154 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Sept. i, 1886, 



out of the pan hard and crisp, of the pale bluey- 

 green colour common to all green Teas. So thorough 

 is the mixing of the colour that, unless an expert, 

 one would be unable to tell by the infusion, or by 

 looking at the infused leaves, which was the 

 " faced" and which tlie unfaced Tea. The reason 

 given me for this adulteration was, that, owing to 

 the Tea being made in small quantities here and there, 

 and at uncertain times, nnd only three x^arts fired by 

 the natives, it was found that as a rule, if merely re- 

 firing was resorted to, the Tea turned a dirty brown 

 colour and lost its appearance, and it was therefore 

 necessary to resort to artificial means. I noticed 

 myself that some of the worst class Teas after being 

 coloured looked much on a par in colour with the 

 first class Teas, and this no doubt has also some- 

 thing to do with the system. I maintain therefore 

 that until this practice of adulteration is put an end 

 to, which will not be before the country is thrown 

 open to foreigners, we have little to fear from com- 

 petition with the Japanese. 



As regards their neat packing and packages to 

 which you refer, wc have no doubt something to 

 learn, and in Ceylon the business in importing mome 

 and cedar wood boxes from Japan is assuming large 

 proportions, as Ceylon planters find they get a 

 good box of even weight, light, free from injurious 

 smell and cheap. At present these have been kept 

 from the Indian planter owmg probably to vested 

 interests and proposed commissions of the Calcutta 

 merchants not being considered good enough. As my 

 sole aim has heen to keep down prices and give a 

 really good box (and as you know, Mr. Editor, I 

 have iw pecuniary interest in the concern) Messrs. 

 J. IMurray Kobertson & Co. of Colombo at present 

 can give full information and price lists, and they 

 are about to arrange, if possible, for a large agency at 

 Calcutta. They fully recognise the fact that small 

 profits and ^^uick returns are what is wanted to 

 ensure success, and they now undersell, slightly, all 

 local made boxea — while to suit Ceylon and Indian 

 planters th 'y have pursuaded their Japanese friends 

 to add new dove-tailing machinery to th^^ir plant, 

 and all boxes now made for these markets have 

 one inch dove-taile. The mome wood boxes have no 

 sort of smell, and are about perfection. In this 

 respect, therefore, I would point out to brother 

 planters independent of agents, that they have a 

 chance of learning something from the Japanese ; 

 and these packages once used will probably never be 

 discontinued. — Yours truly, df-ar Sir, 



H. Deummond Deane. 

 — Indian Tea Gazette, 



^ . 



Crtptomekia Japonica Bark Shingles. — In notes 

 on the International Forestry Exhibition, ^we find 

 it stated : — 



There were specimens of the bark of Cjyptomeria 

 Ja2ionica used for roof .sliingles ; these shingles are 

 usually employed under some other roofing substance, 

 when they are said to last 40 to 50 years ; if used 

 alone, they last half that period only. 

 This is the tree from which the tea boxes we 

 receive from Japan are chiefly manufactured. The 

 tree is likely to do well at and near Nnwara Eliya. 



Ceylon Teas .and the Future of Markets. — 

 There is much in the letter of Mr. H. L. Forbes 

 deserving the careful consideration of all interested in 

 our tea industry — and who is not locally ? Follow- 

 ing on our remarks of yesterday on the alleged 

 deterioration of Ceylon teas, we may say that if 

 such a scheme a* Mr. Forbes proposes is seriously 

 taken up, Mr. J. L. Shand would be just the man 

 to further it on the British side. If our teas have 

 at all deteriorated, the only cause, we suspect is at- 

 mospheric, a cause operating in India also, for Indian 

 teas are proportionately down. Political troubles 

 have, no doubt, depressed the market, and the 

 enormously increased exports in the early part of the 

 season from China, must have influenced prices 

 seriously. As happened with Ceylon coffee, so will it 

 be with Ceylon tea. It was after a commercial 



crisis and low prices, admitting of very general and 

 increased consumption that Ceylon coffee took first 

 place in the markets. So, we believe, it will be 

 with Ceylon tea : — 



" Though we fell, we aye got up again, 

 j\jid sae will we yet." 



