COFFEE PLANTING AND FINANCING, 153 
To those who have further capital, the rest is plain. 
sailing. They have only to fell the remaining 150 
acres, and in the meantime erect a bungalow, store, 
and pulping-house, as also to perfect the roads, and. 
when all is in full bearing they are the lucky owners 
of an estate worth from £12,000 to £14,000, giving 
an income of £3,000 a year at least. 
But such as have no more capital at their disposal 
must set about financing. There is plenty of money 
always seeking investment, and the planter can bor- 
row on primary mortgage of his estate, at nine per 
cent per annum. His property is now worth— 
100 acres planted—2 years old, at £24...£2,400 
100 do do —1 year pe reeOO 
150 do forest now worth £6 sca), veOwe 
Total... £4,100 
on this he can raise £3,000 which will pay for the 
buildings and opening the remaining land. One or two 
crops will pay off the debt, and then the proprietor 
is in as goed a position as his brother capitalists. 
In the preceding estimate no charge has been made 
for superintendence or interest of money. In the case 
of a middle-aged man—or a retired Indian officer, 
who has a family, and objects to roughing it in the 
_ jungle, he would probably wish to purchase a plan- 
tation in full bearing. His views will be met with- 
out difficulty. One enterprising agent in Kandy ad- 
vertices :— 
‘* Coffee estates for sale in ail districts, ages, and 
conditions, varying in size from 40 to 1,500 acres—and 
in price from £20U to £24,000. N.B., 56 estates now 
on the register—35 have been sold.” 
Supposing an estate of 350 acres is selected and 
the price fixed at £10,000 (there being 50 acres in 
forest): the purchaser pays down all the money at 
his disposal, say £3,000, and leaves the balance on a 
primary mortgage at 9 per cent. There still remains 
the difficulty of findimg money to work the estate, 
to gather the crop, and despatch it, as well for his 
household expenses. Here the local Exchange Bank 
steps in and advances the needful at 8 per cent on 
what is styled a Cash Credit. By their Charters the 
banks are prohibited from advancing money as securi- 
fy on land or block advances, which brought the 
old Bank of “eylon to ruin, but no such restriction 
applies to lending on crops. 
Here it may be remarked that Ceylon is rather 
ahead of India in the matter of banking, as from its 
insular position it has been able to copy the Scotch 
system. LHvery little town and village has got its 
eranch bank, which keeps current accounts, and ne- 
