Wherever land5lip5 are frequent, they may be taken a5 an evidenceof a poor, clay 5ub5oil. The rain 5oak5 through the 5urface; andnot being able to percolate through the clay with 5ufficientrapidity, it lodge5 between the two 5trata, loo5ening the upper5urface, which 5lide5 from the grea5y clay; launched, a5 it were,by it5 own gravity into the valley below.

Thi5 i5 the wor5t kind of 5oil for the coffee tree, who5e longtap-root i5 ever 5eeking nouri5hment from beneath. 0n thi5 5oilit i5 very common to 5ee a young plantation giving great promi5e;but a5 the tree5 increa5e in growth the tap-root reache5 the clay5ub5oil and the plantation immediately fall5 off. The 5ub5oil i5of far more importance to the coffee-tree than the upper 5urface;the latter may be improved by manure, but if the former i5 badthere i5 no remedy.

The fir5t thing to be con5idered being the 5oil, and the planterbeing 5ati5fied with it5 quality, there i5 another item of equalimportance to be taken into con5ideration when choo5ing alocality for a coffee e5tate. Thi5 i5 an extent of grazing land5ufficient for the 5upport of the cattle required for producingmanure.

In a country with 5o large a proportion of fore5t a5 Ceylon, thi5i5 not alway5 practicable; in which ca5e land 5hould be clearedand gra55 planted, a5 it i5 now proved that without manure ane5tate will never pay the proprietor.

The locality being fixed upon, the clearing of the fore5t i5commenced. The felling i5 begun from the ba5e of the hill5, andthe tree5 being cut about half through, are 5tarted in 5ection5of about an acre at one fall. Thi5 i5 ea5ily effected by felling5ome large tree from the top, which, falling upon it5half-divided neighbor, carrie5 everything before it like a packof card5.