S85 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
! M.xrcu i. 1895. 
SHOWING THE ACKEAOE UN WEB TJSA. CULTIVATION 1 N 
CEYLON SINCE 1807, AND THE QUANTITY EXPORTED 
SINCE 1873, WITH THE AVEKAGE PKICE OHTAINKi' 
IN THE LONDON MAHKET SINCE 1880. 
Cultivated Exports in Approximate 
1867 
acreage. 
pounds. 
average price 
10 
1868 
200 
18§9 
250 
1870 
1871 
1872 
Mis 
187:-'. 
280 
23 
1874 
s '350 
492 
1875 
1,080 
L,fl}8 
187(1 
1,750 
757 
1877 
2,720 
2,105 
1878 
4,700 
19,(507 
187'.) 
6,500 
96,869 
1880 
9,271 
162,575 
1881 
¥3,500 
848.157 
nip 
1882 
22,000 
6117.268 
Is ojd 
1893 
32,000 
1,665,7158 
Is 3jd 
1884 
70,000 
2,392,973 
Is -lid 
1885 
1()2,( 
•4.372.722 
Is 3Jd 
iHftti 
150,000 
7,8l9.sss 
Is lf| 
1887 
17D,0( "I 
13,8:14,057 
Is Id 
1888 
133,000 
23,820,723 
ll£d 
1889 
205,000 
3 4,345,852 
Hid 
1890 
220,000 
45.79.1.519 
lid 
181)1 
250.000 
67,718,372 
lOd 
1892 
202,000 
72 £79,985 
Sid 
18J3 
273,000 
s 1.750.000 
9d 
1894 
1 about 
' ' 1 280,000 
about 
84,000,000 
8*d 
PRESENT CONDITION OF THE INDUSTRY. 
Having now tracad very roughly and cur- 
sorily the prcgress of tho tea industry to its 
present date, both at home and in India Mad 
Ceylon, let us consider the actual position as it now 
stands, both as to the consumption at home and 
as to the production in India and Ceylon, not 
, omitting the vast resources of the Chinese Empire 
as a tea-growing country, Mlfl the smaller but still 
important tea industry of Japan. 
Iu the early part of this paper we remarked upon 
the extraordinary fact that the United Kingdom con- 
sumed at the present time nearly as much tea an- 
nually as all other civilised countries combined. 
Almost the entire quantity used in the United 
Kingdom is now Indian and Ceylon tea, China, as 
before-mentioned, having been at last almost driven 
. out of the field. But the cost of the struggle has 
been tremendous, and has resulted in bringing down 
the average price of Indian and Ceylon tea from 
Is. 5d., in 1881, when the quantity used was only 
48,000,000 lb. to 9Jd. in 1894, when the quantity used 
was 188,000,000 lbs. Even with this fall in price, room 
has been made for the produce of India and Ceylon 
only by turning out China tea, which, in the year 
1894, had been displaced except about 26,000,000 lb. 
as will be seen from ths following Table : — 
fin er »A »t!>ili U!il*I KUMff WS* .glo'NnfeO-, llli " l» 
5 
tola 
lit 
e3 
Us a 
JS CD 
i * 
** 
q 
o ~ 
million million miilon million 
s. 
d. 
s. 
d. 
lb. 
lb- 
lb. 
lb. 
1881.. 
,1 
.5 . 
0 
HI 
1:1 48 
^trifling) 
112 
160 
1882.. 
1 
1 
5| 
51 
do 
114 
165 
1883.. 
1 
2* 
1 
3i 
58 
avoiql.ba-jL 
112 
171 
1884.. 
1 
vt 
1 
23 
62 
2 
111 
175 
1885.. 
1 
1 
H 
65 
114 
182 
1886. . 
i 
0 
1 
14 
69 
6 
104 • 
J 79 
1887. . 
0 
HI 
1 
l 
83 
' 10 
; 91 ■ 
184 
1888. . 
0 
lCi- 
0 
Hi 
86 
18 
... 8*fi 
1SS) 
1889. . 
0 
If i 
0 
"4 
N (6 
29 - 
61 
18 > 
1890... 
6 
m 
0 
n 
•C2 
.34. r) 
194 
J 891. . 
