Oct. i, 1894.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
261 
houses interested in tea culture, organized schemes 
bave been carried out by the Indiau p anters in the 
Australian colonies, in France, aud Helguim, as well 
as, to some extent, in German?, and, by the Cejlon 
planters, both in Germany, in France, and in .Russia, 
in which last-mentioned country very great stiides 
have been maile in the introduction of Ceylon tea, 
which is now regularly imported by the Russian t?a 
merchants, as well aa by the representative of the 
Ceylon p antern, Mr. Rogivue, in Mosoow. 
Xrutting you will pardcn the length of these remarks 
which I ana only 'induced to make in the interests of 
accuracy. — I am, George Seton. 
Indian Tea Association (London), 14, St, Mary-axe, 
E. C , August 13th. 
Sir, — In the valuable article on " Indian Affairs" 
appeared in The Times of Monday last a rcost interest- 
ing contribution is made to the kuowledge possessed 
by the Britiah public as to the tea it drinks. 
Probably very few people are aware that 84 per 
cent, of the tea consume i in this country is British 
grown, and it must therefore be satisfactory to all 
to learn, on the high authority of your Correspon- 
dent, tt:at, as regards quality, the Indian aud Ceylon 
te's have no rival in any sea borne teas in the work 1 . 
There can it si ems be no room for doubt that the 
Indun soil and climate are better suited to the growth 
of fine qualities of teas. This is clearly demonstrated 
by the high price paid for thousands of chests of the 
finest qualities of Indian teas at the weekly auctions 
in mincing-lane ; and strangely enough, the most 
expensive Indian teas find their best market in the 
north of Ireland. 
Aa to the efforts made by India and Ceylon to find 
an entrance into new markets, it must be remembered 
that the produce of Ceylon presents a greater simi- 
larity to that of China than Indian t< as do, aid 
henoe the greater success of Ceylon in finding new 
markets in countries using CLioa teas. It is also 
true that Ceylon spent three times as much as In fia 
at the Cbioago Exhibition, but it is open to questiou 
whether the result was commensurate with the cost. 
In any case, it is not as rivals but as brothers that 
India and Oeylon are doing their best to find a market 
for British grown teas among our great kindied 
people in the West. Your obedient servant. 
Ernest Tye (per A. E.H.) Secrotery. 
COFFEA STENOPHYLLA. 
A small box of seed of Coffea stenopbylla was 
received from the Royal Gardens, Ktw, a sm^ll 
quantity of which eown in the gardens and the rest 
distributed for experimental cultivutii n to the under- 
mentioned, viz:— Jdrs. Muuro, Peermaad. W. Gal lan, 
Esq., Saharai.pur. Revd. G. Richter, Meroara. T. 
J. Ferguson, Esq., Calicut. J. Cameron, Esq., 
Bangalore. G. M. Woodrow. Esq., Pooca, W. 
Hamilton -Holmes, Esq., Madras. 
Appended is an extract Irom the K*w Bulletin of 
miscellaneous information for July, 1893, p. 167. 
The narrow leaved " wild," " bush," or " native 
coffee," is sometimes found wild iu the hills, and 
is more often cultivated by the natives than the 
Liberian, It grows very freely, and appears to yield 
quite as much as the Liberian, but it is somewhat 
louger in coming into bearing- Both the natives 
and Frenoh traders at Freetown say that it has a 
superior flavour, aud preler it to the Liberian. In 
lact, laiteily, a certain amount has been exported 
to a wholesale French dealer who is said to tell it 
at 1 frai cs 50 centimes a lb. as " best Mocha : " 
considering that it id worth in Freetown about 6d a 
lb. this should be n fairly profitable trade, and a 
trial shipmeut should be maoa by the English 
merohants to find out exactly what the market 
value iu Liverpool would bo. The plant appears 10 
thrive beat ou the higher hills about Sierra Leone, 
on gneissoso or gr«nitic soil, aud can be grown iroru 
500 to ^,0uO feet. Probably it may be grown both 
above and boluw theBo limiis.. — Proceedings of (he 
d'jri BortiwRmral Somty of Madras, 
\ INDIAN TEA AND COFFEE PLANTERS 
AND THE ANTWERP EXHIBITION. 
