. ready referred to, as well as the numerous valu- 
 
 able papers contained in the subsequent volumes 
 on most of the subjects treated of in this work. 
 A portion of the Botanic Garden at Calcutta has 
 been allotted as a nursery, and the members of the 
 Society have continued to prosecute their re- 
 searches with a vigour,* which cannot but be 
 productive of very beneficial consequences to 
 themselves and to the country. This has been 
 chiefly under the Presidency of Sir Edward Ryan, 
 with the able assistance of the successive secre- 
 taries, Mr. Robison, Dr. Wallich, Mr. Bell, and 
 Dr. Spry. Their Transactions are indispen- 
 sable to all who desire to enter upon any of the 
 .great cultures. It is to be wished that increased 
 attention should be generally paid in future com- 
 • munications to the full influence of physical 
 
 agents, and to the physiology of vegetation. 
 
 other Societies The example of the Calcutta Society has been 
 
 established in . . , i o 
 
 different parts loUowed by the institution of several branch so- 
 cieties in different parts of India, and by the 
 establishment of an Agricultural and Horticul- 
 tural Society at Madras in 1836, and another at 
 Bombay for the west of India, in 1830. We have 
 only seen the first part of the *' Proceedings" of 
 the latter Society, where the same useful subjects 
 attract attention, such as Sugar, Tobacco, Coffee, 
 Cotton, and all kinds of natural products. 
 
 • As an instance^ it may be mentioned, that 34,000 Otaheile 
 sugar canes were distributed during the year )831). 
 
 of India. 
 
375 
 
 Recapitulation of the Survey of the His- 
 tory AND Prospects of the Produc- 
 tive Resources of India. 
 Havins: laid aside, for the present at least, any importance of 
 
 •ii- /•! /•! •! ^^ culture of 
 
 detailed notice of the treasures of the animal and plants. 
 mineral kingdoms, we have seen how much vege- 
 tables contribute to the wealth of nations, and 
 how essential is their careful and extended cul- 
 ture to the comfort and improvement of a coun- 
 try. This as yielding an abundant supply of food 
 both for man and the animals he has domesticated, 
 affording various products which may form arti- 
 cles both of internal and of external commerce, 
 as well as be useful both for home and foreign 
 manufactures, and all be valuable as sources of 
 revenue, and contribute to the necessary expenses 
 of all civilized countries. 
 
 The culture of vegetables we have traced as Progress of the 
 
 ..... , . . ArUi of Cul. 
 
 connected with civilization itself ; at first, limited ture. 
 in extent, and partaking of the nature of garden 
 culture ; subsequently extended into the open fields 
 of a country; and at a still later period distin- 
 guished into the culture of particular plants, 
 which continue to characterize different countries 
 and nations in modern as in ancient times. 
 
 Attention to, and improvements in. Agriculture Benefits of im- 
 we have seen followed by the disappearance of culture. 
 famines, great increase in the numbers of the 
 people, as well as in the prosperity of the country. 
 And yet, though conducing so much to the com- 
 
376 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Arts of Culture 
 
 promoted by 
 Sovereigns, 
 
 and by non- 
 professional 
 individuals ; 
 
 by union of 
 men into so- 
 cieties. 
 
 Plants, nature 
 of. 
 
 fort and riches of the subject, we have observed 
 that, in the first instance, it has in most countries 
 required the interference, and the encourage- 
 ment of the Sovereign, for the commencement of 
 cultures, which were as much for the advantage 
 of the individual as for the improvement of the 
 country. We had occasion also to notice in the 
 course of our survey that the improvements in 
 agriculture had not usually proceeded from its 
 ordinary cultivators, but from tliose who with 
 cultivated minds had turned to it as a recreation, 
 or with the desire of improving what was of na- 
 tional importance, and which they saw but im- 
 perfectly performed. The want of skill in the 
 earlier cultivators is apparent, from their depre- 
 ciation of soil which in subsequent times is found 
 well able, when differently cultivated, to produce 
 the very plants with which they could not succeed. 
 
 This deficiency of skill, and the inability of in- 
 dividuals to contend with all the difficulties inci- 
 dent on improving old, and in introducing new 
 cultures, seem to have been felt in the associat- 
 ing together of men for a common purpose in 
 Societies. Here each might take up, or induce 
 others to take up, different parts of the extensive 
 subject, and the whole be forwarded by mutual 
 consultation and united energies. 
 
 Plants being living and organized bodies, fixed 
 in the earth and growing in the air, have their 
 functions dependant in a great measure upon 
 physical agents. And, as the Arts of Culture ob- 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 377 
 
 tain their principles from the sciences which Arts of cui- 
 
 ^ '^ ^ ture improved 
 
 treat of the several agrents of Light, Heat, Air, with progress 
 
 ^ ^ -.y of Natural Sci- 
 
 and Moisture, and the Physiology of Vegeta- ences. 
 tion, so did they improve with the improvement 
 of the several Natural Sciences, and when men 
 began to think of applying the Principles of Sci- 
 ence to the Practice of the arts of culture. This 
 we may see in the comparatively recent great im- 
 provements in the Horticulture as well as in the 
 Agriculture of Europe. 
 
 Gardeninsr and Agriculture were, no doubt. Great improve. 
 
 ® ® ' mentof Arts 
 
 practised in eastern countries long before they of culture 
 
 * , ' among the 1-u- 
 
 were known in Europe. But once introduced, ropeanrace, 
 they have, like many other of the arts, similarly 
 originating in the East, attained a degree of per- 
 fection unknown in the countries of their birth. 
 With the characteristic energy of the European 
 character, these have not been confined to the 
 narrow limits of their own respective countries, 
 for we find them spread wherever their influence 
 extends, and especially introduced into their seve- 
 ral colonies. Those who see a country teeming 
 with population, and abounding in the cultivated 
 produce of the soil for their subsistence and com- 
 fort, seldom think of the slow progress by which 
 the several arts have arrived at the state of civi- "I^ spread 
 
 wherever their 
 
 lized perfection : nor how much the country they "iflueuce ex- 
 inhabit is indebted for many of what appear its 
 natural riches to the zeal and energy of its earlier 
 inhabitants. But if we refer to the annals of his- 
 tory, or the records of science, we shall soon be 
 
378 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Countries en- convinccd that many of the richest districts were, 
 
 richea by m- 
 
 troduced and that at no very remote period, but barren 
 
 wastes, and their most valued products introduced 
 from far distant countries. Though not more 
 striking, it is yet within the memory of man that 
 great changes have taken place in the Colonies 
 and extra European countries both in the in- 
 crease and decrease of some great staple pro- 
 ducts, which Europe had perhaps first received 
 from some older civilized country, and conveyed 
 to its earliest colonies. 
 Contrast be- Those who do uot Tcadily perceive the benefits 
 lectand patron- which havc bceu dcrivcd, from the successiveintro- 
 cuiture. duction of new plants, or the improved culture of 
 
 old ones, have only to observe the stationary state 
 of those European countries, or their Colonies, 
 where these arts are neglected, and contrast them 
 with the progressive improvement of such coun- 
 tries as England, where they are esteemed by the 
 people, and patronized by the great. If we wish 
 still further to be convinced of the importance, 
 or are desirous of tracing the effects, of introducing 
 useful plants into a country of which the soil and 
 climate are suitable, we have only to inquire into 
 the history, and observe the present state of many 
 of the products of different countries, as well as of 
 the principal staples of modern commerce. If we 
 do so, we shall be surprised at finding how many 
 were once strangers in the countries where they 
 are now most abundantly produced. 
 We have seen that the Romans, and afterwards 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 379 
 
 Charlemagne, introduced into Europe many of Agri<ruit«re 
 the Vegetables and Fruits of Eastern countries, ^i^^^ 
 Since the several kinds of Corn, especially Wheat t^JucS" ^ 
 and Bar]ey,were cultivated by the earliest civilized ^'^^ 
 nations, it is probable that they also were intro- 
 duced from the same direction, as probably also 
 their Flax and Hemp. We see how much of the 
 riches and commerce of the South of Europe con- Europe, 
 sist in the oil of the Olive, and the dried Fruits, 
 which like the Grape vine were of similar origin ; 
 and how much the latter enriches the countries 
 where it flourishes, whether with its Fruit in a 
 fresh or a dried state, fermented into a Wine, or 
 distilled into a Spirit ; the Mulberry of China sup- 
 ports there the Silk-worm of the same country. 
 The Corn, Flour, and Fruits of the United States North Ame- 
 of America were originally received from Europe, 
 and their Rice from India ; even their Cotton and 
 Tobacco, though indigenous in the New World, 
 they derived from the more southern parts of their 
 own continent. The West Indies, nursed into west indies, 
 prosperity by the labour of slaves, and propped up 
 by discriminative duties, were indebted for Sugar 
 in the first instance, to the cane of the East Indies, 
 and subsequently to that of Otaheite. Their Coffee 
 and Aloes were introduced from Arabia. Rice and 
 Plantains, Ginger, Indigo, once extensively cul- 
 tivated. Pepper and Ginger, Tamarinds, Mango, 
 Oranges, and Lemons, were all introduced from 
 India, with Cloves, Cinnamon, and Nutmeg from 
 other parts of Asia. The extended and varied 
 
380 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Introduceil 
 plants in 
 South Ame- 
 rica. 
 
 Cape of Good 
 Hope and New 
 South Wales. 
 
 Indigenous 
 products of 
 different coun- 
 tries. 
 
 Culture of 
 introduced 
 plant* in India. 
 
 territories of South America, abound in a great 
 variety of vegetable products, coveted by other 
 nations ; but with the exception of Wheat, Plan- 
 tains, Coffee, and a few Fruits, they have accli- 
 mated few of the plants of the Old World. But not- 
 withstanding their natural riches, their commerce 
 is small. The Cape of Good Hope is indebted to 
 the Grape vine of Asia for the Wine which it ex- 
 ports, and, like New South Wales, to Europe for 
 its Corn and Fruits, and the breed of Sheep, which 
 yield the highly-valued Wool of these countries. 
 
 Many countries, no doubt, chiefly export the 
 products of their indigenous plants as the North 
 of Europe and North America their Timber, Tur- 
 pentine, Pitch, Tar, and Potash. The South of 
 Spain, its Barilla. Africa its Gum, Myrrh, Aloes, 
 and Dates. Arabia its Coffee and Senna. Tibet 
 its Rhubarb. China its Tea and Silk. Persia 
 its Gum-resins. Of medicinal substances only 
 such as are indigenous to the soil, are exported 
 from most countries, as Jalap from Mexico, 
 Bark from Peru, Sarsaparilla and Ipecacuanha 
 from South America, and these are all collected as 
 produced by nature. A few of the valuable in*^' 
 digenous products of the New World are alone 
 extensively cultivated ; as Cocoa and Tobacco, 
 Vanilla, Allspice, and Arrow-root. 
 
 India, abounding as it does in highly prized 
 natural products, indigenous to its soil, has yet 
 appropriated others, which are hardly less valu- 
 able in contributing to the comforts of the people. 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 381 
 
 extendins: their commerce, and increasing the introduced 
 
 . Ill plants in In- 
 
 revenues of the state. It is more than probable, dia. 
 that Wheat and Barley so extensively cultivated, wheat. Barley. 
 and forming the chief food of the natives of 
 Northern India, were introduced from the Tarta- 
 rian or Pei*sian region. Flax and the Poppy most Fiax,Poppy. 
 likely reached India from the same direction. 
 Hemp is indigenous in the Himalayas, and may 
 therefore have been the source of that found in the 
 plains, though, like the Flax, it seems to have been 
 known to all the civilized nations of antiquity. 
 Tobacco we know was taken from America, as Tobacco, 
 was also Maize, or Indian corn, which is not cul- Maize, 
 tivated to the extent, or with the care it merits, 
 considering the nourishing nature of its grain as 
 food for man, and its straw as fodder for cattle. 
 The Capsicum is so extensively cultivated both in capsicum, 
 the plains and mountains, and has become such a 
 necessary of life, that few will believe that it was 
 originally introduced from the New World, though 
 it is considered to have been so by all botanists. So 
 many species of Silk- worm and of Mulberry are in- suk-worm. 
 digenous in India, it is possible, that the common 
 species may also be a native, though it was most 
 likely introduced at an early time from China. 
 
 The indigenous products are, however, nume- indigenous 
 
 , ,, 111 x-»- 1 products of the 
 
 rous and equally valuable, as Kice, and numerous v^euWe king- 
 smaller Grains and Pulses,which afford food to the 
 inhabitants, while Sugar has been cultivated from 
 such early times, that we are unable to trace its 
 earliest history. Pepper, Cardamoms, Ginger, and 
 
 dom- 
 
382 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Indigenous Turmeric furnished them with condiments ; their 
 vegetabie°king! Cotton provided them with clothing ; Indigo, Lac, 
 Munjeet, and numerous other Dyes,with colouring 
 matter; many Vegetable Oils, fitted either for 
 food or for affording light ; Sun and Jute for cor*? 
 dage ; Catechu as an astringent and for tan- 
 ning leather. These form the principal articles 
 of the modern commerce of India ; and they must 
 always have been produced within the limits of 
 its territory. Many of them can be traced as hav- 
 ing been known to the Greeks and Romans at 
 very early periods. 
 , . The substances which have been noticed, with 
 
 Mineral sub- 
 
 stancespro- the exceptiou of Silk and Lac, are from the vege- 
 
 duced in India. '^ _ ^ 
 
 table kingdom ; but several Mineral substances 
 are equally produced in great abundance within 
 the Indian territory, and which are too obvious to 
 have escaped notice. These the Author has al- 
 ready noticed in another work. "As Common and 
 Wt8. Rock Salt ; the former evaporated, as now, from 
 
 sea water in the Bay of Bengal ; the latter abun- 
 dant in the salt rocks of the Punjab. Borax was 
 probably obtained, in former times, as at the pre- 
 sent day, from Tibet. Saltpetre must long before 
 the time of the Arabs have been washed out of 
 the soil, as it is in the present day, and was re- 
 quired for making the fireworks for which the 
 Indians have long been famous. Sulphate of 
 Soda (kharee muttee) they are in the present day 
 well acquainted with, and obtain by similar means. 
 Alum is made in Cutch, from an Alum eartli ; it 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 383 
 
 is in constant use by the Hindoos in a variety of Mineral sob- 
 arts, as well as in medicine ; and its Sanscrit dused in India, 
 name, pliitkara, begins with a letter which is want- 
 ing in the Arabic alphabet. Sal Ammoniac must 
 have been familiar to the Hindoos, ever since 
 they have burnt bricks, as they now do, with the 
 manure of animals, as some may usually be found 
 crystalized at the unburnt extremity of the kilns. 
 The Egyptians obtained it from the soot of the 
 same kind of fuel. The Sanscrit name, nuosaduVy 
 is that, moreover, under which it is described by 
 Arabian authors. Lime, they have long known 
 how to obtain, by burning, not only limestone, 
 but also shells and corals. Charcoal and Sul- 
 phur they were early acquainted with ; the for- 
 mer they obtain from a variety of plants, and 
 value that of each according to the purposes for 
 which it is required. 
 
 " The alkalis even must have been known to Aikaiis known 
 the Hindoos, as salts from the ashes of several ve- doos! 
 getables ; and caustics made from them are men- 
 tioned in the works to which the Arabs had ac- 
 cess. The ashes of the plantain (Musa sapientum), 
 and of the dhak (Butea frondosa) most frequently 
 mentioned for medicinal purposes, must have 
 afforded them a Carbonate of Potash (Pearl-ash), 
 while the incineration of the Salsolas and Salicor- 
 nias on the coasts of the peninsula, and the shores 
 of the salt lakes of North-western India, must 
 in former, as in the present day, have afforded 
 them a Carbonate of Soda (Barilla), which is also 
 
384 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Alkaline Salts found effloresccd Oil the soil in some parts of their 
 
 Known to Hin- *^ 
 
 doos. country." Essay on the Antiquity of Hindoo 
 
 Medicine, p. 40.* 
 
 ♦ As Hindoo works on medicine make references to the above 
 substances, as well as to the three principal acids, and to nine 
 of the metals, the author conceived that Chemistry originated 
 with the Hindoos, and was borrowed from them by the Arabs, 
 especially as Serapion,Rhazes,and Avicenna quote from Sanscrit 
 works, one of which, the Susruta, has a chapter, the title 
 of which Professor Wilson translates, as " Rasayana or Che- 
 mistry, or more correctly. Alchemy ; as the chief end of the 
 combinations it describes, and which are mostly metallurgic, is 
 the discovery of the universal medicine, or the elixir that was 
 to render health permanent, and life perpetual." — Essay, p. 39. 
 
 Professor Dietz (vide Essay, p. 64) had already discovered, 
 though the fact was unknown to the author, that the later Greek 
 physicians were acquainted with the medical works of the 
 Hindoos, and that Hindoo physicians even held appointments 
 at the court of Harun-al-Rashid. Mr. Cureton has since pub- 
 lished a paper on the Indian physicians at Bagdad, to which 
 Professor Wilson has appended remarks, identifying many of 
 the names. He comes to the conclusion, as the author had done 
 by another series of proofs, " that the astronomy and medicine 
 of the Hindoos were cultivated anteriorly to those of the Greeks, 
 by the Arabs of the eighth century." Vide Journ. Royal Asiat. 
 SocNo. XI,p. 105. 1840. 
 
