56 
AGRICULTURIST  . 
[July  i,  1892. 
THF.  TROPICAL 
Tea.— Whoreas  tho  export  was  for  several  ye>rsnlmo6t 
stationary,  and  amounted  in  the  four  last  preceding 
years  to  an  average  of  3,324,000  kilos.,  it  decrease'1,  in 
1891  to  2,673,000  kilos,  as  a result  of  the  continual 
and  severe  drought  which  reigned  in  1891.  The  export 
of  tea  was 
To  1889.  1880.  1891. 
kilos.  kilos.  kilos. 
Netherland 
E nglanrls 
Singapore 
Elsewhere 
...  1,885,000 
...  1,467,000 
67.000 
73.000 
...  1,368,000 
...  1,036,000 
...  805,000 
1,000 
...  1,033,000 
...  1,558,000 
72,000 
9,000 
Total  ...  3,492  000  ...  3,210,000  ...  2,672,000 
Interesting  are  the  widely  differing  figures  of  the 
export  to  Singapore,  but  a well-imformed  firm  state? 
bat  in  1891  important  quantities  of  tea  were  shipped 
on  through  bills  of  lading,  via  Singapore,  to  London, 
as  the  Dutch  mail  boats  and  the  Queensland  Line 
had  increased  the  freights  to  London.  Under  these 
circumstances,  shipment  via  Singapore,  was  mere 
profitable. 
Cacao. — The  export  of  oacao  begins  slowly  to  assume 
more  important  proportions,  for  it  amounted  in 
1886  to  20,300  kilos.,  in  1887  to  23,300  ditto,  in  1888 
to  69,700  ditto,  in  1889  to  86,700  ditto,  in  1890  to 
227,900  ditto,  in  1891  to  375,700  ditto,  which 
figures  are  probably  more  exact  than  those 
of  the  statistics  of  the  Handelsv  rceniging,  for 
according  to  these  the  export  of  cacao  should  have 
amounted  in  1888  to  423  piculs  (26,000  kilos.),  in  1889 
to  1,420  piculs  (88,000  kilos.)  in  1890  to  8,245  piculs 
(511,000  kilos.),  id  1891  to  5,751  piculs  (357,000  kilos). 
At  first  only  little  cacao  went  to  the  Netherlands,  but 
in  the  last  years,  on  the  contrary,  the  greatest  export 
goes  henoe.  In  respect  of  the  other  articles  of  export 
not  mentioned  her»,  nothing  in  particular  is  to  be 
remarked. — L.  and  C.  Express. 

LIBERIA. 
The  usual  estimate  of  the  extont  of  the  Republic 
is  about  35,000  square  miles,  with  a population  of 
18,000  to  20,000  oivilized  negroes  and  over  100,000 
African  natives.  The  climate  is  esteemed  to  be  the 
hottest  in  the  world,  but  is  tempered  by  constantly 
alternating  breezes  from  the  land  and  from  the 
sea.  The  year  is  divided  into  dry  and  rainy  seasons, 
of  whioh  the  dry  season  begins  in  November  and 
lasts  until  June,  when  heavy  rains  begin.  From 
the  coast  the  land  rises  rapidly  towards  the  interior, 
and  the  temperature  dimnishes  in  the  proportion 
of  one  degree  to  every  750ft.  of  latitude.  The 
oountry  is  disposed  in  two  main  terraces,  whioh 
run  parallel  with  the  coast.  In  the  first  and  lower 
of  the  two  a number  of  the  small  streams  take 
their  rise,  and  in  the  rainy  season  become  flooded 
and  rush  to  the  sea  carrying  with  them  enormous 
masses  of  vegetable  and  mineral  detritus  that 
being  deposited,  form  almost  impassable  bars  and 
help  to  render  them  unfit  for  navigation.  The 
second  terrace,  of  much  greater  height  than  the 
first,  is  known  by  the  name  of  the  Kong  Mountains, 
Their  gold  mines  of  considerable  value  are  believed 
to  exist,  and  here  also  a number  of  streams  take 
their  rise,  and,  descending  by  cataraots  to  the 
lower  parallel,  form  fine  rivers  on  their  way  to 
the  sea.  The  country  is  at  all  points,  penetrable 
by  these  water-courses.  The  opportunities  which 
they  offer  for  navigation  rendered  this  part  of  the 
ooast  a hotbed  of  human  exportation  in  the  days 
of  West  African  slave  trade,  and  it  is  hoped 
that  under  the  happier  auspices  of  its  present 
Government  the  same  advantages  may  serve  to 
stimulate  the  development  of  legitimate  commerce. 
