May i, 1895.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
763 
TEA AND CINCHONA IN NETHERLANDS 
INDIA. 
In West Java, last year, iu the lower planting 
districts, the cultivation of Liberian coffee gained 
ground upon teagrowing. In the higher regions the 
cultivation of Assam tea plants extended, and the 
increasing yields from that description of leaf made 
good the losses in the lower districts. The tea crop 
altogether, in 1894, amounted to between 7J and eight 
millions of half kilos — of which Assam leaf fetched 
high prices in London, while the Java leaf brought 
steadily diminishing prices. Assam tea is now ousting 
Java tea from the upland estates, and there is every 
prospect of the Assam kind gaining further ground 
from its cultivation proving more profitable. The 
Java tea planters prefer London as a market for 
their product to Anistei'dam, despite strenuous patri- 
otic efforts to draw them to the market ill Holland. 
London commands preference because the brokers 
there charge less and take greater pains to watch 
the interests of the planters. The export of tea 
from Java to Singapore last year is set down at 
107,753 kilogrammes. 
Cinchona planters in that Island favour the start- 
ing of a company at Batavia which aims at buying 
bark from the growers and manufacturing quinine 
on the spot. This Company has issued a prospectus 
which contemplates starting the enterprise with a 
capital of one million of guilders. Hitherto, bark 
has been exported to Europe, where prices for the 
article have sunk to an unprofitable level, owing to 
combination among the buyers, who have proved too 
strong for the planters. The planters have cast 
about for means to sell the ding locally, but nothing 
practical was suggested until now. The chief difficulty 
in the way lies in raising the company's capital. — 
Xtraitu Times. 
TEA GROWING IN THE ANDAMANS. 
It will be remembered that the late Mr. E. 
Woodbouse contributed to these columns, as a result 
of his visit to the islands, a short accouut of the 
tea-growing experiment being made by the Indian 
Government in the Andamans, the well-kuown convict 
settlement. The experiment has evidently been a 
successful one according to the latest Administration 
Report on the islands. There are, it appears, three 
tea gardens, one at Navy Bay, one at Goban^, and 
tiie ttiird at Kalataug. The gardens are the property 
of the Government, and are worked by European 
managers under the supervision of the Superintendent 
of Port Blair. During the period dealt with by the 
report, 618 acres iu all were under tea, and the 
out? turn of the three gardens was 111,910 lbs. With 
the exception ot tbe local sales and a portion sold 
retail through private firms in Madras and Rangoon, 
the bulk ot the tea manufactured was disposed of 
to the local, Madras, and Burmah Commissariat 
Departments. We further read: — 
The Madras Commissariat Department was supplied 
with tea at (1 annas 9 pies, and the Burmah Com- 
missariat Department at 7 annas per pound. Tbe 
retail sale of tea in Madras was unsatisfactory, 950 lbs. 
of tea realising only a Let sum of lilftl. These 
Madias sales, it appears, have been unsatisfactory 
for some time past. '1 he Kangoon sales, on the 
other hand, have always been good, and during the 
year under review continued iu the same satisfac- 
tory state. Eleven thousand three hundred pounds 
of brokeu tea netted R2,274-15 0, The local sales 
' were 1,937 lbs., at R923. A sniall quantity of tea 
was taken by the local Commissariat Department, 
at 10 annas a pound. Couvict labour was chiefly 
employed on the gardens. The labour, therefore, 
was free, and, as may be expected, without taking 
the cost of labour into consideration, handsome 
profits 011 the working of the gardens were bliouu. 
Deducting the estimated value ot the labour however, 
there was a net loss on the workiug of tee three 
gardens. It is a question whether the State, in 
culthatiug tea in tho Audamans and selling the bulk 
of it to its Commissariat Dopartmouts, could ho 
accused of entering into open competition with 
00 
private enterprise. The endeavour to push the retail 
sale of its tea, through private firms, is, however, 
more open to objection. It is perhaps the more 
to be regretted, as the State commands free couvict 
labour, and must necessarily compete with private 
enterprise at a great advantage. Nor can private 
planters afford to work their gardens at a loss. — 
Local "Times.' 
COFFEE CULTIVATION AT THE 
GOLD COAST. 
Coffee cultivation iu West Africa is gradually 
extending. In the lowlands the plant chiefly culti- 
vated is Goffea liberica; but a small-berried form of 
Coffea arabica is also grown. The beans of this 
are very small, but the produce when well cleaned 
has been valued as high as 94s. per cwt. For 
the hills of the interior the best plan is undoubtedly 
the robust C. arabica grown in the Blue Mountains 
of Jamaica. This has large heavy beans, often fetch- 
ing from the best estates • 140s. per cwt. There is 
no danger of introducing disease with this coffee. 
Several private coffee plantations have been started 
at the Gold Coast ' Kew Bulletin, 1892, p. 300; . 
Those at Aburi at the Botanic Station have also 
been noticed Kew Bulletin, 189."). p. 11). The follow- 
ing correspondence communicated to Kew by the 
Secretary of State for the Colonies affords informa- 
tion of a coffee and cacao plantation of a moderately 
large size in course of being established) near Cape 
Coast Castle : — 
District Commissioner's Office, Cape Coast, October 
13, 1894. — I have visited Messrs. Miller Brother and 
Company's plantation at Kuby Kul twice during the 
quarter by the kind permission of their courteous 
agent, Mr. Batty. The estate consists of a commodi- 
ous house and drying sheds and about 450 acres It 
is situated about 10 miles inland. The Cape Coast 
Sefwhi main road (which is now being constructed 
by the Government] skirts the west side and the 
old Amin road to Denkera the other. The highest 
elevation is about 150 feet above the sea level. I 
first visited the plantation in 1892, when there were 
only about 20 acres planted with cacao and Liberian 
coffee ; the other part was covered with thick bush 
and forest. The plantation is only four years old, 
the first planting from the. nursery being iu June 
890. The estate has been increased year by yiar 
n areas of about 50 acres at a time, and the rearing 
of plants and planting out, &c. has proceeded as 
under : — 
No. of No. of 
Cacao Coffee Number Yield of Yield of 
Year. Plants Plants Planted. Cacao. Coffee, 
reared, reared. 
1890 
1891 
1892 
1893 
1894 
In nur- 
sery.. 
500 
1,500 
2,000 
2,500 
1,500 
8,000 
1,500 
3,000 
3,000 
15,000 
3,000 
1,500 
2§ cwt. 18 cwt. 
Crop in progress of 
picking and curing. 
25,500 25,500 — 
15.000 — — 
9,500 40,500 — — _ 
The coffee trrcs are planted out 13 feet square 
apart, but I think it has been found from experience 
that 10 feet would be ample. There are about 30 
acres now chared which remain to be planted. 
The valleys have been utilized for the cacao and 
the elevated portions for coffee. At present there 
are roughly 150 acres fully plauted with trees which 
are of the following respective agos, viz.: 
20 acres coffee. I years old. 
2.J „ cacao, 4 
(Oue acre of these trees were brought trout Aburi 
Botanical Gardens.) 
60 acres coffee, B years old. 
20 ,, cacao, 2 „ 
25 „ coffee, 2 ,, 
15 ,-, cacao, 1} „ 
1° 11 11 bas been planted tbis year, 