 The early attention paid by the sovereigns of India to the 
 culture of trees and of useful plants, and the great attention pjiid 
 by the natives of India to medicine, and the esteem in which it 
 was held, are proved by the following most important inscrip- 
 tion, of the date of about 220 B.C. , deciphered by my late 
 friend, the deeply lamented Secretary of the Asiatic Society of 
 Calcutta, Mr. James Prinsep. Journal Asiatic Society, vol. V., 
 p. 158. Calcutta, 1838. 
 ; ** Everywhere within the conquered provinces of raja Piva- 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 385 
 
 In the preceding very cursory view of the com- commercial 
 
 - ,.„ ' . ^ ,, articles pro- 
 
 merce oi dmerent countries, we observe that duced less in 
 many of the principal articles are not so much 
 exported from the countries where they are indi- 
 genous, as from those where they have been intro- 
 duced by individuals, or the patronage of the 
 government. Also, that these strangers in new 
 countries and climates are better and more pro- timn in ti»e 
 ductively cultivated in them than in the regions o^ where they are 
 their birth, in consequence, no doubt, of the zeal *^*^' 
 and energy of the people, who in the first in- 
 stance took the trouble to introduce them. But 
 also owing to the increased skill required on the 
 part of the cultivator to overcome the difficulties Owing to skiu 
 
 *■ and industry 
 
 opposed by nature. These are often apparently of inhabitants, 
 so great as to seem insurmountable, while, in fact, 
 all that is required is such modification of the 
 culture as to suit it to the new situation or to the 
 
 DASi, the beloved of the gods, as well as in the parts occupied 
 by the faithful, such as Chola, Pida, Satiyaputra, and Ketala- 
 putra, even as far as Tamhapannl {^Ceylon), — and moreover 
 within the dominions of Antiochus the Greek, (of which 
 Antiochus' generals are the rulers) — everywhere the heaven- 
 beloved raja Piyadasis' double system of medical aid is esta- 
 bh'shed ; — both medical aid for men, and medical aid for ani- 
 mals; together with medicaments of all sorts, which are suitable 
 for men, and suitable for animals. And wherever there is no 
 (such provision) — in all such places they are to be prepared, 
 and to be planted: both root-drugs and herbs, wheresoever 
 there is not (a provision of them), in all such places they 
 shall be deposited and planted. 
 
 " And in the public highways, wells are to be dug, and trees 
 to be planted, for the accommodation of men and animals." 
 
 2c 
 
386 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Countries rich 
 in gifts of na> 
 ture, often neg- 
 lect Arts of 
 Culture. 
 
 India rich in 
 natural pro- 
 ducts, also cul- 
 tivates exten- 
 sively. 
 
 Manufactures 
 and Chemical 
 arts early prac- 
 tised by natives 
 of India. 
 
 product that is required. We have at the same 
 time observed, that the countries which most 
 abound in natural riches are frequently least so- 
 licitous about possessing the valuable products of 
 other parts of the world. But they are unfortu- 
 nately equally careless about their own, which 
 they cultivate but little, or with indifferent skill, 
 relying entirely upon the bounty of nature : this 
 produces apathy and indolence, instead of the re- 
 quisite degree of energy to benefit to the full ex- 
 tent by the facilities which she bountifully offers. 
 India, like China, offers a great contrast to 
 both, as fertile in soil, favoured in climate, and 
 rich in natural products, its inhabitants have yet 
 from an early period practised extensive cultivation. 
 They have originated, moreover, some of what are 
 considered even the improved processes of agri- 
 culture in Europe. Possessing, as they do na- 
 turally. Rice, Sugar, Cotton, and Indigo, they have 
 yet, as we have seen, long cultivated Wheat, Bar- 
 ley, Flax, Poppy, and in later times. Capsicum, 
 Maize, and Tobacco, and still more recently the 
 Potatoe and many of the Fruits of different coun- 
 tries. The early attention paid by the natives 
 of India to such subjects is a proof of their 
 civilization. This is remarkably conspicuous in 
 so many articles of their ancient commerce, being 
 not the spontaneous production of their wilds and 
 forests, though these were not wanting, but the 
 results of careful culture, and of manufacturing 
 skill. This is evident in the Steel which was pre- 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 387 
 
 sented to Alexander the Great on his reaching the Manufactures 
 north of India. Cotton, also, we know, as having Arts early prac- 
 formed the clothing of the Indians in the time 
 of Herodotus. It is probable that it was exported cotton cioth. 
 to Asiatic countries at still earlier periods, as the 
 word karpas is used in the book of Esther, c. 
 i. V. 6 (translated hangings) : also karpasos, by 
 Arrian ; both are derived from the Sanscrit kar- 
 pasa, Hindee kapas. We see this also in Sugar, Sugar. 
 which was known to the Greeks : here they must 
 have expressed the juice of the cane and then 
 crystallized it into sugar. Also in the Indigo, res- indigo. 
 pecting which Dr. Bancroft says, " By what cir- 
 cumstance or event the people of Hindoostan 
 alone were led several thousand years ago to dis- 
 cover and adopt means by which the blue colour- 
 able matter of the indigo plant might be extracted, 
 oxygenated, and precipitated free from almost all 
 the other matters naturally combined with it, and 
 afterwards brought into the dry solid form in 
 which we now find it, no one can, I believe, con- 
 jecture." — (Philosophy of Permanent Colours.) 
 Their early success in so many Chemical arts, can 
 only be explained, as the author has inferred, by 
 their having originated the science of Chemistry, 
 instead of the Arabs, as is generally supposed. 
 
 We have stated, that the natural fruitfulness Natural fruit- 
 
 /. 1 , 1 1 /> -1 • • /^ 1 fulness allowed 
 
 of the country, and the tacilities for culture, must leisure for arts 
 
 And sci6nc6s» 
 
 early have furnished a superabundance of food, 
 tended to increase the population, and allowed 
 some the leisure to pursue manufactures, com- 
 
 •2 c 2 
 
388 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 India early 
 famed. 
 
 Still manufkC' 
 turing, but 
 chiefly agricul 
 tural; 
 
 now thought 
 unable to pro- 
 duce some of 
 the great sta- 
 ples of com- 
 merce. 
 
 Probably 
 pwing to infe- 
 riority in skill 
 to the western 
 world. 
 
 merce, literature, and science. Hence the early 
 celebrity and far-extended diffusion of the rich 
 products of the Indian soil, as well as of the 
 prized manufactures of their patient industry. In 
 . the present day, though manufacturing both In- 
 digo and Sugar, India must be considered a great 
 agricultural country, because these, as well as its 
 Corn-grasses, Poppy, Cotton, and Mulberry, &c., 
 all require extensive cultivation. Yet, notwith- 
 standing its ancient fruitfulness, we may often 
 hear it mentioned as unfitted to produce Cotton, 
 Tobacco, and Rice equal to America, or Sugar 
 and Coffee, like the West Indies ; or Silk, like 
 China or the South of Europe ; or Flax like 
 Ancient Egypt, or Hemp like Modern Italy. But 
 we have seen that England was itself thought 
 unfitted even for the growth of vegetables and 
 of those fruits which we now see produced of the 
 finest quality ; not from any change in the soil 
 or improvement in the climate, but in conse- 
 quence of the increase in skill of its cultivators. 
 We have also seen that the Arts of Culture even 
 in Europe have arrived by slow degrees at their 
 present perfection, and that the impulse has been 
 given by sovereigns, remarkable men, and in later 
 times, by the associating together of individuals 
 in societies. 
 
 Though we have stated that India was in- 
 debted for its ancient celebrity to its superior 
 agricultural and manufacturing skill, yet it does 
 not follow that these can now compete, either 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 389 
 
 with the improved manufactures, or with the India now in- 
 agriculture of Europe in the present day, or with to some other 
 that of North America, or of the West-Indies, worid° 
 which are conducted with the energy and skill 
 characteristic of the European race. But by fol- 
 lowing the course which these have so success- 
 fully pursued, the same results may and undoubt- 
 edly will be obtained in India. 
 
 In the preceding observations we have briefly Historical sur- 
 alluded to the origin of the Arts of Culture, and cuiturerto" 
 their slow progress both in Europe, its Colonies, tJ^fpro^eS 
 and in Extra- European countries, for the express 'ni"****- 
 purpose of comparing with other countries the 
 Natural Resources of India, the Progress which 
 has been made in the Arts of Culture, and the 
 Prospects which may be looked to for the future. 
 
 The Soil and Climate are as varied as the Bri- The soil and 
 
 . , ...,,. 1 1 -n climate being 
 
 tish territories in India are extended. Every part favourable and 
 
 ... . /. TVT 1 -r» natural pro- 
 
 is rich m a great variety or Natural Kesources, ducts abundant 
 valuable for Food, Commerce, and Manufactures. 
 Much has been done to increase these by the in- 
 troduction of useful plants of all countries, both 
 in the northern and in the southern provinces. 
 The great variety of useful products yielded by 
 plants generally, p. 13, is shown to be secreted 
 by many of those indigenous in, or introduced 
 into, and cultivated in India, The list of all these 
 might have been very much extended. 
 
 The soil is as capable of producing, and the skiii aione re- 
 climate as suited to these varied products, as it diaT "* 
 ever was. Yet that they are not cultivated with 
 
390 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 with other 
 parts of tlie 
 world. 
 
 Skill alone re- the skiU which is desirablc, is not to be wondered 
 ?o compete" '^ ^t, since the Hindoos find their ancient systems of 
 Agriculture sufficient for their purposes, and they 
 are naturally prejudiced in favour of that which 
 has the sanction of antiquity. Few, if any, of the 
 Europeans who have settled as cultivators in 
 the country have been professional farmers. The 
 majority were therefore unacquainted with the 
 practice of the art in Europe, as well as with the 
 details of tropical culture in the New World. 
 Still fewer have been familiar with the Sciences 
 connected with the Arts of Culture, and which in 
 the absence of experience would have given them 
 principles for guidance in their practice. 
 
 The efforts of the Government, we have seen, 
 were commenced at an early period, and have been 
 continued up to the present time, in instituting 
 experiments, often on an extensive scale, for the 
 improvement of the resources of India. In addi- 
 tion to these, plants of all countries have been 
 incessantly introduced into the country by the 
 Government gardens ; and many which are useful 
 and important have been naturalized all over 
 the wide extent of British India. Several socie- 
 ties also have now been established. Our object 
 has been to show the course that has been pur- 
 sued, as well as the results which have been ob- 
 tained, and by the observations on the failures or 
 the successes, to indicate the course to be followed 
 in future experiments— that is, the iiecessity of 
 applying scientific principles to insure successful 
 practice. 
 
 Extensive re- 
 sults have al- 
 ready been 
 obtained. 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 391 
 
 Thus, in the history of the several experimental instances of 
 
 . /.i-i 1 • iij.*i successful and 
 
 cultures of which we have given the details, we unsuccessful 
 see the Poppy cultivated in the cold weather, like J^JJ^* "" 
 other foreign introductions, as Wheat, Barley, and 
 Flax, and acclimated by the natives of India. 
 The opium produced is of as good quality in the 
 territories without, as in those within European 
 influence ; because, being simply an inspissated 
 juice, it required only care in the collection. 
 The Flax plant is valued only on account of the fux. 
 oil contained in its seeds, while the Hemp for the Hemp. 
 intoxicating nature of the secretions of its leaves. 
 Hence both are so planted as to receive the full 
 influence of light, heat, and air. In one, the lig- 
 neous fibre is short, and in the other hard and 
 brittle ; but a modification of the culture in both, 
 consisting only of the adoption of the European 
 mode of cultivation, or the imitation of that prac- 
 tised by the natives themselves for cordage plants, 
 would, no doubt, secure softness and length of 
 fibre, and the production of probably as good flax 
 and hemp as in any other part of the world. 
 Tobacco imported from the New World is now Tobacco, 
 cultivated all over India, but is not prepared so 
 as to be esteemed in European markets, because, 
 when cut, it is exposed to the full effects of the 
 sun and air, and thus becomes dry and powdery. 
 While in America the greatest care is taken by 
 effects of heating when heaped up, moisture and 
 afterwards by careful drying in the shade (that is, 
 by the process of curing), to bring it to a soft, 
 pliable state, of a brown colour, and with a honey 
 
392 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Cases of sue- siiiell. Hcncc, therefore, it is too much exposure 
 
 cessful and un- ,, ,.,.... ^^itt 
 
 successful cuJ. ancl clryncss which is injurious to the Indian pro- 
 cure. 1 , 
 duct. 
 
 Cotton. In Cotton, on the contrary, a little exposure 
 
 and careful drying are absolutely necessary, as if 
 heaped up when fresh picked, the staple is sure 
 to get discoloured as well as weakened. This 
 very injurious process is that actually practised 
 in India, the cotton with the seed being fre- 
 quently heaped together for some time before it is 
 cleaned. Besides neglect in the cleaning of cot- 
 ton, the growth of the plant also is in most parts 
 of India neglected, and very different from the 
 careful culture of America; there being no selec- 
 tion of the seed ; also close sowing and mixture of 
 crops, by which the growth of the parts of vegeta- 
 tion is favoured, instead of those of fructification. 
 Sugar and Indigo for their successful produc- 
 tion require attention to the culture of the plants, 
 as well as to the Chemistry of the Manufacture. 
 
 Indigo, "^^^ colouring matter of the Indigo being stored 
 
 up in the leaves, and these being produced in the 
 greatest profusion in the rich provinces of Bengal, 
 makes the culture there the most lucrative ; while 
 the comparative dryness of the northern provinces 
 and their freedom from inundation are favoura- 
 ble for the production of the seed. This is conse- 
 quently supplied by the planters of the north, to 
 those of the south, and has probably had con- 
 siderable effect in preventing deterioration of the 
 plant. India, we have also seen, was deprived of 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 393 
 
 the commerce, when European skill was applied to Cases of suc- 
 
 ^ * * cessful and un- 
 
 its manufacture in the New World, and recovered successful cul- 
 ture, 
 it again by the very means by which it had been 
 
 deprived, assisted by the continued and powerful 
 
 support of the East India Company. 
 
 The cultivation of the Sugar Cane, so as to in- Sugar, 
 sure the largest secretion of saccharine matter, 
 has been less attended to ; but the different phy- 
 sical states on which this is dependant afford a 
 fruitful subject for experiment. We have seen, 
 that when the necessities of Great Britain re- 
 quired it, a trade in sugar was immediately esta- 
 blished. The China Sugar Cane was introduced 
 into India nearly at the same time that the Ota- 
 heite Cane was taken to the West Indies. This 
 is now spreading all over India, though some 
 doubt whether it be superior to the Cane of China; 
 but there can be no doubt that the sugar of the 
 East Indies has been greatly improved by the ap- 
 plication of the skill in manufacture of the West 
 Indies, and that it will be still more improved. 
 
 The Tea plant, we have seen, was, on scientific Tea plant 
 grounds, supposed could be grow^n in the Hima- 
 layas : the results of the experiments, as far as they 
 have yet gone, prove the opinions to have been cor- 
 rect. The tea from Assam has been pronounced 
 a good, strong, and very useful description, and 
 that it will probably be classed with good and 
 fine Congou tea. From the accounts which 
 have been received here of the cost of produc- 
 tion, with every charge for conveyance, it is likely 
 
394 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Cases of sue- 
 cessful and un- 
 successful cul- 
 ture. 
 
 Coffee 
 
 Frait trees. 
 
 Mahogany. 
 
 Logwood. 
 
 Pimento. 
 
 Animal sub- 
 stances. 
 
 Cochineal 
 
 that the Assam Company will considerably under- 
 sell the Chinese. (Lords' Committee on Petition 
 of East-India Company.) Dr. Falconer is also 
 of opinion that the culture will most undoubtedly 
 thrive, and Tea be produced at a cheaper rate 
 than in China. 
 
 Coffee is becoming cultivated in various parts 
 of India, and produced of very excellent qua- 
 lity. The Fruit trees of various countries are as 
 much at home as in their native sites, and many 
 of the important plants of the New World, as 
 the Mahogany, Logwood, Pimento, are becoming 
 spread over the whole country. There seems 
 no limit to the extent to which the acclimating 
 of the useful plants of other countries may be 
 carried, as there is no reason why we should not 
 be able to do this as easily as many of them have 
 acclimated the indigenous plants of India. 
 
 With regard to animal substances, the experi- 
 mental culture of Cochineal was as successful as 
 could be expected with the materials at that time 
 obtainable. And sufficient was learnt to satisfy 
 every one that the true Cochineal insect would 
 thrive well in the districts where the wild kind 
 had spread with such amazing rapidity. The Go- 
 vernment patronage, though liberal enough to have 
 established the culture even of the true insect, had 
 only a temporary effect upon that which was so 
 inferior, as the increased employment of Lac, and 
 the diminished price of Cochineal, combined their 
 effects in discouraging the culture. 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 395 
 
 The Silk culture, though known to India, was Cases of sue 
 
 , ii-ii fi-ii • cessful and un- 
 
 only established on a nrm basis by the energetic successful cui- 
 patronage of the East-India Company, and then 
 only by sending Europeans well acquainted with 
 the Italian method of culture to improve the silk suk. 
 of India. The difficulties were altogether great, 
 inasmuch as both the best kinds of Silk- worm and 
 of Mulberry were required, and a climate suited 
 to both. The best mode of culture of the Mul- 
 berry and the treatment of silk- worm in the diffe- 
 rent parts of India have yet to be determined, 
 but it is probable that the culture may be ex- 
 tended over many districts where it is at present 
 unknown. 
 
 Wool is one of the articles which has most re- wool 
 cently become an article of commerce. From 
 the measures which have been adopted by the 
 Government of sending to India the most ap- 
 proved rams both from Europe, the Cape, and 
 New Holland, and from the suitableness of the 
 climate and pastures of many parts of India, 
 there is little doubt that this will also be esta- 
 blished as an highly important, and much im- 
 proved branch of Indian commerce. 
 
 Though we have confined ourselves chiefly to the Natural pro. 
 principal Agricultural objects, and those which —importance 
 form the great Staples of Commerce, it would have 
 been easy, as may be apparent from hints in 
 several passages, to have enlarged on many other 
 substances, as well as on those coming under 
 the head of Natural Products. These employed 
 
396 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Indian Na- 
 tural Products 
 or Drugs. 
 
 Indian Drugs 
 said to be in- 
 ferior. 
 
 High duties 
 imposed on in 
 England. 
 
 Supposed in- 
 feriority of In. 
 dian Drugs. 
 
 by the natives of India in their various arts, 
 might, if better known, be useful also for the 
 manufacturers of England, and thus serve to in- 
 crease the commerce of both countries. Many of 
 these come under the general denomination of 
 Drugs, and we learn from Mr. Larpent's evi- 
 dence before the House of Lords' Committee, 
 March 1840, that those coming from India are 
 generally thought in the mercantile world to be 
 inferior to the drugs imported from other parts 
 of the world. That the great object of merchants 
 connected with India is to encourage them in the 
 English market, and to improve their qualities. 
 But to this, there are great difficulties in the 
 high duties which are imposed on their intro- 
 duction into this country; as Mr. L. informs 
 us, that the answer merchants get when they urge 
 their correspondents to improve their qualities, 
 is, *' Your duties are so high that it is of no use 
 to attempt to improve them." 
 
