36 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [July i, 1889. 
" Good Tea Made in the Field." — A planter 
at a high elevation, who has maintained an average of 
over Is. Id. for upwards of 60,000 lb. of tea sold 
between July and February last, testifies that in his 
opinion " Good tea is principally made in the 
field." 
Ceylon Tea in New Zealand. — Mr. R. An- 
drews of Dunedin leaves by the S. S. "Rome," 
and he is much pleased to see the part taken by 
the Planters' Tea Fund Committee in voting £300 
for a representation of Ceylon teas at the New 
Zealand and South Seas Exhibition. Mr. Andrews 
feels sure Ceylon teas will take in the Britain of 
the South, and no efforts will be wanting on his 
part in making their good properties and good value 
known among his friends. 
Indian Tea and the Coming Battle.— The 
larger proportion of tea gardens in India being 
owned by Limited Companies, it is supposed that 
they can stand a struggle with low prices longer 
than individual proprietors. But to judge by the 
past history of tea in India, this is at least 
doubtful ; for there is the precedent frequently 
noticed, we believe, of shareholders in Indian 
Tea Companies refusing to answer calls and pro- 
posing to allow tea acreage go to waste until a 
return of better times allowed of the bushes being 
once more cleared, pruned and plucked. 
What Quantity of Tj?a Can Ceylon Produce 
Three oe Four Years Hence ? — In our estimates 
hitherto, we have not ventured to go above 50 
million lb. for season 1890-91 ; but we suspect 
now that, if there were only a market, 60 millions 
could be shipped for that season. Mr. Bisset, who 
has just left us, says that after travelling from 
Matale to Uva and up and down, and hearing 
what the planters say, he cannot help thinking 
that Ceylon will be turning out 100 to 120 million 
lb. four or five years hence ; and he urges that if 
the Planters' Association made this plain and it 
was generally known, it would stop all further 
planting of tea in India and show the China tea 
merchants the need of winding up their business 
in the Far East and establishing buying agencies 
at Colombo as soon as possible. This may be worthy 
of consideration. 
"The Black Cotton Soil."— Mr. J. Dent 
Young who, in his day, has travelled in every 
province of the island perhaps as much as any 
man of intelligence and observation in our midst, 
places the following note at our disposal. We 
commend it to the attention of the Cotton Com- 
pany, intending cultivators and Government : — 
" The notices I see regarding cotton have called 
to my mind an * out of the way ' part of the island, 
where the soil looked to me very much like what 
is spoken of as the ' black cotton soil ' in the 
Bombay Presidency. The land I allude to extends 
for about 15 miles in length between Punakarai, the 
ci-devant Pooneryn, and Tunakai in the Northern 
Province. The soil is no doubt very rich, and if the 
seasons and climate there should be suitable for 
cotton, the region would be worth the attention of 
cotton planters. I have seen nothing like it anywhere 
else in Ceylon." 
Tea Withering. — Messrs. John Walker & Co., 
in sending ua an advertisement, very properly 
remark : — 
" Jlure is the reply to son e oftj.e remarks it) your 
leader of last night. What baiter answer can we 
give Y It is surprising that these machines are not 
more largely availed of. Just read the extracts we 
givo from planters' letters, especially the last one from 
Mr. Jamieson." 
Nothing could be more attractive; but few indivi- 
dual planters, we suspect, can face the expense. 
There 'a tho rub ; and the only solution of the 
difficulty we can see is in the coalition of a certain 
number of plantations to establish central fully- 
equipped Factories. Would it not be a good plan 
for engineers travelling in the planting districts 
to keep their eyes open for favourable sites for 
central factories and to suggest to neighbouring 
proprietors how such might be availed of. 
Indian Tea Notes, May 7th. — Oachar has experi- 
enced warm weather. Weather cloudy and cool is the 
news from Durrung. Tea is doing well in Sylhet ; 
there is some slight damage from hail. Seasonable 
weather is reported from Knmroop aud Luckimpore. 
The news from Goalpara is high winds with hot and 
cloudy weather. Tea is doing well in Sibsaugor. 
There has been muggy weather with rain nearly 
every day. Darjeeling, 3rd May. — Nice showers; 
favouable for growth. Sootea, 29th April — The " chota 
barsat " has brought with it capital weather : 4'45 inches 
of rain fell during the week, but we had it as hot as 
they make it on the 24th and 25th. Gardens are 
looking well all round here, and this favorable change 
of weather should give us a busy May. Sonari, 27th 
April. — Weather very unsettled, heavy showers and 
sun alternating. Red spider has made its appearance 
on one or two gardens, Dehra Dun, 30th April. — A 
Correspondent writes : — Most gardens are well ahead 
of last year; as yet we have had hardly any hot winds. 
We have very little leaf left, and shall stop tea mak- 
ing in a few days. — Indian Planters' Gazette. 
Dr. Watt and the Coconut Palm. — The 
Madras Mail devotes over a column to cutting 
up this official author, winding up with, — " It is 
absurd to blame the Madras Agri-Horticultural Society 
not for its own ignorance of the characteristics 
and importance of the tree— which has yet to be 
proved— but for Dr. Watt's extraordinary want of 
information about a subject with which an officer 
in his position ought to be peculiarly well versed. 
The Englishman does not pay much of a compli- 
ment to Dr. Watt's superior officers when it leads 
its readers to suppose that the Government of India 
has been content to remain in comparative ignor- 
ance until the year 1889, about a tree which con- 
tributes to the export trade of Southern India com- 
modities of the value of 60 lakhs per annum. 
Treatises on economic products are only valuable 
if they are accurate, and certainly Dr. Watt's mono- 
graph on the cooonut tree does not, in its present 
form, deserve to be admitted to the category of 
papers that are reliable." Dr. Watts and other 
writers in India should get " All About the Coconut 
Palm." 
Tea Notes. — Tea is doing well in Sylhet. Season- 
able weather is the news from Kamroop. The weather 
has been cold and showery in Durrung. Stormy wea- 
ther is reported from Oachar and Luckimpore. 
Weather damp and cloudy with rain every day is re- 
ported from Sibsaugor. Ohittagong, 15 ih May. — 
Chittagong had heavy rain earlyin the month succeeded 
by strong bouth winds. There was good rain again last 
night. Darjeeling, 19th May : — A thunderstorm with 
heavy rain and a little sleet here last night. There 
was every appearance of the rain having been general 
throughout the district and especially so in the Terai, 
where want of rain has been most serious as regards 
crops of all kinds. Tea has suffered very much from 
drought throughout the Terai. I fear the hailstorm 
must have done a considerable amount of damage on 
Terai tea gardens, as it came from that direction. 
Sootea, 13th May. — The weather lias been cold and rainy 
with hardly a blink of sun during the past fortnight;. 
Growlers, however, have not ever} thing their own 
way, as leaf is plentiful aud red spider is clearing 
oif. Rainfall to date is 17'99 inches against 1525 
inches last year. Two guns had good sport on Saturday 
and Sunday week. The bag was three big deer, a buf- 
faloe and a mitton, the latter both bulls. They had 
a most interesting interview with a tiger, but the 
result has not yet been ascertained. — Indian Planters' 
Gazette. 
