542 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Nov. r, 1893. 
TEA CULTURE IN ASSAM. 
Since writing a reoent article on Tea in India and 
Ceylon, we have come on the cffiaial Report on Tea 
Culture in Assam for 1892 by the local Govern- 
ment. It does not cover all the territory we 
had included in Assam and Eubeidiary districts ; 
but it is interesting to see the details so far, 
although the figures are far from complete and 
trustworthy : — 
As regards sub-divisions, Cachar sudder maintains 
its position at the head of the list with the largest 
number of gardens, and Lukhimpore sudder couies 
next. The former also has the largest area under 
tea, whereas Lukhimpore shows the largest outturn. 
Tezpore sudder, in the Brahmaputra Valley claims the 
highest average yield, viz., 598 pounds per acre ; while 
in the Surma Valley, Habiganj.asinthe previou.-; year, 
heads the list with an average of 551 pounds per acre. 
The total numberof gardens on thedistrict registers 
at the end of the year under report was 807. agaiust 828 
in 1891, showiog a decrease of tv/enty-one gardens, 
Ouly four gardiDS wore nuwly opened duriug the 
year against twenty-one in the previous year, and 
thirteen were closed, against twenty-fnur in 1891 , 
twelve gardens were amalgamated wiih other gardens; 
agiiioat seven in 1891. 
The explanation of the apparently large iaorease in 
the atoa of land huld by tca-p!aQters in the Lakhim- 
pore district is that the total area taken bv planters 
under (iiffiraut kin ls of tenure, whether cultivated or 
not, has been shown in the returoa of the year under 
report, whereas in the p^revioua year only the to'al 
area under tea was showrf. The iuoreascs iu Sylli .t, 
and Sibsagar have not been exphiiued by the Di puty 
Commissioners; the decroAses iu area iu GoHlpars, 
Kamrub, and Nowgong are owiug to the closing «f 
gardens- The cause of the decrease in Uurrung has 
not been explained by the D 'puty Oommissiocers. 
The Chief Commissioupr regretj to find thit cim- 
Eiderable difficulty is still ex))erienced in obtaiuing 
information from the agents and managers of gardeos. 
During the year under report, statistics were rooeived 
in respect of C71 gardens only ug»inst 752 in the 
previous year, and it was found necessary to frame 
estimates for es many 136 gardens oorapired with 
Bevcnty-six in 1891, The gardens for which ebtimates 
have been framed on the rcUirus furnished during the 
preceding ye-sr are distributed as follows: — Silchar34, 
Ilailakandi 19, South Sylhet 8, Karim-jang 3, Gowliatty 
3, Tespore 33, Mangaldai 7, Sibsagar 7, Jorhat 5, 
Golaghat 8, Dibrugharh 8, and North Lukhimpore 1, 
Nowgong has the credit of being the only district 
which has sent in returns for all gardens. The Chief 
Commissioner's thanks are due to those planters and 
agents who have furnished the statistics whioh are 
incorporated in this report. 
The increase under mature planta was 6,118 
acres, and occurred mainly in the districts of 
Sylhet (1,856 acres), Lukhimpore (1,121 acres), 
Durrung 1,137 acres), and Sibsagir (1,101 acre,'). 
This would have oausad a corresponding decrease 
in the area nnder immature plants, but it was more 
than made up by extensions as the area under im- 
mature plants increased from 33,416 acres in 1891 to 
33,667 acres in 1892. 
Thus, there were increases in the total area under 
tea in the districts of Oaobar, Sylhet, Duiruui,', 
Nowgong, and Lukliimpora, the largest increases having 
occurred in Sylhet, Durrung, and Lukhimpore. 
The total outturn of tea during the year under 
review is reported as 84,231,133 lb. against 90,399,362 
lb,, in the previous year, showing a decrease of 
6,178,229 lb. 
The average yield per acre for the whole province 
is 394, against 434, lb. in the previous year the decrease 
during the year under report being considerable. The 
decrease occurs in both valleys but that in the Surma 
Valley is more marked. 
During the year under report tea-seed was im- 
ported from Manipore into Cachar and Kamrup, but 
it is old at an extremely low rate. The Deputy Oom- 
misBioner of Caohar reports that planters are , 
diinclinoJ to buy it, ai it has heretofore b'ea 
adulterated with China seed. The reports from other 
districlB do tot supply any infcimatiou oa (bia point. 
♦ 
BARK AND DRUG REPORT. 
(From the Cliemiist and Druggiit.) 
London, Oct. 5th. 