0 
0 
10 
99 
> 'jitll.no \t 
5-2 
202 
1892., 
0 
10 
,.0-j 
a «p 
111) 
■j. umjoivi 
34 
207 
1893.. 
0 
94 
.0 
9 
108 
■ 1 Mil- 
l«36ilK 
208 
1894,, 
0 
94 
0 
85 
117 . 
•• 1 :<1l • ■ 
) <%>J 
214 
Now, as both India and Ceylon are continuing to 
increase their production, though not at so rapid a rate 
as in recent years, the problem which faces us is 1 1 1 if it 
has cost the "planter hd per lb. to reduce to 26.000.OUO lb. 
the annual consumption of China tea. bcu thehgure 
at which it stood m lKHl. viz.. H2.O0O.o0o tl... what 
further sacrifice will be entailed upon him in dis- 
placing the remaining 26.0O0.O pY, and (2 whrij 
he shall have displaced this last figure of annual 
consumption, where is be to find market for bis 
still-increasing production ? 
OvEH-PnoDi ction.— The natural answer to this pro- 
blem seems at first sight to be. do not pioduer mo 
much. But. when tea proprietors can l«- racUoned 
by hundreds. the\ cannot be prevented fiom opening 
up fresh land except by that bitter experience which 
tomes from the disappearance of the margin of profit : 
and that experience must mean to theui, and to a 
large part of the tea industry, nothing W than ruin. 
The danger has long been foreseen, and. as the 
price has continued to tail, attempts ha\e now and 
again been made to meet the danger by endeavour- 
ing to open up new markets. It would take too 
long to go into the details of the various schemes 
which have been inaugurate for forcing open 
new markets, and for educating llo people of 
various lands lo the merit- of British-grown teas 
It took u long time to establish n taste foi Indian 
tea amongnt the inhabitants of the British Isles, 
even though it was produced by their own countrymen, 
and we must not be sujrjviaed if tlie progress of 
British-grown tea be slow in countries which have to 
be weaned from a long established taste, and which 
would regard its production by our race as carrying 
with it no special recommendation. Still, such pro- 
gress has been made in pushing our teas in foreign 
markets, that, with perseverance and i doubled effoit. 
there can be no doubt of ultimate success. The im- 
portance of new markets cannot be over-estimated, 
for thev seem the onlv means of combating the 
possible evil of over-production, or. in other words, of 
preventing the price frotu filing to that point w here 
cultivation becomes unprofitable. 
It is. therefore, with ple.i-me that one tells of the 
efforts which were made b\ both India and Ceylon, 
at the time of Chicago Exhibition, to cultivate a 
taste for their teas hi the impoitapt markets ol the 
United States and Canada, which have an annual 
consumption of over lOO.OOftOOO lbs of tea. The sum 
of some £25.< uo which Ceylon spent in the attempt, 
and the £7.000 which India disbursed cannoi 
be considered as in any sense thrown awa\ 
These efforts are now being supplemented bv 
still further subscriptions both from India and 
Cevlon a voluntary contribution being raised in 
India, while the Cevlon colonists have agreed to the 
levying of a special tax by the Government upon 
the export of tea. in order to provide a fund for the 
opening up of new markets. India has. at the 
present moment, a Commissioner representing her 
in the United States, to promote the growth of a 
taste for her tea. while Ceylon is taking steps ot a 
similar nature. Hence, in this so-important market 
of North America, there is the prospect of a _ taste 
for British-grown tea being gradually established. 
The following figures are encouraging ; they show 
the quantity of Indian and Ceylon tea tin lbs.) ex- 
ported from' Great Britain to the United States and 
Canada during 1892 and 1893, both fiom bonded 
warehouses and under transhipment bonds:— 
TO THE UNITED STATES oF AMK.RKA. 
In (lin n Tea. 
From bonded Warehouses 
1'iuler transhipment lmn.'.s 
1892. 
fi00.21G 
Vil.HSs 
. Total 11). 722,17+ „ 
Ceyfon Tea. 
From bonded warehouses 71ft fci 
Cnder transhipment bonds 47-,9i4 
— — 
Total IBS 7S83JJU' 
lsitt. 
81S,SS6 
352.9G1 
1,171,317 
7G">."'07 
■J12,Tss' 