 Many Indian drugs are inferior, from the care- 
 lessness of the natives in preparing and in collect- 
 ing them ; but a part of their imputed inferiority is 
 ascribable to their being merely different in their 
 constituents from some of those better known, 
 which are imported from other parts of the world. 
 For it is only when the constituents of a natural 
 product are accurately known that we can speak 
 with any confidence of its relative value. Because 
 what is unsuited for one purpose, may be preferred 
 for another, and therefore what one manufacturer 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 397 
 
 miffhl consider inferior would be considered su- imputed infe- 
 riority of Indi- 
 perior bv another. Of the importance of these an Natural pro- 
 
 * . ducts. 
 
 natural products or drugs, one may be convinced, 
 by the history of the trade of Lac and Shell lac, 
 Safflower, and more recently in thai of Rape and 
 Linseed, Cocoa nut oil, and Caoutchouc, and 
 many others which remain in the category of drugs, 
 until becoming known and used, they are im- 
 ported in large quantities and come to be ranked 
 as staple articles of commerce. Catechu was only 
 employed in tanning after the analysis of Sir H. 
 Davy. The value of many others is evident from 
 some of the Chemical analyses which have re- 
 cently been made in India by Dr. O'Shaughnessy, 
 and in this country by Mr. E. Solly. 
 
 In the review which we have thus taken of the Results of re- 
 
 . , , , ^ew of expert- 
 
 different experimental cultures, we have seen that mental cui- 
 several have become established as great Indian 
 staples, and yet the difficulties which, as in al- 
 most all new cultures, were encountered in their 
 establishment, and the course by which they 
 arrived at their present state, seem to be for- 
 gotten. An attentive perusal of their history is, 
 however, instructive, as showing the measures 
 to be adopted, or those to be avoided, and the 
 results which may be expected, even when iSrst 
 experiments have not been successful, as in the 
 cases of Tobacco and Cotton. In the accounts 
 which are given of the several experiments 
 made, we seldom find any complaints that plants 
 do not grow ; for, in fact, those suited to a warm 
 
398 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Probable im- climate, usuallv ffTOw too inuch from the com- 
 
 provement of . . 
 
 Indian pro- billed Warmth and moisture of the climate. To 
 
 ducts from in- . i • i • 
 
 creased skiu in thesc experimeiitalists often think it necessary 
 to add richness of soil, though this only in- 
 creases the usual fault of over-luxuriance. But 
 after a repetition of trials, a modification of treat- 
 ment, and the application of European science, 
 we find that improvement does eventually take 
 place, and improvements will no doubt continue 
 to take place, when the same means are adopted 
 and the experiments are made in a suitable soil 
 and favourable climate. Superior science and 
 careful culture seem to have been originally the 
 causes of the great celebrity of the products of 
 Ancient India, and they have elsewhere pro- 
 duced similar results in modern times. But as 
 civilization has advanced, the European race have 
 applied their energies and skill to the culture of 
 the same products, and in soils and climates 
 similar to that of India. Hence the productions 
 of India have had to compete with the highly 
 improved products of these countries, and there- 
 fore a still further degree of skill is requisite there 
 to produce yet greater improvement. 
 
 Nature of skill The skill required for the culture either of the 
 indigenous or exotic plants in India may be dis- 
 tinguished into two kinds : — 
 
 1. A practical knowledge of the details of cul- 
 ture in general, or of that peculiar to particular 
 plants 
 
 2. A knowledge of the principles which are 
 
 required. 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 399 
 
 applicable to all, and which necessarily influence ^*2l^°for^'" 
 
 all the results. ^^^^^ ^" ^"- 
 
 The first can onlv be acquired by practice, or ob- Practical «- 
 
 ^ " * _ penence ortne 
 
 servation, or by consulting the writings, or taking advice of prac- 
 the advice of practical men. This is, however, 
 generally applicable only to the particular soil 
 and situation to which a planter has been ac- 
 customed. But those who have carried on the 
 arts of culture in the varying soils and climates 
 of different districts know that in all some mo- 
 difications of treatment are required. Therefore, 
 before commencing culture in a new situation, 
 farmers first ascertain by inquiries respecting the 
 soil and climate, what are the modifications of 
 treatment necessary to insure success. By com- 
 bining a knowledge of the practical details of 
 culture in different places, and seeing how they 
 correspond with the principles of the science, it 
 is possible so to arrange the instructions for cul- 
 ture as to be applicable to a new soil and situa- 
 tion. This would save many mistakes ; and at all 
 events, point out the sources of error and the 
 means of obviating them. 
 
 A knowledge of the principles on which de- a knowledge 
 
 ^ ^ _ * of the princi- 
 
 pend the successful practice of the arts of culture, pies of culture^ 
 can only be thoroughly acquired by those who 
 are acquainted with, at least the general principles 
 of several sciences. Though a knowledge of these 
 is not essential for successful practice, it is yet 
 difficult without them to understand the full ope- 
 ration of physical agents or the modifications 
 
400 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Sciences con- 
 nected with 
 the Arts of 
 culture. 
 
 Rock forma- 
 tions as form- 
 ing earths. 
 
 Chemical 
 analysis of 
 soils. 
 
 Physical pro- 
 perties of soils. 
 
 Geology of In- 
 dia. 
 
 which maj' be required in different cultures to suit 
 them to new situations. 
 
 Though an acquaintance with rock formations 
 may not be essentially necessary to a knowledge 
 of soils, yet earths are formed from the disintegra- 
 tion of rocks exposed on the surface, and these 
 often extend over a considerable extent of country. 
 Hence we are often able, without examination, 
 to say that such and such mineral constituents 
 will predominate in the soil and subsoil of another, 
 perhaps distant district, and to which the same 
 culture will therefore often be applicable. Che- 
 mical analysis will reveal to us, indeed, the consti- 
 tuents of a soil, and show us whether those are 
 such as are best suited to the culture we wish 
 to attempt ; also enable us to judge what are the 
 constituents it has in excess, and what in defici- 
 ency, and therefore on the mineral additions which 
 require to be made. These are as material as the 
 organized additions which it requires, as manure 
 for the plant. For on them, in a great measure, 
 depend the physical properties, which are quite 
 as important as the chemical, as on them depend 
 the firmness and consistency of the soil, its power 
 of retaining water, or of becoming dry, its capa- 
 city of absorbing humidity, or oxygen from the 
 atmosphere, or of becoming more or less warm by 
 exposure to the sun. 
 
 Few of the varied soils of India have had their 
 chemical or physical properties carefully examined, 
 but we have now a very fair general idea of the 
 rock formations of different parts of India, and 
 
scribed. 
 
 OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 401 
 
 may infer that, of much of the intermediate tracts, sciences con- 
 Thus commencing- with the south, Drs. Buchanan the Arts of 
 Hamilton and Heyne, Mr. TurnbuU Christie, 
 Drs. Benza and Malcolmson, and Mr. Cole, 
 have described that of the Peninsula. Col. 
 Sykes has elucidated the trap formation of the 
 Deccan ; Dr. Thomson the geology of Bombay ; 
 and Capt. Grant of Cutch. Dr. Voysey, when 
 attached to the Trigonometrical Survey, published 
 some of the earliest papers on the geoloo;y of Cen- Geology of 
 
 . 1 -1 1 I T-v different parts 
 
 tral India ; this has been since described by Dr. of India de- 
 Malcolmson and by Capt. Jenkins. Meywar and 
 the valley of O udeypore have been described by Mr. 
 Hardie ; Malw a by Capt. Dangerfield ; Saugur by 
 Capt. Coulthurd and Dr. Spry ; Bundlecund by 
 Capt. Franklin ; the series of rock formations on 
 the great military road from Calcutta to Benares, 
 and the sandstone formation of N. West India, 
 by the Rev. Mr. Everest. Much valuable infor- 
 mation is also contained in the works of Dr. B. 
 Hamilton. The Himalayas, which bound the 
 great Gangetic plains, have been described by Mr. 
 Colebrooke, Dr. Gerard, Capts. Herbert and 
 Cautley, Mr. McClelland, and Dr. Falconer, as 
 well as by the Author.* Immense deposits of 
 
 * Mr. McClelland ha.s furnished a valuable report on the 
 Coal and Mineral resources of India. Dr. B. Hamilton has des- 
 cribed the Minerals of the Rajmuhl Hills ; Capt. Herbert those 
 of the Himalayas; Drs. Anderson and Heyne those of the Penin- 
 sula. The Author has enumerated most of the Mineral Produc- 
 tions : V. Essay on the Antiquity of Hindoo Medicine, p. 97, &c. 
 
 2 D 
 
402 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Sciences con- fossil remaiiis have been found, both along the 
 the Arts of Nei'biidda and the Jumna, as well as in the Hima- 
 layas, but not having immediate reference to our 
 subject, we need not further notice. 
 Meteorology in The uecessitv of attending to the climate of a 
 
 reference to . , . 
 
 plants. country, when attemptmg a new culture, is gene- 
 
 rally acknowledged. Few, however, pay attention 
 to the details which are absolutely necessary to be 
 known, before we can be assured that the climate 
 of a place is suited to the plant we wish to cul- 
 tivate. Observation could alone have inform- 
 ed us what peculiarities of climate are suited 
 to particular plants. The illustrious Humboldt 
 has shown how different cultures are, in conse- 
 quence, restrained within certain limits. As the 
 temperatures of different countries which corres- 
 pond in latitude have a general correspondence, 
 so it has been inferred that the plants of one 
 will grow in the other. This is often found 
 to be the case, but still exceptions are frequently 
 observed. These can usually be accounted for, 
 from some difference in the climate, or want 
 of suitableness between the soil and climate. 
 Observations of the thermometer, which are so 
 generally made, are seldom taken with all the 
 precautions necessary for ascertaining the true 
 climate of the open country of a place. They 
 are sometimes observed in the house, and fre- 
 quently at such hours and under such circum- 
 stances as to prevent us knowing the true ex- 
 tremes, and therefore the means of temperature. 
 The first is essentially necessary, as a very short 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 403 
 
 frost, or a very little exposure to the hot winds, Sciences con- 
 
 , , . . , -f^ . , nected with the 
 
 may be injurious to many plants, ror perennials Arts of cul- 
 
 ture. 
 
 we require to know the annual temperature, but 
 for annuals only that of the season of cultivation. 
 This in India being very different at different 
 periods of the year, we require the extremes and 
 mean temperature of the rainy as well as of the 
 cold season. Temperature, however, is not suffi- 
 cient; the dryness and moisture of the atmosphere 
 are equally essential ; also the effects of absorption 
 of the solar rays, by which we ascertain the heat 
 to which plants are exposed during the day at the 
 surface of the earth ; likewise those of radiation, 
 which will give us information regarding the cold to Meteorology as 
 
 , . 1 , , I 1 • • 1 A 1 , connected with 
 
 which they are exposed during night. Also the vegetation. 
 quantity and times of rain, as well as the force, tem- 
 perature and dryness, or moisture of the wind ; as 
 on these will depend the rate of evaporation, which 
 will influence the growth of plants, and therefore 
 the mode in which we should grow them. For 
 instance, cotton requires to be planted at such 
 distances as to allow of the free circulation of 
 air, and thus a certain loss of space is caused, but 
 this should not be more than is necessary. As the 
 distances depend on the soil and climate, the drier 
 air of the northern provinces will admit of the 
 plants being placed much closer to each other than 
 in the moister soil and air of Bengal. The im- 
 portance of such investigations has been pointed 
 out in the several specific subjects which have 
 been treated of. 
 
 2 D 2 
 
404 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Sciences con. The Meteorologv, like the Geolosfv of India, is 
 
 nected with the . **' ^-^ 
 
 Arts of cui- known m a general way, and we have very good 
 series of observations at several stations all along 
 the extent of British India, and may for the pre- 
 sent infer that of intermediate places. At these, 
 precise observations are, however, also required, 
 and will form a fruitful subject of interesting ob- 
 servation. Many important papers are contained 
 in the Transactions of the Royal and Asiatic 
 Societies, and in the invaluable Journal of the 
 Asiatic Society of Bengal, edited by the late 
 highly-talented and deeply-lamented Secretary, 
 Mr. James Prinsep ; also in that of the Madras 
 Society of Literature and Science. 
 Mapnetic Ob- Prccisc information will also be afforded by the 
 ing also Mete- Magnetic Observatories, which, in conjunction 
 stral^nts, ''^ with her Majesty's Government in different parts 
 estabTishcd iif of the world and with the naval expedition under 
 India. Capt. James Ross, the Court of Directors of the 
 
 East India Company have, on the application of 
 the Royal Society, directed to be established at 
 Simla, in the Himalayas, Singapore, Madras, and 
 if possible at Aden. -The best instruments both 
 for Magnetic and Meteorological observations have 
 been provided, and placed under Engineer offi- 
 cers, who have been instructed in their use by 
 Professor Lloyd, of Dublin.* 
 
 • To those desirous of making observations, it may be sug- 
 gested, that they could not confer a greater benefit on Indian 
 Meteorology, than by making simultaneous observations with 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 405 
 
 As the Arts of Culture are employed upon sciences con- 
 
 1 1 • iiectcd with the 
 
 Plants, it \vou Id appear necessary that a cultiva- Arts of cul- 
 
 ture. 
 
 tor should be acquainted with the science of vege- 
 tation. This, however, is seldom the case, though a 
 general knowledge of the subject is essential to a 
 right understanding, even of the operations of 
 agriculture ; or of the effects produced on the 
 plant or its products by the more or less expo- 
 sure to the influence of physical agents, or by the 
 several labours on the soil or plants which con- 
 stitute agriculture. Though it is not requisite that Botany, or tke 
 
 1 • I 1 1 I -I'll- knowledge of 
 
 a cultivator should be acquainted with what is plants. 
 generally considered Botany, but which is only 
 the systematic department of tbat extensive sci- 
 ence ; yet it is essential that he should know the 
 plant he wishes to cultivate, that he may not 
 mistake it for some other variety, or perhaps 
 species of the same genus, as has often been done. 
 Sometimes even one plant has been cultivated for 
 another, when they had no other similarity than 
 that of being employed for the same purpose. 
 
 One department of the science which treats of Physiology ef 
 
 _ *^ _ Plants. 
 
 Vegetation, namely, that of the vital actions, called 
 the Physiology of Plants, is so interesting, and at 
 the same time so important, that a knowledge 
 of its principles would form an agreeable pur- 
 
 those made at the Magnetic Observatories, &c., at as many and 
 at such hours as are convenient to the individual, and suited to 
 attdn the object in view, conformably to the instructions drawn 
 up by the Meteorological Committee of the Royal Society. 
 
406 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Sciences con- 
 nected with the 
 Arts of Cul- 
 ture. 
 
 PliysioJogy of 
 I'lants. 
 
 Action of ex- 
 ternal agents. 
 
 Geography of 
 Plants. 
 
 suit, and is at the same time essential towards con- 
 ducting a scientific, and it might almost be said a 
 successful, cultivation in a new situation. By it 
 we may understand the process of germination and 
 the growth of the plant, as well as the functions 
 of the root, stem, and leaves, and the processes 
 which favour the appearance of flowers and the 
 production of fruit. The Author has frequently 
 endeavoured to direct attention to the influence 
 of external agents on the growth of the different 
 parts, and consequently on the products of plants, 
 so as to alter the quality and the productiveness of 
 some of the great staples of Indian agriculture. 
 To this subject he hopes to return on some future 
 occasion, and to elucidate it, with the details appli- 
 cable to Indian culture and climate ; feeling that 
 when principles are understood, sources of error 
 will readily be discovered, and modifications of 
 treatment easily be made. The importance of this 
 subject is strongly evinced by the appearance, 
 while the present work has been passing through 
 the press, of one by Dr. Lindley, called the 
 *' Theory of Horticulture," elucidating the prac- 
 tice of gardening by the principles of vegetable 
 physiology. Much of this is necessarily applicable 
 to culture of all kinds. 
 
 Another important branch of the science of 
 botany of the present day is one whicli has been 
 already alluded to at p. 244, that is, the Geography 
 of Plants. Almost every one knows, that particu- 
 lar sets of plants are found growing in hot and 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 407 
 
 tropical parts of the world, which, when trans- sciences con- 
 
 . • 1 1 • neeted with the 
 
 ferred to European latitudes, require the climate ArtsofCui- 
 
 of our hot-houses, while those from more tempe- Geography of 
 
 rate climates are suited to green-houses, and those ^'*"f^- 
 
 from colder parts of the world to the shrubberies 
 
 and forests of the country. 
 
 The Natural Classification of Plants, which has Natural classi- 
 fication of 
 also been alluded to, vide p. 242, affords peculiar Plant 
 
 advantages in studying their geographical distri- 
 bution. Because we soon perceive, though there 
 are exceptions, yet that the great majority of 
 the families of plants are found flourishing in 
 the greatest numbers in some particular country 
 or climate, and existing only in small numbers, 
 or as single species, in other countries, but where 
 there is usually some similarity in climate. The 
 Indian flora, as at present ascertained, consists 
 of about twelve thousand species of plants, which 
 are distributed in upwards of two hundred natural 
 families. Among these, there are representatives 
 of almost all the principal families of plants, and 
 certainly of all those which contain useful or im- 
 portant plants. 
 
 It has therefore been inferred that many of these 
 useful plants of other countries, or their conge- 
 ners, or those belonging to the same family, and 
 which so generally flourish in a similar soil and 
 climate, might be successfully cultivated within 
 the wide-spreading limits and elevated mountains 
 of the British dominions in India. 
 
408 
 
 Transmission of Seeds to and from India 
 BY THE Overland Route. 
 