Chicago as a Tea Market.— The fol'owing 

 from Bradxtreet'f: is commended to the attention 

 of the future Ceylon Tea Syndidate :— A new de- 

 parture was made in the tea business last week in 

 Chicago which it is confidently claimed will cause 

 considerable changes in the marketing of teas in 

 this country. The id'^a carried into execution was 

 that of auctioning off teas at lower prices than 

 can now be made at the eastern seaboard. The 

 teas,* owing to the eomi^letion of the Northern 

 Pacific Eailroad, can now be brought direct to 

 Chicago from the Pacific coast, and it is claimed 

 at fully |c. less per pound for freight alone than 

 it would cost to bring it via the Suez canal and 

 New York. The first sale was well attended, and 

 buyers were present from as far east as Rochester, 

 N. Y. The prices obtained were lower than were 

 anticipated, but the company managing the scheme 

 is reported to be amply satisfied with the first 

 experiment. 



The Tallest Accurately Measured Sequoia (Wel- 

 LiNGTONiA) standing in the Calaveras Grove, California, 

 measures 325 feet, and there is no positive evidence 

 that any trees of this genus * ver exceeded that height. 

 Of late years, explorations in Gippsland, "Mctoria, have 

 brought to light some marvellous specimens of Eucalyp- 

 tus, and the State Surveyor of Forests measured a 

 fallen tree on the banks of the "Watts River, and found 

 it to be 435 ft. from the roots to the top of the trunk. 

 The crest of this tree was broken oif , but the trunk at 

 the fracture was 9 ft. in circumference, and the height 

 of the tree when growing was estimated to have been 

 more than oOO ft. The tree, however, was dead, though 

 there is no doubt that it was far loftier than the tallest 

 Sequoia. Near Fernshaw, in the Dandenong district, 

 Victoria, there has recently been discovered a speci- 

 men of the Almond Leaf Gum (Eucalyptus amygda- 

 lina) measuring 380 ft. from the ground to the" first 

 branch, and 450 feet to the topmost twig. This tree 

 would over-top the tallest living Sequoia by 125 ft. Its 

 girth is bO ft., which is less than that of many Sequoias, 

 but, as far as height is concerned, it must be consi<lered 

 the tallest living tree in the world. — Scientijic American. 



The Coffee and Cardajiom Crops of Coorg 

 FOR 1884-85 are thus noticed in the Administration 

 Eeport : — 



The coffee crop of the past year is returned at about 

 4,007 tons, and though it fell short of previous expect- 

 ations, the outturn can hardly be deemed an un- 

 favourable one, being less by a little over 1,000 tons 

 than that of the preceding year, but exceeding the 

 crop of 1881-82 by nearly the same quantity. Of the 

 whole quantity about 75 per cent was sent to the 

 ^yt stern coast for shipment. These figures as to out- 

 turn and export are, it may be stated, approximate 

 only. They were obtained from the returns of the 

 Toll-gates which are placed on all the roads leading out 

 of Coorg. Allusion was made in last year's report to 

 the rapid fall in tlic price of coft"ee after the year's 

 crop had been exported, owing to the over stocked con- 

 dition of the Home JMarket. The local price, (which 

 is affected by the Home Market rates) had fallen to 

 K31 per cwt. in 1883-84, and dropped further to K26i 

 per cwt. during the past year. The effect has been to a 

 very general extent, a disastrous one upon coffee in- 

 dustry, and the evidence of it is seen in the large out- 

 standings of coffee assessment remaining uncollected 

 this year. The Commercial and Agricultural depression 

 has also seriously affected the market for cardamoms. 

 The price of cardamoms fell from R300 per cwt. in 

 1833-84 to R141— 8— 0, and so, although the crop has 

 been a large one, the growers have not profited by it 

 to the extent anticipated. 



*That is Jnpau and 4I!hiDa teas. 



