Dec* i, 1894.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
wonderful scheme for ' capturing the American 
markets ' which he could only divulge in the 
first instance to his planting constituency. 
Where is that scheme now ? and then what of 
all your Prize Essays? and the deliberations of 
your Thirty Magi ? — After a year's waste of time 
and I fear lost opportunity they have decided 
to do what any one man so soon as he learned 
the Commissioner had failed to make any 
permanent arrangement, would have decided to 
do in five minutes, namely to send another man 
to see what could be done. I do not blame the 
Commissioner (lie was doubtless fully occupied 
with bis Exhibition) for anything except mysti- 
fying the public and professing that he had an 
ace up his sleeve. He should, long before the 
Exhibition closed, have confessed that he was 
powerless to make future arrangements and then 
one or more emissaries should have been sent to 
see what could be done. 
"Sir Gneme Elphinstone's is a very good ap- 
pointment ; he is a baronet which is in his 
favor ; be is a gentleman which is against him ; 
but planters must not expect impossibilities. It 
is not so easy and it takes longer to get round 
the United States than the Fort in Colombo 
and however energetic a man is, a visit of a 
few weeks cannot accomplish much. But in 
spite of Ceylon planters — 1 say in spite because 
1 think they have wasted money and lost oppor- 
tunity, — the taste for 'black teas 7 is steadily 
grow nig and will continue to grow in America ; 
but you must not expect one man, however good, 
to change the tastes of 50,000,000 people 
and overcome trade prejudices, — in a few weeks." 
We next call special attention to the following 
opinion which deserves consideration, from many 
points of view though it may be said to be 
written by a tea-dealer who perhaps naturally 
thinks the more tea, the more business. At the 
same time, it indicates the prescience of Sir John 
Muir, Mr. P. It. Buchanan, and their fellow 
Directors ; and we have always held that if 
Ceylon holds back in extending her tea area, 
India will more than make up for the difference 
■ — in fact we encourage her planters to go all 
the faster ahead ; — 
" Meanwhile we want and are likely to want all 
the tea you can produce, in London for sometime. 
You are tar too afraid of extensions to keep things 
healthy. We should see about 10,000 acres 
Opened every year in Ceylon. We want to move 
forward not backward, and the production of 
10,000 acres every year, say 4,000,000 lb. will be 
wanted if we are to bold our own, and if your 
revenue is to be maintained.'' 
Finally, we commend the closing paragraph of 
our friend's letter to the consideration of the 
Chairman and Committee of the Planters' Asso- 
ciation : — 
" If the planters want to do a good and use- 
ful work which will, I believe, tend consider- 
ably to their advantage in London, they will 
appoint a Committee and revise the Districts. 
Vmi will not mind my saying so, but the Dis- ; 
tricts as at present denned in your Directory : 
an- a source of constant annoyance ; it is im- 
possible to make lea dealers understand that 1 
two adjoining estates are classified in different 
Districts. The present divisions are obsolete, 
inconvenient and discreditable to all concerned." 
We are quite prepared to fall in with the do- 
oision of the P. A. Committee so far as our j 
Directory, «.ve., is concerned, for manyot the Coy- J 
Ion Planting District- a- at preaent divided, ar- 
ranged and even named, ioe «xe pofsoftuHy respon- | 
;sible. The Planters' Association defined the dis« 
'tricts last, so far back as 1856 when there were 
mit 20 in their list. Now there are between 50 and 
60 ! A score of years ago, we had to separate 
Haputale from Badulla, and afterwards gave the 
name to the New Galway division. Madulsima 
and Hewa Eliya, and later Moneragala and 
Passara divisions followed. Then we broke up 
" Safl'ragam " into Rakwana and Balangoda. 
Dikoya had to be separated from Ahibagamuwa and 
afterwards divided into Upper and Lower, while 
Maskeliya was also distinguished for our Direct ory. 
Morawak Korale, Kukulu Korale, Nitre Cave, 
Mataie North, Kuruwita Pnndaluoya (separated 
from Raniboda), Panwila and Wattegama, are il- 
lustrations of our re-arrangements, apart fr< 111 
new low-country districts. We have for many 
years said in our Handbook that there was 
room for the Planters' Committee to examine 
and settle boundaries and define more clearly 
the several districts. At the same time, we do 
not see how the complaint of our London friend, 
that certain adjacent estates are in different 
districts, can ever be overcome, seeing that 
Dimbula, Dikoya, Maskeliya, Lower Dikoya, 
Ambagamuwa estates (and so on, pretty well 
round our planting districts) all touch each other at 
certain points. If such districts are to be separated 
at all, there must be adjacent estates at the 
boundary lines of different districts ! We should 
like to have had illustrations of what our cor- 
respondent means by " confusion " under this 
bead ? However, if Mr. Melville White and his^ 
olleagues desire to do anything at this time, it* 
ought to be done very quickly, — as the arrange- 
ments for maps of the different districts as well 
as Directory returns Mill be affected by any 
change. We should like to have the opinions 
of planters as to the need of alterations and 
at what points ? 
* — •■ ■ 
CEYLON SEASON REPORTS. 
The abstract of season reports published in the Gov- 
ernment Gazette shows that, during the month ended 
31st October last, rain has been pretty general 
all over the island, and the prospects on the wbole 
are favourable. The health of people and cattle of 
the Mullaittivu and Kurunegala districts is re- 
ported to be good, while measles and fever, and 
foot-and-mouth disease are prevailing in some parts 
of Vavuniya district, the last being also pievalent 
in parts of Galboda and Tlnee Korales. Hie coco- 
nut crop has been poor in the Western Province 
and the prices ranged from R35 to R40 a thousand, 
while there was a plentiful supply of vegetables. 
The reports for the quarter ended 30th September 
last are also given in yesterday's Giteitti and we notice 
that the price of paddy during the quarter has 
ranged from Rl in Uva to R2';">0 per bushel in the 
North-Westeru Province and thai dry grain fetched 
from 50 cents a bushel for Amu to R450 a bushel 
for green peas. 
TEA IN AMERICA, 
With demand light, the market lacks strength and is 
barely steady only 011 desirable lines, particularly greens. 
'1 lie public sale announced fur today is tmaU. indicating 
the slowness of trade. 'Ihe deliverks of tea in London 
for nine months ending September :.u were 176,11(19,850 
pounds against 174,100,050 pounds for same time in l»u;i. 
Of the total all except 8,605,460 pounds were black. 
Today at 110011 the Montgomery Auction and Commis- 
sion Co. will sell 2,785 packages, viz : 285 half-chests 
Moyune, new crop ; 1S6 half-chests and boxes Pingsuev, 
new crop; 9 half-chests Japan, basket-tired and sun-dried ; 
581 packages Congou, seasons 1SU4-95 ; i>7 package! India, 
Java and l'ekoe ; 27a balf-chests Foocliow ; 1,884 half-chests 
and boxes Formosa, including seasons 1894-06.— Autn-Uan 
CrWfr, Oct. 17th, 
