and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society. 



progress within the year than those of any other 

 growth. The trade in London, it is true, has 

 made very little progress ; but the teas are laid 

 down so cheaply at the outports that they now 

 form a considerable proportion of the trading 

 in certain centres, thus seriously restricting the 

 possibilities of business in other growths. Deal- 

 ing with the "Purity of Tea," the report subse- 

 quently statos that " the only growth showing 

 a general improvement is that of Java," The 

 prevalence of " stalks" in Indian and Ceylon 

 Teas has, we are informed, caused much com- 

 plaint from country and foreign buyers. Java 

 Teas being, so far, much freer from anything of 

 the kind, have frequently received a preference 

 in consequence. This is a very clear and definite 

 indication of one direction in which British pro- 

 ducers are being beaten by the Dutch Colony. 

 The fault complained of can be remedied 

 and all planters both in Ceylon and India 

 ought to make it a noint to see that 1 ' stalky" 

 tea is not in future placed on the market. 

 With regard to future prospects Messrs. 

 McMeekin regard as the gravest danger to the 

 industry a large yield from India during 1909. 

 In addition to the report we reproduce else- 

 where, Messrs McMeekin publish a table showing 

 tea statistics for six calendar years and a chart 

 with a statement showing the alterations in the 

 relative proportions of different growths of Tea 

 consumed during 22 years ended 31st December, 

 1908, the variations in the London average prices 

 for Indian teas, and the changes in rate of Duty. 



TEA IN 1908. 



(Messrs, McMeekin & Cn.'s Review.) 

 The reports upon the heavy lines of trade of all 

 kinds during the year are generally unsatisfac- 

 tory, and Tea has, to a certain extent, shared in 

 the bad results. The financial convulsion which 

 shook New York in November, 1907, and dis- 

 turbed the money markets of the world, had 

 prolonged after-effects upon nearly every im- 

 portant description of business, and the fact 

 that Tea was not more unfavourably influenced 

 is strong testimony to the sound and general 

 position of the trade. 



Producers. 



A remarkable change came over the character 

 of the demand during the year, and the common- 

 est grades, which for a longtime had been kept 

 at a high level of price as compared with those 

 considered to be worth intrinsically much more 

 money, were in lessened demand. Prices of the 

 former consequently fell, slowly but surely, 

 throughout the first eleven months of the year. 

 Coincident with the neglect of the common 

 grades there came an improved demand for 

 better qualities and a widening range of prices. 

 The averages of prices for both Indian and 

 Ceylon Teas showed some decline over the high 

 level of the previous year, but it is probable 

 that the year's working was more generally satis- 

 factory to the whole body of producers. The 

 phenomenal profits made by Bheol Estates from 

 enormous out-turns of low grade stuff will not be 

 so conspicuous as they were, but, on the other 

 haud, more encouragement will be given to those 



producing Teas of good quality. The turning 

 from the demand for mere lowness of price to a 

 requirement for quality is a highly satisfactory 

 feature that should receive every encouragement. 



The estimated value of the debentures and 

 shares of 170 Tea producing companies repre- 

 sentative o£ India and Ceylon was at 1st 

 November, 1908, £20,000',000 as against 

 £21,600,000 twelve months earlier. Having in 

 view that an average fall of approximately | 

 of a penny per pound was recorded on the total 

 yields, it is surprising that the capital difference 

 was not greater,looking to the reduced dividend- 

 paying power. The shares, however, are gene- 

 rally firmly held by permanent investors. 



DISTRIBUTORS. 



Following a succession of difficult years, that 

 just gone has been one of the worst on record 

 for those who try to make a living out of mer- 

 chant business in tea. The large wholesale 

 dealers, although working on lower values and 

 a lower Bank rate, have again had to face serious 

 losses from depreciation in stock values, the 

 long continued decline in the lower grades 

 rendering profitable business impossible. The 

 smaller country dealers and the retailers have 

 been faced with the competition of the multiple- 

 shop concerns and it has frequently been of an 

 exceedingly unfair character. Gross misrepre- 

 sentation in the way of lavish advertising as to 

 quality and value is very hard to deal with, but 

 here and there independent traders have made a 

 good stand for the old-fashioned honest methods 

 of describing goods. The failures among retail 

 grocers have for the year been unusually 

 numerous, and the wholesale trade has suffered 

 accordingly. Even the multiple-shop companies, 

 although several of them have made numerous 

 additions to the number of their branches and 

 in some cases added seriously to their working 

 costs, have not all been able to maintain their 

 previous rates of dividend. 



Consumers. 

 The general lack of prosperity throughout the 

 Kingdom and the large percentage of unemploy- 

 ment known to exist in many districts had little 

 obvious effect upon the consumption of Tea. 

 The quantity taken actually showed an increase 

 on the previous year of about l\ million lb. and 

 was again the highest on record. Allowing, how- 

 ever, for the usual natural increase in the popu- 

 lation, a small ceciine in the quantity consumed 

 per person is shown. 



In the matter of consumption Tea compares 

 favourably with most of the large lines of goods 

 figuring in the Board of Trade returns and appar- 

 ently it is likely to be one of the last items to 

 be prejudicially affected by adverse industrial 

 conditions. 



Indian Tea, 



Owing to the continued increase in direct trading With 

 India, importations into London again showed a decline 

 on the previous year. The t.H'uriiiu-* in ious there, were, 

 however considerably hen vim J ml I he dill'eronco is explained 

 by the reduced extent, of selling forced on the producers in 

 December, 1907, in consequence of the abnormal financial 

 position then existing. In the earlier moid h., or t lie Vow 

 Season the demand in Calcutta for several of the large 

 direct outlets was not so strong as in 19u7, and conse. 

 quoutly more tea in proportion ^o the total yield wag 



