3 8o 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Dtc. l| 1894. 
to the various departments of coct nut cultivation 
in C»ylon, it can be obtained from the •' Cocc nut 
Planters' Mar ual," a new and revised idition of 
whiob is at present pateing through the Ceylon 
Observer Pre;F. 
UISTILLKD WATER AND TEA-TASTING. 
A Lower Dinibula planter writes: — Your sugges- 
tion that distilled water Ebould always be used for 
tastinR tea is very much to the | oin», as tea tattee 
bo differently with ditlerent waters. 1 have known 
a planter from, say the Kelsni Valley, scarcely 
recognises his own tea when tasted up ber«\ 
Write tl e idea larte in your paper — This change 
in the wea her will thorien crops pro. tern. 
COLOMBO TEA TRADERS' ASSOCIATION. 
A special tiixral meeting of this Association 
has been cillid for tcday to consider tevetal 
important matters. The tir<-t item is a reconi 
mendation of the Oommitief : — 
"That rule 4 of the conditions of sale be altered to 
read as follows :— Payment to be made on delivery 
in cash, without discount other than the amount 
levied as a cess at the custonishouse on the export 
of tea in terms of Ordinance 4 of 18M, and delivery 
to be taken at sellers' stores within three days 
from date of sale, Sundays and public holidays ex- 
cepted. (2) That all lots of teas weighing less than. 
400 lb. shall be treated as small breaks and sold after 
the large lots have been offered, the order of sale 
remaining unaltered." 
Mr. F. Duplock seconded by Mr. F. F. Street 
will move:— 
(1) That the ft l!ow ; rig new clause be inserted in the 
conditions of 6alo aft r clause 7 :— Gross weights to 
be marked on all pickages ai.d weigh s to be veri- 
fied prior to delivery, (2) That clause 8 shall read 
as follows:— All teas to be paid for on sale weights, 
but buyers who are members of ihe Colombo Tea 
Traders' Association to have the option of ascertaining 
net weights within 7 dn>s of the date of sale, pio- 
vided that the gross weights of the packages remain 
the same as when delivered. Twenty-four hours' 
notice to be given to the sellers to ei able a repre- 
sentative to be sent to the buyirs' godo»ns to see 
the teas weighed. To a certain net weights 10 per 
cent of each break, but Lot less than three packages 
to be turned out and weighed, and tl e average 
result taken ss representing the actual net weight. 
i ractions of a pound to be disregarded, any diffe- 
rence between iaie and actual weights to be paid or 
allowed for as the case may be. 
CEYLON TEA 
having been the only tea advertised at the Im- 
perial Institute. Its Secretary wrote to and inter 
viewed Mr- Leake on the subject, and then learned 
for the first time the arrangement that had been 
made by jour TeaFund dmmittee wiih the contrac- 
tor. Now although two members of the Committee ef 
the' India Tea Association are also memtess cf the 
Tea Comn ittee of the Ceylon Association, and were 
present when the last mentioned body declined to 
have anything to do wiih the arrangement with 
Ihe contractor, they never communicated the cir- 
cumstances of the agreement having been made to 
the Indian Association. We thought that body had 
been remarkably quiescent throughout the disastrous 
arrangement made, which involv.d your Tea Fund 
having laid a bonus of £300 for the sale 
of £200 worth of Ceylon t.a! We hear the 
arrangement wss dropped at the end of the twelve- 
month, and no wonder 1 It is our ous, however, 
that the contractor still indents upon Mr. L,<ake 
for the supplies of the Ceyloo teas he requires. It 
can only be presumed that be cannot be batter or 
more advantageous!/ t>eived by aoy other quarter. 
— 'London Cor, Oct. 5. 
NAM I'NAKl'LA TEA ESTATE COMPANY- 
A new Ce)lon Company, entitled the 
KAMCNAKCLA J I A ES1ATK C MFAKY, 
bes just bCM registered. B low are given tbe 
p rlioulars as to this new undertaking extracted 
from a financial piper. Endeavour has been made 
by me to ob'^in a eopy of ibe prcsptctus, bat 
my sppiestion for this has been refuted on the 
ground that it has b<en piloted for private 
eirculttion rnly. From this refusal it must be 
concluded ihat the new ventu e ii simp'y of tbe 
character of a private arrangement, and that no 
appeal is to be made to the general publis lor 
subscription towards its capita'. 
Namonaki'la Tea Estate Co., Limited (42,041). 
This Company was registered on the 56th inst- 
with a capital 01 £50,000, in 500 share* of £100 each- 
to acquire tea or other plantatioua in < e>)on, or 
elsewhere, at d to carry on the bui>ioe»e of tea plan- 
ters, or gtowers of tea, coffee, ciDcbona, or a y 
other vegetable prodaot. ibe sabecnbeis are: — 
shares. 
C. B. Smith. 7 Grove End Rd, gent ... 1 
W. W« Simpson, Winkley Whalley Lanes, 
coal owner ... ... ... ... 1 
C. Harrison, 57 Lincoln'* Ion Fie'da, aolr ... 1 
W. Negus, Walton on-Thames, aolr ... 1 
J. L. Seymour. 67 Lincoln's Inn Fie'd«, solr... 1 
H. U. Booth, 67 Lincoln's Inn Fields, solr „. 1 
T. C. La>.e, 67 Lincoln's Inn Fe ds, acet ... 1 
The nnmber of directors st all not be lest tr*e,n 8 
or more <han 5. Qualification It, shares; remune- 
ration to te determined in general meeting. Manag- 
ing director, V. B. Smith, until 1899, at a salary of 
£100 per annum. — Ibid. 
♦ 
PLANTING AND PRODUCE NOTES. 
Pitt the Pooh Tea Tasteb.— Nearly everyone 
connected with tea kuows that a tea laser's life 
in these day* of heavy sales is not.exactly an ideal 
one. It is attended with a more than ordinary 
amount of monotony, aud in some cases it mar 
be prejudic al to b. altb. We were not prepared, 
however to learn that tbe pursuit carried qaiteeo 
many horrors in its train. Perhaps the fact that 
at this season of the year tbe entertaining news- 
paper paragraphist is on tbe track of sensational 
matter may account for something, but after doe 
allowance H made for his desire to make our flesh 
creep, tLe f llowing cheerful statement, which we 
take frcru the co unins of tbe hcho, is just a little 
strong. It runs thus : — " If persisted in, the tea- 
tasting profession is certain death to a 1 who 
pursue it. It iuevitably tets up ulceration of the 
lungs and deatb. In ovtrbauhcg a cargo of tea 
the taster class ties it and determines the value of 
each sort In doing this he looks at the colour of 
the leaf ai d the general cleanliness of it. He next 
takes a quauti y of tbe herb in his hand, aud, 
breathing his warm breath ripen it, snuffs up the 
fragrance. In doing tbi-t he draws into his luugs 
a quantity of ir.itating dust, which is by no 
means wholesome. Then, sitting down at a table 
in his office, oa which is a long row of little por- 
cleain cups and a pot of hot water, he ' draws ' 
the tea and tastes it. In this way he classifies 
the different sorts of the minutest shades, the 
different pric s, and then comparts his work with 
tbe invoice. The skill of some of these men is 
marvellous, but the effect of the business on their 
health is ruinous. They grow lean, nervous and 
consumptive." The " if persi ted in " is delightful' 
at suggests that a man who has been a tea taster 
tor some time will, if he v^lue hs hi abb, become 
a teetota' lecturer, se 1 cojIs on commission, or do 
