Aug. i, 1894.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
127 
NEW LONDON BORNEO TOBACCO CO. 
The Report for ye*r ended Dec. 31, 1893, slates :— 
The profit and loss account tor the year 1893, shows 
a credit balauce of £8,324 12a. Id., out of which an 
interim dividend of 6| per cent., or Is. per shire has 
been paid, an! tin directors now recommend a 
further dividend of Is. p;r share, less income tax, 
making a total distribution in respeot of 1893 of l-'i 
per cent. The balance of £324 12s. Id. vfiil be carried 
to reserve, in acoordaaoe with the Articles of Asso- 
ciation. 
The crop of 1892 proved to be 3,580 bales, as com- 
pared with 2,174 bales in 1891. The average prioe 
obtained was about la. 91. per lb. The cop of 1893 
is estimated to produce about 3,330 bales, of which 
1,385 bales have arrived, and the remainder is eipeote.d 
to reach Amsterdam before the end of July. At tho 
sales held in Amsterdam on June 14, 612 bales of the 
Company's tobacco were sold at rates equivalent to 
about 4s, per lb. From the report received on the 
type samples of the tobaooo as yet unsold, the Direotors 
feel jusiified ia anticipating, satisfactory results from 
the orop of 1893. The litest advioes from Barneo 
state that the preparations for a total planting of 800 
fields during 1894 were fairly advanced. 
Count de Geloes d'EIsloo, who had been Managing 
Direotor in Borneo since 1888, returned to Europe in 
September last, and the Directors have appointed Mr. 
A. Kamerman to be acting head manager in Borneo. 
— L. and C. Express, June 29. 
A TEA PATENT EXHIBITION AT HOWRAH. 
An interesting exhibition of tho "Patent Acme Tea 
Sorting Machine," invented by Mr. G. M. Collom aus 
given at Howrah recently at the works of Ales--rs. John 
King and Co. A close examination of the machine dis- 
closed that it consisted of two angular steel frames 
measuring 8 feet long at the top. and 9g ieet at the base 
standing 2£ feet high, placed opposite each other, and 
stayed together two feet apart. Between those work 
(with a reoiprocating motion) two long.light steel frames, 
measuriug 9 feet long and 2 feet wide, which 
are the sifters, placed one above the otlier. These 
work on four oscillating levers, securely fastened 
to the angle steel frame iuside at four points, by strong 
case-hardened pins, upon which they work from the 
centre. The upper sitter is firmly seoured by trunnion 
brackets on the side, to the levees at the top, and 
the lower one in the same way underneath. The latter 
better being direct to the crank or eccentric with a 
3-inch pitch, receives a reciprocating motion, the same 
being transmitted to the one above it. Both sifters 
have an independent action, and work in opposite direc- 
tions at a 100 to 140 revolutions per minute. These 
sifters can be placed at any incline from 1 to 10 
iuohes at the user's option, so that the tea can be 
quickly discharged or delayed as tho case may be. 
The upper sifter incliuts towards the crank, aud the 
lower ono from the craDk ; theBe are fitted with tour 
meshes of sizes (two in each), the trays being in- 
terchangeable sliding trays, and underneath, ruuniDg 
the whole length, is an enamelled steel " shate "with 
four divisions (two in each, corresponding with the mesh 
above them : for instance, each sifter has two sizes 
in wire mesh, namely, the top Nos. 40 and 12, the 
lowers No. 10 and 8, and so are the divisions in the 
"shute" below, at the end of each division being a 
tmall disoharge "shute" for the different classes of 
tea BOited. The bulk lea to be sorted is thrown in 
at the top back end of the upper sifter on Nos. 40 
mesh wbioh sift the dust, the residue passing to No. 
12 mesh, which soparates the broken pekoe. The tea 
is next deposited ou the sifter of No. 10 niesb, which 
removes the pekoe. The remainder parses to No. 8 
mesh, where the pekoe souchong the rest being coarse 
tea, is disobarged at the back end of the muoliiue aa 
souchong or congou, which completes the operation. 
