January 2, 1888] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
459 
have been used there with great advantage. Aud in the 
interest o£ this most important trade we would venture 
to suggest that the Uhiuese Government should cause ex- 
periments to be made with the various well known 
manures, say grass, bean cake, animal guano, and 
chemical, and we would further suggest that the said 
experiments should be made on the Pak Lin planta- 
tions, under the immediate supervision of a foreign ex- 
pert. Further: instead of reproduction being carried on 
in the old way from cuttings from the shrubs, new plants 
should be raised from seed which might be obtained 
from India and Ceylon, aud might also be interchanged 
with the varieties from the other districts in China. 
From the close proximity of Pak Liu to Foochow 
these plantations could be visited from time to time 
by the Native and Foreign mei chants interested. 
Another question of great importance is that of 
firing and curing the Teas. In the early days 
Teas wero well and strongly fired, and it is 
a well known fact that their quality was as good at 
t he end of a year as on the day they wero shipped ; now, 
presumably on accouut of want of sap in the leaf, it 
is so lightly fired that the lea commences to deteriorate 
within threo or four mouths from the date of packing. 
Wo would now call attention to other grievances, 
perhaps of less importance than the improvement in 
the quality of the tea, but which in themselves greatly 
militate against the trade of the port, and first on the 
list is : excessive proportion of Dust and Stalks. 
The tablesgiven sho >' (Appendix D) the percentage 
of Dust as found this season, as well as what is con- 
sidered should be a fair proportion. 
This is a very important question, more especially as 
regards the trade with the Continent of Europe. Aus- 
tralia, the United States anil Canada, where, uutil late 
years, Foochow teas were exclusively taken, but now 
owing to this excessive proportion of Dust, merchants 
are being compelled to draw their supplies from other 
sources, and ou the Continent of Europe Ceylon teas 
are finding much favour to the great detriment of 
Foochow tea. 
The evil is one of long standing as shown by the pro- 
test made by tins Chamber so far back as 1876, Ap- 
pendix E., but uufortunately it has continued to iu- 
orea.se, and in this year's crop the percentage of Dust 
is probably the largest yet known. 
In the abovi -mentioned protest attention was drawn 
to the poor enndi inn of the packages and thinness of 
the lead ; instead of any improvement however, in this 
respect, complaints have become more frequent of late 
: M re has also been much irregularity in the 
packiug of the teas; in some instances a discrepancy 
occurring of 1 or f> ll>. in packages of a parcel or chop, 
which is a constant cause of disputes in striking the 
average weight. 
A further and much to bo regretted abuse in the 
trade is the constantly recurring attempt at fraud on 
the part of some teamen, in the endeavour to sell their 
produce by false samples and muster packages. This 
is specially tho case with Souchongs. 
Three distinct attempts have been proved during this 
season agaiust a Tea Hong and its branch firms to 
detraud the for- igu buyers by means of these false 
samples, which, had the matter passed undetected, must 
have led to very serious loss ; the difference in value 
between tbo muster package and the bulk being from 
Taels •! to 5 per picul. 
It appears tiiat many teamen are in the habit of 
packing, separately, a small quantity of superior quality 
leaf tu the rest of a chop, which is sent out as a 
sample fairly representing the balk, trusting that if 
detected a cut in price will ho arranged, which would 
not even then sutlicieiitly compensate the buyer. 
Such fraudulent and dishorn st practices can but tend 
to the injury of the Tea Trade and to the loss of 
that confidence ami cordiality which should certainly 
exist between bujar and seller. 
A enso of detected imposition by the Hong above 
alluded to has lately been brought to the notice of 
H. II. M. (Vmnul, through whefl representations to 
the Native Authorities a fine ol Five hundred Dollars 
has been imposed 
There is another matter which call* for suppression, 
viz., the admixture of Lie Tea, or leaf other than 
Tea Leaf, and the employment of cangee or rice 
water, tea dust, soot, aud such like deleterious sub- 
stances in tho manufacture of locally packed Teas. 
The natives affirm, with truth, that t he demand " for 
price " has led to these malpractices, as with the 
sizing of cheap shirtings in Manchester, "to meet a 
demand." Be this as it may, there can be, never- 
theless, no necessity for the introduction of lie leaf 
into the finer grades of Scented Tea, which even 
experts have difficulty in discovering. The honest 
trader is thus seriously handicapped, as he can only 
obtain " market price" for the legitimate article, cost- 
ing taels per picul more than the Teas of this unscru- 
pulous rivals. 
The only remedy that occurs to this Chamber is 
for the Board of Trade Commissioners to offer an ample 
reward for the discovery of any Hong having Lie Tea 
in its possession, and that a severe example be made of 
the delinquent. 
Some time ago a quantity of Lie Tea was publicly 
burnt, but the operation was carried through in a 
half hearted way, and it is said the soldiers who super- 
intended the matter secreted and resold a considerable 
quantity. 
In conclusion we can only add that it is the opin- 
ion" of the Chamber that if the Tsuug-li Yamen ap- 
proach this important question in the manner it de- 
serves, and causes the various remedies to be carried 
out, then the Tea Trade of Foochow may be revived; 
but if not, its very existence will cease in a few 
years. 
f John Odell, 
| H.P. Tennant, 
Sub-Oommittee ■< Wm. L. Hunter, 
Franz Schonfeld, 
t T. PlM. 
A letter signed by all the foreign merchants at 
Foochow has been addressed to the Commissioner of 
Customs signifying their entire approval of the corre- 
spondence and the report. 
CEYLON UPCOUNTRY PLANTING REPORT. 
PIONEERS IN TEA — KNOWING TEA CHAPS " AND PRAC- 
TICAL TEA MAKING — ELABORATE PLUCKING. 
5th December 1887. 
To our pioneers in tea we all owe much : and 
when one of them comes forward with a paper 
on our rising product, as Mr. Armstrong did the 
other day at the request of the Dimbula Planters' 
Association, we look for instruction, and he has 
the certainty of at least a patient hearing. 
There is a considerable amount of honour attached 
to being one of these knowing " tea chaps," not to 
refer to more material rewards. When he speaks, his 
audience is a wide one, including in fact the tea- 
growing brotherhood of Ceylon and elsewhere ; and 
when he condescends to put his mature ideas into 
black and white — "copy" for the press in fact — it 
savours somewhat of temerity and more besides, 
to do aught else than bow down and adore. I would 
be reverential if I could, and see in Mr. Armstrong's 
latest delivorance, an inspired message to our new 
dispensation; but I am bound to confess — humbling 
as the admission may be — that I can't do this, 
for I came out of the perusal of Mr. Armstrong's 
paper in a hopelessly muddled and be fogged con- 
dition, and with feelings the reverse of devotional — 
a chapter of the stiffest metaphysics was nothing 
to it. " When treating of plucking,'' then the 
"agony" was especially piled, and when I thought 
of tho mental capacity of our labourers, the amount 
of supervision it was possible to afford, the elaborate- 
ness of the instructions laid down, and that horrible 
nemesis in the shape of "a poor liquid" which 
would follow the negleot thereof — bitterness tilled 
my heart, and 1 heartily wished that our local oracle 
had been a dumb one. or that fato had never made 
wo a lea planter. Much more reading of that 
