692 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [April 2, 1894. 
always been impreeeed by what I learnt from Ibem 
as to the need for some improvomeat in the com- 
monly adopted etyle of " wither," more, in «hort, in 
keeping with the original method of the Chinese. T<^a 
making is agreRd to comprise ohemic«l and mecbanical 
prooees, and though no one suspects the Chinese of 
muoh ohemioal kuowledf^e, there is no doubt that 
in blindly following the methods banded down 
to him by bia predeceseors, he was to a large 
extent carrying out a tystem of chomie«l pro- 
oesees It ia true that your Island planter* have 
advanced a long way ahead of the Ohtuege 
makers of tea, whilst the Celestials have oeag^d 
to turn out the finely-flavoured teas of thirty or forty 
years ago save in certain districts, and eo they have 
lost their old repate. But in considering how often 
Ceylon tea-makers are charged with turning out leaf 
inferior to that which they placed on the mark'^t 
of a few years ago, it may be as well if we ask why 
tbi« is and whether they have gone too far in their 
mecbanioal modification of the old Chinese methods- 
THE DAVIDSON SYSTEM OF WJTHEEI.NG AND ITS 
RESULTS. 
Exparers declare that, unleai the 'witheiinK" be pro- 
perly conducted, unless tea ba aabjected to precisely 
the right degree of "caring" in the withering, it is in 
vain lo expect to turn out a firdt-class tea wi'h the true 
aroma and strength. It is precisely in this respect 
that Mr. Wiokham's tea has during the last twflve 
months proved such a decided soccesa that he has leit 
^, all competitors behind in the advanced quality uf bis tea 
—not as regards any one particular gride, but in reaprct 
of all. The withering has been oi ducted ULder 
the advice of Mr. Daviitaon of tea-dryer fame, 
who has been the means of intioduoing boards instead 
of Hessian sucking or other material, and at the same 
' time: paying the closet attention to the gradual drying 
f of the leaf bf meins of a carrent of warm, but nut 
...hot, air passing through and over it. Oare baa to be 
. (taken that the withering is not pushed td cxcaes, for 
by so doing the leaf will run a chnnce uf dessicatioo, 
^i iu which case it will not give a fulUbodied liquor, 
r Tho due ]>roportion of leaf freshly gathered to be 
..spread on the withering boards or shelves la about 
> a pound and a half to every nine square feet of 
suifaoe, where it should remain nntil the middle 
of the following day. Its proper degree of withfr 
is known by the pleasant aroma arisii g from it, when 
it may be passed on to the roller. Beyond thii 
syatem the Davidson Dryer is calculated to perform 
the work of tea-curing by a slow rather than by a 
rapid, dessioation; for reflection will shew that a high 
tetnparature, no matter for how short a period, will 
.aserioualy affect the obsiaoter of the leaf, dissipating 
the fine elements which go to impart the quality of 
"point" so much sought for by tea buyers. 
Assuming, as I do, that -this system of tea mann- 
faoture exp aims the snpexior quality and value of 
this particular make of tea, it will be highly inter- 
. esting to watch the reealts of fature sales of the 
, : prodoce of this estate. It is possible that any fall- 
. iag-o£f . in the quality of particular rstatcs, instead 
of being due to deterioration of eoil, may be owing 
to errors or defects in mmipnlation caused by a 
< desire to work oS increasing flashes of leaf, a 
7,poiut which it will be well to have determined. 
^ in writing as I am doing, I am merely conveying 
a lesion given me by another, and must not be 
apppoaed to be taking up the role of > amateur tea 
maker, A.t the same time, I would like to auggest 
. whether, as a non-absorbeat material is suggested 
V'jEor.a withering surface along which tho dry, but 
; not hot, air may circulate, a common cheap desorip- 
!,itiou of papier-mache might not serve the purpose, 
pgiazed ou one side. I.throw.out the- siiggeation loi 
■ mj»y (it 1)6 -worth. , 
.V, . ' ■ - • ; b m- : ■ 
. ^ - PLANTING IN JAMAICA. 
■) ■ r.i-!: 
, SUQAB, COFFEE, CACAO, COCONUTS, &C. 
