November i, 1887.] TttE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
355 
INDIAN TEAS IN MINCING LANK. 
(From the Pall Mall Gazette, Oct. 5lh.) 
A VISIT TO THE COMMERCIAL BALE BOOMS. 
How they vociferate ! Strong lungs and a strident 
voice are apparently as essential to an expert in 
the tea trado as a delicate palate. For four or 
live hours per day and for live days of the week, 
brokers and buyers assemble in the dingy sale-room 
in Mincing-lane set apart for the disposal of Indian 
teas, and bid for the parcels put up with a clamour 
which deafens and confuses a stranger. From the 
rostrum the auctioneer indicates the purchaser, but 
how he discovers the first caller is a puzzle to an 
outsider. 
A CONVERSATION WITH AN IMPORTER, 
Indian tea has been for a long time in the ascen- 
dant, and tho Chineso product correspondingly 
decadent. Great Britain, which is the greatest tea- 
consuming country in the world, half a century ago 
drow its whole supply from China, but such strides 
has the Indian trade taken that this year almost as 
much of the one as the other will be imported. In 
India proper — that is, excluding Ceylon — this year's 
orop will probably amount to 95 or 100 million 
pounds, or about 25 per cent, more than that of 
last year, all of which practically will come here, 
and the total requirements will be little more than 
doublo that amount. Up to date the shipments 
from China show a deliciency as comparod with last 
year of fully 30 million pounds. Wo asked an Indian 
tea importor the reason for this revolution in the 
trade, and his reply was : "Indian tea has greater 
strength, which is an advantage, and of late years 
there has been a tremendous deterioration in Chinese 
tea. A great deal of absolute rubbish has been sent 
home, and no doubt spent leaves have been refaced 
in quantities." 
THE PLANTER'S EXPERIENCE. 
Whon tea-growing was first attempted in India by 
tho Government, and afterwards by the Assam 
Company, some lifty years ago the Chinese plant 
was introduced, but after some time an indigenous 
plant was found. A number of hybrids were formed, 
but both theso and the Chinese are inferior 
in strouglh and quality to the indigenous plant of 
India This know-lcdgo, gained by experience, led 
many of the planters to lay out their gardens 
solely with tho native plant, and they havo not 
found it unprovable. Although tho demand has 
gone up by leaps and bounds, tho Indian tea plan- 
ters as a class have not found their investments 
exceptionally remunerative. Some have undoubtedly 
done so, and a case in point was mentioned by 
our informant. On a garden of TjOO aens a capital 
of JL9.000 was expended. It was laid out in 11S77, 
and although a garden is not remunerative till its 
fourth year, and frequently not till toe liflh, this 
one has realized on its capital 289 per cent. , and 
last year it paid lil per cent. This magnificent 
return was the result of a carefully selected situ- 
ktiOD, low cost of making the garden, low working 
expenditure, and high yield per acre. On the other 
hand, there are plenty of gardens which have never 
paid u farthing and never will because of bad 
situation and bad variety of plant. During the past 
two years the planters have done much better than 
baforu owing to tho fall in tho exchange. The in- 
troduction of machinery has also helped to im- 
prove results \<y reducing tho cost of labour and 
enabling them to produce much larger quantities 
from the same acreage. By means of tramways 
for conveying tho leaf to the manufactory, a 
I range of gardens can now bo worked which was 
I impossible in tho old days. Nearly every dc- 
i tail m tho preparation of the leaf after it 
hat) bffO plaoLoa j| avno by mucluuory except 
sorting, which requires skill. While we get greater 
quantities it does not follow that we have better 
tea ui. '•Itr tho new conditions, as the old hand- 
rolled . (regarded by experts as superior, but it 
pays to make a large quantity of inferior tr-a 
rather than a smaller amount of better tea. With tne 
exception of the manager and one or, if the estate 
is a large one, two assistants, who are generally 
Europeans, all the work is done by natives. 
HOW IT REACHES THE CONSUMKH. 
Practically all the Indian tea is grown in the 
province of Assam, the little that is raised in 
the hills being of small account. After being 
packed it is shipped or sent by rail to Calcutta 
and it is either sold therein public sale or shipped 
home for sale in London. As a matter of fact, 
it nearly all, either in the first or second instance, 
comes under the hammer in Mincing-lane. There 
are practically no future dealings — or, indeed, 
speculative dealings of any kind — in tea, every 
transaction being made by positive sample, and 
it can never be sold till it arrives in this country. 
Between the planter and the consumer are the 
importer or merchant, the selling broker employed 
by the importer, and the buying broker employed 
by the wholesale dealer. Then follows the London 
wholesale dealer himself, who in many cases sells 
entire parcels to a country wholesale dealer, and 
one or other of them supplies the retailer. Of 
course, as the market is a public auction, all grades 
of the trade can and do buy there, and in theory 
the consumer may do so should he wish. This 
would be rather inconvenient, however, for family 
use, parcels having been sold in one line of hundreds 
of chests, containing each about ICO lb. of tea. 
The duties of the selling broker are to inspect the 
(ea on arrival, see that it is properly prepared 
for sale, print and issue the catalogue, and 
sell the tea by auction, he being an auctioneer. Both 
classes of brokers are paid by commission. The 
buying broker may buy on his own account as well 
as for the dealer, with a view to placing the tea 
in the course of the day. The wholesale houses 
have also buyers of their own, but they generally 
do their business in the name of a broker. As 
the sale-rooms both in London and Calcutta aro 
open to the public, anyone may go in and bid and 
become a purchaser, but in practice the business 
is done through the brokers. Attempts have been 
made to dispense with the services of the broker, 
which are at times confined to tho pocketing of 
his commission, but the power of a privileged body 
is not easily broken, and these endeavours have 
proved futile. A story is told of a merchant in 
Calcutta who made the experiment, and one day 
bought several lots. Immediate payment was there- 
upon demanded, and when a cheque was offered 
it was declined. A request for a few minutes' 
delay in order that a visit might be paid to an 
adjoining bank was also refused, and the tea was 
at once put up again for sale. On a second oc- 
casion a .oil of notes was forthcoming, and tho 
outsider scored, but in the end he had to throw 
up tho sponge, for he could not stand out against 
the whole rir.g bidding ogainst him whenever he- 
wanted to buy. Merchants and buyers obtain 
samples of all teas brought u r n the market, 
and plue their own value upon them ; and, 
as may be ima 0 ined, there is often wido 
1 divergence of opinion. A tea which one merchant 
might think worth 2s will sometimes go opto 3s, 
I as others consider it has qualities which make it 
I worth tho higher figure. The planter is not USUU 
a good judge at quality, and he is often sui|.i • i 
to find certain lot- fetched a h'ghc- price • ■ i i 
antio pated, while others (ell considerably below 
his ostunato. In recent cwtolo^ues W* yrice; . 