 Transmission The advantages beini»- iincloubted, and the 
 
 of Seeds to o n > 
 
 and from India, prospccts of succcss great, the Court of Directors 
 of the East-India Company determined on not 
 allowing the opportunity, offered by the speedy 
 communication with India, to escape, of sending- 
 to that country the materials for growing there 
 the plants suited to its varied soils and climate, 
 and such as are likely to conduce to the improve- 
 ment of the country, and the benefit of the peo- 
 ple ; obtaining also from its mountains such as 
 are suited to the climate of Great Britain. The 
 subject was brought under the notice of the 
 Court of Directors by a despatch from the Go- 
 vernor-general, dated Simla, the IGth Aug. 1838, 
 intimating that his lordship had addressed an 
 order to the officers in charge of such districts in 
 the north-western provinces as are either within, 
 or which border on, the Himalayan range, in- 
 structing them to collect in the autumn, suitable 
 seeds, bulbs, and roots, for transmission overland 
 to England. 
 
 The Governor-general, adverting to the facili- 
 ties afforded by the steam communication, and 
 referring to the interest known to be taken by 
 the Court in increasing the Vegetable riches of 
 the two countries, expresses a hope that such 
 useful seeds and plants may be sent out to Jndia 
 
TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS TO AND FROM INDIA. 409 
 
 as may gradually be naturalized in that country, Advantages of 
 
 , . . , . 1 • 1 • ^^^ Transmis- 
 
 and recommends inquiry being made m this coun- sionof the 
 try for advice on the subject. fui piants to 
 
 On the importance of the object contemplated 
 by Lord Auckland, and sanctioned by the Court 
 of Directors, it is scarcely necessary to offer any 
 remarks. So large a share of the wealth of every 
 country is composed of its vegetable productions, 
 and those productions in such a variety of ways 
 minister to supply the wants of man, that to in- 
 crease their number or improve their quality can- 
 not fail to be regarded as a benefaction to the 
 country thus enriched. Indebted as man is to the 
 vegetable kingdom for food, shelter, and cloth- 
 ing, for the means of restoring health and as- 
 suaging pains, the propriety of Governments 
 promoting the introduction of valuable plants into 
 the countries over which they rule can scarcely 
 be questioned. In India, particularly, the duty 
 of acting upon these views is enjoined by pecu- 
 liar reasons. The productive powers of the soil will 
 give every advantage to the attempt of those dis- 
 posed to call them forth, and the people being ac- 
 customed so generally to a vegetable diet, renders 
 it important to secure to them as large a supply 
 and as great a variety of such diet as possible. 
 The occurrence of those severe visitations of Pro- 
 vidence, by which the happiness of the people is 
 for the time destroyed, and even the preservation 
 of existence rendered almost impossible, calls im- 
 peratively for the adoption of any measures, such 
 as the introduction of plants less dependant on 
 
410 TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS 
 
 rain, which might tend to avert such calamities, 
 or alleviate their effects. The commercial position 
 of India requires a large amount of exchange- 
 able productions, and these must be raised from 
 the soil, for it is to agriculture that India must 
 look for the means of engaging in commerce. 
 Great extent Carried to its legitimate extent, the plan for 
 
 to which the /» t t i 
 
 introduction of the enrichment of India by such vegetable pro- 
 
 Plantsmaybe j .• i i i i i i 
 
 carried. Quctions as are adapted to the country would be 
 
 a most extensive one ; for, as is observed by Dr. 
 Lindley, " from the great extent of the British 
 possessions in India, and the infinite modifica- 
 tions and combinations of soil and climate to be 
 found within them, there can be no doubt what- 
 ever that almost every production of every climate, 
 except the Arctic, may be so completely natu- 
 ralized, that where they are of any importance as 
 objects of cultivation, they may be brought to all 
 the perfection of which they are susceptible in 
 other countries." 
 
 Recommended It has accordingly been recommended that the 
 
 to be under- i i • • 
 
 taken. gradual introduction, from every part of the world, 
 
 into India, of every variety of tree and plant 
 adapted to its climate, should be an object steadily 
 kept in view. Also that such measures should im- 
 mediately be taken as may be necessary to secure 
 a supply of seeds for future seasons in such quan- 
 tities a& seem desirable, with reference to the 
 means that may exist for their cultivation. 
 
 Despatch of the In the Proceedings of the Affricultui-al and Hor- 
 
 CourtofDirec- . . . 
 
 tors on the ticultural Society of India, of the 12th of June 
 
 subject. 
 
 1839, we find that the Governor-general had for- 
 
TO AND FROM INDIA, 411 
 
 warded to the Society the despatch of the Court 
 of Directors to the Governor-general of India, 
 of the 13th of February 1839, together with the 
 letters which had been written by Dr. Lindley 
 and the Author in reference to this subject. The oesnatch res- 
 Court say, " We are sensible of the importance of xransmiLfon 
 the subject to which, in the letter under reply, 
 you have directed our attention, and we have re- 
 solvetl on gradually furnishing you with the means 
 of carrying on extensively experiments for natu- 
 ralizing in India useful and desirable plants, 
 indigenous in other countries." *' We have for- to India; 
 warded some varieties of seeds, &c., highly im- 
 portant either as affording articles of food, or 
 possessing medical virtues, and they will deserve 
 all the attention that can be afforded them.*' 
 " We shall continue at the proper seasons to send 
 supplies of other varieties, and it is our wish that 
 the greatest care should be bestowed, with a view 
 to their naturalization, for the benefit of the 
 country." 
 
 " With regard to the collection of seeds for f™'" i"^*^ 
 transmission to this country, we are of opinion, 
 that the expediency of bearing in mind the nature 
 of the climate to which they are to be exposed 
 should be impressed upon those to whom the 
 task is to be committed." 
 
 The Society, after the reading of the despatch Resolution of 
 and its enclosures, determined, in furtherance of so turai society of 
 " useful and philanthropic an object, — that in 
 reference to the communication now read from 
 the Honourable the Court of Directors of the 
 
412 
 
 TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS 
 
 Resolution of East India Company, and with the view ofaidinja: 
 
 the Agricultu- ... . 
 
 rai Society of as far as possible, the intentions therein expressed, 
 and the labours of those scientific gentlemen at 
 home, who have so kindly interested themselves 
 in the subject — a committee be formed for the 
 purpose of suggesting such plants and trees as 
 may be thought desirable for introduction into 
 India, and those that can be furnished in return, 
 and that the committee be instructed to obtain 
 communications from the Branch Societies and 
 other available sources throughout India/' 
 
 The measures which were adopted here in con- 
 sequence of the resolution of the Court it is unne- 
 cessary to particularize, as more fitting occasions 
 may occur for entering into the necessary details. 
 
 Times when Keeping In view the necessity of obtaining the 
 
 s66(ls should. 
 
 arrive in India, sccds of plants of different countries suitable to 
 the different parts of India, the principle exhi- 
 bited in the tables at p. 246 may serve as a guide. 
 To obtain complete success will require only per- 
 severance, and a systematic arrangement of the 
 means adapted to the ends in view. The roots 
 and seeds requiring tropical culture should be in 
 India by the middle of June ; that is, at the 
 beginning of the rainy season. Those intended 
 for cultivation in the plains during the cold wea- 
 ther, should arrive in October and November, 
 while such as are to be sown in the Himalayas 
 need not be there before March, or even April. 
 
 The seeds obtained from various sources may 
 be sent in separate parcels as intended for warm 
 or for cool climates, as for Bombay, Madras, Cal- 
 
TO AND FROM INDIA. 413 
 
 cutta, and Saharunpore, or for the Hills of Ma- 
 babhaleshwur, Neilgherries, Darjeeling, Mussoo- 
 ree, and Simla. Wherever practicable, the Bo- Measures ad. 
 tanic Gardens or their nurseries seem the most adoVionTn 
 suitable situations for the first cultivation of the 
 various seeds or plants which may be introduced, 
 but the Gardens of the several Horticultural 
 Societies at the Presidencies might be equally 
 advantageous wherever they are desirous of join- 
 ing in the experiment. Whenever a plant has 
 become established, or its seed has ripened in one 
 garden, these should be distributed to the others 
 which have been enumerated, or to the several 
 branch Horticultural Societies which have been 
 established, or to individuals who are inclined to 
 pay the requisite attention to such pursuits. The 
 several gardens in different parts of India ought 
 also to interchange their several products, even 
 their indigenous and long- established cultures, 
 more freely and systematically than has hitherto 
 been the case. Gardeners and Farmers in Europe 
 seldom continue to cultivate from the seed con- 
 stantly ripened in their own grounds, but inter- 
 change with, or purchase from others, what these 
 again are ready to do with theirs. 
 
 The seeds of a great variety of plants have been Seeds sent to 
 sent by the monthly mail at different times to the 
 several Botanic Gardens which have been enu- 
 merated, and latterly to the Agricultural Socie- 
 ties of Calcutta and Bombay. Of the measures and Bombay, 
 adopted, an instance may suffice in the extract 
 of the following letter from Monsieur A. De 
 
414 TRAMSMISSION OF SEEDS 
 
 Candolle, of Geneva, who is following the course 
 of the distinguished Botanist, his father. 
 
 Letter from M. " Mon cher Monsieur, 
 
 A. De Can- 
 dolle. ''Je viens d'adresser a Mr. Bentham une caisse qui con- 
 
 tient difFerens ohjets pour vous. Ce sont d'abord des graines, 
 d'especes cultivees dans notre jardin^et de plantes cultivees en 
 grand dans ce pays. Je ne suis pas parvenu encore a me pro- 
 curer les C^reales cultivees dans les plus hautes parties de la 
 Suisse, mais j'ai pense que les varietes usitees dans nos plaines 
 reussiraient peut dtre mieux dans I'lnde que les semences 
 venues d'Angleterre. On estime en agriculture qu'il faut 
 cro'iser les semences, c'est-a-dire semer dans un pays des bles 
 venant d'un autre, afin qu'ils aient des qualites differentes 
 de celles que le climat du pays a pu donner. C'est dans cette 
 idee que je vous ai envo)'e des c6reales et des legumes com- 
 muns de ce pays. D'ailleurs nos legumes du continent sont 
 preferables a ceux de I'Angleterre, et leurs graines sont plus 
 mures. Une autre fois je pourrai probablement vous donner 
 des especes alpines et des cereales des hautes regions." 
 
 Arrival of the With regard to the time and state of the ar- 
 
 Seeds in India> . 
 
 rival of the seeds in India, Dr. Wallich, express- 
 ing his grateful thanks to the Court of Directors, 
 wrote on the 24th August 1839, that the noble 
 packet of seeds dispatched on the 11th of May 
 had arrived there on the 12th July. The seeds 
 having been immediately sown, several had already 
 vegetated ; of these, the highly interesting Sea 
 Island Cotton germinated in four days. Of the 
 moderate supply of the latter, he had furnished 
 small quantities to a number of practical men, 
 as Capt. Jenkins and Dr. Wight. He particularly 
 requests that assortments of seeds may be con- 
 tinued to be sent, especially those from South 
 
TO AND FROM INDIA. 415 
 
 America and the West Indies, as they succeed, in Amvarofthe 
 general, remarkably well, and that on his part he 
 would do his utmost to reciprocate, by endea- 
 vouring to obtain the sort of temperate zone seeds 
 that are so much desired in England. 
 
 Dr. Falconer, to whom the first supplies had 
 been sent, complains of the packing not having 
 been sufficient to keep out the wet, as some Ma- 
 hogany seeds and others had arrived in a damp 
 and rotten state. India rubber cloth having 
 been adopted for the packing of all the subse- 
 quent despatches, he writes, " Your August and 
 September despatches have arrived in excellent 
 order. The double India rubber mode of packing 
 is admirable — it could not be better." The seeds 
 he describes as excellent of their kind, and the 
 supply of vegetable seeds as exceedingly valua- 
 ble. He requests a fresh supply, so as to reach 
 him in February for sowing in the hills, also as 
 many flower seeds as possible both for sowing in 
 the hills and plains. 
 
 The seeds collected in India, as is evident Seeds from in- 
 from the diversified nature of the country, will 
 require very different kinds of climate. The kinds 
 most valued here are such as are suited to the 
 climate of the country, and therefore can only be 
 obtained in the mountains, at such elevations as the 
 region of Oaks. Those first sent, having been 
 collected by the zeal of several officers, were more 
 promiscuous in nature than is esteemed by the 
 generality of horticulturists. But the later collec- 
 tions have been excellent in selection, and packed 
 
416 TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS 
 
 Transmission SO perfectly Well, as to arrive here in as fresh a 
 India. * state as possible. This is evident from tlie follow- 
 
 ing documents of the vegetation of seeds wliich 
 hardly ever vegetated here before. 
 
 Speaking generally, it may be said that it is 
 desirable to send a selection rather than a great 
 variety of seeds. At first, from being collected in 
 different localities, and by different individuals, 
 many duplicate parcels were sent. It seems advis- 
 able, therefore, that seeds collected for transmis- 
 sion to this country should be forwarded to the 
 Superintendents of the Botanic Gardens in the 
 different presidencies, who should, with as little 
 delay as possible , inspect, select, and if j)Ossil)le 
 name such as it was deemed necessary to send, 
 and to separate the few from the plains and 
 vallies requiring a hot climate from those suited 
 to the open culture of this c6untry. The kinds of 
 seed most valued here are those of ornamental 
 or useful flowering plants and shrubs, or such as 
 are likely to be useful as timber trees, or other- 
 wise. By this means, though the bulk and num- 
 ber of the packages would be curtailed, their 
 value would remain undiminished. 
 Distributed in The sccds rcccivcd havc been distributed to 
 andonTh? public gardens, and to distinguished individuals. 
 Continent. |^^^|^ ^^ (^^.^^^ Britain and on the Continent, 
 
 keeping in view the interchange of seeds. The 
 majority of those to whom seeds have been sent 
 have expressed their intention of sending others 
 in return, and many have already done so. I may 
 instance Count Woronzow and M.A.De Candolle, 
 
TO AND FROM INDIA. 417 
 
 as havins: already done so from the Continent. Growth of Hi. 
 
 _ ^ ^ *^ inala>-an seeds 
 
 The opinions of Dr. Lindley and Messrs. Lod- "» England. 
 diges are subjoined, as showing the success at- 
 tending the new mode of transmission with seeds, 
 received chiefly from Dr. Falconer. 
 
 *' Horticultural Society of London, 
 " My Dear Sir, '* August 24, 1840. 
 
 *' I have great pleasure in informing you that the result of 
 the seeds, for which we have so repeatedly been indebted to the 
 liberality of the Honourable Court of Directors, has been most 
 satisfactory. A very considerable number of fruit trees, shrubs, 
 and handsome herbaceous plants have already been secured to 
 the country. Among the former are the Deodar in abundance, 
 as well as other Himalayan Coniferae and Betula Bhojpattra, 
 which would alone render the exertions of the Company in the 
 introduction of new plants of national importance, especially 
 since the large quantity of such things which is imported 
 renders it practicable at once to disperse them through the 
 country. 
 
 '* Should you desire to have a detailed return of the plants 
 
 of all kinds that have been raised in the Society's Garden, it 
 
 shall be provided without loss of time. 
 
 " Yours faithfully, 
 
 " John Lindley." 
 " Professor Royle." 
 
 " Dear Su-, " Hackney, June 23, 1840. 
 
 " We are happy to be able to inform you, that the seeds of 
 Pinus Deodara which you were kind enough to send us, have 
 grown perfectly well, scarcely one failing. Also Pinus Web- 
 biana, excelsa, and Khutrow. The advantages of getting seeds 
 overland are most decided ; we have had great quantities of 
 Deodara sent by sea from time to time, and hardly ever got 
 one to grow, whereas these quite surpassed air our expectations. 
 " We remain, dear Sir, yours very truly, 
 
 " To Dr. Royle." " C. Loddiges & Sons.'' 
 
 2 R 
 
418 SURVEY OF THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS 
 
 Resources of Fi'om the enumeration of a few only of the veee- 
 
 India. _ "^ ^ 
 
 table resources of India, and the success which 
 has attended the introduction of many not indi- 
 genous to its soil, we may, with no undue confi- 
 dence, anticipate the most successful results. Of 
 this any one may be convinced, if they consider, 
 as the Author has already said elsewhere, that 
 the southern part of the Indian peninsula, like 
 Ceylon, is suited to the cultivation of Cinnamon, 
 Coco, Nutmegs, and other Spices, and the coast 
 of Malabar for Pepper, Cardamoms, Coffee, and 
 Teak. But they are not more so than are Bengal 
 and the lower provinces of that presidency, for 
 their rich cultivation of Rice, Indigo, and Silk, 
 with Ginger, Turmeric, Long Pepper, and Betlel 
 leaf, luxuriant Bamboos, bread-like Plantains, 
 ever useful Cocoa nut, and ?• lender A reca. The 
 northern provinces having a less ricli soil and drier 
 climate, may boast of their Wheat, Barley, and 
 Potatoe culture, at one season of the year, with 
 Rice, Sorghum, &c., at another ; as well as of 
 their fitness, together with Malwa, Bundlecund, 
 the West of India, and other parts of the Penin- 
 sula, for the production of Cotton, Tobacco, and 
 Opium, while Sugar, numerous Oil seeds, and 
 substitutes for Hemp and Flax are produced in 
 nearly every part. Almost every jungle is occu- 
 pied by the Lac insect, and Kino is yielded by the 
 Dhak(Butea). The most barren hills afford Oliba- 
 num, and the most arid looking plains will nourisii 
 the gum secreting Acacias, and the Mouhwa or 
 
OF THE PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 419 
 
 Bassia, of which the flowers are fermented into a Resources of 
 spirit, the seeds expressed for their oil, and the 
 wood valued as excellent timber. Even in the 
 western desert, the lakes yield Salt, and their 
 shores are lined with plants, which are burned 
 for Barilla. The mountains, though their bases 
 are covered with a tropical and unhealthy jungle, 
 abounding in valuable timber, have at certain 
 elevations, a delightful climate, and productions 
 analogous to European countries. There we may 
 soon hope to see the Tea plant a thriving cul- 
 ture, and the Hemp turned to useful account. 
 Also, though the cold and bleak tops of these 
 mountains, and the plains on their northern 
 face, appear barren and unproductive, their lakes 
 abound with Borax, and their vallies with Vines ; 
 and we have in addition, Spikenard and Rhubarb 
 from the vegetable, with Musk from the animal 
 kingdom. 
 
