May i, 1885.] 



THE TROPTCAX AGRICULTURIST. 



809 



THE PROSPECTS OF "TEA." IN THE UNITED 

 KINGDOM. 



Wo find in the London Times of the Gth Mrach> 

 under the head of "National Expenditure and Revenue," 

 some valuable information of much interest to Ceylon 

 planters at the present time. The writer begins 

 by referring to the anticipated deficiency in the na- 

 tional accounts (even without counting on the chances 

 of a Russian war) which Mr. Childers has to meet. 

 A protest is entered against increasing the income- 

 tax beyond 7d, or at the very most 8d in the £, 

 unless in the emergency of a great war such as the 

 one now pending with Russia. It is made clear, 

 however, that there must be a resort under any cir- 

 cumstances to indirect taxation as well as to the 

 iucoiiie-tax, and we then come on a passage of special 

 bearing on our own local legislation of last Session 

 when, in contravention of both expediency and sound 

 principle as we protested at the time, the Customs 

 duties on imported wines and spirits were increased 

 without auy corresponding increase in our local excise 

 on arrack. This is what the Times says : — 



AVere it not for the peculiar fiscal relation existing 

 between the Excise duties on spirits and the Customs 

 duties on spirits and wines, which necessitates the simult- 

 aneous alteration of both sets of imposts, the simplest 

 mode of remodrlling our system would be to raise the 

 import, duties on alcoholic liquors. But that plan is difficult 

 of adoption, especially just now when a treaty with Spain 

 which will alter the wine duties considerably is being dis- 

 cussed at Madrid. 



To re-impose the duty on sugar is said to be " out 

 of the question," and the tax on tobacco is supposed 

 to have reached the limit beyond which the risk of 

 smuggling becomes intensified. Accordingly there is 

 only tea 10 fall back on, and this is how the subject 

 of an increased duty is elaborately dealt with : 



The only article from which it would be possible to ob- 

 tain a cousiderable increase of revenue without much in- 

 convenience is tea. Of course, a proposal to raise the tax 

 on tea would be furiously condemned by the advocates of 

 a " free breakfast table," but, apart from mere doctrinaire 

 outcry, there is no souud objection whatever to the meas- 

 ure. Assuming an addition of 3d per lb. to the present 

 tea duty of 6d. per lb., we may estimate the revenue to 

 be derived from it in the following manner, by aid of a 

 table which will be found below. 



In 1884 the average price of the tea imported was 1178d 

 per lb. (in bond). The addition of 3d. would raise the 

 price to at least 14 78d. per lb. Perhaps it would raise it 

 even more. In order to be on the safe side, seeing that 

 the stocks of tea in London are low, and that, owing to the 

 Franco-Chinese dispute, there is some danger that our sup- 

 plies from China may be diminished, we shall assume that the 

 price will be raised to I5'29d. per lb., which was the 

 average price in 18/8. During that year the consumption 

 of tea per head was 4 661b. 



At the middle of last year the population of the United 

 Kingdom was estimated at 35,952,000 persons We may 

 safely assume that it has now reached 36,0(1", 000, and 

 therefore the total consumption of tea during the coming 

 year, assuming the consumption per bead to have beeS 

 reduced from 4-87 lb. to 4-60 lb., would bo 107,700,000 lb 

 ft will be observed that this gives us a reduction in eon- 

 sumption of only about 4-! per cent., which at first sight 

 may seem too small. We venture to think, however, that 

 this is not so, for there is good reason to believe that the 

 price of tea bad .some time bad, lalleu to a point ut 

 Which diminution iu the price had little effect in increasing 

 onsumption. Between 1869 and 1874 the prico fell r. per 

 eut., from 1778d to 17d, and the consumption rose 10' per 

 ent. Between 1874 and 1879 the prico fell 134 per cent., 

 102 



from 17dtol4-08d, and the consumption rose 10J percent. 