The following is from the Times of the 21st 
inst : — 
It is with regard to the two other great staples of 
the British planting industry in India, coffee and tea 
that most regret must be felt. The Indian coffee 
planters and the Indian tea planters are trying to 
open new markets, and the Indian tea planters know 
that on their ability to do so the future of their 
enterprise depends. The Javanese planters are equally 
alive to this tact and the Government of Holland has 
given a really admirable exhibition of the produce of 
the Dutch East Indies. To the European visitor who 
contrasts the well-designed collection in the Dutch 
section with the few tea samples in the section of 
British India it must seem that the Dutch East Indies 
still has the monopoly of the Indian trade. 
After some inquiry we believe we are correct in 
saying that the Government of British India has 
not found itself able to assist the exhibition of 
its teas and coffees by the subvention of a single 
rupee. A London tea Company, with a branch 
office in Brussels, has sent to the Bri.i'h section a 
small but interesting collection of its wares; and 
Indian tea is sold at the British refreshment bar. 
It is needless to enlarge on the utter inadequacy 
of the means adopted to the end in view. Indeed, 
the Dutch section,, by way of illustrating the 
general Eastern trade of Holland, gives inciden- 
tally a more important collection of British Indian teas 
than is to be found in the British Indian sectioc 
With deficit grappling at its throat the Government 
of India was powerless to attempt any similar col- 
lection, and the time has not yet come when the 
widely-scattered industries of the Indian continent, 
any more than the Indian railways or Indian irriga- 
tion enterprises, can organize their own representa- 
tion without State organization aud aid. But for 
the unwearied energy and the courageous accep- 
tance of personal responsibilites which have through- 
out marsed the aotion of her Majesty's Consul 
General for Belgium the Indian section ut the Ant- 
werp Exhibition would have ended in something very 
like a fiasco. Any small success which it may have 
atiained is due to Mr. de Couroy-Perry, ably assisted 
by Sir Charles Kennedy, and to the three or four 
private firms or companies who have sent s<mples of 
their goods. 
The inadequate representation of Indian produce 
at Antwerp is the more to be lamented, as it marks 
a retrograde step from the position which British 
Indian products won at Amsterdam. To take the 
single example of tea-planting, the Indian industry 
iu which British capitalists are at this moment m&6t 
vitally interested. At the Amsterdam Exhibition a 
valuable collection of Br.tiah Indian teas wuS 
shown, over if, 700 speoimen packets were sold, 
and more than 40,000 cups of tea were served. 
Notwithstanding the previous inclination of the 
jurors towards Javanese varieties, 58 awards were 
granted to Indian teas inoluding a diploma of honour, 
even gold an d 17 silver medals. The official report 
osnly regretted that while it was thus "in the power 
of the Indiau Department of the Exhibition to create 
a demand for tea, it was unable to create also a 
constant supply. Those who brought packets almost 
invariably wanted more, and asked or wrote to know 
where it was to be obtain«d in similar packets alter 
the close of the Exhibition." At this point the 
function of the Government very properly ceased 
and tho business of the private merchant began. 
The direct shipment of tea from India to Holland 
is still insignificant, being under 16,000 lb. ; but 
the transhipment of Indian tea' from England 
to Hoi and exceeds a quarter of a million pounds, 
Iudeed, a considerable re-exportation of Indiau teas 
from Great Biitaiu to Europe and America has, 
developed since the Amsterdam Exhibition, ani 
now amounts to 21-3 million pounds. It is this re- 
export trade which might have received a vaiua'alo 
impulse from the Antwerp Exhibition if Iudlau teas. 
