April a, 1888] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 
713 
To the Editor, 
CEYLON TEA IN THE HOME MARKET. 
Df.au Sir, — I do not need to tell you that I am 
not a planter. I have never owned either tea or 
coffeo ; but I have a very lively interest in the 
prosperity of the tea enterprise in Ceylon. 
Of the increasing consumption of Ceylon tea there 
cannot now be any doubt. It is not many years 
since some of us at home had to take some trou- 
ble and incur some expense in order to bring the 
new and unknown tea under the notice even of 
" the trade" ; but now neither the trade nor the 
public require any coaxing in that direction. The 
tea has spoken for itself, and to a large extent 
the verdict has been in its favour. I have met 
with Ceylon tea in very out-of-the-way corners in 
England, and it would seem to have introduced 
itself into nearly every part of Scotland. And the 
prices, up till very recently, were, I believe, fairly 
Batisfaotory, leaving a fair profit to sellers at home, 
and giving a remunerative price to the planters. 
This, I think, is a fair statement of the case as 
regards Ceylon tea, up to a certain point. It cannot 
be questioned, however, today, that a change is 
taking place, and that the high position to which 
our tea so speedily rose a few years ago is not 
being maintained either in Mincing Lane or else- 
where. What is the explanation of this ? I 
oannot say, but I can give you a fair report of an 
interesting conversation which I recently had with 
a very well-informed dealer. 
This gentleman sells wholesale for one of the 
large London houses, and has had twenty years' 
experience in the trade. He states that they looked 
to Ceylon tea for two things. It had its own rich 
distinctive flavour, and it had strength without the 
harshness of most of the Assam teas. But it is 
not keeping up ite character in these respects, lie 
says that apparently many of the Ceylon planters 
are going in for quantity, hoping to get a high 
average price for souchong. But planters could 
not, he thinks, make a greater mistake. There has 
already been, as was sure to be, a very serious fall 
in the prices of souchongs; for if it is to be souchong, 
then Coylon comes into direct competition with tl e 
cheaper Assams of that quality, and the price can- 
not bo maintained. 
Another point to which my friend called attention 
was a tendency in the Ceylon teas to deteriorate in 
quality very rapidly. Ho had referred to this point 
in a conversation with me some months ago, and 
now he brought it up again. He says, that, 
as a rule, the Ceylon teas are too "soft": they 
do not rotfin their sharp distinctive flavour: they 
give you plenty of colour, but after being kept 
for some time they are tlat, dull and flavourless. 
He mentioned a parcel that was sold in London 
some months ago at Is 8d : the purchaser ke pt 
it for a short time, but found that it was losing 
ill quality, and he sold it for Is Od. But this pur- 
chaser had just the same experience. It 
deteriorated very rapidly in his hands, and he was 
C.lad to part with it at Is 2d. These are, of course, 
the prices in bond. Now, we mny be sure that 
tho trade will not long continue to keop stocks of 
such tea. They may buy to execute orders— and 
no doubt will buy, ho long as the tea is askod 
for — but thuy will bo chary of patting it into stock. 
And let mo say litre that I cat. , .,te corroborate 
this complaint as to deterioration. In my small 
household wo have for tho last six years used only 
Ceylon tea. Wo havo most frequently had it in 
small Ceylon mado boxen of li or '.'O lb. Hut 
00 
latterly we found it advisable to buy it in tins of 
4 lb. at a time, because of the great deterioration 
in quality by the time we got to the last half of 
tho 12 or 20 lb. box. 
Is n't this " softness " in the Ceylon teas something 
which it concerns the planter to look into? Is it 
that by the very perfection of the machinery 
now so largely in use in Ceylon the tea is too 
rapidly pushed through the various stages of 
manufacture ? Or does the fault lie — as is more 
likely — in some known or unknown defect in the 
withering or fermenting processes ? My lriend 
could not enlighten us on these points : lie could 
only state most strongly that the defect was there, 
and that it was for planters to find out the 
cause and get rid of it. * 
Another point to ffhioh he called my attention 
was the great proportion of large aud coarse leaves 
that are to be found in some of the Ceylon samples. 
He showed me some such samples, and said that 
this was a decided fault. It made a tea bulky 
in proportion to its weight ; and as it is the fact 
that as yet, both in England and Scotland, tea 
is put into the pot by the spoonful and not by 
weight, this bulky tea gives but a poor result from 
the family teapot, and the character of the tea suf- 
fers. On this point he showed me what he con- 
sidered a model sample as to sizing and mixing, 
and he named the estate from which the sample 
came, an estate on which one of the best sift- 
ing machines in Ceylon is at work. I mean to see 
that a small sample of this tea shall rind its way to 
the Observer Offioe in the course of a week or two, 
and you will have the pleasure of showing it if you 
think it worth while. 
But I dare say my letter is long enough, and I 
will close with my friend's advice to Ceylon plan- 
ters. "If asked advice," he said, " I would say, 
aim at a good average pri;e, rather than at a large 
quantity and low average price. If you make your 
aim a low-priced tea, you will be beaten both by 
Assam and China. I Aim at such a tea as the trade 
can sell pure to those who know really good tea ; 
and thus nurse a taste and create a demand for 
pure Ceylon tea. It has both its rich peculiar 
flavour and inherent value to recommend it." 
I trust that these remarks may be of some in- 
terest to my old friend, the proprietor of Abbots- 
ford, and to a few others, and with salaams, I 
remain, yours faithfully. W. W. 
INFLUENCE OF FRESH WATER ON PEARL 
OYSTERS. 
March 1888. 
Sir, — Will you permit me to state my 
viows with reference to tho destruction of the pearl 
oysters on the pofl in the Gulf of Mannar off 
Silavatturai ? I do not pretend to be a naturalist 
or a savant, but I pretend to some knowledge of 
the ways of the pearl oyster since the time of that 
eminent but now lamented naturalist--Dr. Kelaart. 
I speak from observation and would invite dis- 
cussion to the due ventilation of my theory. I 
am at one with Capt. Donnan'a view of the 
"ocean ourront " or "stream," or whatever you 
like to call it, but I go a step further. I think 
that the fresh wator poured into the Gulf of 
Mannar by the several <ir»< from Arippu up to 
Nogombo carried over the pars by tho ooe&n 
« High tiring would mtmi to be the rom-'v for tho 
"softness," nuii "goiog-orf" complained ol, out, wl ru 
In^'h firing wok reported to, tho objection wiu otTeied 
t lint the ten wait burnt. Of course planter* «U1 
serious attention to the puiuts stated in this letter 
of a true friend. — Ki>. /'. A. 
| Pamfral Clues, tea huve lately l>efn»>'.l I ere at 
I I Mid i-l.-W. SV. 