 The multiplicity of subjects which such an conclusion. 
 investigation embraces, renders it, perhaps, diffi- 
 cult to determine which is the most important, 
 and with which, therefore, it would be most pro- 
 per to commence : whether with the mineral, the 
 vegetable, or the animal kingdom ; whether with 
 such products as are the result of art, or with 
 those which are the spontaneous production of 
 nature. But as we have displayed the advantages 
 derivable from the vegetable kingdom, and as the 
 revenue in India is derived chiefly from the land, 
 the culture of this, and the improvement of Agri- 
 
 2e2 
 
420 PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES OF INDIA. 
 
 Conclusion, culture, certainly claim the first place, and most 
 prominent attention, whether we consider the 
 improvement of the present, or the introduction 
 of new cultures. The more so, as in such a course 
 we can include all the vegetable w ith some animal 
 products. The improvement of Agriculture may 
 naturally be followed or accompanied by the means 
 to be adopted for the investigation and making 
 known the Natural Products of the country, whe- 
 ther of the Animal, the Vegetable, or the Mineral 
 kingdom ; and which may be valuable for Manu- 
 factures and Commerce. To comprehend the 
 diversities of so wide a field, to evolve its various 
 natural resources, and to display its manifold ca- 
 pabilities, is a task of no ordinary magnitude ; 
 but the benefits which may be insured are more 
 than commensurate to the difficulties to be over- 
 come ; and if we take only ordinary precaution 
 in suiting our measures to the objects we have in 
 view, every fresh step will afford an advanced 
 position from which to make further conquests, 
 for affording facilities to the Government, and 
 benefit to the People. 
 
421 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 NOTES ON THE INTRODUCTION OF USEFUL PLANTS 
 INTO INDIA. 
 
 fVriitea at the request of the Govemer-GaieraL, Lord Auckiandy 
 previous to his departure Jor India, hy the Author.* 
 
 The introduction of Plants, both useful and 
 ornamental, into India from other countries, 
 though carried to some extent, has not yet been 
 effected to the degree which is advisable, consi- 
 dering the benefits to be derived, and the great 
 probability of success, if proper principles be 
 attended to, in the selection of plants and the 
 places into which they are introduced. 
 
 Of these, climate is the principal, and that of 
 the provinces of the Beng-al Presidency may be 
 considered under the three heads : first, that 
 of the Southern parts, or Bengal proper ; se- 
 condly, that of the Northern ; and thirdly, that of 
 the Hill Provinces. The climate of Central India 
 is different from all, but may be considered a 
 modification, in some measure, of the first and 
 second, combining the temperature of Bengal 
 with the dryness of the north-western provinces. 
 
 In introducing the seeds of annuals into any 
 part of the Bengal Presidency, except the Hills, 
 
 * Read 9th April 1836, and published in the Trans, of the 
 Agricultural and Horticultural Society of India. Vol. iii. p. 37. 
 
422 APPENDIX. 
 
 it should be borne in mind, that having a cold, 
 a warm, and a rainy season, in the first, that 
 is, from October to March, they are able to grow 
 the products of European latitudes, and in the 
 others those which are peculiar to Tropical coun- 
 tries. 
 
 Hence, in proceeding from Europe, it is advis- 
 able, and always acceptable, to take fresh seeds 
 of kitchen-garden vegetables, though these in 
 India are now very good ; the different kinds of 
 " sweet herbs " might also be taken, as less com- 
 mon, and likely to be established easily in the 
 northern provinces. With respect to plants cul- 
 tivated as "flowers," many of those which are 
 found in English gardens, with the exception of 
 the spring flowers, will grow in Indian gardens 
 in the cold weather: especially such as require 
 the high summer temperature to bring them to 
 perfection, as many plants, common in Indian 
 gardens, are to be seen in the heighth of the 
 summer in those of England. Many of the late 
 introductions, therefore, from South America and 
 California, would be desirable in India and likely 
 to succeed, especially as the Botanic Gardens of 
 Calcutta and Saharunpore, separated by one 
 thousand miles of intervening country, allow of 
 experiments being made in almost the extreme 
 points of the Bengal Presidency. Fruit trees 
 have frequently been introduced from Liverpool, 
 by the Horticultural Society of India, though 
 the climate of the lower provinces is not well 
 
APPENDIX. 423 
 
 suited for them ; but if plants can be conveyed 
 safe to the hills, grafts to any extent might be 
 distributed to the gardens in the plains. 
 
 But if it be desired to introduce plants which 
 may be permanently useful, it is requisite to 
 attend more particularly to the climate of the 
 countries where the plants are indigenous, as 
 well as to that of the different parts of India ; for 
 there is no doubt that, by a little care, we may 
 find something analogous to whatever may be 
 required. 
 
 Bengal, though just beyond theTropics may be 
 considered as, in a great measure, participating in 
 a tropical climate ; as there is considerable uni- 
 formity of temperature and of moisture through- 
 out the year, and the cold of winter is never so 
 considerable as to kill many of the tropical produc- 
 tions of the vegetable kingdom. Here, therefore, 
 may be most fitly introduced many of the pro- 
 ductions which form the riches of the Indian 
 Archipelago, though parts of the Indian and 
 Malayan Peninsulas are better suited for the 
 subsequent cultivation. Many also of the plants 
 of Brazil, of the northern parts of South America, 
 as well as of the West Indies, would succeed well 
 in Bengal and most parts of India. Indeed many 
 have already been introduced by means of the 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden, and are distributing 
 throughout the country, as the Log-wood, and 
 Mahogany, Coco, Arrow Root, Avocado Pear, 
 Pimento, Annotto. Others, previously introduced. 
 
424 APPENDIX. 
 
 are common in every part of India, as the Pine- 
 apple, Guava, Papaya, Capsicum, and Tobacco. 
 The success attending these is our best guarantee 
 for that which may attend all subsequent en- 
 deavours. 
 
 The Cotton and Tobacco of America, it is well 
 known, are far superior in quality to that produced 
 in India, and even the Rice of the former brings 
 double the price of that from the latter country. 
 The Company have for some time adopted mea- 
 sures for importing Cotton and Tobacco Seed 
 from America into India ; but with Rice, it seems 
 worthy of inquiry whether it be owing to in- 
 feriority of production, or to badness of selection, 
 that so indifferent an article is sent to England. 
 So impressed was a Liverpool merchant of the 
 benelit likely to attend an improvement in the 
 Rice imported into England from India, that he 
 actually sent some bags of American Rice to his 
 correspondents in Calcutta, which in cleaning had 
 been deprived of the embryo, as well as of the 
 husk, and of which consequently there was as 
 little possibility of vegetating as of kiln-dried 
 hops, which have likewise been sent to India by 
 practical people. The Pernambuco Cotton seems 
 particularly desirable, asKoster, in his account of 
 Brazil, states that it improves in quality the far- 
 ther the cultivation recedes from the sea. The 
 Martaban and Persian Tobaccos are of so superior 
 a quality, that it seems as advisable to attempt 
 their extended cultivation, as the introduction of 
 
APPENDIX. 425 
 
 the seed of the tobacco of the Havannah or of the 
 Caraccas. 
 
 Among the plants which appear worthy of in- 
 troduction from America into India, the Cinchonas 
 are particularly desirable, and would, no doubt, 
 succeed on the Neilgheries ; the different kinds 
 of Ipecacua?iha, as Cephaelis Ipecacuanha afford- 
 ing the best, and Pyschotria emetica and her- 
 bacea, Richardsonia brasiliensis, rosea, and sea- 
 bra, which give inferior kinds ; Sarsaparilla, 
 Jalap^ Quassia, Guaiacum, Cusparia, Cascarilla ; 
 Copaifera yielding Balsam of Copaiba ; Balsams 
 of Tolu and Peru Trees ; Polygala Senega, Kra- 
 meria triandra ; Coutarea speciosa, a substitute for 
 Peruvian Bark, and Baccharis genistelloides is 
 another ; Dipterix odorata yielding the Tonquin 
 Bean ; Brazil Wood, Caesalpinia braziliensis ; 
 Rosewood, Jacaranda ovalifolia; Hevea guia- 
 nensis yielding Caoutchouc, as well as the Lobelia 
 yielding the same substance ; Schinus molle ; 
 Gum elemi tree ; BerthoUetia excelsa, or Brazil 
 nut tree, are all worthy of introduction, as well 
 as others — as the Cabbage Palm ; Araucaria im- 
 bricata; Orchideae, and among them the Vanilla; 
 Passion Flowers and Fuchsias, as ornamental 
 plants; Ilex Paraguensis, affording the Mate Tea, 
 might also be introduced, and from the East of 
 Africa the Calumba plant and Telfairia volubilis. 
 
 The northern, or rather the north-western, pro- 
 vinces of India, are hot and parched up during 
 the hot weather months, but water is always near 
 
426 APPENDIX. 
 
 the surface. In the rainy season a great equa- 
 bility of temperature, owing to the moisture, is 
 produced all over India, so that in the northern 
 as in the southern parts. Rice is cultivated with 
 the other tropical grains. But in the winter the 
 cold is so considerable, that the thermometer 
 frequently falls below the freezing point ; but the 
 general fall and rise are so gradual, as to allow 
 of five months of very fine weather, during which 
 wheat and barley are cultivated in the fields, and 
 European kitchen-garden vegetables in gardens, 
 while the natural vegetation approximates in 
 many respects to that which characterizes what 
 is called the Oriental Region. 
 
 Here it would be advisable to introduce, for 
 the sake of experiment, superior kinds oi wheat 
 and barley y to see if they be more productive 
 than those at present cultivated in the north of 
 India. Flax also, which is only cultivated as an 
 oil seed, might afford fibre for rope-making, if 
 cultivated from Europe seed. The Persian To- 
 bacco might here find a suitable locality as well 
 as that from Latakia. Some of the central parts, 
 as Malwa, and some of the northern, appear 
 also the best suited for the cultivation of cotton. 
 Many of the CruciferaB are cultivated as oil seeds ; 
 it is worthy of experiment whether those culti- 
 vated in Europe for the same purpose, as Brassica 
 napus and campestris, are more productive than 
 the Indian species. Black and tvhite Mustard 
 might, without doubt, be successfully cultivated, 
 
APPENDIX. 427 
 
 if introduced. Vines of a superior kind would be 
 a great acquisition in northern India, and at the 
 foot of the hills the Hop would succeed. The 
 Caroh tree is particularly desirable. The Oliver 
 there is great probability, would succeed, as 
 also the Cork-ivee, with the Ilex, Kermes, Dyers 
 and Barbary Oaks. The Laurel and Siveet Bay^ 
 Manna Ashy Pistachio^ Mastich, and Venice 
 Turpentine-trees ; the species of Cistus yielding 
 ladanum. Styrax officinalis yielding Storax ; the 
 species of Astragalus affording tragacanth. Su- 
 mach, Savine, Scammony, and Colocynth, might 
 all be grown, as well as in the cold weather 
 some of the drugs of colder climates, as Fox- 
 glove, Belladonna, Hemlock, and many others. 
 The Caper Bush and Prickly Pear would un- 
 doubtedly thrive. With these also some Afri- 
 can plants, as Zizyphus Lotus ; Dragon s Blood 
 Tree ; Acacia vera, nilotica and Seyal ; and from 
 Persia, Gum Ammoniac and Galbanutn, with the 
 Myrrh from Arabia. As India also stretches 
 nearly as far north, as Africa and New Holland 
 do south, we might also grow in northern In- 
 dia, the Heaths, Proteas, Mesembryanthemums, 
 Aloes and Diosmas of the Cape, with the Euca- 
 lypti of New Holland. It would be unreason- 
 able to expect success with all, but the reasons 
 for calculating on it are so strong, that there is 
 no doubt it might be insured for many, and the 
 situation of the Saharunpore Botanic Garden in 
 
28 APPENDIX. 
 
 S0° of N. latitude, enables experiments to be 
 made with facility and with cheapness. 
 
 The Hill Provinces, with the exception of 
 being under the influence of the rains, have the 
 climate and seasons of European countries, and 
 as they have the vegetation, they might cultivate 
 all their useful and ornamental products, with 
 the exception of such fruits as require a long 
 summer for coming to maturity. 
 
 Here, as Wheat and Barley are cultivated, ex- 
 periments might be made with Wheat, Barley, 
 JBere, Bigg,Oats and Rye. Fruit trees introduced 
 for affording grafts for the plains, as Apples, 
 Pears, Plums, Nectarines, Apricots, Cherries, 
 Cranberries, and Bilberries, might be introduced* 
 The Spanish Chesnut and Sugar Maple. Ame- 
 rican and European Oaks and Pines of superior 
 kinds, as well as the Beech, Ash, and Lime-tree. 
 American Magnolias and the Tulip tree ; Drimys 
 Winteri, Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Kalmias, 
 Heaths and the Strawberry tree, would all thrive, 
 and the Hop might be successfully cultivated in 
 the vallies and in the mountains, and would be a 
 desirable acquisition as they have begun to brew 
 beer. Hemp grows wild, and is abundant, both in 
 the plains of Northern India and in the hills, but 
 it has never been employed for rope-making, 
 though experiments have been made to find a 
 substitute for it. 
 
429 
 
 ON THE TRANSMISSION OF SEEDS TO AND 
 FROM INDIA. 
 
 I<ETTER* FROM PROFESSOR LINDLEY TO J. C. MELVILIij ESQ. 
 
 Horticultural Society of London, Jan. 16, 1839. 
 
 Sir, — With reference to your letter of the 20th 
 ult., and my acknowledgment of it of the 22d, I 
 beg now to state that 1 have very carefully ex- 
 amined the seeds which have been received by 
 the Honourable Court of Directors by the over- 
 land conveyance from Bombay, and that I shall 
 with pleasure undertake the duty of distributing 
 them, provided the Court approves of the manner 
 in which I propose to do it. 
 
 The collection in question consists of about 
 fifty packets of various sizes, containing seeds of 
 plants inhabiting the hot plains of India : a part 
 of these are species of no importance whatever, 
 viz. Bixa Orellana, Amaranthus, Lantana, Gyp- 
 sophila perfoliata, Stachytarpheta mutabilis ; a 
 few are Medicinal plants, viz. Butea frondosa. 
 Cassia fistula, Cinchona excelsa. Mimosa Arabica, 
 Swietenia febrifuga, Sterculia urens, Mimosa Ca- 
 techu. The remainder, with the exception of a 
 bag of seeds of the Teak, are hot-house plants, 
 of no known use, but some of which are objects 
 of ornament, and all of which have, I believe, 
 been long since introduced from India to the 
 
 * Published in the Proceedings of the Agricultural and 
 Horticultural Society of India, 12th June 1839. 
 
430 APPENDIX. 
 
 gardens of this country. The whole appear to 
 be in good condition. The quantity of each kind 
 of seed is generally small, and in some instances 
 will not bear to be divided : in others there is 
 sufficient for several persons. But as there is little 
 in the collection sufficiently rare or curious to 
 interest those private individuals who are culti- 
 vators of stove plants for the sake of their beauty, 
 it does not appear to me desirable to offer them 
 to any except Public Botanical Institutions. I 
 would therefore advise the Honourable Court to 
 direct the distribution to be made as follows : 
 
 The seed of medicinal plants to the garden of 
 the Society of Apothecaries of Chelsea: 
 
 Duplicates of the foregoing, where any can be 
 divided, and the remainder of the collection, to be 
 sent to the Botanic Gardens of Kew, Edinburgh, 
 Glasgow, Cambridge, and Oxford. After these in- 
 stitutions have been supplied, there will still re- 
 main a small quantity of several kinds. Those 
 might be useful in some of the British Colonies in 
 the West Indies ; and as a society has lately been 
 established in the Bermudas, for the express pur- 
 pose of improving the resources of those islands, 
 it might be adviseable to place them in the hands 
 of Lieut. Colonel Reid, of the Royal Engineers, 
 who is now about to proceed to the Bermudas as 
 Governor. In the event of a further surplus, a 
 small supply might be forwarded to the Bahamas, 
 where the Government is also anxious to obtain 
 the plants of other countries. 
 
APPENDIX. 431 
 
 It will be obvious from the statement already 
 made, that no part of the present collection is of 
 that decree of importance which could justify my 
 recommending to the Honourable Court a further 
 despatch of such seeds by the overland convey- 
 ance to this country. It appears to me, that the 
 introduction of plants which are mere objects of 
 curiosity, or only useful in distant colonies, should 
 be left to the ordinary and private modes of com- 
 munication, unless they are made a subject of 
 special requisition. And as the species found in 
 the tropical climates of India are all of this de- 
 scription, the general rule might be adopted of 
 excluding all such plants from the overland de- 
 spatch. There is no hope of their being natural- 
 ized , or made in any way to conduce to public 
 advantage in this country, for they are without 
 exception uncultivatable, except in hot-houses. 
 It is the more desirable to limit the supplies of 
 seeds from India, to those which come from the 
 cold provinces, because in those districts there is 
 a great abundance of species, the introduction of 
 which is an object of national importance. The 
 similarity of the climate of Great Britain, and 
 of many parts of the Himalayas, is well known, 
 and has been very particularly illustrated by Pro- 
 fessor Royle, late Superintendent of the Honour- 
 able Company's Botanic Garden, at Saharunpore, 
 in the " Illustrations of the Botany of the Hima- 
 laya Mountains;" and consequently it has always 
 been expected that the noble vegetation of the 
 North of India might be successfully transfer- 
 
432 APPENDIX. 
 
 red to this country. That this opinion was well 
 grounded has lately been proved by the effects of 
 the severe winter, 1837-38, when a large propor- 
 tion of all the Himalayan trees, and other plants 
 now in this country, exposed suddenly and under 
 very unfavourable circumstances to a temperature 
 of from 4 J to 12J Fahr. resisted the intensity of 
 the frost as well as our native species. The Deo- 
 dar, and other Himalayan Coniferous plants, in 
 particular, are evidently as hardy as the Larch, 
 and the Spruce Firs ; 1 would therefore advise 
 that the authorities in India be directed to confine 
 themselves to the transmission by the overland 
 despatch, of the ornamental and useful trees and 
 other plants inhabiting the districts in which the 
 climate resembles that of England. si I »Li 
 
 It is difficult at this distance to define with any 
 precision the limits of such districts, but perhaps 
 a good, and certainly a very simple, guide may be 
 found in the Coniferous tribe, of the habits of all, 
 which we have sufficient information. The Deodar 
 Cedar is hardy, the Pinus longifolia not. It there- 
 fore might be directed, that all those districts in 
 which the Deodar* occurs, or which have a colder 
 climate, should generally furnish the supplies to 
 be forwarded by the overland conveyance, that 
 the species belonging to the Pinus longifolia re- 
 gions should be either excluded, or at least form 
 a subordinate object, and that all plants from yet 
 warmer districts should be entirely excluded. 
 
