3^4 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[Nov. 2, 1885. 



resumption of correspondence between the Associ- 

 ation and the (Jovernnient, the latter refusing to 

 receive communications signed by the Secretary, 

 who was a jwrKuini hxjriitn witli the Government 

 The other subjects referred to were as follows : — 

 Association Meetings at Suva, lieciiirocal Com- 

 mercial Treaty with Victoria, Annexation to New 

 Zealand, Meteorological Eecord, Fiji Committee, Con- 

 tributions etc., and Finance and General. With 

 regard to the last we learn that the financial, 

 position of the Association is a sound one, and 

 that it carries a balance forward to the new year. 

 Nevertheless, the expenditure has again exceeded 

 receipts, and the Association has had still further 

 to draw upon its cash balance. After the reading of 

 this Keport the Chairman delivered an address, review- 

 ing the events of the year. We quote as follows : — 

 The labor question, which is one of the chief factors 

 in all agricultural undertakings, and which has lately 

 brought our neighbours in Queensland to the brink 

 of ruin, does not licrc, now, assume so serious an 

 aspect. Many of the coolies Ijy the " Leonidas "' are 

 now free men. Plauters arc well supplied, and year 

 by year this will become a subject of diminishing mi- 

 easiuess to the planters of the colony. The Poly- 

 nesians, may I think, be considered as practically played 

 out. for. from \arious causes, which it is unnecess- 

 ary for me to mention, such a dead set has been 

 made against their indenture that it is impossible 

 for so small a coninnmity .as onrs to " kick against 

 the pricks ;" and although we know that, so far at 

 any rate as this colony is concerned, the abuses have 

 been enormously exaggerated, and that under an in- 

 telligent system th*; men are still to be had. yet we 

 nmst. I think, in policy concede the point and be con- 

 tent to look upon coolies and Fijians as the labor of 

 the future. The Fijians, our third supply of labor, 

 are being more and move dispensed with, although, 

 personally, T look upon theiii, more particularly for 

 the liard work of opening plantations and landing 

 nuicbinery as the best of tlie three. The reasons for 

 this are not far to seek, but will be found in the un- 

 wise restrictions placed on their engagement by the 

 Labor Ordinance of .January fSHH. Plante^.^ got dis- 

 gusted, despaired of overcoming the obstacles m 

 theii- way. and supplied themselves with other labor; 

 the result being that, as his Honor the late Admin- 

 istrator has lately told us, there .are large nuud^ers 

 trying for employment and cannot get it. Well may 

 the Fijians say " protect us from oiir friends." lu 

 my iu.-.ugur.al address T pointed out several particTilara 

 in which in my opinion, improvement in the Ordin 

 ance could be etfeeted. These, I think, have not 

 since been touched upon owing to the commission 

 appointed by the Grown to examine into the whole 

 subject not having sent in its ie])ort. .\t any rate 

 that report has not yet reached it ; when it does, I 

 trust it will receive very serious consideration at our 

 hands. Hiit of one thing I feci sure, that were 

 Fijian.s only paid, a.s is the case with coolies, for the 

 (lays on wbieli they worked, they would be the best 

 labor ill the world! Whilst on 'tliis subject I wish 

 to say a ft'w words on the aimoxation movement for 

 ft closer connection with New Zealand. Fears have 

 heen t-npresscd by some, not otiierwi.se inimical to the 

 meiiKini,', that if it came about our su|iply of coolie 

 labor would Iw stimped, that the Indiau Government 

 will not allow coofi'iii io be spiit to a colony enjoy- 

 ing ropi'csentativo (lol'crninijrit, lUid that Oueensfand 

 and Smith Australia have in vahi tried to get Hieni. 

