*54 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST,  [Sept,  i,  189a. 
Oant  banking  troubles,  there  seems  to  be  very 
ready  support  extended  to  our  new 
TEA  PLANTATION  COMPANIES. 
I was  in  a Broker’s  office  in  Mincing  Lane 
one  day  this  week,  when  a business  man  oalled, 
who  had  not  loDg  ago  a large  connection 
with  China  tea,  to  signify  rather  considerable 
investments  of  himself  and  friends  in  shares 
of  the  “Asiatic  Produce  Company"  and  the 
“ Caledonian  (Ceylon)  Tea  Estates  Company.’ 
Referring  to  the  latter  here  is  an  editorial  notioe 
from  a City  journal  which  shows  how  well  the 
Company  is  thought  of 
SOME  NEW  ISSUES. 
During  the  past  ten  days  there  has  been  a wild 
rush  for  a little  of  that  money  which  the  prudent 
spectator  has  been  hoarding  up  for  use  at  the  first 
convenient  opportunity.  It  would  be  difficult  to  say 
whether  he  has  merely  nibbled  at  the  baits  which 
have  been  dangled  before  his  eyes,  or  has  gulped  them 
down  in  a wholesale  fashion,  but  it  is  not  so  difficult 
to  conjecture  that  in  one  or  two  instances  he  will 
regret  having  adopted  the  latter  alternative.  The 
ventures  that  have  been  offered  to  him  lately  have 
been  of  a mixed  description,  and  the  promising  and 
unpromising  have  been  about  equally  divided.  Some 
half-dozen  concerns  have  been  thrown  on  the  market 
since  last  week,  and  one  of  the  best  of  them  is  the 
Caledonia  (Ceylon)  Tea  Plantations,  Limited,  whose 
promoters  ask  for  30,0001,  in  order  that  they  may 
acquire  certain  tea  plantations  in  Ceylon. 
There  are  a good  many  recommendations  possessed 
by  this  prospectus  that  are  rarely  to  be  met  with. 
In  the  first  place,  the  Corporation  will  acquire 
something  which  is  of  distinct  value  in  itself,  and 
which  is  even  now  of  an  exceedingly  remunerative 
character.  Another  consideration  is  that  although 
there  is  considerable  competition  in  this  particular 
market  for  tea,  yet  the  planters  appear  to  be  able 
to  keep  up  prices.  Of  seven  Ceylon  tea  companies 
that  have  been  in  active  operation  during  a con- 
siderable period  one  has  paid  its  shareholders  18 
per  cent.,  another  15  per  cent.,  a third  13  per  cent., 
a fourth  12  per  cent.,  and  a fifth  10  per  cent.  If  the 
old  adage  which  tells  that  the  “proof  of  the  pudding 
is  in  the  eating  of  it”  goes  for  anything,  these 
figures  are  full  of  meaning.  The  promoters  have 
striven  very  hard  to  be  fair,  and  appear  to  have 
succeeded  to  a larger  degree  than  is  usually  the  case 
with  the  fraternity.  But  if  anything  more  were 
needed  to  induce  the  belief  that  this  company  is 
floa'ed  under  the  most  favourable  auspices,  and  with 
every  prospect  of  being  successful,  it  is  surely  to  be 
found  in  the  desire  of  the  vendor  to  guarantee  a 
dividend  of  6 per  cent,  for  a period  of  seven  years. 
I fancy  the  prospectus  of  the  former  (the 
“ Asiatio ’’)  Company  has  already  reached  you; 
but  to  make  Eure  I now  send  one.  You  will 
observe  it  has  been  constituted  mainly  to  take 
over  the  Bakwana  estates — Spriogwood,  Barra  and 
Ren—-  hetenne — of  the  family  of  our  old  friend 
Mr.  Shand,  and  the  leading  spirit  in  this  pro- 
motion, as  in  several  other  very  important 
directions  connected  with  the  development  of  our 
tea  enterprize,  is  Mr.  Hamilton  A.  Hancock,  who, 
with  hia  brothers  constituting  the  well-known 
Mincing  Lane  Firm  of  Messrs.  Hancock  Brothers 
& Oo.,  has  had  a very  long  oonneotion  and  the 
highest  reputation  in  the  China  and  Indian  Tea 
trade,  before  takmg  up  Ceylon.  Mr.  Hancock’s 
connection  with  several  of  our  Tea  Compacirs  of 
late  years,  however,  has  been  of  very  special 
service,  in  my  opinion,  to  the  colony  and  our 
staple  enterprise,  and  I sincerely  hope,  as  I believe, 
that  success  may  crown  the  enterprize  and  busi- 
ness of  them  all.  In  Rakwana  district  I need 
scarcely  say  the  Lauderdale  Company  is  veiy 
olosely  identified,  and  if,  as  is  not  improbable, 
there  may  be  an  amalgamation  here  with 
the  “Asiatio,”  and  perhaps  further  purchases 
of  properties  made,  the  greater  part  of  the 
district  would  be  held  by  the  one  pro- 
prietary Company,  and  local  management  so 
concentrated  that  efficiency  and  economy  oculd 
not  fail  to  be  promoted.  Besides,  Mr.  H.  A. 
