Nov.  i,  1S92.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
329 
THE  PALAIS  INDIEN  TEA  HOUSES, 
LIMITED. 
Directors  : William  Livingstone  Watfon,  John  Berry 
White.  Riohsrd  Blarney  Magor,  John  Robert  Boyaon, 
Robert  Gordon  Shaw,  George  Setou,  Thomas 
Loagb,  M.  P.  Secretary  : F.  A Roberts.  Registered 
office  : RrcheBter  Baildiugs,  138,  Leadenhall  Street, 
London,  E.  C. 
The  following  is  from  the  report  of  the  directors, 
to  be  made  to  the  members  at  the  first  ordinary  general 
meeting  to  be  held  at  the  office  of  the  company, 
on  Monday,  tbe  26th  inst.: — 
The  directors  beg  to  submit  their  first  annual  report 
on  the  operations  of  tbe  company,  together  with  the 
accounts  made  up  to  June  30,  1892. 
In  accordance  with  the  terms  of  the  prospectus 
the  business  were  taken  over  as  from  tbe  commence, 
ment  thereof  respectively.  Tbe  purchase  money  paid 
by  the  company  (apart  from  shares  alloted  to  the 
vendor,  some  of  which  were  transferred  to  the  original 
guarantors)  was  the  actual  cost  of  fitting  up  and 
establishing,  and  this  sum  has  been  placed  to  olock- 
account. 
It  will  be  observed  that  only  5,055  of  the  6 percent. 
Preference  shares  were  applied  for  out  of  10,000  offered 
for  subscription.  These  were  taken  up  by  a small  pro- 
portion of  the  shareholders  of  the  Associated  Tea 
Planters,  Limited,  and  considering  the  large  body 
interested  in  developing  the  trade  in  Indian  tea,  the 
directors  feel  that  it  was  a very  meagre  response  to 
their  appeal.  They  hoped,  however,  that  ihis  sum 
would  have  proved  sufficient  to  have  sustained  the 
business  already  opened  in  Paris  until  they  should 
become  remunerative,  when  no  doubt  further  capital 
would  be  provided. 
Owing  10  the  considerable  outlay  required  on 
advertising  and  in  maintaining  a good  service  in  Paris, 
and  owing  to  the  had  season  due  to  the  dynamite 
scare  and  other  oauses,  the  loss  on  the  first  year’s 
working  of  the  three  restiurants  has  proved 
greater  th  .n  Was  expected.  Although  this  loss 
is  diminishing  steadily  it  is  evident  that  a cer- 
tain sum  must  be  provided  to  meet  it  for  one  or 
two  years.  The  directors  felt  bound  to  make  some 
efforts  to  plant  agencies  for  the  ssla  ot  Indian  tea 
in  other  large  towns  in  France,  and  it  will  he  seen 
that  an  outlay  of  over  £70  has  been  incurred  for  this 
purpose,  but  any  such  outlay  is  quite  inadequate  to 
the  necessities  of  this  branch  of  the  business. 
Advertising  also  on  a large  scale  is  necessary  specia'ly 
now  that  the  experiments  both  in  Paris  and  the 
Deparments  have  proved  that  only  a little  outlay  of 
capital  and  patience  is  required  to  see  Indian  tea 
supplant  to  a large  extent  the  very  inferior  China 
tea  now  used,  and  to  secure  a considerable  develop- 
ment in  the  extent  of  the  trade.  Indeed  the  whole 
efforts  have  been  so  much  in  the  nature  of  adver- 
tising that  it  would  not  be  unreasonable  to  view 
the  deficit  as  a just  expenditure  with  that  obj  ct. 
Rents  and  advertisements  during  tbe  pa-t  four- 
teen months  account  for  more  than  two-thirds  of 
the  total  loss,  su  that  the  gross  profi's  have  been 
almost  sufficient  to  meet  alt  other  working  expenses 
and  in  the  initial  stage  of  a business  of  this  descrip- 
tion such  a result  may  be  considered  encouraging. 
It  is  with  great  regret  that  the  directors  now  find 
themselves  hampered  for  want  of  sufficient  working 
capital,  letting  alone  what  is  necessary  in  the  business 
is  to  be  judiciously  extended.  The  shareholders, 
therefore,  must  take  this  matter  into  their  serious 
consideration.  To  enable  them  to  do  so  the 
several  houses  are  treated  separately  in  this  re. 
port,  and  considerable  information  is  furnished- 
Taken  as  a whole,  the  noticeable  features  are  the 
steady  increase  in  the  sale  of  dry  tea,  the  gradual 
reduction  of  the  losses,  and  the  large  percentage  of 
gross  profit  shown,  There  are  ample  facilities  at 
each  of  the  premises  for  doing  a remunerative 
business.  For  its  development  time  would  be  required, 
even  if  the  articles  sold  were  well-known ; bat  when, 
as  in  this  case,  the  restaurants  are  established  to 
Introduce  an  entirely  new  article  to  cultivated  people  l 
like  the  Parisians,  it  will  be  fully  realised  that  no 
progress  can  be  made  without  a reasonable  amount 
of  capital  also. 
