THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [Oct. a, 1893. 
CHINA TEA EXPORTS. 
Our Special Telrgram today shows that dur- 
ing the past ortnight the exports of tea from 
the Fat East to the United Kingdom have 
b}en inoreased by only one million lb., bringing 
the total (or the seaEon so far, up to 40 mil- 
lion lb. According to our telegram at the same 
dale last year this means a comparative increase of 
four million lb; although compared with 1891, there 
is still a falIiug-o£f of two million lb. In other 
words during the fortnight Aug. 29th to Sept. 13th 
juBt past, the exports of China Tea to Britain have 
been only 1 million lb. against 1 million lb. in 
the same period of 1892. This looks rather like 
the practical closing of the China Tea <^ea8on and 
the comparipon, according to oar Special Telegrams 
(substantiated up to mail dates by those sent to 
Mpsssrs, W. J. & H. Thompson) would run as 
follows : — 
Total Expoets to United Kingdom : 
Sea<-on 1893 to 15th Sep'. = 40,000,( 00 lb. 
Do 1892 do ,, 36 dOO.OOO „ 
Do 1891 do ,, 42,00f),000 „ 
Do 1890 do „ 40,000,000 „ 
But here af^ain comes the Hongkong Price 
Current with its contradictory information. The 
copy dated .SOth Aug. in its table makes the 
comparison as follows and we can only leave the 
figures with our readers, peiiJiag the explanation 
which wo have called for from our Far Ea.t 
Oorrespondeni : — 
EXPORT OP TEA FROM CHINA AND JAPAN TO 
UNITED KINGDOM. 
Season 1893-94. 
Total from Japan Grand 
China. direct total. 
Total to date 30ih Aug. . 38,042,583 38,108 38,080,691 
Same time in 1892, . . 24,289,490 192,618 24,482,108 
1891, . . 31,124,379 107,272 31,231,651 
How is it possible that the Loudon Brokers should 
be mieinfo nicd if there were really an exjees of 
13^ million lb. tea and would our Ceylon tea prices 
be reporicd firm if such wtre the case? 
TECHNICAL AND INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION. 
( Coimnunicated. ) 
We read in the Bombay Gazette Budget that, at the 
instance of the Industrial Association, the Poona 
Municipality has undertaken to prepare a comparative 
statement of the occupations of the population of 
the city with a view to ascertain what industries 
are common, and which require the aid of higher 
technical education. At the industrial conference 
held at Poona this month, local Municipalities and 
District Boards were induced, through the agency 
of the Indu-itrial Association which received the 
sanction of the Government to the co-operation of 
district officers, to send representatives from the 
various districts. "VVe read further that it is contem- 
plated to include the subject of rural industries, in 
the program of the annual agricultural conference 
at Simla, with a view to their improvement. The 
Chairman of the Poona meeting dwelt forcibly on 
the necessity of fostering existing industries and 
reviving those which ave perished. Says the 
Bombai/ Gazette, in this connection : "Everyone must 
heattily concur in the hope that the Indian industries 
will receive a new and a larye developement, for 
if man cannot live by bread alone, a nation cannot 
hope to prosper by agricuhure alone, though for 
every nation the culture of the soil is the most 
indispensable of its industries." 
The facts brought out in the above reference to 
the movement in favour of native Indian industries 
are well worth the serious consideration of tho^e 
who are connected with Technical Education in 
Ceylon. The suggestion that a comparative atate* 
ment of the occupations of the people should be 
drawn up is an excellent one, and might well be 
acted upon in Ceylon, with a view to ascertain 
to what extent higher Technical Education can help 
native industries. That such aid is possible and 
necessary no one can for a moment deny. We 
constantlv read, in accounts rf Ceylon, of the bnried 
wealth ot the island, in the form of fibres, dye^tuflB, 
tanning materials, oils, gums, resius, and other 
natural products, only waiting to be developed. We 
would here quote the following passage from an 
address by the Right Hon. A. J. Balfour on Technical 
Education. He says :— " I venture to lay down no 
general rule about the advantages or disadvantages 
of Technical Education. I believe it to be of 
vital importance in some places and some indus- 
tries ; I believe it to be nearly useless in any 
form in which it is likely to be apphed in 
other places and other industries. Each case must 
be considered on its own merits, not simplv 
in the light of vague generalizations, but with 
a close scrutiny of the practical mode in which any 
proposed reform would work." These are very 
suggestive words. There is no doubt that Technical 
Education is a desideratum in Ceylon, but have the 
authorities in Ceylon given the subject the "close 
scrutiny " it calls for, so that it may not be 
" nearly useless in any form in which it may 
be applied"? Have they discovered the particular 
industries which require the aid of such education, 
and which are likely to benefit thereby ? Or 
have they " simply considered the subject in the 
light of vague generalizations?" These are gnestione 
for serious consideration now that a Technical 
School is about to be started in Ceylon. If au 
attempt is to be mad? to develops the d'lrmant jn- 
dastries of the Island, and utilize for eoooomio end" 
its rnany valuable rcsonroee, as yet bnt littl« rf- 
cognized, and the vnlue of which baa b»en only im- 
perfectly realized, some such meaeures aa thote sug- 
gested for India must be en<.rt.'eti:«lly ad;p(ed. 
An adequate knowledge of Ihe native industries 
and the details involved in their puri.nit, is <•{ the 
first necessity, acd a comparative statement bas^d 
on careful inquiry, such as was applied for \<y the 
Industrial Asdociatiou of Western Indis, would tend 
toward securing thi'. Id fact an InduHtrial Muaenm 
at the Technical School would be a most desirable 
icstrnment towards the same end. The aid of Di»tri<jt 
and Provinoial OfiScials anc Gramarakshasamagamat 
caa with advantage besought vritb the same purpose 
Forest ofiBorrs might also he iovited to cin'ribntp much 
of the invaluable information which they would be able 
to give, regarding the undeveloped raw products < f 
the Island. Ao^i if a Conference for deliberation 
the fubjeot of Technical Edaoation with a visw to 
the develcpement of existinir and latent native 
iuduetri's, be arranged for, we tbould tten, 
then ot'ly, he in a fair way towards discoverii g 
the ritibt direction in which Technical Instructicn 
for Ceylon should tend. 
♦ 
THE KALAWEWA COLONISATION 
SCHEME. 
Rfport of Mr. R. W. levers, Government Agent of 
the North-Central Province. 
The Report of March 26th last (sent with letter No. 
90) gives the history of Ibe experiment up to that 
date. Subsequently fourteen families arrived frnm 
Jafina, who were sent to me by Mr. AssHipillal. For 
these colonists I had bouses ready in a bo'lthysite, 
which had been cleared some years previously, and I 
allotted them land under Balaluwewa. But partly 
from sickness which occurred among them at d partly 
from natural disinclination to work, after repeated 
warnings ti them, I was obliged, in December to dis- 
coniinue Government aid, and soon afterwards these 
people returned to Jaffna. The following i xtract* 
from my Administration Report for 1892 sipplies the 
general history of the experiment, and the acoom- 
« Appendix A. 
