H. E. ANNETT. 285 



East India Company's trade monopoly in 1813 it was hardly known 

 as an article of export. It was manufactured only to meet the 

 wants of native consumers in and around the few places of its pro- 

 duction, principally in Jessore and Faridpur districts. It was 

 occasionally transported to the principal markets of the adjacent 

 districts, and especially to Murshidabad and Dacca in the days of 

 their prosperity, when, previous to the British rule, they were the 

 centres of the trade and wealth of Lower Bengal. 



Imports of East India sugar into Great Britain gradually 

 increased from 6,282 tons in 1816 to 13,453 tons in 1823. Through- 

 out this period onward till 1837 all sugars from India were 

 loaded with an additional duty of 10 shillings per cent, beyond the 

 rate charged on West Indian sugars. The trade fell off and 

 exports from Bengal to Great Britain from 1830-6 averaged 

 below 6,000 tons per annum. There are no data to show what 

 proportion of exports consisted of date sugar, but these figures 

 show that the production of East Indian sugar met with little 

 encouragement. 



Date sugar, however, has always been a favourite luxury with 

 the native population. Its production is preferred in its own dis- 

 tricts to that of cane sugar, owing to the more expensive and pre- 

 carious cultivation of the sugar-cane. 



In 1833, Robinson 1 estimated the total production of date sugar 

 at 90,000 maunds, and in 1837 at 100,000. These figures relate to 

 refined sugar, and would be equivalent to about 225,000 maunds, 

 or 8,000 tons, and 250,000 maunds, or 9,000 tons of gur respectively. 

 In 1837 the duties on sugar imported from the East and West 

 Indies were equalised. Exports from Calcutta to Great Britain 

 swelled from 13,403 tons in 1836-7 to 63,084 tons in 1840-41. 

 Trade then became steady and onward till 1847-48, the average 

 exports were 60,000 tons. Here again it is difficult to say what 

 was the proportion of date sugar, but in 1848 the total date crop 

 per annum in Bengal was estimated at 15,000 tons of refined sugar 



1 Prize essay, page 7. 