It  is  hardly  reasonable  to  expect  those  who  are  not 
shareholders,  or  interested  in  the  development  of  the 
Indian  tea  trade,  now  to  furnish  further  capital,  the 
dir  ctors,  therefore,  earnestly  appeal  to  those  who 
have  a stake  in  the  company  to  provide  what  is 
needful. 
The  Paris  houses  have  during  the  past  year 
been  visited  by  several  of  the  directors  and  share- 
holders, as  well  as  the  secretary,  all  of  whom  give 
most  favourable  reports  of  the  situation  and  suita- 
bility of  the  various  premises,  and  speak  in  high 
terms  of  the  manner  in  whom  the  business  is  Con- 
ducted. Many  most  flattering  notices  have  appeared 
in  the  Press,  and  the  directors  feel  that  it  would  be 
most  unwise  to  sacrifice  the  outlay  that  has  been 
undertaken  so  far,  or  permit  the  enterprise  to  languish 
for  want  of  funds,  when  there  is  no  donbt  that  it  can 
be  brought  to  a successful  issue. 
Wholesale  Depot:  25,  Boulevard  Bonne  Nouv'elle. 
The  wholesale  depot  was  moved  on  Jan.  1,  1892, 
from  204,  Rue  de  Rivoli,  to  25,  Boulevard  Bonne 
Nouvelle.  Since  then  the  retail  houses  have  been 
supplied  with  tea,  &c.,  at  cost  price  instead  of  at 
a profit  of  25  per  cent,  as  previously.  Notwithstand- 
ing these  changes  the  business  has  increased  and  the 
losses  have  also  been  slightly  reduced,  as 
may  be  seen  from  the  following  comparative  state- 
ments of  takings  and  losses : — 
Gross  Takings.  Nett  Loss. 
Avge.  Avge. 
Periods.  per  per 
Tls.  month  Tls.  month 
PCS.  FCS.  FCS.  FOB, 
8 mos.  to  Dec.  31,  1891  58,139  7,267  6,297  662 
6 mos.  to  June  30,  1892  44,458  7,409  3,941  657 
The  following  statement  shows  the  monthly,  sales 
of  dry  tea  for  fourteen  months,  the  weights  being 
given  in  kilogrammes  (1  kilo,  being  equal  to  21b. 
31  oz.  avoir.)  During  the  four  months,  March 
to  June,  1892,  a special  account  was  opened  with 
ich  are  given  separately. 
1891. 
May  . . . , 
- — 4/7  c 
Kilos, 
..  480 
June 
« 4 
..  408 
July 
. * 
860 
August 
4 4 
345 
September. . 
. * 
..  365 
October 
. 4 
..  538 
November  . . 
, * 
..  663 
December  . . 
4 * 
451 
1892. 
Kilos. 
Special  account 
China  Tea. 
Kilos. 
January  . . 
526 
..  — 
February  . . 
561 
. . — 
March 
519 
444 
April 
675 
311 
May 
830 
321 
June  . . 
601 
401 
sales  for  fourteen  months, 
8,618  kios. 
special  account 
China  tea, 
1,506  kilos.] 
Total  sales  of  blended  tea,  7,112  kilos, 
Equals  15,669  lb., 
of  which  75  per  cent  Indian  tea  and  25  per  (Tent  China. 
The  report,  which  is  very  ample,  also  gives  full 
particulars  of  the  provincial  agences.— ti.  and  C. 
Mail,  Sept  23. 
HOW  LIME  JUICE  IS  MADE. 
In  a recent  report  the  United  States  Ceasul  air 
Kingston  gives  the  following  description  of  the 
manufacture  of  lime-juice  in  Jamaica.  The  juioe 
in  its  crude  state  is  obtained  either  by  running  the- 
limes  through  an  ordinary  eone  mill,  when  tb6 
same  is  convenient  and  the  fruit  to  be  had  i» 
sufficient  quantities,  or  by  placing  them  ia  a 
squeezer  especially  adapted  to  the  purpose,  whioh 