( The Ueturns in the CoEeator-Ganerara Report «how- 
einkg the areas of cxopf and pasture jands ander culti- 
vviation cpmpii6d iiom theiisgiviiigSitasule byjaxpayera 
are for tbe yfar 1691-92 and do not therefor* ' oame 
under a series of papers treating uf tbe island in 
1692-93. The figuies ahow the acreage v«st«d in 
intlividaals or trusts aa l,di8,678->a deora»ae mbtu 
compared with previoua years. While thia iaaotbe 
acreage in wood and ruinate bas also deoreMcd, 
a ciroumettnce which cannot tje explained tjy the fact 
that tbe lauds have found a place nnder tbe ditfercut 
bead* of cultivable ar«aa as many roUectiog otlicfra 
are incliued to do. The Collector-General iti com- 
menting 00 the decrease states that the great«r 
portion of tbe falling utf is lo be aroribed to tbe 
reason that the properly tax had not breu paid- Of 
tilled lands oanes covt-r an arta of ii2,466 acre*, 
this being a decrease on the preceding year's figures 
bat only to tbe extent ul 2U acr< s- Notwitbataud- 
iog tins el>ght falling off tbe Collector GenMral Kirei 
it at his opinion that there is no reaaou to believe 
in a permanent arrtst cf the hitherto steadily ditni- 
niitbing eultivatiou of this product. It is, bo«ev«r, 
cot always safe to deduce condaaons aa to tbe eoo- 
noinio condition of tbe future from a si ries of. sta- 
tistical leturtiB ; disturbing factors are not unlikely 
to occur to change the course of agricultural activity 
and even in the ordinary progress of events, by the 
utilization of cheap and efficient machiLcry, tbe in- 
irodaclion of central facto-ite, iic. we may see tbe 
iudnstry obtain a new leaie of proeperoas life- At 
present tbe cultivation is praotieally confined to Urge 
estates, 90 per cent, of the total area representing 
tbe proportion paid on by the proprietors or repra- 
seutatives of estates on whirh the manufa«tare of 
rum isc.mbined w.th that of sugar. Id districts 
where tbe soil is huitable for bananM, tbe caue it 
gr.idu<lly being ouiited by its more remucerstiverivAl. 
DiapitL' inciease in value the coffee industry bas 
not made euoh strides as might have been expeoted. 
The acreage un^ier cultivation in this shrub was 
21,450; in 1884 it was given a* 42,518, and there 
was nu apparent decrease of 1,026 acres when com- 
pared wi'.h the preceding year. The reasons tiv*Q 
for the difieieuce are three — ttaallcr acreage returoed 
by large phmlere ; settlers preferring to return their 
land in provisionr when under mire erops than one; 
and taxes outstaodiog. Still, in view of tbe good 
pro^peots for this industry this osnoot be taken as 
satisfactory. Ginger shows a restricted cultivation- 
only 14'<i acres aa compared with 22H in the previous 
year. There were only 6 acres arrowroot. The 
growing of Iiidion corn is mainly confined to 
the savannah land of St. Elizabeth and the acreage 
is diminishing year by year, owing, it is said, tot-e 
severe dronghts experienced in the dietriote where it 
is onltivated. Tobacco is to be seen mostly in St. 
Andrew and St. Catherine bat in tbe a^grefcate it 
shows a decrease. The area under coconuts and 
banaoas show iocreafes by 1,165 acres and 4,900 acres 
respectively. On thtssprodnfe the Collector-Ueneral 
eaya : " Although much of tbe increase in the case of 
bananas is due to extended cultivation, a coosiderabie 
portion, and in tbe case of coconuts which take many 
years for the trees to reach maturity, nearly the whole 
of the increase is due to better olassific»tior, taxpayers 
taking some time to get accustomed to alterations 
in their form of ingiving, and especially ao where they 
have, as is the ease in very many inatances, the 
choice of some three or four headings, any one of which 
could with propriety be used. In eonnection with 
the cultivation iu bananas, tbe area in cocoa mukt 
be considered because, as pointed out, in last gear's 
report the plaring of banmas on the schedule h-is 
caused lauds planted throngh with both cocoa ani 
bananas to be returned as under the latter head : 
however iu mch cases cocoa will nltimately claim 
precedence, being the more endnriog plant-" Tbe 
area under ground provisions was 87,975 as againet 
8,584 in the preceding year. 
Tbe land reinrned aa in guinea grass was 123,080 
acres, a smaller acreage than the year before but 
above tbe average and the difference must be attrl- 
batedto ordinary flaotuation. Common pasture shows 
an increase of 3,649 acxes. Pimento lands are however, 
iuoladed anderthis heading. Aswehave already said the 
a$^tt:i$ n§odand <aiB<>t6haa {allea {)S,-^GUgLneT Packet, 