 Now g'lUtlemeii, this is a delusion. It is not that 

 the ludiiiil GoVKWiiient will not allow their people to 

 go to colonicH having reproffciitative govoniment, but 

 it is this, that llic Indian (nivemuieiil will not al- 

 low tbiiii to go to any country until certain pro- 

 tective measures which it iiisistrf on have first been 

 passed bv the legislature, and it is because in the 

 colonies 1 have named the democratic and iiiimigraut 

 elements have hitherto been strong enough to inevent 

 the>c measures passing, that coolies are not there 

 now, and I cannot therefore but think that these 

 /'ears have for us no foundation whatever. 



TEA AND COFFEE IN filUT.MN. 



Strange as it may seem, it would really ainiear 

 to be the fact that English people are drinking 

 less liquid, of any sort, than they formerly imliibed. 

 The Excise has fallen off, and this was thought Io 

 mean that temperance diinks, more particularly 

 tea and coffee, were in the ascendant. As regards 

 tea precise information is wanting, though tlieru 

 is no doubt that more tea is now drunk than 

 formerly; but, on the other hand, coffee is much 

 less patronised than it was. This painful fact came 

 out very plainly from some statistics quoted in 

 the course of a City meeting of coffee buyers, 

 importers, and brokers lately held in Mincing-iane. 

 The gathering was unanimous in its laments on 

 the small amount of coffee which finds its way 

 to London compared with former years. Three 

 years ago the stock of coffee carried to London 

 came to twenty-eight thousand tons, while in all 

 other European ports put together the stock iiii- 

 porled was one hundred and seventy-five thousand 

 tons ; now (he Metropolitan coffee supply has 

 fallen to twenty thousand tons, while tlie 

 Euro])ean stores of the luxury have risen consider- 

 ably above two hnudreil thousand tons. A 'drop 

 of eight thousand tons in three years is of course 

 a very serious matter in any business where the 

 article is entirely imported. There were many sugges- 

 tions made to account for this doleful state of 

 the coffee market, and it was asserted that dock 

 rates, brokers' commissions, and other obstacles of 

 the kind seriously affected the prosperity of the 

 trade in London.* This may be the case, and any- 

 thing which injuriously affects the profits of im- 

 porters and sellers must be harmful to the public, 

 for they will be supplied with a worse article. It 

 would certainly be of no use to make coffee dearer 

 in the hope of recommending it to the consuming 

 public; hut at the same time "cheap and nasty" 

 is a pleasurs as applicable to coffee-dealers as to 

 any other tradesman. The worst policy to recuper- 

 ate lost trade i.s to foist on the public an article 

 of bad quality, with the bait of cheap price; for 

 the coffee or tea drinker becomes disgusted, and 

 the whole trade suffers. 



A reason for this falling-of in coffee-drinking 

 may possibly be found in a direction which the 

 importers and merchants seriously suspect. 1'he 

 restaurants in London, the eating-houses, cofl'ee- 

 shops, coffee palaces and taverns, where coffee 

 really good quality can be obtained at any price 

 are lamentably few. In many so-called coffee- 

 houses the princiinU attention is paid to the sujiply 

 of chojis and steaks, or plates of meat and 

 potatoes, and it seems to be considered by the 

 proprietors that to long as these tolid articles of 

 nourishment are fairly good and reasonably cheap, 

 the custoinerB do not inHch mind liow inferior the 

 Rccomjianying drink may be. This is undoubtedly 

 a veiy great cause of the comiiaratively Biimii 

 success which coffee-palacee, bo called, have cii = 

 joyed in the Metrojiolis. 'They began some years 

 ago « ith a great flourish of tvumpcts, and, "frOra 

 the number of these cstoblishments which siuang 

 Up in nearly every street, it was coutidently hoped 

 that intemperance had been conquered, that mi 

 Englishman would hcnceferth care for his "drop 

 of good beer," when he could obtain a drop of 

 good coffee, and a slice or two of bread and butter, 

 at the undoubtedly reasonable rate at which the 



* Of cour.se the lost biisiue.-^s more imniediiitely 

 coiupliiimd of was a rc-exporliiig ami ilistrilmtiiig. 

 lalhir tliau » home, busincis.— Ed. 



