, 1875-11-10
SOME TROUBLES IN DOMINICA.
The Dominican" on Mr.. PrestOe's Agyi-
cultural Report.

AZ uctT0ClS CONSIDERABLY nOW' LE6 Fdluo 0A
Mr.. PREsToE's Report that he had 80 little to
tell US about the Coffee Blight. To enquire
into the origin of this enemy OF the Coffee
Planter and suggest the means of resisting it's
destructive attacks on the Coffee plantations
were prominent features Of the programme
laid Down flr Mr.. PREsT0E. He tells US that
the blight is caused by a minute moth, related
to the Yponomeutide of entomOiogis s that
it's colour is a dull white or pale gray with a
bar across the p~OsteriOr when quiet that the
motions of the insect are very active that it
prefers young and delicate leaves and that it
is most &C i've during the vet season, remain.
ing dormant from March TO May. All this,
thanks to the Investigations of DR.. IMRAY, we
knew before Mr.. PREsTOE came to enlighten
US. He would have brought US under some
obligation to him, had he explained the charac-
ter of the remedies adopted in other Coffee pro-
ducing countries to eKterminate the moth or
arrest its ravages.
Mr.. Prestoe, however, does not hold to the
common view regarding the destructive power
of the Coffee blight, and is very positive chat
a j~udicious Coffee planter has nothing to fear
" in the Coffee blight Of Dominica. The
value of this opinion is in a way to be tested by
DIR. IMRAY, who always leads the way in agri-
cultural enterprise in Dominica but, in the
meanwhile, we may state the grounds on which
Mr.. PREsToE ~justifies his arrival to a oonclu-
sion apparently contradioted by the experience
of that servioeable authority. the oldest
inhabitant." They are as follows s.
OF the three varieties OF Coffee commonly
met with in Dominica, the Moka IS most sub
ject to the attacks of this moth, It's leaves
are the most delicate of ten or nine varieties,
known to me. | observed that the two strong
or leafed varieties, when fairly healthy, had
0OaroaIU q fraoa of tbo uooNh Hooly h"k ~rL.-
existing under unfavourable conditions, such as
to induce faccidity of texture, they were some
times much affected. -.
/ met with a fourth variety OF Coffee,
which for robustness of growth and prolifoness,
is superior 20 any kind / am acquainted with
the trees of this variety bad not q trace of the
moth attack upon them, although trees of the
ordinary kind and Moka near them were con-
siderably affected.
and this insect most susceptible of ordinary
wood smoke-a slight odour being fatal to it.
These facts would Indicate
1st. The. moth to be provided With Q vsry
weak cvipositor, or the newly Matched c~aterpil.
lar TO DO q weak miner and therefore,
BADLY: Strong Coffee leaf tissue is proof
against it's attack:
delicate young growths of the Coffee trees, It
may be driven OF or destroyed BY the use Of
common smoke from wood or grass .Gres.
We refer these remarks to our country friends.
They will not be without q certain experiment
tai value, if it be true. as Mr.. PREsToE be.
lieves. that during the FIVE years after 1929
q time when the attacks Of the insect almost
destroyed every Coffee plant 10 the Island
nothing "was attempted for its destruction"
Mr. PREsToE's remarks on the evils of
Squatting and the mode of life of our s~Quatting
population are very strongly worded. and seem
to have rufdsd the patriotism Of some of the
members of Assembly, when his Report was
read to the House. Mr.. PREsToE has traced
some connection between ~squatting and the
present position of the Coffee industry; but