August j, 18S5.3 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



139 



unknown, and everything was douc exi)ensivcly. There were 

 generally two or three Obiaamen to be found, in those 

 early days, on every garden, and in many caseR they 

 taught us wrong. There are very few now. The Indian 

 planter thinks, and the result shows he is right, he knows 

 more about tea than his Chinese brother. Gradually, as 

 knowledge increased, economy was studied, but an element, 

 not foreseen, had slipjjfd in. Su})i)Iy began to exceed 

 demand, botli as regai'dg Chinese and Indian teas, and 

 prices fell. A few years back Indian planters easily realized 

 two shillings and upwards for their teas all round, they pet 

 not much more than half that now. Some fortunes were 

 doubtless made by the lucky ones in the first good days, 

 some even with the present low ])rices manage to make 

 tea pay still, but the days of large jirofits are gone. Take 

 it all in all, from the first up to this time, quite as much 

 money has been lost as made by Indian tea. 



Still, in sjjite of [he above, there is probably a fair fu- 

 ture in store for the Indian tea-planter, that is for those 

 who /(rtif good gardens, liut, with the market as it is now, 

 it is no less than folly to invest in new cultivation. The 

 hindrance to success has been that too many embarked 

 in the industry. Too much tea is alreavly grown in India 

 and she has now a very formidable rival in Ceylon, where 

 the cultivation is extending greatly, and whence tea, quite 

 equal to Indian, is sent home. But the planters in Cey- 

 lon should be warned by the experience of those 

 in India, for it is very possible they are rushing too 

 much ahead. The question of new markets for tea is 

 an all-important one to the producer. The ta.ste 

 for Indian tea is spreading in Australia, somewhat 

 also in America, and the demand from those countries may 

 be eventually enormous. But that will not be yet. .Shortly, 

 if supply does not increa.se much, demand will probably 

 overtake it, and better prices result. Let it do so beiore 

 the tea area is wideni'd. Some thought, some still think, 

 the war in China will raise prices : it has not done so yet. 



How far Indian tea will eventually supersede China is of 

 course a question. The figures of the last two years 

 certainly lead to the behef, that, in the near future, the im- 

 ports will be at least equal. There is no doubt the teas 

 of India and Ceylon have some advantages. They are 

 much stronger, and therefore, though much dearer, more 

 economical. It is said, that, while many desert Chinese for 

 Indian teas, the converse is very rare. Some China tea has 

 hten now and then condemned as adulterated, but in no 

 one instance has any foreign substance been found in Indian 

 tea. The fact that Indian tea is all manufactured by 

 machinery, instead of by hand as in China (tea manufacture 

 by the hand is not a nice process) ensures its cleanliness. 

 ^\*hen we consider that tea has been cultivated and manu- 

 factured in China more thau a thousand years, in India 

 some thirty only, it is almost incrediblt:, but no less a fact, 

 that in point of luauufacture the Indian planter is far ahead 

 of the Chinaman. 



<Jne proof may be given. In China (it is bo stilly tea 

 has always been fired with charcoal. The Chinese im- 

 ported in the early days to teach us tea manufacture in 

 India, said this was necessary, and that the fumes of char- 

 coal had some beneficial chemical effect on the tea. We 

 did as we were taught for some years, for, though charcoal 

 was a very expensive and inconvenient agent, we then | 

 knew no better. After a time a series of experiments, 

 carefully conducted by me, showed that heat from any fuel, , 

 if the products of combustion did not mingle with it, was } 

 equally efhcacious, nay m&de better tea, but it took a 

 long time ere my convictions were accepted. Not likely, 

 planters said, the Chinese would have used charcoal for 

 centuries ha<i it not been necessary ! The result proved 

 however I was right. The first crude machine I designed I 

 for the operation, at the .Sooin Tea Plantation in Darjeeliug 

 in 1S71, established the fact. (See page 23!) of ray Tea Book, 

 4th edition. > It was soon superseded by more perfectones, 

 and very nearly all Ceylon and Indian tea is now fired by 

 the agency of coal, wood, or any fuel. Economy in ninna- 

 facture is the result. The comparative immunity of the 

 forests in India is another advantage, and it is now an 

 accepted fict that superior teas are thus made, that is 

 always supposing it isuot, by excessive heat, done too quickly, 

 which seems to bt; the error fdanters are falling into now. [ 

 Whereas in India each and every process in manufacture ) 

 s done by machinery, the Oliinese still make their tea by I 



hand as their forefathers ilid belon- them. A well sit up 

 tea factory iu India is a wonderful sight, when the iufancy 

 of the industry is considered. Machines are there present 

 for each and every process, anil tli(y are many. Much 

 labour is saved thereby, and improved tea the result. 