 * Dr. Falconer suggests the region of Oaks. 
 
APPENDIX. 433 
 
 In the Deodar region and colder localities are 
 numerous species of Birch, Alder, Chesnut, Pyrus, 
 Sycamore, Oak, &c. &c., valuable as timber trees; 
 and a profusion of herbaceous plants, and bushes 
 of striking beauty. Of course, there is also an 
 abundance of plants of no beauty, nor any 
 known use, all which should be omitted, as 
 they are only interesting to systematical botanists, 
 who may be safely left to discover for themselves 
 the best method of procuring them. It is unne- 
 cessary to give any more precise direction than 
 this, except in the following cases : — ^The Pran- 
 gos Hay Plant, which furnishes valuable food for 
 sheep in cold and barren situations, should be a 
 special object of importation. The Rhubarbs 
 called Rheum Webbianum, spicatum and Moor- 
 croftianum, are also much wanted ; and it is most 
 desirable that constant supplies should be for- 
 warded of the seed of the Deodar Cedar, of the 
 Khutrow and Pindrow firs, and of the Neoza 
 Pine; none of which can be expected to bear 
 cones in this country for a great many years, and 
 which must therefore remain confined to the pos- 
 session of a few persons, unless supplies of seeds 
 are forwarded in abundance from their native 
 places. The nurserymen contrive, indeed, to 
 multiply such species by grafting ; but the plants 
 so procured will probably be shortlived, and are 
 not suited to the purpose of forming woods. 
 
 With regard to the Seeds which can be trans- 
 mitted with the best hopes of success from Eng- 
 
 2 F 
 
434 APPENDIX. 
 
 land to India, for distribution to public officers 
 and other residents in the Himalayan range of 
 Mountains, it is impossible for one who is per- 
 sonally unacquainted with the country to advise 
 the Honourable Company with so much confi- 
 dence as another person might, who has himself 
 resided in the provinces referred to ; I would 
 therefore take the liberty of suggesting to the 
 Honourable Court the propriety of obtaining a 
 report upon the subject from Professor Royle, 
 who was so long in the Himalayas, and who must 
 be intimately acquainted with the wants and 
 v^ishes of the residents there. In the mean while, 
 as the Governor-General has been pleased to do 
 me the honour of signifying his wish that I should 
 be consulted upon the subject, 1 beg leave to 
 lay before the Court the following general Me- 
 moranda. 
 
 There can be no doubt that the fine varieties of 
 European fruit trees of all descriptions are de- 
 sirable objects of export ; but the varieties can- 
 not be propagated with certainty by seeds, and as 
 trees are too bulky for the overland route, it is 
 necessary to ascertain whether cuttings will travel 
 with any prospect of success. This experiment 
 is now in course of trial, a packet of small Goose- 
 berry, Currant, and Raspberry plants having been 
 sent some weeks since to Simla at the particu- 
 lar desire of Lord Auckland, and the overland 
 route having been used by permission of the 
 Riffht Honourable the President of the Board of 
 
APPENDIX. 435 
 
 Commissioners for the Affairs of India. Should 
 this experiment have, as I expect it will, a good 
 result, there will then be no doubt that all our 
 European fruit trees may be readily conveyed to 
 the Himalaya Mountains. But it will be pre- 
 viously necessary that the Saharunpore Garden 
 should be provided with stocks on which to bud 
 or graft them ; if such stocks do not already 
 exist there, they should be provided : the wild 
 pears, plums, quinces, and crabs, of the country, 
 will answer this purpose, as well as those of 
 Europe. 
 
 European Vegetable seeds are, in general, ob- 
 jects of importance in India, where many of the 
 races soon degenerate ; but they would probably 
 be thought too bulky for an overland despatch, 
 except in a few cases. 
 
 England can, I fear, contribute in no great 
 degree to the introduction of other plants to 
 India, unless it were thought advantageous to 
 procure our forest trees and natural shrubs — 
 what seem the most desirable are those which 
 inhabit countries warmer than our own, and which 
 are too impatient of a Northern winter to pro- 
 duce seeds with us. In order to procure them, it 
 would be necessary to communicate specially 
 with persons stationed in many different places ; 
 perhaps the British Consular Agents could be 
 employed for the purpose. Supposing that the 
 Honourable Court thought fit to take such mea- 
 sures, it is difficult to estimate too highly the 
 
 2 f2 
 
436 APPENDIX. 
 
 advantages that would accrue to the Natives of 
 India. Among the plants of which seeds should 
 be procured, I would particularly name the fol- 
 lowing : h 
 The Carob tree, Ceratonia Siliqua, a native 
 of Syria, and the hottest parts of the South of 
 Europe. This forms a large tree, which bears in 
 abundance pods filled with a nutritious sub- 
 stance. It is tenacious of life in a singular de- 
 gree, and seeks its nourishment far from the 
 surface of the ground, on which account it suffers 
 little from the long continuance of drought. The 
 pods are a common article of food in the countries 
 where the tree is found, and are by some supposed 
 to be the " locusts " on which St. John fed in the 
 Wilderness; they are sometimes sold in the 
 fruiterers' shops of London. During the Penin- 
 sular War the pods were found of great value as 
 food for Cavalry horses, and I entertain no doubt 
 that if the tree could be extensively introduced 
 into the drier parts of Northern India, it would 
 render the famines we read of almost impossible. 
 Seeds of this might be obtained conveniently in 
 Egypt. 
 
 From the same country at the same time the 
 Egyptian wheat, which succeeds in dry and sterile 
 soil, and the Cassia acutifolia or Alexandrian 
 Senna, might be procured. 
 
 Scammony is a drug which is consumed in large 
 quantities in medicine. All that comes to the 
 market is obtained from Smyrna and Aleppo and 
 
APPENDIX. 4^7 
 
 is so much adulterated as to be materially dimi- 
 nished in value ; seeds of this plant could be pro- 
 cured from either place, along with the seeds of 
 the valuable tobacco of Latakia. 
 
 Colonel Chesney found at Suvadia, at the 
 mouth of the Orontes, Silk Mulberries of a finer 
 quality than any which he had seen elsewhere; 
 these could be easily procured. Cotton seeds 
 should be procured from every country where the 
 cotton of the West is of superior quality. Botan- 
 ists know that the varieties of this plant are ex- 
 tremely numerous ; and it is hardly to be doubted 
 that, however great the influence of climate may 
 be upon the quality of this substance, special pe- 
 culiarities in particular varieties are also deserving 
 of the most careful investigation. The Honour- 
 able Company's Botanical officers in India have, 
 I presume, already made numerous reports of 
 their experiments upon this subject ; but still it is 
 one of such great commercial importance, that 
 further investigation is most desirable on an ex- 
 tensive and varied scale. 
 
 The Olive, for which there is not a sufficient 
 substitute in India, must be obtained from the 
 Olive districts of Italv, rather than from those of 
 Spain. 
 
 From North America the Magnoliaceous plants 
 are well worth introduction, not only for their 
 beauty, but because of their medicinal import- 
 ance. The same part of the world might be made 
 to supply the Hickories, Black Walnuts, and 
 
438 APPENDIX. 
 
 other valuable Forest Trees, and most especially 
 the seeds of Acer saccharinum or Sugar Maple, 
 the sugar of which is of good quality, and which 
 Dr. Royle thinks "might be a valuable gift to the 
 people of the hills, who are too poor to buy sugar." 
 These and all other North American seeds should 
 be bought at New York as early in the season as 
 possible, and forwarded by a steamer. Upon their 
 arrival in England they should be opened and 
 carefully repacked according to their several na- 
 tures, and immediately afterwards dispatched to 
 India. Such precautions are necessary, because 
 in most cases the seeds of North American trees 
 retain their vegetating principle for but a short 
 time, and die very early as well as quickly. 
 
 With regard to the introduction to India of 
 American and African Medicinal Plants, it would 
 be necessary to make a special report upon that 
 subject, in case the Honourable Court should be 
 of opinion that it deserves to be considered ; and 
 it would embrace a large range of details, which 
 some of the officers of the Company will readily 
 furnish. 
 
 I believe I have nothing further to add, except 
 that from the great extent of the British posses- 
 sions in India, and the infinite modifications and 
 combinations of soil and climate to be found within 
 them, there can be no doubt whatever that al- 
 most every production of every climate, except the 
 Arctic, may be so completely naturalized, that 
 where they are of any importance as objects of 
 
APPENDIX. 439 
 
 cultivation, they may be brought to all the per- 
 fection of which they are susceptible in other 
 countries, provided proper skill and care are 
 shown in the selection of their situations. 
 
 I have the honour to be, Sir, 
 
 Your very obedient servant, 
 (Signed) John Lindley, Vice Sec. 
 
 Letter from Professor Royle, 
 
 To J. C. Melvill, Esq., Secretary to the Honourable the Court 
 of Directors of the East-India Company. 
 
 Sir, — In acknowledging the receipt of your 
 letter of the 20th ultimo, informing me that the 
 Governor General of India, with a view to tlie 
 introduction of the " useful and ornamental plants 
 of England into India," had suggested to the 
 Honourable the Court of Directors the propriety 
 of my being consulted on the subject, allow me 
 to express my gratification at the honour that has 
 been done me. The subject is one upon which 
 I have frequently expressed and published my 
 opinions, and feel well assured that great benefit 
 would accrue to India by the judicious introduc- 
 tion into it of the various useful plants, and even 
 animals of different countries, which are suited to 
 its various climates and wide-spread territories. 
 
 Engaged as is the Committee of Commerce 
 and Agriculture of the Royal Asiatic Society in 
 making some of the Natural Products of India 
 
440 APPENDIX. 
 
 known to the manufacturers of Europe, it will be 
 highly gratifying to those interested in the pros- 
 perity of India to know, that the other great 
 branch of the subject included in the attempt to 
 improve the resources of India is to be prosecuted 
 under the auspices of the Honourable the Court 
 of Directors and of the Governor General of 
 India. With the necessary attention to principles 
 as well as to details, success in a great variety of 
 instances is as certain, as will be the eventual 
 benefit, and the expence need be but small with 
 two such establishments as the Honourable 
 Company's Botanic Gardens at Calcutta and 
 Saharunpore, situated at opposite extremities of 
 the Great Gangetic Plains, with one thousand 
 miles of intervening territory, and with consider- 
 able difference of climate. 
 
 The subject is not a new one, though it does 
 not appear in recent times to have been prosecuted 
 with the zeal it merits. But numerous useful 
 Plants have been introduced into India by the 
 Calcutta Botanic Garden, and others by that at 
 Saharunpore. More might have been introduced 
 into the former from the new world, had there 
 been more frequent direct communication with 
 different parts of South America, Africa and the 
 West Indies. The Northern Garden might have 
 acclimated many South of Europe and North 
 American plants, had it not been remote, both 
 from Calcutta and Bombay. 
 
 But as different ages of the world have been 
 
APPENDIX. 441 
 
 memorable for the different routes of commerce, 
 as well as for the interchange of the useful plants 
 of different countries, so may the present time be 
 distinguished by the more numerous introduction 
 into India of useful plants, in consequence of the 
 facilities afforded by Steam Navigation. The 
 Romans, we know, introduced into Europe many 
 of our fruit trees from Armenia and Persia, as 
 the Peach, Apricot, Nectarine, Quince, Cherry, 
 &c., while the Turks introduced plants into Con- 
 stantinople,- which thence spread over Europe, 
 as the Lombardy Poplar, Thorn Apple, Hyacinth 
 and others — so the discovery of America, and of 
 the passage round the Cape of Good Hope, intro- 
 duced into India many of the productions of the 
 new world, as the Tobacco, Capsicum, Indian 
 Corn, and more recently the Potato, now all so 
 universally diffused, together with such fruits as 
 the Custard and Pine Apples, Guava and Papaya. 
 But few plants have been introduced from the 
 North into India. The Peach and Pomegranate 
 must, no doubt, however, have travelled South, 
 as probably did also the Poppy, now so extensive 
 an object of culture in the cold season of India. 
 In the North of India, therefore, much may be 
 done, and here Steam Navigation proceeding from 
 the South of Europe to Bombay, and thence over- 
 land for seeds, or up the Indus for plants, affords 
 every desirable facility. 
 
 I, therefore, confine myself in the following 
 observations to "the introduction into India of 
 
442 APPENDIX. 
 
 the useful and ornamental plants of England," 
 begging leave, however, to substitute Europe for 
 the latter, and to include in my summary some of 
 the plants of North America. On account, how- 
 ever, of the peculiarity of the climate of the North 
 of India, it is hardly possible to mention these 
 without some notice of the Tropical plants which 
 may be, and are, cultivated with them. 
 
 The Southern Provinces of India, including 
 Bengal, and the Lower Provinces, with much of 
 the Peninsula, being of a tropical nature in cli- 
 mate, with little cold weather, are chiefly suited 
 for the cultivation of the plants, whether annuals 
 or perennials, of the intra-tropical islands, and of 
 the warm parts of America and Africa. As the 
 tropic-like rainy season, however, extends over all 
 India, its peculiarities of a tropical climate, heat 
 and moisture, with considerable uniformity of both, 
 prevail over a great extent of territory for a few 
 months in the year; and, therefore, in the most 
 Northern parts we have the cultivation of Rice, 
 Sorghum, Indian Corn, and other tropical grains, 
 in the very same fields where in the cold weather 
 months we have Wheat and Barley, with Peas 
 and Beans. This double climate and double cul- 
 ture it is necessary to notice, in order to have a 
 complete view of the nature of the country and 
 climate of Northern India. 
 
 The mean temperature of the year at Saha- 
 runpore, in 30° of N. latitude, is about 73°; and 
 of the months of Jan. 52*, Feb. 56*, March (37°, 
 
APPENDIX. 443 
 
 April 78°, May 85^ June90\ July 85°, Aug. 83^ 
 Sept. 79°, Oct. 74°, Nov. 64°, and Dec. 55°. From 
 the middle of October to the middle of April, the 
 various useful and ornamental plants of European 
 climates may be successfully cultivated. The mi- 
 nimum of temperature has been 25° Fahr. in Ja- 
 nuary, and the maximum 105° in June. 
 
 The nursery which I established at Mussooree 
 in the Himalayas, at 6,500 feet of elevation, though 
 fifty miles distant, is very convenient for the in- 
 troduction of European plants. Mussooree has 
 a minimum of only 27°, and a maximum of 80° of 
 Fahr., showing that the equability is greater than 
 in the neighbouring plains. The mean tempera- 
 ture is about 57°, and of the months of Jan. 42°, 
 Feb. 45°, March 53% April 5J>°, May 66°, June 
 67°, July 67°, Aug. 66°, Sept. 64°, Oct. 57°, Nov. 
 50°, Dec. 45°. 
 
 The season for cultivation in the Mussooree 
 climate is from March to October ; but between 
 the Saharunpore Garden and Mussooree Nursery, 
 a complete year of moderate climate may be ob- 
 tained for the germination of seeds of temperate 
 climates, as the mean temperature of the several 
 months is, at Saharunpore, in Nov. 64°, Dec. 55°, 
 Jan. 52°, Feb. 55°, March 57°; and at Mussooree, 
 in April 59°, May 66°, June 67°, July 67°, Aug. 
 66°, Sept. 64°, Oct. 57°. 
 
 The climate having been proved favoui-able,little 
 difficulty will be experienced with the soil or 
 with the irrigation, as far as the experiments are 
 
444 APPENDIX. 
 
 concerned. The subsequent distribution of plants 
 which have succeeded in the Depot Gardens must 
 be determined by various circumstances; but the 
 first should only be sent to favourable localities, 
 as failure is apt to discourage further attempts. 
 
 The next and principal subject of attention, for 
 which the preceding observations are only prepa- 
 ratory, is the kind of plants best suited to the 
 Northern parts of India, and the Himalaya moun- 
 tains. Here we must be guided not only by the 
 nature of the plants with respect to vicissitudes 
 of temperature, but also their usefulness — their 
 annual or perennial nature, and in noticing the 
 climate into which we wish to introduce them, 
 take care to compare it with that from which they 
 are to be introduced. The plants to be introduced 
 may be considered with respect to their useful- 
 ness, or to their fitness for different kinds of cli- 
 mate. In the former case, we should arrange them 
 under the heads of Food for the inhabitants, or 
 Fodder for their Cattle ; such as are likely to be 
 useful in any of the ordinary arts of life, or those 
 which may afibrd products likely to become ar- 
 ticles of commerce. Merely ornamental plants 
 should not be neglected, nor those remarkable for 
 their odour, as both gratify the senses, and oflfer 
 inducements to many to pay attention to garden- 
 ing, when other more useful plants are necessarily 
 introduced, and with little additional expense. 
 Fruit trees might appear to many as not included 
 among useful plants, but independent of their 
 
APPENDIX. 445 
 
 increasing the proportion of esculent matter in a 
 country, they might become sources of consider- 
 able commerce between the plains and mountains 
 of India, as is now the case with Cashmere. 
 
 There is another class of plants to which I paid 
 considei*able attention when in India, and which 
 form the chief objects of my present duties — 
 that is, Medicinal plants. I was first requested to 
 do so by the Medical Board of Bengal, and I cul- 
 tivated many articles which were pronounced, 
 after trial in the General Hospital at Calcutta, to 
 be of the best quality. Dr. Falconer, the present 
 able Superintendent of the Saharunpore Botanic 
 Garden, writes me that Extract of Henbane, 
 which I first cultivated and manufactured, still 
 continues to be supplied from the Saharunpore 
 Garden to the Hospital Dep6ts. In the same 
 situation, and in the Hill Nursery, many other 
 medicinal plants, now sent from this country, 
 might be successfully cultivated, and thus be 
 not only more cheaply produced, but also pre- 
 scribed in a fresher state. 
 
