76 TEA 



starts off from the factories in bullock-waggons. A 

 " tea-caravan," consisting of a long procession of 

 waggons, each with a thatched-tunnel awning, and 

 each drawn by two bullocks, is a common sight in 

 Ceylon ; anyone who has seen such a procession 

 wending its way under the charge of native drivers, 

 along the tracks amidst the magnificent hill-scenery 

 of this island, will often conjure up a memory of this 

 picturesque spectacle, and experience again the joy 

 born of its old-world atmosphere. Usually the tea 

 is taken by the bullock-waggons to a local railway 

 station, and thence by train to Colombo, where it is 

 met by more bullock-waggons, and conveyed to some 

 warehouse. 



The time has now arrived for the tea to be sold to 

 merchants. The stock in the warehouses is under 

 the charge of various agents, who represent the 

 estates. These agents ship some of the tea abroad, 

 to be sold by public auction. But a large proportion 

 of the Ceylon output is sold by public auction in 

 Colombo. 



In the case of stock that is to be disposed of through 

 the Colombo Tea Exchange, the agents employ brokers, 

 who act as salesmen. The brokers prepare catalogues, 

 wherein particulars are set forth of the teas they have 

 been instructed to sell — these particulars are a tabulated 

 statement of such details as the name of the estate 

 from which a consignment of tea has been received, the 

 grade names of the various teas in that consignment, 

 and the number of chests containing a uniform weight 

 of each grade. The sale catalogues are sent round to 

 merchants, together with samples of each of the teas 

 referred to therein. From each sample received by 



