July  i,  1892.J 
THE  TROPICAL  AtSRfdJLTU R1 8T. 
45 
cultivation  and  preparation,  and  all  keenly  olive  to 
the  advantage  of  profiting  by  every  improvement  re- 
sulting from  observation  or  experiment. 
Hitherto,  however,  nearly  every  Oeylon  tea  planter 
has  been  kept  busy  with  the  formation  and  furnishing 
of  his  plantation,  if  I may  so  say.  Every  season  nearly, 
there  has  been  some  additional  field  to  bo  planted, 
machinery  to  be  got,  or  factory  extended.  Indeed,  it 
is  a question  if  more  tban  a minority  of  our  planta- 
tions can  even  now  be  said  to  be  thoroughly  equipped 
for  work,  with  requisite  withering  space  in  factories, 
sufficient  motive  power  for  rolling  and  drying,  a 
proper  number  of  machines,  and,  in  wet  districts 
with  means  (by  fane,  &c.)  for  supplementing  tbe 
ordinary  withering  arrangement  in  continuously  wet 
weather.  All  this  may  read  as  petty  technical  detail, 
but  what  I aim  at  pointing  out.  is  that  in  a few  years, 
when  Ceylon  may,  perhaps — at  100,000,000  lb.  to 
120,000,000  lb.  (or  perhaps  150,000,000)  * of  tea— 
attain  its  maximum  annual  crop,  there  will  be  a 
vastly  increased  amount  of  attention  and  experiment 
directed  to  the  improvement,'  in  every  detail,  of  the 
modes  of  culture,  harvesting,  and  preparation  of  tea. 
Even  now  the  process  is  going  on.  Perhaps  London 
tea  experts  will  better  understand  my  position  and 
opinion  if  I allege,  as  I do  with  confidence,  that  there 
is  not  a plantation  in  Ceylon  whose  teas  have,  as 
supplied  to  the  London  market,  fallen  off  in  quality 
of  recent  years,  but  which  could  resume  sending  teas 
as  good  as  ever,  if  only  it  were  made  worth  the 
while  of  the  manager  and  proprietor  to  do  to.  It  is 
not  a question  of  tea  bush,  or  soil,  or  even  climate 
— though  an  unusually  wet  season  in  1891  increased 
the  quantity  of  common  teas — but  ore  of  market 
and  prices.  In  one  well-known  case,  where  an  aver- 
age close  on  2s  a lb.  used  to  be  got  some  years  ago, 
the  plucking  was  eo  kept  down  that  the  crop  per 
acre  was  not  equal  to  one-half  what  it  is  now,  and 
the  latter,  of  course,  pays  tbe  proprietor  better  at  a 
far  lower  price,  while  many  planters  hold  that  “ free  ” 
or,  at  any  rate,  “medium”  plucking  is  muob  better 
for  the  health  and  vigour  of  the  lea  bush  than  fine 
plucking. 
I must  apologise  for  running  on  at  so  much  length  ; 
but  I venture  to  think  that  information  in  regard  to 
the  great  tea -planting  industry  will  be  of  interest  to 
yonr  City  readers,  as  it  should  be,  indeed,  in  every 
British  household.  For  this  reason,  I should  be 
glad  if  you  would  permit  me,  in  a second  and  briefer 
letter,  to  notice  certain  erroneous  ideas  which  prevail 
in  England  about  Indian  and  Ceylon,  as  contrasted 
with  China,  teas.  Meantime,  I am,  sir,  yours,  &c., 
J.  Ferguson,  of  the 
Ceylon  Observer  and  Tropical  Agriculturist. 
Royal  Colonial  Institute,  Northumberland- 
street,  W.O.,  May  19th. 
— . — - 
TEA  PLANTING  IN  PERAK. 
Among  the  passengers  who  joined  the  homeward- 
bound  mail  at  Colombo  is  Mr.  Fred.  Watson  on 
his  way  from  Perak,  where  he  has  been  engaged 
in  tea  planting.  He  has  been  a year  and  a half  in 
Perak,  which  he  describes  as  a splendid  tea-growing 
country.  The  leaf  compares  very  favourably  indeed 
with  that  of  Darjeeling,  where  he  had  four  years’ 
experience  ; and  he  hopes  to  seaure  a good  place 
for  it  in  the  English  market,  that  being  the  ob 
jeot  of  his  trip  homo.  Regarding  the  prioe  of 
labour  in  Perak  he  says  that  it  is  just  what  the 
planters  make  it,  and  that  he  has  obtained  ooolies 
from  the  hill  estates  of  China  for  four  dollars  a 
month. 
* This  would,  of  course,  mean  a great  extension  of 
planting  in  the  lowoountry. 
THE  CEYLON  PLANTERS’  TEA  CO. 
The  following  are  the  cuttings  referred  to  by  our 
London  correspondent  recently  as  haying  been 
handed  to  him  by  Mr.  Elwood  May: — 
Secbets  about  Tea. 