 But siuco 1879 the price has fallen 19| per cent., from 

 14-68d to ll-78d, while the consumption has only ri 

 per cent. The great increase in consumption between 1869 

 ami 1874 may, of course, bo largely attributed to the great 

 advance m wages which occurred during that period, and 

 also m some degree to the repeal of the tea-dealers' licences 

 in 1869. In spite of falling wages consumption continued to 

 increase during ths period 1874-79, owing, doubtless, to the 

 great decrease m price already mentioned. Since then, how- 

 ever a much greater decreaso in price has only produced a 

 small effect on consumption, although wages arb not lower 

 on the whole, and are higher in some trades than they 

 were in 1879. It is, consequently, unlikely that the con- 

 sumption per head would diminish more than we havo 

 estimated even if the price were raised to the full extent 

 allowed for. 



We may, therefore, take the probable consumption of 

 tea in 1885-6, supposing the duty were raised to Od. per 



Xi'oSi nnA'' 6 °'?°i b 'J which would y ield!l S ross revenue of 

 i.o,-Jl,000, not deducting repayments and drawbacks. It 

 is not easy to determine how much should be allowed 

 lor deductions on this score, because the statements as to 

 quantities imported refer to the calendar year, while the 

 statements of revenue received, with which comparison 

 might havo been made, refer to the financial year 

 It would seem, however, judging from recent years', 

 that they are trifling, and it would probably bo 

 safe to assume that the gross produce of the new 

 duty would be about £6,150,000, or uearlv two 

 millions more than the revenue for 1883-4 From this 

 again, something might perhaps have to be deducted for 

 increased charges of collection, but it could hardly be much 

 Considering the allowances we have made in the abovo 

 calculations, we are disposed to thiuk that about two mil- 

 lions is a fair minimum estimate of the yield of an ad- 

 ditional 3d per lb. on the tea duty, which sum would bo of 

 great assistance not only to Mr. Childers iu his present 

 straits, but to all future Chancellors of the Exchequer. 



The following is a statement of the population (estimated) 

 of the United Kingdom in the middle of each of the under- 

 mentioned years, and the quantities of tea retained for home 

 consumption in the same years, as given iu Table 23 of the 

 Statistical Abstract (in thousands— OCO's omitted) ■ also the 

 number of pounds consumed per head, and the price of tea 

 per lb., deduced from the quantities and values as stated in 

 Table 42 of the Abstract. 



Quantities. Consumption. Trice 



lb. per head. Pence. 



1869 30,914 111,796 363 17-78 



1870 31,205 117,551 3-81 17-18 



1871 31,513 123,402 3-92 1644 



1872 31,836 127,661 401 10-78 



1873 32,125 131,881 4 11 10-67 



1874 32,426 137,210 423 17-00 



1875 32,749 145,327 444 1673 



1876 33,093 149,104 450 10-42 



1877 33,447 151,115 4-52 15-98 



1878 33,799 157,397 4 66 15-29 



1879 34,155 160,432 4-70 14-68 



1880 34,409 158,322 4-59 13-47 



1881 34,930 160,051 4-58 12-8"> 

 1SK2 5,2!i0 164,958 4-67 12-58 



1883 5,612 170,7S1 4-80 12-46 



1884 5,952 175,000 4-87 1178 

 The quantity set down as retained for consumption in 

 1884 is an estimate. The amount entered for consump- 

 tion in 1884 was, according to the Board of trade Re- 

 turns, 175,098,000 lb. For the previous years the differ- 

 ences hetweeu the amounts entered arid those actually 

 retained were very small, and they have lately shown a 



tendency to decrease, as the subjoined table shows | - 



omitted) : — 



Entered for Actually Difference. 



Consumption. Retained. Amount. Per cent. 



1879 ... 160,652 160,432 220 0-13 



1380 ... 158,570 158.322 248 0-18 



1 -1 ... 160,226 160,051 175 OH 



18S2 ... 165,080 104,558 122 007 



1883 ... 170,813 170,718 32 0o: 



Popul- 

 ation. 



