March i, 1894.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
605 
THE REUNION VANILLA CROP. 
The exports of vanilla from Reunion, aocordin? fo 
official figures which have only jost been pnblisl ed, 
were 70 tona (value 67,760^) in 1891, imd 96 toLS 
(value 115,200^.) ia 1892. Keinaon is the largest 
vaDilla-prodnoing country. The fruit is exforted 
iiiaiuly by the Meassgerics Marilimes steiiiuis to 
Marseilles and Havre at a freight of nearly 10^. a ton. 
It is mostly bounl for iho French Market : Pans, 
Bordeaux, and Nau'eo; but a considerablo quantity 
goes to Hamburg for German, Austrian, Danish, and 
Norwegian use. The London market is supplied 
mainly from the Styohelles and Mauritius, and receives 
very little vtinilla from Reunion, even via Prance. 
The vanilla pod loses about three-quartsrs of its 
vseight in prepiration. It is either plunge 1 in 
boiling water or heated in ovens. It is then plncrd 
in the sun, carefully covered over to prevent undue 
heating, after which it is dried under cover and closely 
watched for the slightest tracs of moisture. The 
whole treatment takes about three months. — Chemist 
and JJruffgist. 
■ ♦ 
THE GIBBS AND WINSLAND TEA 
DRYER. 
A number of gentlemen interested in Ce.tlon tea 
planting, including Messrs, R. B, Hector, Norman 
Grieve, J. L. Shaud, W. Herbert Aodersm, 0. Andt-r- 
son, Powell Jones, &c. paid a visit to Gil'well Park, 
Ohingford, on the 3rd inst. (Jan.) to inspect the Gibbs 
and Winslandteadrye/and to see it at^^work. The fuel 
question was one of the chief points of interest in 
connection with this visit, as in view of the thre<\tened 
• scarcity of wood in the tea districts of Ceylon, the 
inventors of the Gibbs Dryer wished to prove to those 
present that the smokeless furnace, by utilising all 
the heat that either wood coal or ooke contains, wonld 
be of especial value at the present time. In the trial 
referred to the action of the furnace wa> shown ohiefly 
with wood as fuel. A quonlity of coarse, wet teu 
was dried on the Gibbs and AViusland cylinder by 
means of the woud fire. The quality of the hot air 
used was then carefully tested and the iniproved 
condition of the tea thus dried aoknowledged. For 
the information of those who are not acquainted with 
the Gibbs and WinslaLd Dryer the following parli- 
cnlara will be of interest: — 
The Gibbs and Winsland Cylinder for the first 
few feet of its length ia provided with lipped shelves, 
so that when the lumps of wet tei from the rollers 
are fed in, these shelves lift them up and let them 
fall lightly through the streams of hot air issuing 
from the end of the air duct. This action effectually 
separates the lumps, and at once arrests fermentation. 
The temperature and volume of air in this end of the 
machine is perfectly under control nnd easily 
regulated. When the tea has thua been freed from its 
first moisture and thoroughly sepirated, it passes 
into the partitions with which the remaiiiing length 
of the dryer is provided, and in these it all ies slowly 
round, and is gently turned over at each revolution 
of the cylinder, thus constmtly exposing fre^h 
Burfaoes of the tea to the drying action. These 
partitions represent, in fact, a eeries of trays 
with lateral shelves in their centres, which assist 
in the uniform distribution and separ«tion of the 
leaf. The a'r dnot consiata of a series of circular 
tubes, each tube being slightly tapered, BO that 
annul tr spaces are left at the joints, through which 
the heated air issues, and assists in carrying the tea 
gently forward towards tie discharge end. 
Before reaching that end, however, it passes over 
three graduated wire screens, so that three different 
grades ol the finer leaf are delivered from the macbine, 
there>>y avoiding over-drying, whilst the coarser tea 
i.s retained for final ilolivery at the end of the cylinilc-. 
The inclination of the cylinder is ea-'ly adjustalile, 
and as the rate of progress of the tea through the 
dryer depend* upon the iuoliuation given t ) the macbiii-, 
it will be obvious that the exact dcgreo of dryness 
reqairiid is readily obtainable. A further nioana of 
control over the firirg can he obtained by varyinjj 
the spfel of rotation of the cylinder, and for Ur'a 
purpose when desired taper cone pulleys are supplied 
with the machine at a small addi ional cost. H 
will be obvious that the gentle movement of the 
rotating trays avoids any breaking or "greying" 
of ihu tea, and that by this movemiiut every leaf gets 
its fair and equal share of the hot sir as well as of 
the transmitted heat. The process, he ncj entirely 
automatic, involves no tkil ed labour. Ono man or 
boy is required to feed in ihe tea, and it is delivered 
into cheats or trays at the screens, and at the dis- 
charge end. The hot air is supplied through a power- 
ful compoucd fan from the now well-known smoke- 
less furnace, which has been for many years in 
wide and successful use, with an aekoowledged 
economy of from £50 to £70 per annum on eaeh 
dryer. This fnrtisco has neither bars nor doors ; the 
fuel is simply fed in et the top of a brick box', and 
all the products ot combustion are drawn down 
through the red-holfuel, and being mingled with 
fresh air in proper proportion, are freed from all 
injurious taint, in proof of which it may le men- 
tioned that tbe teas dried by this system have realised 
top prices in the London market for the past three 
seasons. On estates where there is a frequent need 
of lime for building, repsirs, or composts, it is ex- 
pensive to purohaee, and in wet seasons, soon becomei 
worthless, whereas limestone can be kept: in store 
for any length of time without deterioration, and 
can be converted as required into excellent lime if 
utilised as a filter or foundhtion in the fuel chamber 
ot the furnace and this, besides the economy, assists 
iu promoting perfect combmtion.—H. and C. Mail. 
INDIAN TEA. 
A POLICY FOR PRODUCERS. 
To the Editor of the Hoine ani Colonial Mail. 
SiE,— A good opportunity has come for those who 
believe that it ia good policy to regulate supplies to 
put theory into practice. 
Some 75, f 00,000 of the crop have been soM, leaving 
about 40,000,000 to sell, or at the rate of 2,250,000 per 
week for the IS working w< eka available, if it is plan- 
ned to close sales by end of May. This would allow 
for 27,000 or 28,000 chests per week instead of the 
50,000 cheats hurried forward this week on a market 
standing at nearly the lowest point on record. 
All the arguments that held good when the 
scheme was broached have extra weight now, and 
at this time of the year it is possible to regnla'e 
the sales with reasonable chance of benefit, for it 
is no secret that the " free sellers " who will no» hold 
are coming to the end of their crops; while it ia clear 
to any one conversant with the inner working of the 
trade that a few weeks of sales moderate in size wonld 
put the market in a much better position. 
The trade held 30,000,000 of stock," as against 
20,000,000 in merchants' hands. It is to their interest 
to see a rising instead of a falling market, and they 
would be the first to help lift prices a little, if they 
saw importers showing a little more confidence and 
stability. 
Some of those who backed Mr. Peek's scheme 
are acting up to their belief, but they need the more 
general co-operation of iho large holders. The chance 
of a 10 per cent or 15 per cent advance from tbe 
ruinous price now current is surely worth going 
for. — Yours, &c., 
Jan. 16th, 1891. Sigma. 
— II. and C Mail. 
♦ 
MAURITIUS. 
Port Louis, .Jan. 11 
The Wkathkr and the Crop — We have partially 
been watered during the last few days, bnt sliosvers 
we have had sio not sufticient for the young planta- 
tions. The crop can bo considered to bo now com- 
pletod on all the estates which arc, however, atill 
cngat;cd in turbination works. 