INTERESTING  FACTS  AND  SUGGESTIONS  TO  LOVERS  OF  GOOD 
TEA — AMERICANS  DRINK  THE  WORST  AND  CHEAPEST 
PAYING  $1,000  FOR  FIVE  POUNDS  OF  CEYLON  TEA. 
Tea  drinkers  will  be  interested  in  an  interview  a 
Mail  and  Expressman  recently  held  with  Mr  S 
Elwood  May,  president  of  the  great  Ceylon  Planters' 
Tea  Company,  at  No.  110  Fifth  avenue,  in  this  city. 
He  is  a tea  expert,  and  said  : 
THE  PERFECT  TEA. 
“ The  perfect  tea  does  not  please  at  first,  for  two  or 
three  reasons.  Too  strong;  or,  rather,  you  use  too 
much  of  it.  Excellent  fault,  when  you  find  it  out  and 
adapt  your  making  of  it.  Too  strong  in  another  sense- 
that  is,  you  steep  it  too  long  and  get  the  tannin.  You 
want  the  tea  without  the  tannin.  Stop,  then,  between 
tea  and  tannin.  This  applies  to  all  sorts  of  tea.  Hotel 
and  restaurant  tea  is  steeped  by  the  hour,  and  nobody 
wants  a second  cup  of  it.  Tea  at  home,  as  a rule  is 
steeped  too  long ; it  is  tea  and  tannin ; puckery  • 
wrong  in  strength ; it  is  too  strong,  not  of  tea  but 
of  tannin. 
THE  FAMOUS  CEYLON  TEA. 
“ The  tea  of  Ceylon  has  two  strengths : that 
of  tea,  which  is  delicate,  fine,  inspiring,  and 
that  of  tannin,  puckery,  harsh,  unple’asing 
bitter.  One  is  a beautiful  amber;  the  other  is 
dark  and  forbidding.  All  tea  has  these  two  strengths 
A proper  steeping  extracts  the  better  and  leaves6  the 
worse.  Japan  aud  China  teas,  at  their  best  are 
coarse  compared  with  that  of  Ceylon,  which  is  new 
to  your  taste.  This  newness  is  ‘ herby.’  Why  not  ? 
Is  not  tea  an  herb  ? Would  you  have  it  metallic  ? 
Excuse  the  herby  taste  for  a week  ; you  will  find 
it  outgrowing  excuse.  Your  taste  is  righting  itself. 
AMERICANS  DRINK  THE  WORST  TEA. 
“The  worst  teas  in  the  world  are  sold  to  this 
country.  English  Breakfast  tea  is  a name  invented 
to  humbug  with  ; there  is  no  such  tea.  American 
teas  are  weighted  and  colored  ; some  of  them  steeped 
and  the  leaves  ‘manufactured  ’ over  again.  It  is 
useless  to  say  they  are  poisonous— people  do  not  die 
of  them.  Taste  is  perverted.  Give  it  time  to  recover 
Drink  the  herby  tea  for  a week,  but  be  sure  that 
you  follow  directions  in  making  it.” 
This  is  a fair  introduction  of  tea— pure,  clean  fine 
tea— an  attempt  to  get  it  made  right,  steeped  right 
and  judged  deliberately,  with  some  allowance  for 
taste,  misled  by  long  habit. 
CULTIVATE  A TASTE  FOR  FINE  TEA. 
Is  it  worth  your  while  to  reform  your  taste  in 
the  trifle  of  tea  ? In  a week  you  will  know.  Let 
us  send  you  a sample.  A primer  goes  with  it  with 
clear  and  full  instructions  for  steeping.  As  often 
happens,  they  need  it  most  who  least  suspect  it 
You  shall  say  you  never  knew  the  comfort,  the  cheer 
the  power  of  tea.  And  the  tea  would  be  cheap  if 
the  price  were  double.  e 
$1,000  FOR  FIVE  POUNDS  OF  TEA. 
Mr.  May  related  this  interesting  incident : 
“As  I was  sitting  in  my  private  office  one  morning 
not  long  ago,  I heard  a well-bred  woman's  voice  in 
the  outer  office  asking  our  native  Ceylon  servant  if 
the  company  could  furnish  her  with  Golden  Tip  Ceylon 
tea,  worth  $200  a pound.  I was  not  long  in  pre- 
senting myself,  and  informed  her  that  the  last  sale 
of  Golden  Tip  Ceylon  tea  brought  at  public  auction 
$183  in  London  and  was  bought  by  an  English  lord 
that  it  would  be  impossible  to  say  when  the  next 
parcel  would  be  offered,  and  that  only  five  to  eight 
pounds  came  to  the  London  market  at  a time  and 
that  only  occasionally.  There  must  have  been’some 
of  the  curiosity  I felt  as  to  what  she  could  want  with 
such  costly  tea  depicted  on  my  countenance,  for  after 
a short  pause  she  said  : 1 1 would  gladly  purchase 
five  pounds  at  $200  a pound,  as  I am  going  to  give 
a tea.  I am  constantly  going  abroad,  and  always 
proclaim,  when  provoked  to  do  so,  that  we  Americans 