By this ingenious contrivance, live olasses of tea oau 
be sorted by the machine aud automatically delivered 
without any handling, it being thrown in at the top 
back end travelling uown and out at the bottom &#c* 
ond— India n Daily tfeios. 
INDIAN PATENTS. 
Calcutta, 5th July 1894, 
Specifications of the und.rmeotioned inventions 
have been filed under the provisions of Act V. 
of 1888 :— 
Tea Kolling Machine 1 ,— No. 310 of 1893.— John 
Brown, of Lon on, E jglaad, Engineer, for improve- 
ments m tea rolling tnachiuLS. (Specification filed 
12th June l$9i.)- -Indian Engineer. 
" SPIDER ON TEA" AND A SULPHUR 
DISTRIBUTOR. 
Mr, Dn-.berg, Prinoital of the Sjhool of Agri- 
culture, writes : — 
" I send you a ' Eoufflet ' or bellows (for distributing 
sulphur and other insecticides and inseotifnges) for 
inspection. You referred to the apparatus in an 
editorial note in your daily issue ot the 18th, and 
it struck me, as you were interested in the des- 
cription of ic by a Cachar correspondent, that you 
may liko to see it. We procured two souffiets to- 
gether with an 'Eolair' knapsack sprajing machine, 
for liquids, about two years ago, for our use at the 
school." 
We are muoh obliged to Mr, Drieberg : the "soufflet" 
can be seen at our office for a week or so. It 
ia very simple in construction and working and 
would undoubtedly be of servioa on tea plantations 
in fighting and preventing " spider " attaoks 
after the fashion successfully adopted in Cachar. 
PLANTING IN KEGALLA DISTRICT, 
CEYLON. 
(From Mr. Davidson's Administration Report for 1893.) 
Tea. — The area under cultivation has increased to 
about 24,392 acres, yielding about eleven million.pounds 
ot tea. This includes most of the Kelani Valley and 
a considerable part of Dolosbage and Yakdessa. Over 
2,000 acres were opened iu 1893. The prospeots of this 
enterprise in this district appear as prosperous as in 
1892. Total value of crop K4,4UO,000. 
Coconuts. — The area under cultivation is slowly 
increasing. It now stands approximately at 20,800 
acres. The yield is not to be compared with that iu 
more suitable localities, but the permanent nature of 
the product and the little trouble it gives make it still 
the most attractive product to those whose lives are 
bound up with the soil. Total value of crop about 
B.1,200,000. 
Arecaauts. — Both the yield and price of this product 
have been disappointing : the short crop in this, the 
native staple ot the district, has lessened the pur- 
chasing power of the Sinhalese population. AreaoaDut 
groves cover about 20,000 acres. Total value of crop 
about Rl,500,000. 
Caoao. — This product cavers abou'. 1,200 acres. In 
Four Korales — e.»peoially in Galboda aud Parauakuru 
korales — it is freely growu in native gardens. Many 
hundred pods were distributed gratis from the kaoh- 
cheri, the supply coming trom the Ro}al Butuuio 
Gardens. I firmly believe that in KinigoJa, Parana- 
kuru aud Galboda koraleB the cultivation ot" cacao 
might be carried on with the most tavourable results. 
I have beeu endeavouring to persuade the Govern- 
ment to sell lands suitable for toe cultivation of the 
product, aud it is probable that during 1894 au extent 
of 1,000 acres or so may be mare available for safe. 
Other Produots. — There is more coffee caltivattdnow, 
all Liberian ; but the area is utter all still trilling. 
Lunumidella is grown largely for its timber. iSapan- 
wood still jie'ds a small profit, a. u.ouku both supply 
aud demand have talleu off. Cocaergthroxgloni* being 
grown as an experiment, but tho dcoiaud is still to 
mii.U that tho district could glut tho markets of the 
world already. Cinnamon aud cardamoms are cultivate 1 
over small areas. Cotton, hhs disappeared. 
