THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. Ffp, i, 1895. 
impunity. Not long ago ive had occasion to com- 
meht upon the excess in tea-drinking committed 
by the Welsli miners, anil we should not lie sur- 
prised to learn that, in spite of the healthy con- 
djtibns/rif Ids life, the Australian incurred equally 
unpleasant results. Another favourite argument 
trf the ■'confirmed tea-drinker is the example of 
Dri Johnson. The great doctor, it is t.rne, 
drank deep, lmt the strength of his drink is 
open to' question. Tea, in hi- il iy, 6otit some 
80s- a pound, anil hostesses probably were more 
briary of tea-leaves than they are now. 
Even when blended with the intoxicating strength 
of green tea, Dr. Johnson's cups may have been 
more innocent of poison than tho-e which arc 
offered by a modern hostess " at home." 
But, after all, the (piestion of temperance in 
tea-drinking, as in every other form of bodily 
indulgence, is purely a relative one. There are 
men still' who can comfortably drink two hottle- 
of port at a sitting, and repeat the dose almost 
every night of a long and healthy life; While 
others cannot finish half a bottle of claret with- 
wutKuffering from the effects of intoxication. Tea 
$rid • feoffee, like wine, affect no two men alike. 
Upon some people they act as sedatives, upon 
otliers as irritants of the nerves. One man will 
take strong tea to make him sleep; another 
will suffer sleepless misery from drinking 
half a cup of a weak dilution. Dr. Johnfeon 
lriay have heen singularly constituted by 
'^flat'nre for the safe absorption of tea, and, 
'for all one knows, Mrs. Thrale's generous 
tea-table played havoc with the nerves of 
many weaker guests. Every man must he law- 
giver to himself in the master of food and think, for 
there are no general laws that can save a fool from 
the folly of his own excess. Even with regard 
to " tea-drunkenness," as the Americans call it, 
though it might seem that ignorance of the pro- 
perties of tea and the right method for pre- 
paring it are Responsible for much of the sufrer- 
ing that excess involves, it does not follow that 
a better way would mean a cessation of the 
evil. Tea-drunkards — people wdio drink tea to 
excess and suffer while they drink — are not to 
be deterred by the knowledge of their danger. Like 
other confirmed inebriates, they drink for the 
sake of the after intoxication aud not the pre- 
present pleasure. — Spectator. 
li : *" 
,),!, 
p.ai it 
ECHOES OF SCIENCE. 
" Kendir" is the name of a very strong supple 
fibre obtained from the plant Apocynum Sihiricum, 
which grows in Central Asia from the Caspian east- 
wards, and is made into cords and cloth by the 
Kirghiz Tartars, but has been somewhat neglected 
by the Russians. A French explorer, M. Blanc, 
has brought home specimens of the plant, and 
also seeds of a cotton plant which flourishes in a 
comparatively cold climate, and it is intended to 
acclimatise these in Algeria. The kendir plant is 
about six feet high, and prefers the hanks of lakes 
and water courses, lmt will grow in dry spots, 
especially on flinty and chalky soils. The fibre is 
at its best when the plant is in flower. As it may 
be useful in some of our own colonies, fuller par- 
ticulars can be found in the transactions of the 
Association Francaise pour l'avancement des Sci- 
ences. 
The New York State Forest Commission have 
set apart 30,000 acres of virgin land in the heart 
of the Catskill mountains, which are famous as 
the haunt of the immortal Kip Van Winkle. The 
I park is near Slide Mountain, the highest peak of 
the Catskill*, and the district is a great report of 
New Yorkers in summer-time. It will, of course, 
be dedicated to the pre>er\ ation at wild animals 
and plant* "which the progress of civilisation threat- 
ens with extinction. 
M. ttoger. a French experimenter, ha* l»eeii try- 
ing the effect rff pressure on bacteria, aud linuk 
that it is only when the pressure ontlw "culture" 
containing them rises to To lb. on the si mare inch 
and upwards that the bacteria he worked with, 
namely, those of erysipelas and some other com- 
mon disease-, were injured. High pressure doc-, 
however, harm bacteria to some extent.- <!lobc. 
THF. ALLIANCE TEA COMPANY OF 
CEYLON, LIMITED. 
The following indicates the projierties this 
Company is to take up with its £40,<hio of capital 
paid-up atld £30,000 Of debentures: — 
Two Estates in extent about 1,096 acres, of which 
say^ 
695 acres are planted with Tea in full bearing, 
is .. ,, young Tea in partial bearing. 
SO ,, ,. ,, bearing. 
s23 acres Tea. 
212 ,, Forest, grass land &c. 
1.035 acres. 
These properties which are situated in the Dimbula 
and Lower Dikoya districts, gave crops in 1993 
amounting to 258,523 lb. Tea, and according to 
recent advices from Ceylon the yield for 1894 was 
expected to be about 285.L00 lb. The Estimates for 
1895 amount to 2110,000 lb,, at a probable cost of 
28 cents per lb. f.o.b. Colombo, equal at current ex- 
change to about 3£ pence per lb. Each estate pos- 
sesses a factory and machinery sutlicient for all 
requirements. The price proposed to be paid for 
these properties is £31,500. 
Four estates in Dimbula and Maskeliya districts, 
pi extent about 1,359 acres, of which, say — 
778 acres are planted with tea in fidl bearing. 
292 ,, ,. ., in partial bearing. 
36 „ „ „ not yet in bearing. 
1,106 acres Tea. 
253 ,, Forest, Grass land, &c. 
1,359 acres 
The crops secured from these properties in 1893 
amounted to 342,373 lb. tea. The 1894 crops will 
hardly reach this figure, the short fall being due to 
exceptionally unfavourable weather, but with a larger 
plucking acreage and with average weather it is es- 
timated that 373.0O0 lb. tea will be produced in 1895, 
at a probable cost of about 30 cent per lb. f.o.b. 
Colombo, equal at current exchange to about 3| pence 
per lb. There are two factories, possessing full com- 
plements of machinery, at which the crops of three of 
the estates are dealt with, those from the fourth 
being manufactured on satisfactory terms on a neigh- 
bouring property. The price proposed to be paid for 
these estates is" £32,500. 
Tea Trade with Persia. — The attention of the 
Indian tea trade may profitably be directed to the 
Persian market. The Political Resident in the 
Persian Gulf states that, notwithstanding the diffi- 
culties with which the trade has bad to contend, 
there has been of late a considerable expansion in the 
amount of tea imports. Tea introduced into Persia 
from the south comes almost exclusively from India 
and Java, and it appears to grow in favour in the Per- 
sian markets,— Pioneer, Jan, 19, 