Cinnamon.— A cousiJerable baBine^a has been irui.s- 
acted recently for arrival at « U-Wlhs d. to 6gl jier II). 
c. i. f. terms, usual .assortment, 6.iles are alito (reportej 
of 20 tone of cionamou chips at ijjjper lb., c. i, f. leraiK, 
Oclober-Uecimbfr ehijimcui. 
Cinchona.— At Tuesday's forinigb|ly aucilons an evea 
more emaciated selection of bark was offered thau ut 
the iirccediuR sales. Loth from ludi» ami from C't-ylun 
the arrivals have been very i-mall latclv, and barrlDS 
tlie wort ing-off of tlie oKI slock, which ' may occupy a 
cousiderutlu lime, auJ lire tellmg of ibe few coueigt'- 
ments tliat still kei-p dribbling iu, it really lookt as if 
the Lou'lon clnchonu-market were already 1" tlie tlu•Of^ 
of expiration. 'J'he full dcecriplivt memoir < f the career 
of the deceiiBCd, when it comes to be wiltteu, will be 
an interesting doLument, 
The live c.i'.ttlOKaeB at yesterday'* auctions (lUere was to 
have been a sixth of 49 b,ilci of Oeylon Lark, but the 
broker explained that he had furgott'-n to make tis sale 
kuown iu the usual way, aad no one appeared to de- 
plore the withdrawal of the parcel) iucludei of :— 
PscUages Packages 
feylou cinchona 3 7 of which were aold 
East luJiau ciacbona a^r ,, M „ 
Neither Soath American, Javau, or African birks were 
clT-red, 
The ajciioas beiUR Bccmiugly too uoimporl&ut to 
warrant the expectalioa tnat buyeie would lie will- 
ing to climb four llights of stairs, they were hel.i iu tiie 
hist lie back-room ou the ground floor a Miociug Lane, 
which ten or twelro years ago resounded with the excited 
bids of buyers comiietiug for Pitayo and Colombian t.arkg 
ul from .'is to (is per 11... and thiuking nothing of buy- 
ing £.0,000 worth of thcni at a s ugle sale. The same 
buyers were there now, or many them, but in the 
l)r ces, "Oh Hamlet, what a f.iUiug-o£f was there :'■ This 
wceif the unit scarcely exceeded pel lb. ou ai.y lot, 
and although competition was occa^ioiiully ;i little leas 
ioiinimate than before, we appear to be as far rcmovcl 
from an improvement as ever. Some of the druggbls, 
however, bought frtcly, appareotly in the confident ex- 
peclaliou that the long-looked-fur turn in the mnrket 
is in sight, and a speculator also laid in ten or eleven 
tons of good Ledger bark. 
The following wre the quantities secured by the nrinci • 
pal buyers : — 
Lb. 
Messrs. Howards & Sons ... ... 19,292 
Agents for the Maunlieim and Amsterdam works 16,tj0-' 
Agents for the Brunswick works ... ,„ 14,^87 
Agents for Auerbacli works .,. ... 13,003 
Agents for the French works ... ... 2,480 
Sundry druggists and speculators ... ... 'f>,wi 
Total quantity of bark sold ... „. 141,497 
Bought in or withdrawn ... ... n.'iii 
Total quantity of bark offered ... 158,7iG 
It will be'neticed that more than half of all the bark 
sold was bought in by nou-manufacturers, an occurrence 
lirobably unmatched in the history of the Loudon bark 
sales. The following prices were paid for sound tark :— 
Ceylon CrNCHONA.— Original— Eed varieties :— Ordinary 
wcody to good bright stem shavings Id to igd; bright 
chips and shavings mixed l:id ; bold bright chips 1 Jd ; 
fair to good root Id to l|d per lb. Grey varieties : Or- 
dinary dull to fair stem chips |d to ld;Iistem shavings 
ii to Id; dusty but qoilly mixed ehips 1yd per lb. 
Yellow stem ehips, fair quilly mixed J^d to IJd per lb. 
Hybrid chips l^d ; shavings Id to l|d per lb. Kenevped . 
Eed varieties, small and dull stem and branch chips 
Igd to ]fd; stem shavings ijd; good bright chips 3|d • 
per lb. Gipy st^m chips IJd to Igd per lb. Hybrid' 
shavings IJd to IJdper lb. 
Cocoa Butter. — At auction on Tuesday 400 2-cwt. cases 
of Cadbury's cocoa butter sold at Is 2Jd to la 2gd pet 
lb., au aTerage decline of about i d per lb. 
