Jan. 1, 1894.3 THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
4S3 
p:xte>'sion of tea cultivation. 
With Mr. P. II. Buchanan now in our midst 
and Sir John Muir nearly due, it is natural 
that we should think of the large additional 
extent of tea these gentlemen are likely to become 
responsible for. The purchase of plantations here 
may not disturb the planttd total, though we may 
anticipate that all available reserves on these will 
be speedily utilised so far as advisable, by such 
enterprising capitalists. But they are also likely 
to open a good deal of new land in certain distric'.s. 
And yet nfter all, probably the operations in 
Ceylon of the powerful Firms and Companies re- 
presented by our visitors will count for little in 
comparison with Ilia extensive new gardens being 
opened under their auspices in India. We were 
warned some years ago to look out for "the 
Dooars" as the coming great Indian Tea 
District for crops ; but we bad no idea that 
]\[essrs, Finlay, Muir & Go. and friends had such 
extensive interests there as to warrant the con- 
struction of a special Railway (through a Company) 
to serve th s district. Such is however the case, 
and the tea crops that will henceforward be 
harvested in the Dooars are bound to make a very 
considerable addition to the total outturn for India. 
We have now in Ceylon ou a very brief visit, 
Mr. C. Anderson (brotber of Mr. T. C. Anderson 
of Maskeliya), a lea planter of over thirty yeira' 
stauding in Morthern India and who, for several years 
back, has been doing pioneering work on an 
extensive scale in the Dooars. on behalf of Messrs. 
Gillanders, Arbuthnott & Co, Mr. Anderson says 
that quantity not quality is the cbaraoteristic of 
Dooars' crops. It is impossible to make fine teas, 
the trees and leaves are so sappy, but 10 to 15 
maunds (800 1b. to 1,^200 lb.) per acre can be made 
an established rate of outturn over wide areas 
of tea gardeoH thera; and yet strangi; to say ihe crop 
is all gathered in four months, October being 
the great plucking month. The rich soil and 
steamy climate are equal to the heaviest crops of 
leaf; but the district is distinguished for malaria 
— very trying to the European planters. It is, 
however, very well off so far for labour supply and 
altogether, "China" canoot be considered in the 
running for cheap teas with the "Dooars" and 
we may add with some parts of the lowcountry 
of Ceylon where we hear of tea being turned out as 
low as 20 to 21 cents per lb. 
)n this connection we may mention that last 
mail has brought us a copy of the North British JIail 
of Glasgow with over five columns in small 
type devoted to an extraordinary and decidedly 
acrimonious Correspondence between Sir Archibald 
Orr-Ewing, Bart., and Sir John Muir, Bart., in 
regard to the management and financial arrange- 
ments of the Sylhet Tea Companies in which the 
former holds stock to the extent of £20,000, while 
he complains that the shareholdars are entirely 
at the mercy of the * hairman (Sir John Muir) 
and Directors and Managers who are chiefly 
bis partners. We cannot give even an idea 
of the rather personal and bitter character of many 
of the letters given— some of them very long — 
but there are certain references to the proposed 
extension of operations in North India and Ceylon 
which are very apropos of our present subject. 
Before however turniog to that part we may give 
the introduction to the Correspondence in the 
A'. H. Mail of November 7th as follows:— 
" XodMy an cztracr lioary general meeting of the 
|)lueUuld«^8 «( the ^wttb aad tSoutb bjihct T$« 
Company (Limife'l) will be held within the offices 
of the Company, 22 West Nile Street, at 
which the following resolution will be proposed : — 
' ThBfc the thareholderi of the North Sylliet 
Tea Company, Limited, (or the South Tea 0cm- 
pany Limited, as the case mav be), regret the 
publication by Sir Archibald Orr Ewiog of his 
recent correspondence on the constitution and 
raanagemeut of the company as (ending to injure 
the company and depreciate the value oC the 
eliareboloers' property. That they hereby exp'^^B 
their complete confiiienco in the directors, se- 
cretaries, agieute, and mauogerg of the compsny, 
and tlioir high satisfaction with tbo management 
which has resulted in handsome dividends ti the 
shareholder 3 ; and they instruot the directors to 
abide by and maintain the conditions on which 
Sir Archibald Orr Ewing applied for and took 
his shares. And that a copy of the reeolution be 
sent by the directors to eacti shareholder of the 
compacy.' 
As the London Mail did not leave till the lOtb, 
the result of the meeting should have come, but 
we have no p^per or advice on the subject beyond 
the paper of the 7th ; although we infer that Sir 
John Muir and his friends were likely to carry the 
above vote of confidence and indeed much of Sir 
A. Orr-Ewing's criticism had been discredited. 
In the Correspondence we find that on •23rd 
September last, Sir John Muir reported he was 
endeavouring in London, to arrange that " suit- 
able land in Ceylon and Assam should be placed 
under oSer, so that it may be carefully in- 
spected by our experts in order to make certain 
that it has all the requisites essential for the 
formation of new estates economically and suc- 
oeesfully."' On 15th October, Messrs. James Finlay 
& Co. report that " several important negotiations 
are being conducted for the acquisition of desira- 
ble land in Ceylon and Assam," and Sir John 
Muir two days later deprecated the publioatioo 
of ocutroversiftl circulars at a time when the 
balance of £400,000 stock was being plac:d and 
indeed until the return of Mr. P. B. Buchanan 
from Ceylon. The Companies under notice, it 
seems, have paid 12 per cent per annum to their 
ordinary shareholders for the past four years, — 
far more than most Indian ( ompanies; — but one 
complaint of Sir A. Orr-Ewingwas that no balance- 
sheets were published, " as is done by every 
" Company I am connected with except Sir Donald 
" Currie's miserable S'eamsbip Company." On 
21st September, we ought to have mentioned, the 
same critic had written that he wished " to show 
the shareholders of the Nor;h and South Bylhet 
Tea Companies the grounds on which I opposed 
the extension of those Companies in Ceylon and 
Assam." We have only one more quotation to 
make today and that is from a very full explana- 
tory letter of Messrs. James Finlay & Co,, under 
date of Glasgow, 7t;h Oc'ober : 
Full replies have been drafted to your remarks, 
but, in the absence of Mr. P. R. Buchanan, it has 
been thought better not to submit these to the share- 
holders till he has had an opportunity to consider 
your statements and the proposed replies. We feel 
satisfied the shareholders will consider this to be 
the only proper and respectful course to adopt to- 
wards one who has done so much for these Companies. 
Mr. Buchanan took a very large interest in their 
formation. At the request of the late Mr. Thomas 
Coats, in 1881, he accompanied the chairman, and 
two of the partners of Finlay Muir & Co., on their 
visit to North and South Sylhet. and assisted materi- 
ally in the search for suitable land, which resulted 
in the purchase of the properties at Lidleohorra 
in North Sylhet, and the Balisera Valley in South 
Sylhet. On their return to Glasgow, in April, lb.--"-', 
the cliairraah and Mr. J5uchnnan reported to 
Xhomas Coals wltat Una iJijeu doug ID India, ttu4| 