If ever Indian supersedes Chinese tea in England, the re- 

 sult will be due, in a great measure, to the use of machinery* 

 in its manufacture, Edw\ri) Movfv 

 ^ 



THE NORTH BRITISH BOIINEO COMPANY, 

 The progress of the North British Borneo Conipauy 

 has always been so in'ereste<lly followed iuCejhm, 

 and so many of those who have, during the late 

 years of misfortune, failed to make their way in 

 your colony have jirocecded to try their luck in 

 Borneo, that the following rejjort of what transpired 

 at a meeting of the Company's shareholders this week 

 cannot fail to be of intertBt to your readers : — 



The fifth half-yearly general meeting of the British North 

 Borneo Company was held yestt-rday, at the CityTerminus 

 Hotel. Sir Rutherford .\lcock, K. c. B., presided, and in 

 moving the adoption of the report observed that they had 

 now been at work for three years, and it might be desirable 

 that be should make a brief review of the progress which 

 had been made by them. The total receipts for the year 

 ended December Slst last had been £20.04.3, being an in- 

 crease, as eiimpared with the previous year, of 6tl percent, 

 while the expenditure of 1S84 showed a ili'creaseof 30 per 

 cent as compared with lI'SH. Their receipts were made up 

 ( f three diff erint items — £15,2-38, the revenue proper — rents, 

 rates, taxes, &c. ; £2,8!)8, which had been received from land 

 sales, and £1,717 from interest on investments. He thouuht 

 with these results before thi-m they would see that they 

 were in a fair way to attaining the end they were seeking; 

 but to understand thomughly the significance of the pro- 

 gre.ssof the conqjany they must remember the very adverse 

 circumstances in which thi-y bad been working. ^Vlmost 

 immediately after taking over thecountry there was an un- 

 exampled depression. There had been great speculation 

 among the Chinese, both at Shanghai and Hongkong in 

 various companies, which had endt-'d more or less dis- 

 astrously, and quickly following on that state of things there 

 were the hostilities with the French, which had destroyed 

 all trade on the coast, and all trading intercourse among 

 Chinese and foreigners in the treaty ports. A comparative 

 statement of revenue and expenditure for 1883 and 1884 was 

 given iu the report, and it would be seen tliat the increase in 

 the revenue had been under every bead with only two or 

 three exceptions, and the same remark applied to the re- 

 duction iu the expenditure. They had followed the i-xample 

 of .Singapore and Hongkong, and tbey now had no import 

 duties. They had received the must favourable reports from 

 Governor Treacher of the prospect of an increase in neai-ly 

 all the items which had been already coiitinualiy increasing, 

 anfi now that there was a cessation of the war with China, 

 and more capital would be liberated, tbey might hope that 

 a considerableextent of land, which had been ullcjwed to lie 

 fallow from want of enterprise, would come speedily into 

 cultivation. Timber, tobacco, and minerals had hardly ap- 

 peared in their returns yet, but th' y now offered very great 

 promise. Beyond this there was certain jungle proiluce — 

 sago, pe])per, hemp. Of timber they had practically an in- 

 exhaustible supply ; tobacco was one of the most fruitful of 

 tlieir prospects; and, with regard to minerals, without wish- 

 ing to raise any over-sanguine expectations of immediate 

 wealth, he might say that they had a.sccrtained, certainly, 

 that gold was in two of their rivers. As to their iitw 

 territory, they had every reason to believe that this acces- 

 sion would prove^very advantageous to tlieni. It had given 

 them an aildition of CO miles of coast, and it took (hem 

 down to Brunei Bay. They had obtained this territory on 

 what they conceived to be very advantageous terms, and 

 great credit was due to Governor Treacher for the 

 successful manner in which he had negotiated its 

 accjuisition. The territory possessed a largo popul- 

 ation — which of itself v/as a great advantage — and it was 

 covered with produce, sago, rics, anil other articles, which 

 were immediately saleable. With regard to their financial 

 position, they had some £lfi,000 available, in addition to 

 » With skill and conscientious care,— ljl.p ' 



