So many factors enter into the question of the durability of railway sleepers, such as climate, ballast, traffic, seasoning of the sleeper before being laid down, &c., that it is almost impossible to draw any useful comparison between the results of these experiments, and it will be as well to await their completion before attempting it. This much however is clear, that deodar is likely to hold its own with any of its competitors, a gratifying result for those who have the management of deodar forests.

A. SMYTHIES.

FORESTRY IN JEYPORE.

We have received the Progress Report of Forest Administration of the Jeypore State for 1890, and first of all it seems to us strange that they must insist on being in the fashion as regards lateness of issue. Instead of 1890, it ought to have been 1891, for a Native State Report, at most, requires a short review by a Resident or State Engineer, instead of, as happens in Indian Government Provinces, some two or three (the unfortunate Madrasis have three successive reviewers, all keen to discover their weak points,) official reviews of various lengths.

Bhai Sadhu Singh, the present Superintendent, is a Punjab Forest Ranger, who has been lent to Jeypore and we are glad to see that Colonel Jacob speaks well of him and that a Dehra Dún student has been able to run the forests of Jeypore "with credit to himself."

There is not much to note in his report: no news is good news" is a proverb which might often he well applied in the case of annual reports where an officer is looked upon in some quarters as of little use if he has not some startling event to record or some new departure to announce.

Here there is nothing much to disturb the even tenour of gradual progress, though, as elsewhere, " grazing privileges" seem to be the crumpled rose leaf of the Jeypore Forest Department. No less than 8,932 goats and sheep and 1,472 head of cattle were impounded during the year, chiefly owing to the refusal of villagers to obey new rules requiring fees for goat grazing.

The area of "Reserved Forest" in Jeypore is now about 228 square miles in all about half being demarcated. The revenue amounted in 1890 to Rs. 19,869; and the expenditure, all told, i.e., including avenues, grass preserves and other extra charges, Rs. 16,714, so that there was a surplus of Rs. 3,155. The State Engineer omits the extra charges and consequently quotes the surplus as Rs. 4,954. We wish the Jeypore Forest Department, the first we believe, except, of course, Mysore, of the kind in a Native State, every success, and we are glad to think that the lessons of the Dehra Dún School, have proved useful to the Superintendent of Forests in charge.

We have received Government of India Circular 13F of May 12th, 1891, giving the following figures for the Budget Estimate of the Forest Department for the year, it will be noticed that a surplus revenue of

over sixty lakhs is expected.

ESTIMATE OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE 1891-92.

THE JUTE CROP OP BENGAL

The following report on the prospects of the Jute crop has been received from the local Government :—

"The principal factors which affect the area sown under Jute in any particular year are the highness or lowness of the price of Jute in itself, and as compared with the prices of the other staples during the preceding year, and the climatic conditions before and at the time of sowing.

"A rise in the price of Jute, if not accompanied by a general rise in prices of other staples in the jute-growing districts, would obviously tend to stimulate the extension of cultivation of jute; while a fall in the price of this particular product, without a corresponding fall in the prices of other staples, would have the opposite effect. During last year there was a great falling off in the price of jute as compared with the previous year; while the price of rice, its chief rival in the jute-growing districts, was nearly the same as in the previous year. The effect is generally reported to be a contraction of the area sown in the present season under jute.

area sown.

"Climatic conditions.-The climatic conditions most favourable to the cultivation of the plant are when light and frequent showers fall before and at the time of sowing, which extends from the middle of March to the first week in June, commencing earlier in the northern and eastern districts and later in the central districts of Bengal. Last year the rainfall during these months was sufficient and well distributed in almost all the jutegrowing districts, and this fact, combined with the high prices of jute prevailing in the previous year, caused an increase in the The present season has not been so favourable. After heavy rain which fell about the middle of March last, there was practically no rain in Bengal until the end of the third week in April. The want of rain, at this time, is reported to have caused a contraction of the area sown in Jalpaiguri and Purneah. From the 21st of April to the second week in June, the rainfall was, on the contrary, abnormally heavy throughout the jute-growing area with the exception of the districts of Hooghly and Khulna. This excessive rain is reported to have impeded the sowing and curtailed the area under jute in the 24-Pergunnahs, Dinagepore, Rajshahye, Bogra, Furreed pore, Dacca and Tipperah; and is likely to have reduced the area also in Nuddea, Jessore, Rungpore, Pubna and Mymensingh.

