Si4 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[June i, 1886. 



THE ALLEGED FALLING-OFF IN THE 

 QUALITY OF CEYLON TEAS. 



There is another way of accounting tor the 

 falling-off in quality of some of the Ceylon teas, 

 especially in those cases where ijuality w'as preferred 

 to quantity in oriler to obtain a name for pro- 

 ducing high-classed tea. 



It is now found, since the heavy decline in the 

 prices of broken pekoes and pekoes, that plucking 

 fine, say, only SOO lb. per acre instead uf ;J00 or (lUO 

 lb. does not answer. IIOO lb. at an average of Is :id. 

 per lb. is better than aOO lb. at an average of 'is 

 per lb. if that was obtained. It appears possible 

 that Ceylon planters will shortly see the wisdom 

 of sorting only into two qualities. I'ekoe, in which 

 the broken and orange tips are left, and pekoe 

 sonchong to include all the remainder except dust 

 and red leaf. 



CAPT. PONNAN'S INSPECTION OF THE 

 CEYLON PEARL BANKS. 



Capt. Donnan, Master Attendant and Inspector 

 of Pearl Fisheries, has just concluded his an- 

 nual inspection of the pearl banks of the island, 

 — or rather of those which are inspected annually, 

 here being sonie few banks for which an inspc;ction 

 every two or three years sullioes. We are glad 

 to say the results of this year's inspection are 

 eminently satisfactory, and Capt. Donnan is happy 

 to be in a position to report that never before 

 in his experience have the prospects of a large 

 and lucrative pearl fishery been so good. The 

 banks just inspected are those lying off the coast 

 of Arippu and Mannar, extending a distance of 

 about 20 miles at from i to l-'j miles from the shore. 

 These comprize the Cheval paar, the Motarakani 

 paar, the I'eriya paar, the Kallatidel paar, the 

 Periya paar kerai, the Kondaehehi paar, the 

 Vanicali paar, the Nadakkanda paar, and the 

 Anairiluntan paar. It is on the first two of 

 these paars that the oysters are found which 

 usually constitute the fishery, the others as a 

 rule being barren. Two others, however, were 

 this year found to contain very fair quantities 

 of oysters, namely the Periya paar and the Periya 

 paar kerai. Capt. Donnan estimates that on the 

 Cheval and Motarakam paars they are at present 

 no less than three hundred njillions of oysters, 

 about '21 years old. These will be ready for 

 fishing ill a couple of years, but the quantity is 

 too great to be all fished in one season- 

 indeed there are as many oysters there 

 as are usually brought up in four fisheries. The 

 only months during which fishing operations can 

 be carried on are March and April, when the 

 wind comes alternately off the land and sea. In 

 the south-west monsoon it is impossible to get the 

 boats out, and so entirely deix:udent are the 

 divers on the wind and the weather that a change 

 of wind and a breeze from the south-west, even 

 during the calm weather of the north-east mon- 

 soon, interrupts all work till it ceases. Capt. 

 Donnan also inspected six banks off the island of 

 Karadover, on three of which young oysters were 



ound. He estimates that there were :iO millions 



ere of about IH months old. As no oysters have 

 been found here before, the fact of there being 



o largo a quMitity now there is import- 

 ant. On another bank, which was last fished 

 in the year 183'2, about one-and-a-half mil- 

 lion o£ ovsters were found of three years old. 



These banks will probably provide a ■ profitable 

 fishery for the year IS'JO. It is anticipated by 

 Capt. Donnan that about half of the quantity of 

 oysters now on the banks may be fished and this 

 will bring a large and welcome addition to the re- 

 venues of the colony for the years 1HS8, IbS'.l and Iti'M. 

 There is, however, a diliieulty ahead which may 

 seriously affect the success of these fisheries. It 

 unfortunately happens that the Indian Govern- 

 ment fishery on the Tutieorin banks will take 

 place at precisely the same time as the Cey- 

 lon fishery. Now there are not suHicient divers to 

 successfully carry on two fisheries together 

 and the obvious consequence is that both must 

 sul'fer. In Ceylon there are no divers, they all 

 come over from Southern India whenever there is 

 a fishery and it is a question whether they will 

 not rather remain at home and take part in the 

 fishery on their own coasts than come over to 

 Ceylon —though it is extremely probable that the 

 better reputation of Ceylon pearls and the good 

 treatment the divers experience under Captain 

 Donnan may induce them to forsake India for 

 Ceylon. In addition to this there is the certainty 

 that if the two fisheries take place together the 

 lirices realized for the oysters will be lower than 

 they otherwise would. We understand that Captain 

 Donnan has been in communication with Captain 

 Phipps, Inspector of Pearl Fisheries to tlie Indian 

 Government, with a view to arrange for the fisheries 

 taking place at different dates. Captain Phipps, 

 however, does not think it can be avoided as he 

 also is dependent on the same conditions of 

 v/ind and weather as control operations on the 

 Ceylon coast, and his fishing can only be done in the 

 months of March and .\pril. A suggestion was 

 made that the Arabs from the Persian Gulf should 

 be engaged to do the work if sullicient local 

 divers could not be got, and we believe corre- 

 spondence passed between the Government of Ceylon 

 and the British Ecsident at the Persian CUilf on 

 the subject, as a result of which it was ascertained 

 that any number of Arabs would be willing to 

 come. But the grave objection to the adoption of 

 this course is the wild and lawless nature of the 

 Arabs of that region. Capt. Donnan sees that 

 great diliieulty would arise in the control of them, 

 indeed it would probably require a British gun- 

 boat to keep th«in in order ! However as the 

 fisiiery cannot take place for two years, there h 

 time to satisfactorily grapple with the diftieuUies 

 which present themselves, and we confidently 

 look forward to valuable fislieries in the three last 

 years of this decade. 



FUEL FOR TEA ESTATES. 



(Friiiii llie " Cii/loii Ailrfilixri:" l 

 The diliieulty of obtaining fuel for tlio uianufncrure 

 of Tea, though perhaps exaggerated by some, is not 

 a question of tUe future only. It i.s .already of serious 

 importance to many. :md will inenase yearly as Tea 

 comes into bearing. Neither in tbe Kalntani district, 

 nor in tbe Kelani \'alliy is there likely to be any difli- 

 eulty in obtaining fuel for a long time to come, ami 

 where tliere is abumlauce of wooil, no better fuel can 

 be gut either prepared as Charcoal or in billets, 

 being less likely to burn out tbe fire bars or plates 

 of the Sirrocco then either Coke or Goal, and 

 where wood can bo procured at s.iy HI per cubic yard 

 weighing.'! cwts., it is cheaper than any fuel which 

 can be usud in tleylou. The Tea I'lanti'i's dillifulty, 

 however, will be tile uncertainty of the supply and 

 diliieulty of transfer. At present the ('.yloii Gov- 

 ernineiit Railway pay to tlie I''orestiy Department 

 lil'HV cents perciiliie yard for selected wood. This 

 wood, I believe, weighs about WXJ lb. to tbe cubic 



