6 



extra expense. It also handicaps the new land by the extra cost of 

 carrying or carting leaf from a greater distance to the factory. And 

 further, it means either more expensive or less adequate supervision. 

 This principle, in addition, creates a tendency to ignore vacancies, 

 and often has the statement been made to me that it was easier to 

 plant out new land than to fill in vacancies, heedless of the fact 

 that the vacancy land though producing nothing cost just as much 

 to work as that producing the maximum crop. I think it must 

 once and for all be recognised that the practice of making new clear- 

 ances to take the place of the deficiencies of old tea still kept in 

 cultivation is illogical and based on unsound principles. And as a 

 natural consequence it must be laid down as an absolute rule that 

 extensions are inexcusable unless the tea already in existence is 

 producing the maximum it is capable of producing of the quality 

 of tea desired. I do not mean to say that one can always expect 

 20 years old tea to give as good a yield of as good tea as ten years 

 old plant. This is, to say the least of it, very doubtful. But if the 

 yield of a plot of land shows a gradual tendency to fall lower and 

 lower, it is time to deal with that plot and bring it up to the stand- 

 ard laid down before any further extension is carried out. 



If such be not the recognised principle of culture it would be 

 far better to frankly recognise that our tea culture is " juming" pure 

 and simple, and abandon an equivalent for the tea coming into 

 bearing. This would at least be a confession that it paid better to 

 put out new tea than to keep tea up to a certain yielding power, 

 but the system of constantly extending area at increased cost for 

 working, with greater difficulty in working, and with less capacity 

 for supervision is utterly wrong as an agricultural principle, and may 

 be said to be non-existent in any other agricultural industry. 



In brief then agriculturally the only sound system would be 

 never to put out new tea until the old is yielding its maximum. If 

 this old tea cannot be profitably kept up to the standard required 

 either uproot and replant the plot, or plant out fresh tea with a view 

 to the abandonment of an equivalent area so soon as the new plant 

 comes into bearing. I am very doubtful whether this latter alter- 

 native will be necessary in many cases, unless some grievous errors 

 have been made either in the original plant or in the subsequent 

 treatment, 