Outturn per acre.-After the plants have struck root and until harvest time, moderately heavy showers, followed by sunshine, are needed for the full development of the plant. Frequent intervals of fine weather in June are necessary to enable cultivators to carry on weeding operations. In the present season the excessive and constant rainfall in May and the early part of June, not only impeded the sowing, but also interfered with the germination and growth of the crop at the beginning, and afterwards hindered the weeding operations in all the districts of Northern and Eastern Bengal and 24-Pergunnahs. The extent of damage due to this cause is reported to have varied from two to six annas. It is premature to form an accurate estimate of the outturn. Much will depend on the distribution of rainfall in July and August. So far as it is now possible to forecast, it may be said that the outturn per acre will be less than that of the previous year by two to four annas. The area under cultivation is reported to be about 18 per cent. less than that of last year. In the forecast of last year it was said 20 per cent. more than in the previous year would be available for export. According to that estimate, the quantity available for export would be 10,522,768 cwts. The quantity actually exported was 10,606,145 cwts. As already remarked it is premature to form anything like an accurate estimate of the present year's gross outturn, but on the whole it appears probable that the quantity available for export will not be more than threefourths of that of last year."

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE ROYAL BOTANIC
GARDENS, CALCUTTA.

The Annual Report of the Royal Botanic Gardens Calcutta, for 1890-91, just received, has not much of interest for own readers except the record of the contributions of Forest Officers to the Herbarium. Chief among these was Mr. G. Mann, whose collections chiefly of bamboos and Magnoliacea from Assam, contained 1284 specimens. Then comes Mr. Lace with Baluchistan plants, Mr. Talbot with collections from N. Kanara, and Mr. Gamble. We believe that Dr. Prain's visit to the Great Cocos Islands has resulted in some discoveries of great interest to botanical geographers. Dr. King himself reports the completion of his monographs of Magnoliaceae and Myristicace.

V. NOTES, QUERIES, AND EXTRACTS.

THE PROGRESS OF WOOD PAVING.

When the first wood blocks were laid in London, some twenty five or thirty years ago, want of experience entailed enormous expense, owing to defective foundations, employing the wrong sort of wood, cutting the blocks to the wrong dimensions, and laying them badly. Thus a general impression was created that as a practical pavement wood could never take the place either of macadam or granite.

It was found that the blocks got quickly misplaced, that they wore with great irregularity, and that streets so paved were excessively costly to keep in order. In short, it was considered that, though excellent when first laid down, it would not prove a sufficiently long-lived class of pavement, and would be too expensive for it ever to become a commercial success on a large scale.

But, though this was the general impression, there were people who saw further in the matter, who considered that great advantages would accrue from its adoption if the difficulty of excessive wear and tear could be satisfactorily overcome. The surveyors of certain of the vestries and others decided that it would be worth while following the matter up and expending a considerable amount of money in endeavouring to bring about the desired result. For many years after the first essays wood paving met with but little success and no encouragement. Every imaginable system of foundation was tried, from placing the blocks on cast iron plates, to laying them on wooden boards, or on the road itself without foundation, until at last the system, which is now universal, of laying them on a 6 in. bed of concrete, was adopted. This proved so satisfactory that ten years ago wood paving had become already an important feature in the metropolis, where many miles of streets were already paved more or less satisfactorily with wood blocks.

In spite of the fact that there were many minor difficulties to be got over, in the way of determining the most economical system of grouting the blocks, of keeping them at a uniform distance apart during the process of grouting, and also making the necessary allowance for expansion and contraction, we learn, in 1884, from statistics gathered together by Mr. George Henry Stayton, and referred to in a paper read by him before the Institution of Civil Engineers, that no less than 53 miles comprising nearly 1,000,000 square yards of the streets of London, were already paved with wood at that time, and that as compared with the ordinary macadam road, when taking a period of 20 years