April i, 1884.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



680 



MR. H. KERR'S TEA-EOLLER. 



We were very favourably impressed with the 

 model of Mr. Kerr'a important and useful invention, 

 but we still more appreciate its value now that we 

 have seen the completed machine. It is on view 

 at the premises of Messrs. Maitland & Co., Limited, 

 and we understaud that already four orders have 

 been received. And no wonder. The design is simijle, 

 and the efficiency of the roller at work has been 

 testified to. The cost is only f!350 ready packed at 

 the Colombo fetation, and it performs, by the aid of 

 two or three coolies, what it would take 16 cooly 

 rollers to accomplish. It is just the machine for 

 young or small estates, or persons of limited meaus. 

 Amongst others, our correspondent from Fiji will find 

 au answer to bis question in this cheap machine 

 which packs into a very convenient space. Ou estates 

 where there are pulpers, the roller can be attached 

 and worked by water or other power ; while, if re- 

 quiied, larger machines on the same principle can bo 

 prepared to do a larger amount of work. 



Now that Ceylon is becoming a great tea-country, 

 it is only fitting' she should have tea-machinery of 

 local manufacture, and we trust Mr. Kerr will reap 

 the due reward of his ingenuity. 



CALCUTTA EXHIBITION AWARDS. 



The local " Times " has the following telegram : — 



The tea and cinchona awards have been given at 

 last with the following results : — Mr. J. E- Howard 

 of London takes a gold medal for his splendid collection 

 of cinchona bark, and Mr. Thos. North Christie the 

 next prize a silver medal and Whittall & Oo. a bronze 

 medal, whilst Messrs. W. D. Bosanquet, W. F. Laurie 

 and Wm. Smith each obtained diplomas. As pre- 

 viously advised, Messrs. Leechman & Co., take the 

 gold medal for coconut oil, and Mr. Charles de Soyza 

 the gold medal for citroneUa oil. A silver medal is 

 awarded to Messrs. Williams Brothers for arrowroot, 

 and a bronze one to Messrs, A. Von Possner for an 

 ice box. The tea awards are as follows ; — Mr. T. C. 

 Owen a silver medal for Oonoonagalla ; Kaduwella 

 estate a bronze medal; Senibawatle, Galbodde and 

 AviF.iwella diplomas. 



Ninety medals or \5 per cent, of the Indian tea 

 exhibits obtain medals, but of Ceylon only 10 per cent. 



To the above the "Times" eclitor adds a note as 

 follows: — "By this we presume our teas hape been 

 judged against those of India," which certainly no 

 other reader of the telegram would " presume." Tho 

 very essence of the complaint is, that, the Indian and 

 Ceylon teas being judged separately, the judges 

 (Indian tea-tasters, no doubt) gave medals to 15 out 

 of every 100 exhibits of Indian tea and only to 10 

 out of every lOU of the Ceylon teas ; in other words 

 Indian teas were awarded 50 per cent more medals 

 than Ceylon teas, and Ceylou teas as a whole are 

 stamped with inferiority to Indian, just to that ex- 

 tent. That is the clear and distinct result, if the 

 judgment and mode of judging are accepted. But 

 this is the first time, we suppose, in the history of 

 Exhibitions that such a mode of judging has been 

 adopted. The teas sent from Ceylon were intended 

 to compete with teas from all tea-growiug countries 

 88 



with all the world, in fact for what else is the mean- 

 ing of au International Exhibition? People need not 

 go to the ends of the earth to compete with one 

 another. For the present Mr. Owen holds tlie Cey- 

 lon Championship, vice Mr. Armstrong who was No. 

 I at the local Exhibition. Those who saw and 

 tasted Ceylon teas at Calcutta are slated to have 

 appreciated its merits, but the verdict of the judges 

 is, indicated by proportion of medals awarded, "Cey- 

 lon teas inferior by 50 per cent to Indian." The 

 decision will not certainly be accepted ; indeed it is 

 already reversed by the juries of Mincimj Lane. 



Since writing the above, we have seen the follow- 

 ing correction in the "Times," which with a table 

 of awards wo quote : — • 



We find,- by a letter which we have just received 

 from the Telegraph Office, that our special telegram 

 of yesterday from Calcutta was mutilat'd by the omis- 

 sion of a few words, which rendered a portion of it 

 almost unintelligible, and even now we are uncertain 

 whether Messrs. Williams Bros, have obtained a gold 

 or a silver medal for their arrowroot. In consequence 

 of the omission of these words from the telegiain, we 

 find we should have stated that Messrs. G. and W. 

 Leechman obtained tho gold medal for arrowroot and 

 first prize, so we think that in all probability the 

 second prize and silver medal fell to Messrs. Williams 

 Bros. Messrs. Skeeu & Co. 's photographs appear to 

 have commanded much attention by the award of a 

 special certificate as well as a gold medal and the 

 next prize which we have to notice is that awarded 

 to Messrs, Von Possuer & Walker for their ajrated 

 waters and ice-box. 



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Weight axd Size of Tire Leav'bs axd Flowees of 

 ViCTOuiA Regia. — Paul Marcoy, a plant collector, found, 

 as wo learn from the Wiener lUustri. !c Gartenzeiiimg ^ 

 a gigantic specimen of the great water lily in the inky- 

 black water of l^ake Nima in Peru. On : of the leaves 

 mcasiu'ed 24 ft, i) iu, and 3 lines in circumference, and 

 weighed between 13 lb, and 1-1 lb, A flower measured 4 ft, 

 2 in, in circumference ; tho outer petals were i) iu, long ; 

 the weight of the flower was Sk lb, ; and that of a bud 

 2i ih.— Australasian. 



