December i, 1889.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 425 
THE WORKING OP INDIAN TEA 
COMPANIES. 
The Calcutta Planters' Stores and Agency have 
published an analysis of the working and position 
of Eome of the leading Indian Tea Companies to 
end of 1888. The Assam Company, as usual 
takes first place. The paid up oapital of this 
Company is £187,160 at the rate of £20 per 
share. This gross price per lb. of tea last year 
was Is 7-16th d, the cost having been, including 
all sale charges lid. The profit was, therefore, 
only 1 7-16ths d. The result was that the dividend 
was only 7 per cent, against 10 for each of the 
two previous years, with 20 for 1885 and 14 for 
1884. The yield was 303 lb. per acre. The Borelli 
Company with a yield per acre of 531 lb. got 
only lOfd for their tea and yet made a profit of 
2 5-16thd and paid an average dividend of 6-J per 
cent. The Darjiling Company, with a yield per 
acre of 312 lb. made a profit of 3 5-16th d and 
divided 6 per cent. The Doom Dooma Company 
with the highest yield per acre recorded, 6301b. 
made a profit of 2 5-8ths and yielded a divident of 8 
per cent. The most dividend-yielding of all the 
Companies for years back, the Jorehaut Company 
with only 274 lb. per acre, and a profit per lb. of 
only 1 l-16th d, shared a dividend of 10 per cent, 
against, 15 the previous year, and 18 the year be- 
fore that. Of course, profits and dividends are 
affected by capital expended and cost of production. 
The Eastern Assam Company, with 424 lb. per acre 
and a profit of 1 l-16th d gave no dividend and 
has given none for 5 years. The Jokai (Assam) 
Company, with 434 lb. per acre gave exactly the 
Bame dividend as the Jorehaut with onlj 274, 
viz. 10 per cent, the profit per lb- being 2d.— The 
gross prices in 1888 were generally lower than those 
of 1877, and so with the profits. There were two 
exceptions in the latter case, however, the most 
noted of which was the Lockimpore Company, 
with 3|d in 1888 against 2 31-32nds in 1887. In the 
case of 12 out of 14 however, the rate of profit 
in 1888 was lower, in a few cases markedly so. 
For instance the British East India Company 
from 2d down to 0§d, and the Dejoo Company 
2 l-16th d down to 1 15.16th d. The profit per lb. 
of the Wilton Company went down from 
2§ to Id, and the dividend, in sympathy was re- 
duced from 10 p. c. to 5. The yield per acre on 
the 14 estates varied from 630 lb. on the 
Doom Dooma properties, down to 274 in the 
case of the Jorehaut estates. The average gross 
price proceeds sale of crops, including ail receipts 
except gain in exchange, shows the Assam Com- 
pany with a very steady rate of somewhat over Is 
per lb. for five years,— Is 07-lCth d in 1888 against 
Is Ojj-d in 1884. The Borelli Company, on the other 
hand show a serious falling off, from Is 2 13-16th d 
in 1884 to 10 3-4th d in 1888. The fall in the case 
of the Doom Dooma Company is from Is 03-4th d to 
10jd ; while the reduction on Wilton Company teas, 
was from Is 011-lGth d to 9d. The figures 
are not, on the whole encouraging, except 
in somo cases which show reduction in cost 
of producing tea. In Ceylon as well as India, planters 
must endeavour to study economy in this direc- 
tion, for the competition of India with China and 
Ceylon with both has seriously reduced prices in 
the past live years and given consumers what they 
54 
desiderate, cheap teas. They are not likely to be 
willing to give higher prices than they have now 
been accustomed for some time to pay. So, while 
we do our best to improve quality and to open new 
markets, we must endeavour to produce cheaply the 
teas we are compelled to sell cheaply. 
4. 
, CEYLON TEA IN GERMANY. 
Copy. 
Address C/o A. Tabor, Esq.', 12 Clements Lane, E.C., 
Lombard Street, London. 
Berlin, October 26th, 1889. 
L. H. Kelly, Esq., Chairman of the Tea Fund Com- 
mittee. 
Dear Sir, — Having been asked by your Committee to 
collect information and report on the prospects of 
introducing Ceylon tea in Germany I have now the 
pleasure of communicating to you the results of the 
inquiries I have so far been able to make. 
At present the only tea known and asked for all 
over Germany is China. In only a few instance* have 
I seen Indian and Ceylon advertised, but nowhere 
have I seen them exposed for sale. 
I have sent you five samples of teas which I have 
purchased at some of the best shops and I have for- 
warded a duplicate set to Messrs. W. J. & H. Thomp- 
son of 38 Mincing Lane, Mr. Thompson having very 
kindly offered to value and report on them. 
The prices of these samples were : — 
Marks 4 00 4'00 3 00 2-40 & 2-00 per lb. German 
= 3/7 Jd 2/8id 2/2|d l/9|d per lb. avoir, 
and they were all called souchongs, but the 1/9| sort, 
which was dust tea. The prices of teas range from 
2s to 8s, 10s and even 12s marks, but the 4 mark 3s 7§d 
tea is most in demand, as the German, not being a great 
tea drinker is particularly as to quality and thinks he is = 
likely to get a good tea at 4 mark. How little he really 
knows what good tea is can be judged from the fact 
that he considers the large leaf tea to be best, no 
matter how much red leaf is in it, the size of the 
tea is to him a guarantee that it is pure and un- 
adulterated. He buys on appearance aud not by flavour, 
his tea must be large, unbroken and well sifted, be 
does not ask for small tippy teas and looks on them 
with suspicion as being more capable of adulteration. 
I have now been travelling for some weeks all over 
Central Germany, and in a few days I am going on to 
Hamburg. I have already had many opportunities of 
discussing tea with people of almost every class of 
society, and I have tasted a good ordinary Ceylon 
pekoe souchong against China tea with many of them, 
and always with satisfactory results, the Ceylon tea 
having almost invariably been preferred. 
I have, however, not yet distributed any of the tea 
granted to me, nor incurred any expense on Tea Fund 
account, nor do I consider it would be advisable to do 
so, until I have made satisfactory arrangements for 
a regular supply of pure Ceylon tea, to meet the 
demaud which would arise from a systematic distri- 
bution aud advertising, In a subsequent letter I hope to 
submit proposals for the consideration of your Com- 
mittee or the American Tea Company, as I am now 
in treaty with a gentleman introduced to me by Mr 
Freudenberg, who has recently returned from China 
and Ceylon, and who is so impressed with the advantage 
of Ceylon tea that I expect valuable support from 
him. 
In the present state of the tea market, with Ceylon 
at the top and China at the bottom of the market, 
there is no chance of the trade doing anytliiug for 
us, in fact quite the reverse, the cost of advertising 
it will have to be borne by those most interested 
in its sale, the growers themselves. I am fully 
convinced though tbat this can be profitably done by 
them, aud I am confirmed in this opinion by a 
gentleman I have recently met here, who undertook 
she sale of Kangra Valley and Dehra Doon teas some 
tears ago. He was fairly successful for six months, 
but had to givo it up because he could get no 
support from India for advertising. He anticipates. 
