S54 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Feb. I, i8j4. 
INDIAN TEA IN AMEKICA. 
The Chairman (Imliaa Tea Aesociatioc) slated that 
the Chicago Exhibition bad now been cIoBcd, and 
Mr. Bleehynden b&d, with the approval of the Sub- 
Gommitteo, ttaneferrcd hii exhibits to a winter 
exhibition which was beiug held in New York and 
which would be open for about two montHs. The 
eoit of t his new enterpri»o woulJ be about 2,0U0 
dollars, a nd a remittance of £400 had been sent to 
Mr. Blech ynden to meet the ezpenites, the Oommittee 
baviai; sti I a balance in hand on this side of about 
Bis.qoo. 
It is proposed that Mr. Blechjnden ehould remain 
i Atnetioa for a further period of tiz months; or, so 
Inng as fands permitted, iu order to travel throngh 
the States and Canada, endeavouring to push tbe 
interests of Indian tea, and follow up the advantage 
gained at Chicago, and the Committee of the ludiau 
Tea Districts Asrociation, Loudon, liad been requested 
to arrange with him as to his pUn of operations after 
the exhibition at New York was over, when he would 
be able to return to London and confult with them. 
Read letter of 30th October, from Messrf. G. 
Musson & Co., Commission MfrchantP, Toronto, 
Canada, stating that they were open to receive oon- 
eignments of India tea, the demand for which was 
growing very fast in Canai'a, consumption inoreasing 
every year, and that a good trade could now be done. 
It was decided to acknowledge the letter, stating that 
attention would be drawn to it in the pablisbed pro- 
ceedings of the General Committee.— /nrfia/i liantcrs' 
TEA FREIGHTS. 
The Indian riaiders' Gazette of tbe 13th iust. has an 
artiole on the subject of tea freights in view of tbe 
dispute between the Conference Liners and the Indian 
Mutual Line just started. In the first place it poinLs 
out a namber of objections to a radical diaturbaoco 
of the existing arrangements. It states that tbe class 
of veiiels has beea objected to. The insurance item 
is one of importanoe in a tranr action of this kind — 
for if the vessels engaged are 6uch as are employed 
in ordinary trarop nork and not of tbe first class, tbe 
insurance will be oocsiderably liigLcr than that for 
tea (hipped by Conference Liners. This is a cir- 
cumstance which requires to be oareful'y considered. 
The present Conference has a difficulty at times, 
wheh~runniDg from twelve to sixteen steamers a month, 
in avoiding what are known as "shuts cut" of tea 
during tbe busy mouths. Again it is but a matter of 
znle-pf-tbumb calculation to find out whether it is 
possible for tteameia which cannot sail oftener than 
onoe in three weeks to carry a minimum of 8 mil- 
lion lb., or say 12 000 tons meisuremeot a month. If 
they cannot meet the demands made on them — it stands 
to reason that shippers will put to a great loss, for 
they wilt have to wareboune their teas on arrival, 
if no ahips of the India Mutual Line happened to be 
bandy. We have been shown the seiiousoesa of this 
diaability, and tbe loss that must accrue to shippers not 
being able to send their chests to the jetty at once, 
vvhile the freight penalties incurred in such a case are 
no light matters. Itisalao important to remember that 
supporters of the Conference have a guarantee that 
their teas will be laid down in London Ko a ton for 
freight cheaper than the shippers by the India Muiual 
Line. The largest shippers, such as the garfieos owned 
by Messrs. FinUy, Muir & Co., Messrs. Mackionon, 
Mackenzie & Co., Messrs. Maoneil & Co., and the 
great Oompaniea such as the "Assam," '• Jorehaut" 
and Others we could mention, are committed to the 
'Coiiference and to speak plainly, if they can lay down 
their teas, some 80 million lb., at a lower rate than 
small sbipl^eirB, tl ey can materially nnder-sell the latter 
in the Loudon Market, This, too, ia a consideration 
which has not bten stiflacienily weighed by those who 
have attached tbemaelvesto the new combination, and 
there has evidently been a tendency to swell out the 
Boaall concessions and advontagea which the uew line 
will give, forgetting the main thing in regard <o the 
rt gtilar despatch of tea and laying it on tbe market at a 
cheaper rate than might pobsibly be done by any othar 
organisation. 