Hancock — a host  in  himself  (and  school-fellow  and 
friend  by  the  way  of  the  Messrs.  Fenn,  Church 
Missionaries,  so  well-knowD  in  Madras  end  Ceylon) 
— there  are  on  the  Board  of  the  “Asiatic,"  such  well- 
known  men  ss  Mr.  V.  Eugb  Smith  (of  the  Bank 
of  England),  Mr.  R.  H.  Letobford,  and  more 
recently  ihere  has  joined  Mr.  Meares,  of  Meares, 
Absalom  & Co.,  who  have  a very  extensive  tea 
selling  connection  throughout  the  United  Kingdom. 
In  oonneotion  with  the  transfer  to  the  Company 
of  Springwood  and  Barra  estates  I understand 
that  Mr.  J.  A.  Maithnd,  the  energetio  Manager  of 
Lauderdale,  is  to  be  moved  and  placed  in  charge 
of  the  “Asiatics”’  properties;  Mr.  Low,  his  com- 
petent assistant,  probably  suooeediDg  Mr.  Maitland 
at  Lauderdale. 
You  have  already  learned  (I  see  by  last  Overland 
Observer)  about  Mr.  Hancock’s  proposal  to  secure 
the  bulking  of 
SMALL  BREAKS  OF  CEYLON  TEA 
at  this  end,  an  arrangement  which,  if  carried  out,  may 
mean  a good  deal  more  money  into  the  pcckets  of 
some  Ceylon  planters  and  also  greater  facilities  for 
pushing  on  teas  into  the  Russian  and  other  new 
markets.  A great  objection  at  present  is  the 
difficulty  of  getting  big  enough  breaks  of  suitable 
Ceylon  teas  to  tempt  big  dealers,  ond  few  firms 
have  had  the  experience,  or  are  likdy  to  bave 
better  opportunities  of  reaching  Russia  than  the 
Messrs.  Hancock. 
In  this  oonneotion  I have  neglected  to  refer 
to  what  I learned  from  Mr.  Rutherford  during  a 
receut  call  about  the  new 
STEEL  PLATE  TEA-BOX,  THE  ACME, 
prepared  by  certain  praetioal  Glasgow  working 
mechanics  who  have  started  a firm  to  manufacture 
them,  as  an  improvement  on  Mr  Andrews’ 
invention  in  the  same  direotioD.  Strangely  enough, 
Mr.  Andrews,  whose  name  has  so  long  been 
connected  with  this  and  o'i  < r work  connected 
with  tea,  had  just  died — -a  sudden  illness  from 
exposure.  Mr.  Rutherford  thought  so  well  of  this 
latest  tea-box  that  his  Company  has  given  an 
order  for  a considerable  number  (some  thousands) 
to  make  a full  and  fair  trial,  the  r< suit  of  which 
cannot  fail  to  be  looked  for  with  muih  interest 
by  tea  planters  gennerally.  The  pricte,  I think, 
were  given  at  2s  6d  and  3s  3d  with  the  presmt 
low  exohaige  : this  means  a considerable  difference 
on  the  wooden  and  lead  boxes  UDless  decided 
advantages  are  seoured  by  the  use  of  the  “Acme.” 
By  the  way,  is  there  no  chance  of  getting  neat 
and  cheap  tea  boxes  from  China  for  use  in  Ceylon 
— “ John  Chinaman”  might  be  pleased  to  learn 
that  though  we  mean  to  cut  down  bis  tea,  we 
can  offer  a market  for  his  boxes  1 
I was  very  gratified  to  learn  how  fully  Mr. 
Rutherford  agreed  with  the  argument,  and 
contents  generally  of 
MY  TEA  LETTERS 
to  the  Financial  News.  He  found  fault,  as  many 
Ceylon  men  do,  with  Mr.  T.  C.  Owen’s  qualifications. 
M<  ssrs.  hutherford  and  Talbot  had  some  very  valu- 
able experience  in  connection  with  the  older  estates 
of  their  Company, — notably  Dunedin,  now  otr  14 
years  old — in  showing  that  Ceylon  tea  has  not 
deteriorated,  and  that  in  fact  younger  plantalions 
better  planted  perhaps  and  with  virgin  soil,  have  never 
got  the  prioes  of  the  earlier  years,  simply  beoause  of 
the  general  fall  in  tea  values.  The  standard  for 
the  general  quality  of  tra  too  is  now  much  higher — 
in  fact  the  taste  of  the  publio  (as  well  as  of  the 
experts  ?)  has  been  educated  and  improved  greatly 
