^B 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[August i, 1885, 



the inspiration which led to the production of his first 

 rolling machine. The first o£ these machines was sent 

 to Tarrapore Estate in Cachar, in 1S68. This original 

 design has since been completely remodelled and vastly 

 improved. The original model, however, may hs said 

 to have been the first rolling machine introduced which 

 succeeded in competing sufficiently favourably with 

 hand-labour to merit adoption by planters, though there 

 are now several well-known rolling machines very 

 efficient, of which it is not on this occasion the place to 

 speak. Coming to the views now entertaiued by Mr, 

 Haworth on the subject of manufacture, it is to be 

 confessed that that gentleman's modesty militates 

 somewhat against the duties of an interviewer. 

 His distaste against "appearing in print" ia marked 

 when it is a question of advancing opinions, or the 

 chronicling of his experiences. The years during which 

 he has been connected with the industry he ignores 

 when it is proposed that he should pose as an authority ; 

 " I don't see that I can add much to what everybody who 

 is intimately acquainted with tea must already know." 



" Granted, for the sake of argument, but under 

 great reservation, it is, none the less, of considerable 

 interest just now to many, that views should be 

 discussed, and to be discussed they must be known. 

 Perhaps your views may help enquirers on a point or 

 two iu that search for more light, whigh is the acknow- 

 ledged duty of the hour ? " 



" Well then, to take up one point in manufacture 

 only; we need a thorough sifting of the question of 

 the temperature at which tea should be dried. This, 

 in my mind, is the crux of the whole position. I am 

 convinced that very excessive temperatures have, iu 

 many cases been adopted, and I have reason to be. 

 lieve that even the chief advocates of high temperat- 

 ures are now becoming converted and are realising the 

 fallacy of their former creed. The true temperature' 

 will probably be found to lie under 250°. At that 

 temperature or under it, air can be more evenly and 

 regularly heated over a large surface, and also more 

 economically probably by using steam as the heatiog 

 medium, than in the case where high temperatures 

 arc employed, apart from the most vital consideration 

 of all, the chemical effect upon leaf." 



"This means that time which has hitherto been such 

 an object to save is to be sacrificed !" 



"Not necessarily so; as with slight modification the 

 work can be done as quickly as it is now by using 

 additional appaiatus; but if Indian tea is to maintain 

 its repuiatiou for quality we must make the latter more 

 of an object than we have done of late : though 1 

 think it is quite possible that machine may be produced 

 or adapted from present forms by which the quantity 

 turned out need not be reduced though the temper- 

 ature should be." 



" Are you in favour of a return to panning?" 



"I think it ia very probable that we shall Hud that 

 if our quality is to be improvod it will be necessary 

 to re-establisli, not panning after the okl-fashioned 

 caroi plau, but a n^echaoical substiiute for that plan 

 whereby the aciion produced by the old process of 

 panning shall be revived. I thinl' an appliance could 

 be constructed without much difficulty in which all 

 the action produced on the leaf by janning could be 

 produced without the old risk of burning from the 

 pans being overheated, and without the costly em- 

 ployment of manual labour in thi working entailed 

 by the old system. Such an appliance la already 

 under consideraiion in certain quarters. You see there 

 is about 75 per cent, of water in the cutcha leaf, of 

 this about 25 per cent, is extracted during the wilber- 

 in2, rouf;hly speaking, then 25 per cent, should bo 

 extracted during the panning, and this weuld ouly 

 leave 26 per cent, to be extracted during the final 

 drying, instead of about 50 per cent, less juices cniehed 

 out during the rolling, often to a fatal excess by 



planters, as at present. Thus the lower temperature 

 would then have less moisture to dry off, and this 

 would compensate in a measure for the decrease in 

 temperature, though at the cost of an additional pro- 

 cess, that of panning, it is true. If the equality de- 

 mands it, however, that additional process must be 

 accepted as a necessary inconvenience, and in this 

 way the whole process might be done as Cjuickly as 

 it is at present." 



" What would then be your complete ideal system 

 of manufacturing ? " 



"Firstly, I .should of course wither ; secondl5', roll 

 slightly ; thirdly, pan mechanically ; fourthly, ferment 

 or, more properly, oxidize; fifthly, finish the rolling I 

 sixthly, final fire, and at this final firing I should, a^ 

 already explained, have only 25 per cent, instead Of 

 50 per cent of water to evaporate — i.e., one-half of wha^. 

 now has to be evaporated." — Home aiul Colonial Mail 



LONDON (INDIAN) TEA COMPANIES. 



The Borokai Tea Company, Limited — Capital 

 £4,3,560in 4,.356 shares of £10 each, Areaundtr cultiv- 

 ation, 910 acres. Directors, Messrs. William Duncan, 

 O. A. Duncan, T. W. Powell, and W. H. Simpson. 



The twenty-first annual meeting of the share-holders 

 of this Company was held on the 30th ult. at the Com- 

 pany's office, when the following report was represented 

 to them by the elireetors:— 



The directors have to report that the crop of tea from 

 the company's gardens in 1S84 was 2,980 maunds, and 

 that the quality of the tea was satisfactory. 



The gardens were well cultivated and 54 acres of new 

 garden planted, the area now under plant being 910 

 acres, of which 802 are in bearing. It is intended to plant 

 an additional 50 acres, or more, in 1885, and a supply 

 of the best tea seed has been bought to raise seedlings 

 for that purpose, and for filling in vacancies in the 

 gardens. 



The coolies worked well during the year, and the 

 number on the garden on Dec. 31st last was 781. More 

 labor will be required for the increasing area of garden 

 and the manager states that if his recruiters are as 

 successful a.'i they were last year, the rccjuisite number 

 of coolies will be obtained through them. 



The gardens were visited and inspected in 

 January last by a member of the firm of Messrs, 

 .Jardiue, Skinner, & Co., the Company's agent iu 

 Calcutta, who was much pleased with the appear- 

 ance of the gardens, which he found iu good order, 

 The whole of the crop has been sold with the ex- 

 ception of lis maunds, and estimating these to realize 

 £678 lOs or £5 los per inaund, the total revenue 

 for the year, as shown in the annexed accounts, 

 amounts to £19,536 12s 5d against a total expend- 

 iture of £11,654 li^s Id, leavirg a profit of£7,SS2 2s4d, 

 to which has to be added a balance of £399 14s 6d 

 brought forward from the previous year, making the 

 total amonut available, £8,281 16s lOd, An inter in 

 dividend of 5 per cent has already been paid, and 

 the directors have now the pleasure to recimuvuda 

 further distribution of 10 percent making 15 percent 

 for the year, which together will absorb £6,531. They 

 further recommend that £1,000 be added to the ro- 

 reserve fund, raising it to £4,750 ; and that the lalanie 

 remaining at the credit of the profit and loss account 

 be carried forward. 



Results seem to show that these estat s are among 

 the finest, if not actually the finest in the district of 

 Cachar, — The returns given by the area iu full bearing 

 appear to us to be quite as encouraging as any we 

 have heard of, even in Ceylon, so far as the va'ue 

 of the produce goes. The yield per acre of bearing 

 plant is close upon four maunds, and the net result 

 18 a prp^t of it.'9 89 per acre. 