The  native  products  consists  ohiefly  of  palm  oil, 
camwood,  ivory,  and  gold  dust.  Rioe,  sugar, 
coffee,  cocoa,  indigo,  cotton,  ginger,  cassava,  and 
potatoes  are  all  indigenous  to  the  soil,  and  many 
kinds  of  grain  flourish  amazingly.  What  resources 
the  back  country  may  cff.r  in  the  way  of  a 
native  market  aul  how  much  truth  there  is  in  the 
reports  of  m;neral  wealth  existing  ia  the  Kong 
Mountains  remain  to  be  demonstrated  by  experience. 
Liberian  influence  is  said  o extend  for  many 
hundred  miles  into  the  interior,  where  English  is 
generally  understood  enough  to  serve  as  a means 
of  communication,  but  there  is  a wide  zone  of 
country  in  which  the  chiefs  do  not  own  allegiance 
to  any  civilized  Power.  Ia  this  tract  there  is 
opportunity  for  the  extension  of  British  commercial 
enterprise,  under  countenance  whioh  the  Govern- 
ment is  powerless  to  extend  to  it  when  it  takes 
the  direotinn  of  the  territories  lying  within  the 
sphere  assigned  by  the  treaty  of  1890  to  French 
influence.  — Times  Weekly  Edition,  May  20. 
Tobacco  Culture  in  the  Congo. — ColoDel  North 
is  now  devoting  his  attention  to  the  Congo,  where 
he  and  several  other  speculators  propose  going  in 
largely  for  tobacoo  culture.  The  Colonel  and  his 
fellow-directors  of  the  concern  which  has  been 
organised  to  carry  out  the  projected  enterprise 
had  an  interview  the  other  day  with  the  King  of 
the  Belgians,  and  everything  is  now  reported  to 
have  been  satisfactorily  arranged.  The  company 
will  send  out  experienced  tobacco  planters  to  the 
Congo,  and  the  work  will  bo  taken  up  promptly 
and  vigorously.— Colonies  and  India. 
Position  and  Prospects  of  China  Tea. — 
We  take  over  from  the  North  China  Herald  a second 
“ Sermo  Sinensis  ’’(see  pago  36)  in  which  the  position 
and  prospects  of  the  China  tea  trade  are  discussed 
in  an  amusing  but  very  suggestive  manner,  t'he  list 
of  losses  on  sales  of  tea  is  simply  terrible,  and  a 
most  striking  contrast  to  statements  contained  in 
Fortune’s  book,  of  the  handsome  profits  made  in 
1848-50,  under  the  influence  of  which  so  muoh 
new  lands  cultivated  with  the  tea  plant  on 
the  grand  Bohea  mountains.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  Awai’s  remedy  for  the  depression  in 
China  tea  most  curiously  coincides  with  Mr. 
Roberts’s  theory  that  tho  more  tea  Ceylon  sends 
into  the  London  market,  the  sooner  will  she  be  able 
to  oust  the  rival  product  from  China.  Our  readers 
will  not  fail  to  notice  that  in  order  to  meet  the 
Russian  taste  for  mild-flavoured  teas  an  absolutely 
flavourless  leaf  has  been  prepared — that  is  it  seemed 
flavourless  to  a gentleman  who  appears  especially 
to  enjoy  the  flavour  of  Awai’s  champagne.  The 
suggestion  to  engage  the  help  of  the  Commis- 
sioner of  Customs  is  natural  enough  ; but 
happily  for  India  and  Ceylon,  though  unfortunately 
for  China,  Sir  Robert  Hart,  when  previously  ap- 
pealed to,  refused  to  recommend  the  removal  of  the 
export  duty  on  tea,  whioh,  with  “ squeezes  ” of  all 
kindB,  constitutes  a burden  on  China  tea.  before  it 
can  leave  the  country  of  more  than  2d  per  lb. 
To  this  fact  must  be  added  the  cost  of  carriage, 
largely  by  coolies,  for  enormous  distances  from  the 
tea  districts  to  the  porta  of  final  preparation, 
packing  and  shipment.  The  consumption  of  China 
tea  in  China  is  very  large,  qualified  by  the  fact 
that  as  a general  rule,  the  infuced  leaf  is  treated 
repeatedly  with  boiliDg  water  until  water  unflavoured 
by  tea  is  the  final  result.  But  it  was  the  foreign 
tea  trade  which  yielded  such  large  profits  to 
middleman  and  merchants  and  gave  remunerative 
employment  to  fanners,  labourers  and  mechanics, 
the  waning  of  which  cannot  but  lead  to  muoh 
distress  amoDgst  the  masses  who  are  chronically 
poor,  subsisting  on  the  very  minimum  of  food. 