THE IMPORTS ON CHINA TEA • 
CHINA, CEYL( »N AND INDIAN TEACOMPAKED. 
To the Editor of the yortk-i hiua l>athj Se*r$. 
Sib, — We are to accustomed to accuracy in •latemeBt 
and to sound argument from the pen of Mr. H. K. 
BredoD, that we read with regret bis remarks on tbe 
Tea Trade in the Decennial Keport on tbe Trade of 
Shanghai, 1682-91, and his pleadings in defence of 
maintaining a butdeuBcme duty, which is napping tbe 
life of the trade. 
We thought tbe time )iad gone past when the cboaen 
beverage of millions of Europeans shoald be stigoia- 
lised a» •• acrid detoction," and this refereoce to India 
acd Oejion Tea is particularly unfortunate, appearioK 
as it dees at a moment when very large cousiffameutH 
of China Tea are bring 'shut out" of New York ax 
unfit for human food. One would think from Mr. 
Bredon's eulogy on China Tea that it was all "well- 
llavoured and wboleiome." If it were ao there would 
be no difficulty in winnicg back the favour of tbe 
British Pnblic. Anyone who has ever bad tbe 
uiisf ottnne to go through tbe Loudon stock cf China 
tea in the spribgot a year knows the difiicalty there 
isin finding a single parcel which is not Hal', nitoky, 
or vile beyuna dusciiption, bo different from ifce 
bright fresh teas which are pouring io from Oeyloo 
especially, and which attract tiaiply by the purity 
of their quality. The special mode of curing u-ied 
iu Oejlou and India may nut be suitable to Chita, 
but it goes without »a}ing that prompt enrtog aitd 
btyood everything cleanlineis in all the proreasea are 
abbolutely nccesbary to make good lea. Th*se three 
conditions are as cjofpicuous by their prcbcnce iu tk« 
India and Ceylon industry bb they are by tbeir abseiice 
in the China tea trade. One of our Cousulb once 
called China tea as now prepared " pernpinition- 
eaturateJ'' stuS, and ne fear be was not far wrong. 
There is no point about the o dinary Cbiua tea which 
ia sold in Loudon that an energetic dealer or grocur 
can brag about to increase its use, and this i* mure 
to be regretted as tbe Chinete have undoubtedly 
the finest raw material in the world to work 
upon. China Congoo is the dearest tea, quality 
considered, in the London market. 
As to the more rational system of buying we fe»r 
this was only a temporary hopeitss apathy consequent 
on previous heavy lostes and lear ut iocurriog fnither 
risk. Human nature has not changed in tbe p«st ten 
years, and buyers are just as prone as ever to rush 
headlong after ony imagined chance of profit; witness 
the mad rush of buyers for Ilus.-ia in Hankow in ISWl. 
When we come to the next poiot in M r. Bredon'a 
report, viz: — the inland taiition, owing to the transit 
pass system, can never exceed 50 per cent of the mari- 
time duty, we confess we are staggered at the assertion. 
Either tbe native tea-men exaggerate most protoandly 
or Mr. Bredon shows a want ot exact knowleogti 
which we do not expect iu one who has held a high 
position in tbe I. M. Customs for so long. Tbe loUowiug 
are some of the charges which tea-men state are 
paid as inland taxes: — 
Province of Anhni, (Moynnee, Fychowa, etc.)— 
H. Tie. 
Libio— Hsikuan Tie. 2.08 per 120 catties... 1.66 a pel. 
Kootong barrier tax, 4 mace a picnl ... 40 
Anhui School tux, 4 tand. a picul ... 04 
Ningohow District— 
Likin... 
Kootong barrier tax 
Hohow distriots— 
Likio... 
Kootong barrier tis 
Haikuan Tls. 2.10 a pel. 
1.40 a pel. 
60 „ 
Haikuan Tie. 1.90 a pel. 
... 1.25 a pel. 
... 60 .. 
Eoikuaa Tts. 1.7S \ pal 