 Keeping these several objects in view, I have 
 thought it preferable for practical purposes, 
 that is, the operations of horticulture and the 
 selection of sites for the experiments, to arrange 
 those plants I have as yet been able to think of, 
 in three separate lists, according to the situation 
 for which they are suited. 
 
 1. Annuals fit for cultivation in the Plains of 
 
446 APPENDIX. 
 
 India in the cold weather and in the summer of 
 the Himalayas. 
 
 2. Perennials probably suited to the Plains of 
 North-west India. 
 
 3. Perennials suitable to the Himalayas. 
 Besides the plants mentioned in the respective 
 
 lists, I have long thought it a very interesting sub- 
 ject of inquiry to ascertain by experiment whether 
 the grains the people of India possess in common 
 with Europe are of an equal degree of goodness 
 and equally prolific, as for instance their Wheat, 
 Barley, Rape, Mustard seeds, &c. Some of the 
 plants which I have included in my lists are in- 
 tended to be useful for their products, which may 
 become objects of commerce; but this involves 
 another subject of inquiry, and that is, whether the 
 analogous substances which India naturally pos- 
 sesses are superior or inferior in quality to those 
 cultivated in other parts of the world. 
 
 It is probable that some of those enumerated 
 in the accompanying lists may not be suited to 
 the localities indicated, and a still greater number 
 that might be suited to them are, I am well aware, 
 entirely omitted. This has occurred from want 
 of time to give the subject the full consideration 
 it deserves ; but as the plan, to be successful to 
 any great degree, must necessarily be carried on 
 for a few years, I shall be happy to return to the 
 subject if required, and point out the plants 
 suited for cultivation in different parts of India. 
 
% 
 
 APPENDIX. 447 
 
 Though failure may attend some, I am well 
 satisfied that success will attend the majority of 
 instances, and feel the utmost confidence in 
 stating, that, if the subject of the Introduction of 
 Useful Plants suited to the different parts of 
 India be continued, and the Principles be not 
 neglected which should guide these attempts, very 
 beneficial results will in a few years be evident 
 to all. Also, that if this be combined with an 
 Investigation of and Publication to the Manufac- 
 turing world of the very varied Natural Products 
 of India; an increase of the Commerce and 
 Resources of that empire will ensue to an extent 
 anticipated by few, but of which, after long atten- 
 tion to the subject, I feel well assured and hope 
 to be able to prove to the sceptical. 
 
 I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obe- 
 dient humble servant, « 
 
 (Signed) J. Forbes Royle, M.D. 
 
 London, 31st Dec. 1838. 
 
448 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 LIST OF PLANTS, 
 
 SUITED FOR INTRODUCTION INTO DIFFERENT PARTS OF INDIA. 
 
 Annuals* Jit for Cultivalion in the Plains of India during the 
 cold Weather, and in the Himalayas during the Summer 
 Months. 
 
 Europe Corn Grasses 
 
 Vegetables 
 
 Sweet Herbs 
 
 Most Annuals of English 
 
 Flower Gardens 
 Wheat and Egyptian Wheat 
 Barley 
 Bere 
 Bigg 
 Oats 
 Rye 
 
 Buckwheat 
 
 Mustard, Black and White 
 Rape, Colza 
 Flax 
 
 Tobacco, Virginia 
 Havanna 
 
 Tobacco, Persian 
 
 Latakia 
 
 Peas, Beans 
 
 Vetches, Tares 
 
 Edible Lupin 
 
 Clover, Red and White 
 
 Lucern 
 
 Alexandrine Clover 
 
 Turnips, Carrots 
 
 Beet-root 
 
 Mangel Wurzel 
 
 Skirret, Parsnip 
 
 Carraway, Fennel 
 
 Dill, Parsley 
 
 Aniseed 
 
 Hemlock, Foxglove 
 
 Belladonna, &c. 
 
 • The Annuals suited to the rainy season of every part of the plains, and 
 even of some of the mountains of India, are already very numerous ; 
 consisting both of commercial articles, and of such as are fitted for food. 
 Among the former we have Indigo, Cotton, Sugar Cane and Tobacco, even 
 with Rice, Maize, Sorghum, several species of Phaseolus and Dolichos, 
 Paspalum, Panicum, Arum, Sesamum, Sun and Sunnee, and many others. 
 During this season Senna, &c. may be cultivated. Many introductions 
 may be made from the West Indies and South America of new plants, 
 or of varieties of the best kinds of those already cultivated in India. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 449 
 
 Perennials suited to the drier and more northern parts of India. 
 
 Liriodendron tulipifera 
 Capparis spinosa 
 Acacia vera 
 
 Verek 
 
 Seyal 
 
 Olive tree 
 
 Carob tree 
 
 Manna Ash 
 
 Laurel 
 
 Sweet Bay 
 
 Mastich tree 
 
 Chian Turpentine 
 
 Pistachio Nut tree 
 
 Myrrh tree 
 
 Sassafras tree 
 
 Sumach tree 
 
 Astragalus — yielding Traga- 
 
 canth 
 Cistus — yielding Laudanum 
 Styrax officinalis 
 Scammony 
 Cork tree 
 Oak Ilex 
 
 Kermes 
 
 Dyer's 
 
 Barbary 
 
 Quercus tinctoria 
 Quercus ^gilops 
 
 Quercus Ballota 
 Cactus opuntia 
 
 Tuna 
 
 cochenillifer 
 
 Morus alba 
 
 multicaulis 
 
 Savine 
 
 Juniper 
 
 New Zealand Flax 
 
 Poterium spinosum 
 
 Liquorice plant 
 
 Aloe soccotrina 
 
 Barbadensis 
 
 Euphorbia plant 
 
 Assafoetida 
 
 Galbanum 
 
 Ammoniacum 
 
 Sagapenum 
 
 Artemisia Abrotanum 
 
 - Sautonica 
 Phoenix dactylifera 
 Diosmae sp. 
 Eucalypti 
 Heaths 
 Proteas 
 
 Mesembryanthemums 
 Pelargoniums 
 
 Perennials suited to the Summer and able to withstand the cold 
 of the Himalayan Winter. 
 
 Almond, Peach Apple, Pear, Quince 
 
 Apricot, Nectarine Spanish Chesnut 
 
 Plum, Cherry Filberts, Hazle nut 
 
 2 G 
 
450 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Gooseberry, Currants 
 
 Raspberry 
 
 Rhubarb, all the kinds 
 
 Gentian, Jalap 
 
 Seneka 
 
 Juniper, Savine 
 
 Bilberries, Cranberries 
 
 Costus of the Ancients 
 
 Saffron 
 
 Europe and North America 
 
 Timber Trees 
 Sugar-Maple, Hickories, and 
 
 Black Walnuts 
 
 Oaks and Pines 
 Beech, Ash 
 Lime tree 
 
 American Magnolias 
 Tulip tree 
 Drimys Winteri 
 Rhododendrons, Azaleas 
 Kalmias, Heaths 
 Strawberry tree 
 Rhamnus infectoria 
 
 saxatilis, &c. 
 
 Lavender, Rosemary 
 
 Tropical Perennials suited to the Plains^ and some to the Moun- 
 tains, of the southern parts of India. 
 
 Coffee, Cacao 
 
 Pimento, Papaya 
 
 Nutmeg, Cloves 
 
 Cinnamon, Camphor 
 
 Cocculus palmatus 
 
 (Columba plant) 
 
 Telfairia volubilis 
 
 Pterocarpus erinaceus 
 
 (African Kino) 
 
 Elaeis guineensis (Oil Palm) 
 
 Bix aorellana (Annotto) 
 
 Persea gratissima 
 
 Maranta arundinacea 
 
 Canna coccinea 
 
 Copaifera, yielding Balsam of 
 
 Copaiba 
 Balsams of Peru and Tolu 
 
 trees 
 Krameria triandra 
 Coutarea speciosa 
 
 Arenga saccharifera (Gomuto) 
 Cabbage Palm 
 Ceroxylon andicola 
 Vanilla and Tropical Or- 
 
 chideae 
 Passion Flowers 
 Fuchsias 
 
 Ilex paraguayensis 
 Raphis vinifera 
 Sterculia acuminata 
 Sarcocephalus esculentus 
 Anona senegalensis 
 Chrysobalanus Icaco 
 Logwood, Mahogany 
 Nicaragua Wood 
 Quassia, Simaruba 
 Cinchonas, all the species 
 Cepheelis Ipecacuanha 
 Psychotria emetica 
 herbacea 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 451 
 
 Smilax officinalis 
 
 • medica, &c. 
 
 Guaiacum tree 
 
 Cusparia tree 
 
 Cascarilla plant 
 
 Croton Tiglium 
 
 Hymenaea Courbaril 
 
 Stillingia sebifera (Tallow 
 tree) 
 
 Elaeococca verrucosa (Oil 
 tree) 
 
 vemicia (Var- 
 nish tree) 
 
 Agave, species of 
 Sanseviera guineensis 
 Baccharis genistelloides 
 Dipterix odorata (Tonquin 
 
 Bean) 
 Csesalpinia braziliensis, &c. 
 
 (Brazil Wood) 
 Jacaranda ovalifolia 
 
 Wood) 
 Hevea guianensis 
 Schinus raolle 
 Bertholletia excelsa 
 
 (Brazil Nut tree) 
 
 (Rose 
 
 The foregoing lists having been referred to in the preceding 
 pages (p. 248 and 445), are published as memoranda, nearly, as 
 originally prepared. They might easily be rendered more 
 copious, by an examination of the notices of the useful plants 
 of different countries, but these are scattered, like the accounts 
 of those of India, in a variety of publications, some Botanical, 
 others INIedical. A few are found in the lists of the Commerce 
 of different countries, and others are mentioned by Travellers, 
 of whom, however, but few are copious and exact in the rela- 
 tions, like Humboldt, or Spix and Martius. The names, to be 
 fully useful to practical men, ought to be accompanied with a 
 short account of the nature and uses of the different plants, 
 their peculiar habits and culture, and the parts of India to 
 which they appear best suited. This, it is evident, would re- 
 quire much time, in fact, constitute a work of itself. By re- 
 ferring to the Index, most of them will be found in the ** Illus- 
 trations of Himalayan Botany," and generally with notices 
 respecting the parts of India to which they are suited. 
 
 THE END. 
 
Printed by J. L. Cox and Sons, 7^) Great Queen-street, 
 Lincoln's-Inn Fields. 
 
London, September, 1840. 
 
 WORKS RELATING TO INDIA, 
 
 PUBLISHED BT 
 
 \Vm. H. ALLEN AND CO., 
 
 7, LEADEXHALL-STREET. 
 
 1. 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE BOTANY AND OTHER BRANCHES 
 
 OF THK 
 
 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE HIMALAYAN 
 
 MOUNTAINS. 
 
 AMD or THE 
 
 By J. FORBES ROYI.E, M. D., V. P. R. S., F. Xi. S., 8e G. S., H. R. A. S., Ate. 
 
 Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics, King' s-CoUege. 
 
 JUi&D ^Domplcte, iDiti^ 13eatitifnIlQ=CoIorel) plates, 
 In Two Volumes, Imperial quarto, hd^ morocco, extra. Trice £11 lis. 
 
 *«* ANT OF THE PARTS MAT BE HAD SBPABATELT, TO COMPLETE SETS. 
 
 This "Work being now concluded, it is desirable to give a fuUer idea of its 
 contents than can be obtained from its title. The Himalayan Mountains, 
 forming the stupendous barrier between the dominions of the British and of 
 the Chinese, and having their south-western bases resting on the heated 
 plains of India, abound in all the forms of Animal and Vegetable Life, 
 characteristic of Tropical Countries in general, and of India in particular. 
 Their gradually-elevated slope, supporting vegetation at the greatest known 
 heights, aflFords, at intermediate elevations, £dl the varieties of temperature 
 adapted to forms, considered pecuhar to very different latitudes. A gradual 
 approach is thus observed to take place to the Animal and Vegetable forms 
 common in Europe, China, Japan, Siberia, and North America. 
 
 Dr. RoYLE, while Superintendant of the Honourable East India Company's 
 Botanic Garden at Saharunpore, within 30 miles of the Himalayas, had great 
 advantages in becoming acquainted with the Natural History and Products of 
 these Mountains. He made Meteorological Observations, collected Geological 
 Specimens, and skins of the Mammalia and Birds, together with Insects, and 
 about 4,000 species of Plants in the Plains of India, and in the Himalayas, as 
 far as Cashmere. Drawings were made of the most interesting of these by the 
 East India Company's Establishment of Painters. 
 
 To shew the connection between the different branches of Natural History, 
 and their dependance on the Physical Features, Soil,, and CUmate of the 
 Country, the work has been divided into t\^'0 Parts. The Introductory portion 
 treats, first, — of the Physical Geogkaphy of the Plains and Mountains of 
 
WORKS RELATING TO INDIA. 
 
 India, dwelling especially on the results of the Survej's of the Himalayas, 
 (of which a view from the vicinity of Almorah is given in the Frontis- 
 piece,) and the Travels of Messrs. Turner, Moorcroft, and the Gerards, 
 with notices of the elevations of the highest Peaks and Passes. This is 
 followed by a view of the Geological Features of the Plains and 
 Mountains, illustrated by a Plate of Sections, (in which the Author was 
 assisted by Mr. De La Beche,) and three plates of Fossil Plants and Animals, 
 containing 54 figures. The Meteorology is next treated of, and the climate 
 of the Tropics compared with that of the Plains and Mountains of India, 
 with tabular Views of the monthly and diurnal range of the Barometer and 
 Thermometer in the Plains of India. The characteristics of Himalayan 
 Climate, consisting of mildness, and equability of Temperature and of 
 Pressure, at such elevations as Simla and Mussooree, resorted to by Europeans 
 for the recovery of health, are then given. 
 
 The Physical Features, Soil, and Climate having been noticed, a general 
 view of the Geographical Distribution of the Plants and Animals which 
 these are calculated to support, is treated of in an Introductory Chapter, in con- 
 nection with the Cultivation at different seasons and at several elevations. 
 
 The Botany itself is arranged according to the Natural System, under the 
 heads of 207 families, illustrated by colored plates of 197 Plants. The 
 observations on each Family consist of a notice of its Geographical Distribution 
 in different parts of the world, an enumeration of the Genera and remarkable 
 species found either in the Plains and Hot Vallies, or in the Mountains of 
 India ; and the Vegetation natural to different parts of India is compared with 
 that of other countries enjoying similar climates. This plan was adopted, 
 as giving the most interesting and important general results, and as leading to 
 a just appreciation of the influence of Physical Agents on Vegetation, and as 
 elucidating those principles which require to be attended to in the Culture 
 both of new Plants, and of old Plants in new situations. It also afforded 
 great facilities in treating of the properties of Plants as connected with 
 structure, and for showing the immense resources of British India, and the 
 probable means of still further increasing them. 
 
 The subjects of Agricultural and Commercial importance which are 
 more fully treated of, are Tea, Cotton, and Tobacco ; and the probability of the 
 first being successfully grown in the Mountains, and the two latter in the Plains, 
 is shown by application to Practice of the principles of Science. Also Hemp, 
 Flax, and the Cordage Plants; and, among Medicines, the Cinchonas, Ipeca- 
 cuanha, Sarsaparilla, Senna, Rhubarb, and Henbane, with many others. As 
 articles of Culture and Commerce, various Timber trees. Gums, Resins, Caout- 
 chouc, Astringents. Dyes, Vegetable Oils, Fruit Trees, the Olive and Carob 
 Trees, Com and Pasture Grasses, Salep, Arrow-Root, and other articles of 
 diet, are pointed out. As subjects of Classical Interest elucidated, may be 
 noticed Lyciuin, Agallochum, or Eagle Wood, Calamus Aromaticus, and 
 Spikenard of the Ancients ; also their Costus, which is the Puchuk of Commerce. 
 
 In connection with the Climate and Vegetation, it is interesting to notice 
 the Animal Forms, and this has been done in two able papers, one on the 
 Entomology of India, and the Himalayas, by the Reverend F. W. Hope, 
 President of the Entomological Society, which is illustrated with two colored 
 plates of 20 insects, and the other on the Mammalogy of the Himalayas, 
 by W. Ogilby, Esq., Secretary of the Zoological Society ; this is illustrated 
 by a figure of Lagorays, (new species,) and also by two of Deer. A list of 
 the Birds in the Author's Collection is also appended, and two plates, one 
 of Birds of Tropical Forms found in the Himalayas in the rainy season, and 
 the other of Himalayan Birds of European forms are given. 
 
 As the work contains so much of detail as well as of General Views it would 
 have been comparatively useless M'ithout easy means of reference. This 
 has been supplied by an Analytical Table of Contents, and by Alphabetical 
 Indexes at the end of the book, extending to 34 pages ; also an Alphabetical 
 List of Plates for the Second Volume. 
 
PUBLISHED BY Wm. H. ALLEN AND CO. 
 
 NOTICES OF THE WORK. 
 
 " It is not too much to say of this very remarkable work, that it is indispen- 
 sable to all who would acquire a knowledge of the vegetation, climate, and soil of 
 the north of India." — Athenaum. 
 
 " This work unquestionably contains a greater amount of valuable practical 
 information upon useful matters than any work yet written upon the foreign posses- 
 sions of any other European power." — Dr. Lindtey in Botanical Regiiter. 
 
 " The observations respecting the geographical description of the Flora of Northern 
 India are very interesting ; and the work will be valuable in supplying a rich 
 mass of facts on' the Natural History, of a part of the world of which our know- 
 ledge has hitherto been very vague and partial." — Loudon*s Gardener's iSagazine. 
 
 " We may now congratulate the public on a great blank in the physical geography 
 of India being satisfaciorily filled up by the appearance of this important work. The 
 plates are remarkably good." — Asiatic Journal. 
 
