February i, 1882.] THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
671 
Tea. — \ projecb is on foot, and runs a fair chance 
of success, pusniug for the sale of Indian tea in 
the bazaa'S. At present natives of India — those, 
that is, who are in humble circumstances — buy such 
tea aa they drink by the ounce. They cannot get 
Indian tea in this way ; and it is China tea, of the 
poorest quality, which they consume. Mr. O'Conor, 
in his trade report, reckons that of the three million 
pounds and more of China tea imported last year 
into this country, the greater part was taken by 
natives. By making up the cheaper kinds of Indian 
tea in small quantities, the China article, might in 
time, be driven out of the market. This additional 
outlet for the produce of Indian tea gardens is one 
which has b en 100 long neglected. — Pioneer. 
"Rhal Tea," describ d in the following paragraph, 
is a favourite hot weather drink in Aurstralia, very 
silightly alcoholic and v ery refreshing : — Tea d -inkers 
are not likely to grow enthusiastic over the be- 
verage ma le in the in inner described by Colonel 
Irly, one of the first Englishmen who ever visiied 
the Karakorum Pass. Now took place a very curi- 
ous and important operation — the brewing the real 
tea — not the "make-be'ieve" as the Marchioness styled 
the choice liquors she concocted for Dick Swi 
veller. The t'-a being immersed, a ladle of ghee is 
put in. and four or five table-spoons of salt added : 
then much stir ing and mixing takes place, a curious 
implement being used to froth the beverage, like what 
in the navy in my younger days — perhaps, the very 
name now forgotten— was called a "swizzle-stick," 
which by rapid revolution between the hands, aerated 
the grog in the tumbler, giving it a pleasant sparkling 
appearance nd fiehhness of flavour. Many a time I 
applied it in my first voyage from England to Hobart 
Town, via Canada, instructed by the veteran purser 
Tucker ; and a by no menns contemptible beverage 
it made in tropical latitude at eight bells. Well, 
the t a well mixed, and frothed, and repeatedly tasted, 
was ladled out to the anxious party, and much re- 
lished.— South of India Observer. 
India < Tea : Outturn and Distribution of 
Crop.— Season 1881-1882 :— 
Regading the crop of the present season the follow- 
ing figures, supplied by the Hon. Secretary of the 
[Tea Association show that, th • amount available 
for export", to Great Britain will probably nob exceed 
40,000,000 lb. 
Crop 1880 46,589,(531 lb. 
Increase in 1881. ... ... 500 000 ,, 
Total crop 1881 ... ... 47,069,681 ,, 
This quantity will he distributed as under : — 
Australia and Colonies ... 1,250 000 „ 
Local consumption ... 750 000 ,, 
Great Britain ... ... 45,0n0,000 ,, 
47,000 000 
The above figures, which we take from the Indian 
Tea Gazette, excite our surprise in as far as they 
refer to the consumption of Indian tea in India. Only 
three- quarters of a million of lb. for 250 millions of 
people* ! Surely, there must be some mistake, for, 
years ago, estimates for local c msum obi m were as 
high as two millions, not including China tea. The 
mas-es in [ndia are, no doubt, poor, but there must 
be ni my millions who can afford to use tea and who 
ought to be encouraged to use it The figures are 
to us most disappointing if they are really reliable. 
Surely the 200,000 or more Europeans in India con- 
sume half the quantity estimated. 
* 3 million lb. China tea are consumed. — Ed. 
A Beetle Eating the Leaver of Liberia* Coffee 
BUT REFUSING TO FEED ON THE LEAVES OF C. ARAB- 
ICA. — From a Liberian coffee estate about seven 
miles south of Henaratgoda station we have received a 
beetle mottled with white, with this record of his 
poings : — " The beetle feeds on the coffee leaves : the 
plant from which I took it was reduced to tatters. 
They are not very comvnon in this part." The poochie 
having been submitted to our entomological referee, 
that gentleman sends the following reassuring report : 
— " I know the beetle well. It is one of the elaters, re- 
sembling Al us mcerens, described by the Rev. J. G. 
Wood in his 'Insects Abroad,' page 157. The 
specimeu sent from Henaratgoda declines to eat the 
leaves of Arabian coffee that I supply it with, but 
perhaps the coffee at Henaratgoda is Liberian." Our 
correspondent judges correcbly, and (unless confine- 
ment in a matchbox took away the bt-etle's appet- 
ite) wo may conclude tnaf the large leaves of Li- 
berian coffee are more succulent and agreeahle to insect 
taste than are the smaller leaves of the Arabian species. 
Thb New Method of Decorticating the Khea 
(China grass) plant ought not properly to be spoken 
of as a process involving the use of machinery. At 
any rate the machine required is nothing much tvsore 
complex than a kettle of hot water. In tact, in- 
ventors have been looking up to the stars for a 
solution that lay at their feet. Whilst Government 
w»s gazetting resolutions and stimulating the aciivity 
of experts by the offer of handsome rewards, which 
brought forth a variety of more or less ingenious 
failures, no one seems to have tried the simple process 
of mere super- heating by st-am — a process which is 
now found to be absolutely success r ul. Unfortunately 
for the man who hit upou this expedient, his dis- 
covery is of such a nature that it cannot be success- 
fully protected by patent. A Mr. Anderson, of Belfast, 
has however, perfected a process of greatly improv- 
ing the fibre, which has been patented already, and 
the joint result of these processes will probably be to 
give a great impetus to the demaud for Rhea, which 
China very imperfectly meets, and for the growth of 
which many parts of India ire admirably fitted. — Pioneer. 
Madagascar Rick. — A Madras Government paper 
publishes a dispatch from Lord Hartington regarding 
samples of paddy and rice produced from Madagascar 
seed cultivated at the Government Farm, Madras, and 
• ncl sing valuations by two London firms of brokers. 
One firm reports : — "A. Madagascar paddy : bright and 
clean, but wanting in plumpness. Value about 6/ 
per cw . (the freight would he a heavy item in im- 
porting rice in this form as paddy is usually charged 
at IScwt. to the ton for weight). B — Very imper- 
fectly cleaned rice : value for starch-making Ss 6d per 
cwt ; it would have to be recleaned for eating purposes. 
C. — Fairly cleaned rice from paddy uuhusked? in boil- 
ing water: value 8/6 per cwt.; (ihere is an unusual 
demand for this sort of rice just now). All the samples 
much wee illed." The other firm says: — "A. Madagascar 
paddy : — This is difficult to value as the amount 
of paddy is unknown, but we should think it would 
be about 25 per cent ; in that case the value would 
be about 6s to 6s 6d until a portion h»d been cleaned. 
It would be impossible to yive a nearer quotation. 
B. — Madagascar rice, raw:— Badly weevilled ; value 
7s t) 7s 3d per cwt. C. — Madagascar rice, boiled:— 
Considerably weevilled; value 7s 9d to Ss per cwt. 
The samples B C being weevilled would, in the pro- 
cess of cleaning, break very considerably, an I for that 
reason we are afraid to quote a higher valuation. The 
present prices of all rice on the spot are low, and 
distant shipments of soft grain rice (Rangoon, Basse in, 
&c;,) are about 9d per cwt. dearer than spot values, 
chiefly owing to the unfavourable harvest prospects. 
We think, therefore, that during the next two or thiee 
months we may reasonably expect better prices," 
