Dec. if 1894.] THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
As regards the bad flushing weather during the 
past few months in the higher districts on this side, 
this is due entirely to w^ant of sunshine and long- 
continued cold temperature. 
My " mean maximum 
five months here was : — 
June 
July 
August 
September . . 
October 
Mean 
temperature for the past 
1893. 
67° 
65'6° 
60-7° 
67- 6° 
68- 7° 
67-1° 
1894. 
66'&° 
65-5° 
63'C° 
65'1° 
66"S° 
65-6° 
It will be seen that this is about the same for 
both years in June-July, which are always cold 
months, but that this year there was not the usual 
return to warmer weather in August-October : the 
mean for those three months was : — 
1893. 1894. 
67'7° 65-3° 
The mean for this year being therefore almost 2'5 
deg. below that of last year. 
Generally speaking the S.-W. monsoon up here this 
year has been mild as regards rainfall and wind, but 
has been long-protracted and exceptionally cold. 
CEYLON TEA I» KANSAS. 
Sir John Grinlinton has had a letter from Dr- 
Roby of Kansas — the writer of poems about the 
Ceylon Court, but who is also a practical agri- 
culturist and man of business — in which he 
states : 
"I am now using Ceylon tea with great pleasure. 
It is a fine beverage, and many of my friends are 
using it. Our Kansas friends never tire of talking 
about their visit to the Fair Courts of Ceylon and 
especially their visit to you, in the little octagonal 
tower, by the Lake. We feel that our two countries 
are brought many miles nearer together by reason of 
our mutual acquaintance." 
Dr. Koby is anxious to publish a review of Agri- 
culture in Ceylon in the Kansas Farmer and he 
cannot do better, we think, than summarize and 
extract from the Agricultural Record which pre- 
cedes our last " Handbook and Directory." The 
preparation of a new edition of our book has been 
commenced, but it will necessarily take some time 
to get it completed 
AN UP-TO-DATE TEA KOOM. 
Messrs. W. Hill & Son have started an original 
idea in their pretty tea-rooms at 29, High-street, Ken- 
sington, and 60, Bishopsgate-street. Here, a lady 
ordering her tea is accorded the unusual privilege of 
actually brewing it herself, after her own taste, select- 
ing anv blend she chooses from a dainty silver tea 
caddy that is brought to her, together with the cups 
and saucers and a kettle with spirit lamp attached. 
Such consideration for customers has surely never 
before been shown. Messrs. Hill make a special feature 
of his agreeable system of brewing one's own tea, and 
have introduced something that has hitherto been 
carefully denied us away from our own boudoir. 
Visitors thus have the satisfaction of knowing that 
tlir tea lias not been stewing for hours, to the des- 
truction of their nerves and digestion. Again, how- 
ever fresh the tea may be that we are provided with 
at the ordinary tea-room, in the matter of strength 
it is generally ;,t fault, and to avoid delayit isclear 
that tin- \\;itt'i lias been poured upon the leaves before 
it has reached thai boiling point that is tin secretof 
success in ten making. — Gentlewoman. 15 Sept. 
THE LANKA PLANTATIONS COMPANY- 
LIMITED. 
Directors.— George Allen Esq., Chairman : Edward 
Pettit Esq., Henry Bois Esq., William Austin Esq., 
Agents in Colombo.- Messrs. J. M. Robertson &■ Co. 
Secretary.— Mr. Charles M. Robertson, 
REPORT. 
to be presented at the Fourteenth Ordinary General 
Meeting of the Lanka Plantations Company, 
Limited, to be held at the Office of the Company, on 
Wednesday, the 31st October, 1894, at Twelve o'clock 
noon. 
1. The Directors now submit their Report 
for the twelve months ending 30th June last, 
together with the balance sheet and accounts of the 
Company made up to that date, and duly audited. 
2. The coffee crop shipped to London was 
789 cwt. 1 qr. 18 lb. against 337 cwt. last year, 
and realized £3,790 0s Id net. The acreage 
under coffee alone was 225 acres on the 30th June 
last, all on the Ouvah side of Ceylon. This is a de- 
crease of 122 acres. Every possible care will be 
taken of the remaining coffee, the coffee crop having 
always been of material assistance to the Company 
pending the changes in cultivation which have resulted 
in so large a portion of the estates being turned from 
coffee into cinchona, and afterwards into tea. 
3. The total crop of Cocoa gathered on Yatta- 
watte, from the 429 acres in bearing, amounted to 
979 cwts. 3 qrs. 11 lb. against 1,399 cwts. 3 qrs. 261b. 
last year, and realized £3,061 2s. lid. net. This is a for 
decrease of about 420 cwts. in Cocoa, and £3,390 in 
cash, which materially affects the amount available 
dividend, £1,500 being one per cent, on the Company's 
Ordinary Stock. In the year 1892/93 part of the crop 
was of an exceptionally fine character and there was a 
strong American demand for Ceylon Cocoa which 
unduly raised its value. Though that demand suddenly 
ceased it is to be hoped that, under the altered condi- 
tion of affairs in America, it may be revived. The 
Directors are gradually extending the cultivation of 
Cocoa to the full extent of the suitable land, 95 acres 
having beenn planted during the late financial year. 
A further extension has been sanctioned for the pre- 
sent season. 
4. The Tea received from the Company's estates 
amounted to 518,136 lb. being at the rate of about 
300 lb. per acre from fields in full and partial 
bearing, and has been sold at an average of rather 
over 7Jd. per lb. nett, realising £15,873 5s. 5d. Last 
year the Company received 415,833 lb. which was 
sold at an average of 8£d. nett, and realized £14,048 
10s. The Company's total acreage under Tea now 
stands at 2,141 acres, against 2,009 acres last year. 
5. The following Statement shows the acreage and 
state of cultivation of the Company's Estate on the 
30th June last : — 
■a 1 
Estate. 
Arnpittiakande 
Arnhall 
Fruit Hill 
Fordyce, Garbawn, 
Gonagalla and Pa- 
ramatta 
Rn pp'ahannoek 
Itillnniulla 
Tlu tulagalla 
Yattawatte 
IS £ 
23 
152 
409 
4 
172 
70 
705 
225 
12 
23" 
767* .. 
34 
135 
936 
302* . . 
25 
43J 
80 
473| 
232 
C 
20 
258 
200* . . 
4 
114 
79 
555 
.. 592 
95 
92 
108 
047 
225 2141 592 102 439J 552 illlj 
* Partly in Coffee. 
6. The profits for the past year amounted to £5.176, 
out of which 10 per cent, has been written off the 
Suspence Account, viz., £1,830. Having already paid 
a half-year's interim dividend on the Six per cent. 
Preference Shares to the 31st December, 1893, the 
Directors recommend the payment of a similar 
dividend on those Shares to the 30th June last, and a 
Dividend of 1 - per Share, free of Income Tax (being 
2 per cent, per annum ). on the Ordinary Shares, car- 
rying f orward a balance of £458 17s. to the next 
acountt. 
7. Shortly after the last general meeting the lato 
Sir RobertPallmer Harding, who had been Chairman 
of the Conipny a since its incorporation, in conse- 
quence of cotinued ill-health and much to his own 
regret and the regret of his Co-Directors, resigned the 
chairmanship, and his seat at the Board. Conse- 
quent upon such resignation, Mr. George Allen Wft(j 