 " A perusal of the very interesting letter-press, and a careful examination of the well- 
 engraved and beautifully-colored plates of Himalayan plants and animals fully realize 
 the very favorable opinion we expressed of Mr. Rotle's Illustrations, an opinion 
 founded on the well-known and highly-esteemed practical skill of our author as a 
 naturalist, and his activity and intelligence as a traveller." — Jameson's Edinburgh Philo- 
 sophical Journal. 
 
 " Replete with varied and important facts and inferences, no one can peruse this 
 work without advantage and great satisfaction. So perfect do we regard this work in all 
 its departments, that we are sensible of no desideratum, except that of the remaining 
 portion of it, which, we trust, will speedily be laid before the public. The plates are 
 very beautifully executed and colored."— London Medical Gazette, 
 
 "A more valuable contribution has rarely been made to the science of Natural 
 History than by the splendid work of Mr. J. Forbes Rotle. The work, in sbort, is 
 highly deserving of public patronage." — Times. 
 
 " Of this region, (the Himalayan) an invaluable account is given by Mr. Roy lb 
 in the above work, to which we are indebted for the principal part of our data regard- 
 ing the vegetation of India." — Penny Cyclopcedia. 
 
 " The constant attention which is paid in this work to useful matters, and the 
 skilful manner in which general views are made to bear upon particular cases of 
 practical value, render it of immense importance to all who have a stake in our 
 Indian possessions. We particularly refer to the articles on Cotton and Tea, both which 
 deserve the most serious attention of the Indian Government. The value of such 
 a work is scarcely to be appreciated." — Alhenaum, 1834. Second Notice. 
 
 " Such an authentic and almost official book, in express contribution to an ex- 
 tension of our information, must be welcome, must be valued, must be taken into 
 possession." — Loudon's Magazine of Natural History. 
 
 " We feel justified in pronouncing this to be by far the most valuable practical 
 work which has yet been published with reference to the vegetable resources of the 
 British territories in Asia; and the most calculated to show how the vegetable kingdom 
 is capable of extending our revenues in the most valuable part of our Colonial 
 possessions."— j4*ia/«c Journal. Second Notice. 
 
 " We rise from an attentive examination of this work, in doubt whether the botanical 
 knowledge which it displays and imparts, or the patriotic spirit which pervades it, 
 calls for the higher admiration. We are, however, certain that every Botanist who 
 desires to demonstrate what are the practical uses of his study, may appeal to it with 
 satisfaction, to shew its bearings upon the aflFairs of life; while the Merchant who is 
 interested in the produce of the East should patronize if, as contributing largely to 
 promote a just knowledge of the resources of that vast empire, the improvement of 
 which would materially increase the commercial greatness ot Britain and of India."— 
 London Medical Gazette. Second Notice. 
 
 " No one who would be acquainted either with the ornamental, the cultural, or 
 the medical qualities of the Indian Flora, can dispense with the possessioii of Da. 
 Royle's highly-valuable labours." — Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. 
 
 " Mr. Royle's work presents a most systematic and complete view of the Natural 
 
WORKS RELATING TO INDIA, 
 
 History of those Regions which, though the first that has been given to the world, will 
 probably long remain the best. Instead of being one to be prized by mere botanists or 
 geologists, it is likely to have the warmest admirers among the politico-economical class, 
 whose principal care is how to increase the " Wealth of Nations." Its contents are of 
 so generally-interesting a nature that it can hardly fail of obtaining a very extensive 
 share of popularity."— Mechanic'* Magazine. 
 
 " We highly recommend this publication to our readers, containing, as it does, 
 not only an ample store of information respecting the natural productions of the 
 Himalayas, but also the best general view of the physical features of those mag- 
 nificent mountains." — London and Edinburgh Philosophical Magazine and Journal of 
 Science. 
 
 " The work is chiefly addressed to the scientific naturalist, but contains much that 
 is also interesting to the more general student, as well as a vast number of interesting 
 statements regarding a most interesting portion of the globe." — Journal of the Royal 
 Geographical Society. 
 
 " This will be found to be one of the most scientific and comprehensive works of 
 the kind that has ever been published." — Arboretum, Britannicum. 
 
 " The text is rich in original details, as well as in elaborate scientific researches ; 
 and every thing bearing on the Materia Medica, whether as acknowledged in the 
 schools, or as existing only in the written dispensatories of the natives of the country, 
 is studiously noticed "—British and Foreign Medical Review. 
 
 " Dr. LiNDLEY, on the subject of Geography of Plants, after referring to the 
 works of Brown, Humboldt, De Candolle, and Schouw, refers his readers to 
 "Royle's most instructive Work on the Flora of Northern India, and of Cash- 
 mere." — Introduction to Botany. Second Edition, p. 523. 
 
 *' We strongly recommend this work, not only to botanists and horticulturists, but to 
 readers generally, as full of instructive matter, agreeably placed before them, on 
 subjects in which all are interested."— -Loudon's Gardener's Magazine. Second Notice. 
 
 By the same Author, 
 
 AN ESSAY 
 
 ANTIQUITY OF HINDOO MEDICINE ; 
 
 INCLUDING AN 
 
 Introductory Lecture co the Course of Materia Medica and Therapeutics, delivered at 
 King's-CoUege. 8vo. 6s. 6d. boards. 
 
 " This very curious volume has been already so fully noticed in the different literary 
 and medical journals, that we have only the agreeable duty of recommending it to the 
 notice of our general and medical leaders."— Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal. 
 
 '■ A work of immense research and erudition." — Medico Chirurgical Review. 
 
 " The existence, then, of a School of Medicine in Hindostan, prior to the age of 
 Dioscorides, or even of Hippocrates, to the extent of this portion of knowledge, (Materia 
 Medica,) becomes matter of demonstration. We cannot pretend to trace the variety of 
 proofs which Dr. Roylk produces to make out his case. For this purpose he ransacks 
 the history of Medicine, as it existed among the Persians, Arabs, and Greeks ; all of 
 whom he shews to have obtained much from the Hindoos, whose science, therefore, 
 must have been anterior to theirs. He brings, likewise, a number of facts, derived 
 from Hindoo literature, to shew not only the culture of Medicine, but of Philosophy, 
 the fine and useful arts, and Mathematics, at a very remote period. He further enters 
 into the details of early commerce, and brings together numerous proofs that the Egyp- 
 tians., Phcenicians, Jews, and Arabs, had constant communications with India. To detail 
 thts«, would be to quota the entire yo\\xvcLe."—Athena\m. 
 
PUBLISHED BY Wm. H. ALLEN AND CO. 
 
 2. 
 
 A VIEW OF THE EVIDENCE 
 
 Given before a Select Committee of the House of Commons, on a Petition from the 
 East India Company, praying for Relief to India in reference to unequal Duties and 
 other grievances ; with NOTES, containing portions of the Evidence given on the same 
 subjects before a Select Committee of the House of Lords. Royal 8vo. 
 
 3. 
 
 ACHEEN, AND THE PORTS on the NORTH and EAST 
 
 COASTS OF SUMATRA ; 
 
 With Incidental Notices of the Trade in the Eastern Seas, and the Aggressions 
 
 of the Dutch. 
 
 By JOHN ANDERSON, Esq. 
 
 Late of the Hon. East India Company's Civil Service at Penang, Singapore, & Malacca. 
 
 8vo. cloth boards, 7s. 6d. 
 
 4. 
 
 CHAPTERS OF THE 
 
 MODERN HISTORY of BRITISH INDIA. 
 
 By Edward Thornton, Esq. 
 Author of " India; its State and Prospects." 8vo. cloth boards, lettered. £1. Is. 
 
 "This Is a valuable work, the result of much knowledge and much thought, containing considerable 
 matter, and displaying throughout an animated, and so far as the gravity of the subject admits, a not 
 ungraceful style. The reflections of the Author are judicious, and his opinions upon men and events 
 unprejudiced and impartial." — Spectator. 
 
 " The book is full of solid information." — Examiner. 
 
 5. 
 TRAVELS IN WESTERN INDIA, 
 
 Embracing a Visit to the Sacred Mountains of the Jains; and the most cele- 
 brated Shrines of the Hindoo Faith, between Rajpootana and the Indus ; and an 
 account of the ancient City of Nehrwalla. 
 
 By the late Lieutenant-Colonel JAMES TOD, 
 
 Author of "The Annals of Rajast'han." Royal 4to. cloth. Price £3. 13s. 6d. 
 
 ♦^» This Work is embellished with Nine Plates and Vignettes, beautifully engraved 
 
 from Sketches by Mrs. Hunter Blair. 
 
 " A work which must be regarded as the most important, the most full, and the most interesting that 
 
 has ever appeared upon Western India." — Atlas. 
 
 " As a sequel to the ' Annals,' the present publication takes it place among the most valuable contribu- 
 tions to our knowledge of India." — Literary Gazette. 
 
 6. 
 
 The BUCHANAN PAPERS. 
 
 The HISTORY, ANTIQUITIES, TOPOGRAPHY, & STATISTICS OF 
 
 EASTERN INDIA; 
 
 Comprising the districts of Behar, Shahabad, Bhagulpore, Gorukpore, Dinajepore, 
 Pvraniya, Runypore, and Assam, in relation to their Geology, Mineralogy, Botany, 
 Agriculture, Commerce, &c. &c. Surveyed under the orders of the Supreme Govern- 
 ment, and collated from the original documents at the East India House, by MONT- 
 GOMERY MARTIN. Complete in 3 vols. 8vo. with numerous plates. £3. I2s. cloth 
 boards, lettered. 
 
 " This work is now concluded, and we can only repeat our previous opinion, that it is one of £he most 
 raluable additions to the literature of the present day." — Literary Ga%ette. 
 " The materials collected are of the most valuable kind." — Asiatic Journal. 
 " Mr. Maetin's industry deserves our warmest praise."— A^ora/ and Military GaxeUe. 
 
WORKS RELATING TO INDIA, 
 
 7. 
 
 BY AUTHORITY. 
 
 STATISTICS OF THE COLONIES of the BRITISH 
 EMPIRE, 
 
 In the West Indies, South America, North America, Asia, Australasia, Africa, 
 and Europe; from the official Records of the Colonial Office. 
 By MONTGOMERY MARTIN, 
 Author of the " History of the British Colonies," &c. &c. In one large vol. royal 8vo. ' 
 With Maps, Plans, &c. Price £2. 2s. cloth boards. 
 *»* A work of reference for the Statesman, Merchant, Emigrant, &c. 
 " It is a bock which no library ought to be without" — New MonlJily Magazine. 
 "This is, undoubtedly, one of the most valuable compilations of modern timei." — U. S. Journal. 
 " It is not only the most complete publication of its kind extant, but the most authentic." — Atlas. 
 " A more laborious, and at the same time essentially useful volume, has never come before u!i."-^Naval 
 and Military Gazette. 
 
 " It forms, in fact, a complete Colonial Encyclopaedia." — Argus. 
 
 8. 
 CONSIDERATIONS RESPECTING THE 
 
 TRADE WITH CHINA. 
 
 By JOSEPH THOMPSON, late of the East India House. Post 8vo. 5s. boards. 
 
 9. 
 
 NARRATIVE of the MARCH and OPERATIONS of the 
 
 ARMY OF THE INDUS, 
 
 From INDIA to CANDAHAR, GHUZNI, and CABOOL, in the years 1838 and 
 1839, to restore H. M. Shah Shooja ool Moolk to his Throne; with a copious Journal 
 of the Route, Thermometrical and other Tables, accompanied by Drawings and a Map. 
 
 By Major HOUGH, D. J, A. G. 
 
 Author of the " Military Case-Book," 1821 ; the " Practice of Courts-Martial," 1835 ; 
 
 " Practice of Courts-Martial and other Military Courts," 1834; "Improved 
 
 Articles of War," 1836; and " Military Law Authorities," 1839. 
 
 8vo. cloth. (Calcutta Printed.) 
 
 10. 
 MINUTES OF EVIDENCE and REPORTS 
 
 Taken before the Select Committees of both Houses of Parliament, previous to the 
 
 Renewal of the Company's Charter, in 1833, and the Opening of the 
 
 CHINA TRADE. 2 vols. 8vo. Price £2. 2s. boards. 
 
 11. 
 
 PLANT.^ JAVANICiE RARIORES, 
 
 PART II. — Containing Descriptions and Illustrations of some of the Plants dis- 
 covered in Java by Thomas Horsfield, M.D. The Descriptions have been prepared 
 chiefly by John J. Bennett, Esq. ; Remarks on the Structure and Affinities of most 
 of the subjects have been added by Robert Brown, Esq. Imperial 4to. Price £1. lOs., 
 or colored, £2. 10s. 
 
 Part I. may also be had. Price £2. 10s., or colored, £3. lOs. 
 
 12. 
 The EAST INDIA GAZETTEER; 
 
 Containing particular Descriptions of the Empires, Kingdoms, Principalities, 
 
 Provinces, Cities, &c. of Hindostan, and the adjacent Countries; 
 
 India beyond the Ganges, &c. 
 
 By the late WALTER HAMILTON. 2 vols. 8ro. £1. 12«. cloth boatde, l«ttcr«d. 
 
PUBLISHED BY Wu. H. ALLEN AND CO. 7' 
 
 13. 
 
 The rise and PROGRESS op 
 
 The BRITISH POWER in INDIA. 
 
 By PETER AUBER, M. R. A. S., late Secretary to the Hon. East India Company. 
 
 Complete in tvro large volumes, 8vo., price £2. 2s. cloth boards. 
 
 (A few copies on royal paper, price £3. 3s.) 
 
 " Tb9 work cannot fail to present matter of great interest to all, but especially to the Indian reader." — 
 
 Timet. 
 Also, by the same Author, 
 
 CHINA; 
 
 An Outline of its Government, Laws, and Policy, 
 
 And of the British and Foreign Embassies to, and Intercourse with, that Empire; 
 illustrated by a Chart of Canton River. 8vo. IOs, 6d. boards. 
 " It is exactly the kind of book nbich the times want" — Literary Gaxette. 
 
 14. 
 
 OBSERVATIONS ON THE 
 
 LAW AND CONSTITUTION of INDIA; 
 
 On the Nature of Landed Tenures; and on the System of Revenue and Finance, as 
 
 established by the Moohummudan Law and Moghul Government ; 
 
 With an Inquiry into the Revenue, and Judicial Administration, and Regulations of 
 
 Police, as at present existing in Bengal. 
 
 By LiELT.-CoL. GALLOWAY, of the Hon. East India Company's Service., 
 
 Second Edition, with Additions. 8vo. 12s. cloth boards, lettered. 
 
 15. 
 SCENES AND CHARACTERISTICS of HINDOSTAN, 
 
 With Sketches of Anglo-Indian Society. 
 
 By EMMA ROBERTS, Author of "Memoirs of the Rival Houses of York 
 
 and Lancaster," " Oriental Scenes," &c. 
 
 Second Edition. 2 vols, post Svo. 18s. cloth boards. 
 
 *' Never, n-e think, has British Society in Hindostan been described with more liTcUness and fidelity 
 
 than by Miss Roberts." — Tait's Magazine. 
 
 16. 
 
 PRODROMUS; 
 
 or, an inquiry into the first principiies of reasoning; 
 
 Including an Analysis of the Human Mind. 
 
 By Sir GRAVES CHA.MNEY HAUGHTON, K. H., M.A., F.R.S., &e. 
 
 Member of the Institute of France, &c. 8vo., price 7s. cloth. 
 
 "This is a charming book, and should be the vade-mecum of all who intend entering the Corycian Care 
 
 of Metaphysics. It is a clue that will extricate them from the labyrinth. If they make this their 
 
 Aladdin's lamp, its good genius will preserve tliem from present bewilderment ; and enable tbem, in the 
 
 sequel, to derive advantage from their intercourse with the visionary and spiritual world." — British itag. 
 
 Also, by the Same, 
 
 A LETTER to the Right Hon. CHARLES WATKIN 
 WILLIAMS WYNN, M.P., &c. 
 
 On the danger to which the Constitution is exposed from the Encroachments of the 
 Courts of Law. 8vo. sewed, 2s. 
 
 17. 
 ANGLO-INDIA, SOCIAL, MORAL, and POLITICAL. 
 
 3 vols, post 8vo., £1. 7s. boards. 
 ** No work can afford better information regarding the East, than these tzccUent volumw."— A'ovo/ and 
 miitury Gazette. 
 
PUBLISHED BY Wm. H. ALLEN AND CO. 
 
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 MAP of CHINA and the ADJACENT COUNTRIES, drawn 
 
 from the latest Surveys and other Authentic Documents; containing all the Geogra- 
 phical Information relating to that Country and adjacent Tracts, up to the present 
 time, by JOHN WALKER. On one large sheet, colored, 8s. ; on cloth, in a case, 
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 £L14s. 6d. 
 
 CHART of the CANTON RIVER, folded in case, 2s. 6d. 
 GENERAL CHART from ENGLAND to CHINA, including 
 
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 A MAP of INDIA, from the latest Surveys of the best 
 
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 cloth, in a case, £3. 13s. 6d. ; or on cloth, with rollers, varnished, £4. 4s. 
 
 *»• Among the great mass of materials used in the construction of this Map, the following may be parti- 
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 Positions determined by him in the course of his Trigonometrical Operations ; of Colonel Hodgson and 
 Captains Webb and White in the Mountainous Districts ; of Captain Franklin in Bundlecund ; of 
 Captain Johnson in Bhopal ; of Lieut. Wilcox in Assam ; of Lieut. Fisher in Sylhet ; and of CapL 
 Pemberton in Munipoor. Malwa is copied from Sir John Malcolm's Map. The latest routes of 
 Mr. Moorcroft have also been inserted. 
 
 A SMALLER MAP of INDIA, compiled from the latest 
 
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 On one large sheet, 18s. ; or on cloth, in a case, or on rollers, £1. 5s. ; or with rollers, 
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 MAP of the WESTERN PROVINCES of HINDOOSTAN, 
 
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 MAP of the COUNTRIES on the NORTH-WEST FRON- 
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 A GENERAL CHART of the RIVER HOOGLY, and the 
 
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 grapher to the Hon. East-India Company. On one sheet, 7s. 
 
 MAP of UPPER ASSAM. Comprising the Districts of 
 
 JOORHAT, LUCKIMPORE, and SUDIYA. Shewing the TEA TltACTS 
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