178 



TJie Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



10,000,000 pounds per annum shown to be 

 short on the hypothesis that the consump- 

 tion is T36 lb. per capita. The selection 

 of the figure 60 per cent, is not arbitrary, but 

 is based upon the authority of the Brit" 

 ish Customs House who reported that 

 India and Ceylon tea, compared to those of 

 other countries, was as 7 to 5, or in other words 

 plus 40 per cent. As the comparison was made 

 with the class of tea imported into Great 

 Britian it is reasonable to assume a higher re- 

 lative strength when making comparisons with 

 those imported into the United States. In- 

 deed, it is probable that all teas now imported 

 should have some percentage to their credit, as 

 the comparison is being mado with present 

 figures compared to the time prior to the 

 passage of the Pure Tea Law. 



While the claim here made is that there has 

 been no reduction in the actual consumption 

 of liquid tea in this country the most favour- 

 able construction of the figures will not do 

 more than provide for consumption and leaves 

 no margin for replenishment of stock depleted 

 during the period when duty was levied on 

 imports. 



The very large net importations of the years 

 1903-1904 and 1905 may, to a limited extent, have 

 admitted of some stocks accumulating in the 

 interior, but it seems clear that the smaller im. 

 portations of the following years 1906 and 1907, 

 being less than the requirements for consump- 

 tion, these stocks must have been drawn from 

 and are now greatly reduced, 



The general deduction to be drawn therefore 

 is that invisible stocks must be extremely low, 

 or practically non-existent in the country, and 

 with short crops in the countries of production, 

 greatly increased buying by Russia after a 

 period of inactivity, larger consumption in Great 

 Britain since the reduction of the duty there, 

 and consequently the high level of prices in 

 London, Calcutta and Colombo, the tea market 

 here is in a condition where an advance in 

 prices must take place, as spot teas cannot be 

 replaced at the same prices for many months to 

 come. We appear indeed to be on the eve of 

 an era of higher prices all round. 



TEA IMPORTER. 



THE CULTIVATION OF RICE. 



SUCCESS ATTAINED BY THE APPLICATION OF 

 BASIC SUPEKPHOSPHATE. 



Analytical Laboratory, 79, Mark Lane, 



London, E.C.. Jan. 3rd, 1908. 



Sir, — As the question of extended Rice culti- 

 vation appears to be attracting attention in 

 Ceylon just now, I send you a carefully copied 

 extract from a paper by Professor Harrison 

 on British Guiana read befere the West India 

 Committee in London. 



You will notice that he speaks favourably of 

 Basic Superphosphate as a source of Phos- 

 phates for rice and regards Superphosphate and 

 Slag as less suitable, the former being too acid 

 for soils naturally deficient and Slag being too 

 insoluble in its character. — yours faithfully. 



JOHN HUGHES. 



Extract from Professor Harrison's payer on 

 British Guiana read before the West India 

 Committee, London, 1907. 



RICE. 



The next important agricultural industry is 

 that of rice growing. This is emphatically one 

 pursued by small farmers, and its development 

 has been mainly due to the East Indian settlers 

 in British Guiana. It is gratifying to be able to 

 state that the black people in the colony are at 

 present also entering with some enthusiasm into 

 this industry. It is, however, only fair to the 

 proprietors of sugar estates in the colony to 

 point out that they have given every encour- 

 agement in their power to their employes to 

 carry on rice-growing. 



The returns made to the Board of Agricul- 

 ture clearly show the great extension which 

 has taken place in this industry of rocent years. 

 In 1900 the acreage returned by cultivators as 

 being under rice was about 6,000 acres, in 

 1906 it was returned as about 24,000 acres, 

 while it is estimated! that for this year about 

 '26,000 acres of rice will be under cultivation. 

 The increase in the crop of rice between 1900 

 and 1906 represents about 12,500 tons of 

 cleaned rice per annum, the value of which 

 probably is about £K25,000, 



The large area now being cultivated in rice 

 has been used for that purpose without displac- 

 ing the cultivation of any other valuable pro- 

 duct. Hence the rice produced, whether used 

 in the colony or Exported, is a clear gain to 

 the resources of the aplony. For some years 



