ART V. 
since the time of the Germans: it has increased largely through the 
efforts of the northern tribes—the harder-working tribes. The outpu 
in the Territory is probably 209, more than the export, or a little les 
han that—that is an outside figure, because curiously enough, excep 
in times of dearth, groundnuts are not consumed to any great exten 
y natives; the consumption is by Indians and the more sophisticate 
Swahili. 
Last year we had a lower production, which brought the ground- 
nut down on the list from its position in the former years of secon 
o the fifth place. - That, of course, is only a temporary matter, owin 
o unfavourable weather. We possess the problem that you have in 
South Africa, and that they have also on the West Coast, known a 
osette disease or ‘‘ bunching *’ disease of groundnuts, and that last 
ear helped to decrease the output very greatly. It may be interestin 
o mycologists and others, as a general observation, that this year’s 
reports show that there has been very little of this disease in the 
ountry; so that whatever may be its cause—whether it is due to som 
irus carried by an insect, an Aphis, or not—there is no doubt that 
climatic conditions have a lot to do with the incidence of this disease: 
e consider this crop of very great importance in the Territory—so 
much so that, as you have probably read in the report which is known 
as the Schuster Report—we are thinking of making a special railwa 
—which the profane allude to as a ‘“ Monkey Nut Railway ''—betwee 
tigi and Mkalama north of the Central line. 
"Our next production, copra, is one which is maintained, in spite 
tf the neglect of the plantations; and I think Miss Welsford will agree 
ith me, that the less said about it the better, for both in the plantin 
and preparation of copra the management of this product is about the 
orst on earth. We have great difficulty in trying to improve eithe 
f these matters, because, except in some exceptional cases, the palms 
are owned by small holders, and when, under our law, we try to 
rosecute we probably find that the trees that are the subject o 
complaint are owned by some old dame, without any resources 
hatsoever. In addition, in different parts on the Coast, th 
wnership is so involved and complicated that we are unable to get a 
hese people. It seems to me, although I am open to correction, tha 
improvement in the husbandry of coconuts and the production of copra, 
is a matter of economics rather than agriculture or mycology; bu 
before we can do anything it seems that planters or plantation 
syndicates must buy out all those people, and, possibly take those o 
he more brainy of the owners .as overseers or managers to th 
syndicate. Whatever we do otherwise than this I do not thi at 
ve shall improve our coconut growing or our copra. 
Number seven on the list is simsim, a product that Uganda is 
interested in as well. This product, like rice, always maintains a very 
steady export. Why, it is hard to say; but there are various causes 
vhich make the proportion between the output and consumption sue 
hat the exports vary little from year to year, notably the amount o 
uying and stocking on the part of Indian shopkeepers. 
Rice and simsim are similar in that matter. Simsim is exported, 
may mention, principally by Indians; it is mostly a woman’s 
erquisite : the oil is used largely in cooking and also for anointin 
he body. We are trying to improve simsim, but with our smal 
staf we have to do it on a large and brgad scale, an 
ur ethod - at present is. to be its introducti from district 
269)