March i, 1894.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
which it snfferea severely a few years a?o. The 
nandbook for the current ye»r is a bulky volame of 
about 1,500 pages, and thi'' shows in a very palpable 
mnnner the progreBs of Ceylon during the last half 
century. (Colombo. Ceylon: Messr' A. M. & J. 
Ferguson.)— Dundee ddi'ertiser, Jan. 18, 
TEA GROWING IN AZORES :-WHERE 
NEXT ? 
The British public has of late years been well in- 
formed rejardiog the teas imported from the great 
prodacine: districts in Indi*, Ceylon, China, Java, 
Japan, etc., each of which puts forward the superior 
merits of its leaves to saoh aa extent as to create 
eoDfaaioD as to which cup really cheers the moat. We 
were not prepared, however, to hear from Mr. 
William Jackson of Thorngrove* that this leafy crop 
is now being grown, barvestfid, and manipulated so 
near our own doots as at St. Michael in the Azores, but 
thatthis is so certified by Mr. Jackson's havine received 
• chest of tea prepared by a complete set of machin- 
ery sent by him to a planter there some time ago. 
We learn that the tea has reached Thorngrove in the 
most perfect condition, having all the fine brisk "nose" 
it would have bad when discharged from the drjing 
machine, and this is no doubt due to the fact that it 
would take little more than a week to bring it from 
the factory in which it was made. The leaf might have 
been growing on the bushes not over a fortnight ago. 
We learn, however, that it mu't have been plucked 
from young hushes, and although beautifully made 
tea, it does not possess the strength and pung-enoy 
of our colonial teas, but Mr. Jackson is of opinion 
that when the bushes mature, and a little moru ex- 
perience is ga'ned in the tfa-house, the teas will be 
very similar to the Ceylon growths. During a fort- 
night's holiday one might run down to the Azores, 
and) after a saunter through the tea gardens, pluck 
some nioe oranges from the trees, and enjoy them as 
well as the " cup" in the shades of the sunny groves. 
— Aberdeen Free Press, Jan. 15. 
BARK AND DRUG REPORT. 
(From the Chemist and Druggist.) 
London, Jan. 18. 
Annatto appears to be very scarce in good quality, an<' 
brlght seed suld an advance of about 40 per cent at to- 
day's auctions, three packages good Madras seed out of a 
parcel of 22 realising 6d per lb. 
Abeca-nuts.— The market is considerably over-sup- 
plied, and although the lulders of m>st of the lots 
showa t^xiay bought iu their supplies at aos per ewt. 
nominally, one firm sold ao bags " without reserve " 
at a heavy decline, 1 parcel realising only 83 6d to 8a 
9d per cwt. 
Cinchona. — Next Tuesday's London cinchona auctions 
will be very small in extent, only 1,10) bales Ceylon, 
East Indian, and Java, and 85 bales Afrieau birk hav- 
ing been declared. At to lay's auctions very little South 
American bark was offered. Sixteen bales bold, flat 
orange Cslisaya bark, imported via Hamburgh, are held 
at the rate of la 8d per lb. for sound quality ; and two 
bales short st"ut mossy Guayaquil were withdrawn. The 
exports of cinchona from Guyaquil JEcuador) 'n I893were 
21 ,«28 kilot, valued at 7,29i) sucres. From Tacna-Ariea 
(Peru) they were in tae same year, ia,9;8 iiilcs, valued at 
22,905 pe.sonB. 
CqcA Leaves.— A parcel of 13 ba'es recently imported 
from Pacasmayo iPertt), and showing a good green, 
rather thin and broken leaf, or Iruxillo character, 
but deeper in colour, was bought iu at Is per lb. ; only 
7Jd per lb. was biil for it. Tenpenco Is wanted. One hale 
not quite so g'xid sol i at Hd per lb. Another lot of 21 
bales small gieen, but broken, Troxillo leaves could not 
find a buyer. 
CuBKBS. — There was a pretty heavy supply today, and 
the market is tending distinctly lower, although no actual 
sales were made at auction. For fair ,~iftei, slightly 
•talky. brown berries (. uii of a pa'cel of 7u bngs) 4.^9 per 
cwt. was offered, but the broker would wt sell below iTs 
8d per cwt. Other lots, agsregating abjut TO bug-, wi re 
bought in at llgurea ranging from 62s to 7us per cwt. ; 
* Mr. Jaokaon of Tea Roller fame, of oonrse.— Ki). 
T.A. 
50s per cwt. would be taken for fair brown berries, slightly 
stalky, from Singapore. 
Kola.— Firmly held at Is to Is 2d per lb. for good bright 
West Indiau. Only one bag from Grenada sold today at 
Is per lb. 
♦ 
BLOOMFIELD FACTORY, MASKELIYA. 
We learn now that Bloomfield main factory build- 
ing caught fire in the roof about 2 p.m. on Thursday 
(Feb. 8th) and all woodwork of building and machinery 
was almost completely consumed. There was not 
much tea in the factory fortunately, as a dispatch 
had just be?n made, and the Brunswick factory, 
is the one principally used by the Company. It 
is not expected that the loss is likely to be over 
118,000 and this is fully covered in the Hongkong 
office. 
• • 
PLANTING LAND IN THE UPPER VALLEYS 
OF THE AMAZON : 
Pebu AND Plantation Colonies. 
The magnificent lands in the ujiper valleys ol 
Amazon, seltcted by Commissioners from Ceylon, 
have uot as yet been turned to much account — 
judging from the last report of Mr. Robb, the 
planter in charge of the incipient colony, which 
had been kindly placed at our disposal and 
which we append. There are various reasons 
for this backwardness. In the first place the 
Peruvian Corporation has to get its mind 
disabused of the idea that Europeans can success ] 
fully colonise and labour on these purely tropic 
lauds. This experience is now in course of being 
gradually, if somewhat painfully, acquired at no 
small cost to the shareholders, and in another 
year we may expect to hear of the suggestions 
of the Commissioners as regards the importing 
of Chinese labour being fully adopted. These 
recommendations were, we have reason to believe, 
so decided and strongly enforced, that this portion 
of the original Report had to be modified to suit 
the palates of the Board. As in a good many more 
countries, there is an ignorant, selfish antipathy 
to the frugal, industrious Chinaman iu South 
America. 
Some time ago we read iu the Government organ 
of Peru that :— " The Chinese would be absolutely 
useless, quite unadapted for field labour (!)— their 
work would never give to our failing agriculture 
the help it really required. Our populations in 
the course of time would gradually assimilate 
itself to the repugnant Asiatic without our agri- 
culture obtaining any benefit. We would fill up 
the country with a multitude of corrupt men 
who would mix with our lower orders and pro- 
duce a degraded prog ny. Lima would soon be 
desolated by plagues introduced by these filthy 
creatures. They might ultimately swamp us, 
our Government and institutions , ctrc." Precious 
institutions indeed, which at present only afford 
scope for the deve'opment of political cheap-jacka, 
representing the acmi^ of all ineptitude ; and pre- 
cious self-government, under which they only breathe 
freely who have nothing to lose ! A country in 
which every honest man is in danger, and where 
the privileged jobbers themselves tremble for their 
dignity and their life, is the description of Peru 
as it is, which has reached us. 
This br ngs us to the most serious desideratum 
in Peru, which must be overcome before it cati 
ev;r prove a parad se for the planter. Hera, ibera 
in no question of lack of euergy in the Cor 
t.orution, or lack of money, nini:h le s laok of 
faith in Eoil or climate ; but a too weU-foiiiule^ 
