114 



TEA. 



the residencies of Preanger, Bagelin, and Banjoemans that the finest 

 plantations of tea are found. The leaves are gathered after the 

 second or third year. Up to 1842 tea was cultivated in Java exclu- 

 sively on Government account, under the superintendence of its 

 officials. There were then 13,500,000 tea trees. 



The number of labourers required for the culture and preparation 

 of the tea was so large, the supervision so difficult, and the result so 

 unsatisfactory, that the Government resolved to relinquish some of its 

 plantations to private individuals, undertaking to buy the tea of them 

 at a fixed price. This resulted in an extension and improvement of 

 the cultivation, but the purchasing price was found too onerous for 

 the Government, and the contracts were annulled after seven years' 

 trial. The consequence of this was that the cultivation of tea was 

 abandoned in all but the regencies of Preanger and Bagelin, and the 

 districts of Buitenzong and Krawang. It was found that private 

 individuals were able, when left to themselves, to grow on more 

 favourable terms than the Government, for while the former obtained 

 2 lbs. of tea from seven or eight trees, the latter only obtained 2 lbs. 

 from thirty- three trees. In 1860, therefore, the Government gave up 

 its last plantation in the regency of Bagelin. Now that it is left to 

 its own energy without Government control or aid, it succeeds better. 



In 1854 the island had 14,307,768 tea plants, from which 

 1,547,458 lbs. of tea were delivered to commerce. Nothing can 

 be more attractive than these tea plantations, each containing from 

 70,000 to 100,000 trees, and giving occupation to from twenty-five 

 to thirty families of native labourers. The seeds are sown in 

 nurseries, from which the young plants are planted out in line at 

 a distance of about fom* feet from each other. The tree is not allowed 

 to exceed one and a half to two feet in height. The gathering of the 

 leaves takes place in the rainy season at the age of two years. Both 

 black and green tea are made. That known as Pekoe is made from 

 the leaves gathered at the top of the plant and the extremities of the 

 branches. It takes the leaves from eight trees to make two pounds 

 of tea. 



A tea planter in J ava writes : 



" I find tea pays better than coffee : in two years crops come in. 

 My tea seed I get from Bengal, hybrid Assdrm. I commenced planting 

 tea two years ago ; all the land drained, lined, manured with ashes and 

 buffalo manure, holes 8^ feet deep 3^ feet wide. The tea roots pene- 

 trate very deep into the soil. One man makes five to seven holes a 

 day ; each hole cost five cents, 5 by 5 feet ; so all the land is worked 

 at once, and no bother afterwards. I have about 70 acres planted ; 

 seed Bengal hybrid. I am now going to try the indigenous Bengal, 

 which is hardier. Elevation, say 700 or 800 feet, but much moisture. 

 Plenty of women to collect the crops ; pluck leaves every thirty-five 

 days, higher up in the hills forty-two days. I have now thii'ty chests 

 each time ; before June shall have fifty chests each cvo-p. My neigh- 

 bours plant 2i by 2i ; I don't approve of this. They make small holes, 

 say 100 to 120 by a man in a day. I say, if you do a thing, if it is 

 worth doing, do it well. I look after everything myself, so have 

 plenty of work and no mistake. I avoid slopes ; use level land. 



