arch i, 1895.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
617 
pay a heavy Austrian duty on about ten per 'cent, 
more than they actually received. 
The mystery has now been cleared up. The Vienna 
Association of Dry Goods and Colonial Merchants 
addressed, a few days ago, a petition to the Vienna 
Chamber of Commerce, asking that the necessary 
steps may be taken for the remedying of the evil, 
since it had been ascertained, with practical certainty, 
that the coffee and other articles imported from 
London via Trieste are tampered with in Trieste 
itself, in some cases in the bonded stores. The 
English agents and the trading vessels plying 
between London and Trieste are completely ex- 
onerated. 
Our attention has been drawn to the matter 
by a Colombo merchant who declares that he 
has known the same trouble experienced with 
reference to shipments and cargoes from the 
East. We found among tea traders in Carlsbad 
in 1891, grievous complaints against the Trieste 
Customs, and that was given to us as the reason 
why they preferred to import through Hamburg. 
— Since writing the above, the full text of Mr. 
Stockinger's letter has reached us, and we re- 
produce it, although holding to our view that 
compiaints from Ceylon and India are by no 
means unknown : — 
Tampering "With Coffee Imports. 
To the Editor of the Standard. 
Sir,— In The Standard of the 11th of December last a 
tjlegram, dated from Vienna, was published referring to 
imports of coffee at Trieste from London, in which it was 
said that the fault for the frequent cases of deficiencies 
found at Trieste in the consignments of coffee lies with 
the latter place, and more especially with the public docks 
and warehouses of that harbour. 
1 am directed to inform you that a searching official in- 
quiry with regard to these allegations has been made, by 
which it was authentically stated that such deficiencies 
are found almost exclusively in consignments from London, 
whereas there have been no complaints, so far, against 
consigments from Brazil, Java, India, Hamburg, Amster- 
man, Rotterdam, <6c. 
It must also be observed that complaints against con- 
signments from London have been frequently made before 
the public warehouses have been opened ; therefore no 
blame could be attached to them. 
It is not probable that the coffee bags or casks should 
bo tempered with on the voyage from London to Trieste, 
as there is no transhipment between the two places, and 
coffee is usually stowed away in special compartments, 
or right at the bottom of the vessel; on the other hand, 
coffee is usually transhipped in London or at New York, 
and again in London, where it often lies in the docks 
for some time, is frequently sampled, carted away, and 
back again,, On such occasions it is much more pro- 
bable that malversations or losses from leakage should 
occur. lu numerous cases the bags cleared from the 
bottom of a vessel at Trieste have been found to be torn 
or patched, bearing traces . of intentional or accidental 
damage done. 
As, a result of the official inquiry, it has been stated, 
therefore, that the complaints made against the public 
warehouses are not founded on facts. 
I trust thai you will Hud your way, in justice to the 
institution against which such allegations have been 
made in The Standard, to publish these few lines in your 
next edition. 
Accepl my best thanks in advance for your courtesy, 
and believe me, 
Sir, your obedient servant, 
K. Stockinohr, Austro-Hungarian Consul General. 
Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Consulate General, 
11, Queen Victoria Street, London, K.C. .Ian. •£.). 
THE CEYLON AGRICULTURAL MAGAZINE. 
The February number of the Agricultural Maga- 
zine contains a complete account of the proceed- 
ings at the prize-giving ceremony held at the 
school last .January, and gives the text of the 
Superintendent's Keport for the past year, and the 
speeches made by ll. E. the Governor and others 
on the occasion. The other items which form the 
contents ate: — Occasional notes, Kainfall taken 
at the school during January. The patent Sultan 
Water-lift, Notes on the Cattle murrain of Ceylon, 
Ploughing in of green crops. Fodder crops and cattle- 
keeping 111 Ceylon, Water-testing, and general items. 
From the description given ot theSultau water-lift, it 
would seem to bo a machine that is calculated to 
save much time and labour, while it is com- 
paratively inexpensive. It is to be hoped that 
the inventor will accept the offer made to 
erect one of these machines at the School of Agri- 
culture premises so that its merits may be tested and 
proved to the satisfaction of those to whom water lifts 
will be of use. We hope, with the editor, that Blr. 
William Smith's notes on the Cattle murrain of Ceylon 
will be followed by further contributions on the sub- 
ject of cattle disease, on which Mr. Smith is emi- 
nently qualified to speak both as a Veterinary Surgeon 
and as a colonist of long standing. The article on 
green crop manuring is well worthy the careful 
perusal of all cultivators in these days when cheap 
production is so necessary an element in agriculture. 
PROPOSED COFFEE COMPANY. 
Mr. W. W. Bailey has had for some years and 
area of 2,000 acres of excellent coffee land in the 
neighbourhood of Petaling station, which is about 
44 miles by rail from Kuala Lumpur. He has been 
paying rent regularly upon that land for a number 
of years, with the intention of opening it when 
circumstances permitted. But the Government now 
require that at least 400 acres of it should be 
opened at once. Mr. Bailey is therefore to-day en- 
gaged in obtaining subscribers in Singapore to a 
Limited Company to be called the " Selangor Coffee 
Company." The capital of the proposed company 
is $100,000 in shares of $100 each. Fully paid 
up shares to the value of $20,000 are to be 
taken by Mr. Bailey as the purchase price of 
his land, but, in additional to that, he undertakes 
to subscribe and pay for 50 $100 shares. The amount 
subscribed early this forenoon was about $25,000, 
and Mr. Bailey is confident that in the course of 
a day or two, the whole of the capital will be subscribed. 
It is not intended to call more than 20 per cent 
of the capital at once, the remainder being called 
as the- process of clearing and cultivating the estate 
requires. The ordinary calculation of coffee cultiva* 
tion is that it takes about fiveyears before the estate 
is in full bearing, during the whole of which 
time there is a constant increase of capital outlay. 
At the end of five years the estate should conie 
into full bearing, and, if coffee maintains its present 
price— which seems likely — there should be in the 
cultivation a very gigantic profit. It will be noted 
that the Pengerange Planting Company, of which 
Mr. Bailey is manager, is doing exceedingly well and 
the shares are now much above par. Mr. Bailey has 
had many troubles with the Selangor Government, and 
it would please every one to see him rescue this land 
from the Government, which wants to take it back 
unless cultivation be begun very soon. — Penanrj 6a.--.ette 
and Straits Chronicle, Feb. 18. 
BRAZIL. 
We are informed that the next coll'ee crop in 
Sao Paulo promises to be a large one. Some 
complaints Have boon made from the Ribeirao 
Preto district to the effect that the rams have 
caused much damage, but fro thor localities 
the reports arc unanimous in prognosticating a 
heavy crop. — Mio News, Feb. s. 
Two mnn: Prosperous Tea Companies.— The 
Yataderia Tea Company has earned about 40 
per cent for the past year, and having declared an 
ad interim dividend of 19i percent, has now declared 
a further similar dividend with a bonus .if 5 per 
cent— the lucky shareholders getting 30 per cent in 
all. The Yataderia is the Champion Tea Com- 
pany of Ceylon, or of the world we suppose, 
seeing it has paid its •diarclioldcrs '■'<" per cent 
for two years running.— The Castlereagb Com- 
pany, hitherto under a cloud, has this time 
declared a dividend of 8 per cent and the pros- 
pects are good., 
