3 52 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Nov.  i,  1892. 
again  would  Rive  India  360,000,000  lb. : a gross  total 
of  520,000  000  lb.  ! whereas  the  actual  figures  were 
—for  OhiDB,  39  750,000  lb.  ; Ceylon,  4^,750,000  lb.  ; 
and  India,  72,000,000  lb.  Or,  lest  the  deliveries  of 
eight  months  onlj  should  be  condemned  es  misleading, 
let  ns  take  the  estimated  import  cn  the  current  twelve  - 
month.  China  is  expected  to  send,  altogether,  about 
55,000,000  lb. , which  would  give,  by  Sir  Charles  Dilke's 
table,  165,000,000  lb.  for  Ceylon,  and  495,000,000  lb.  for 
India  ! instead  of  70,000,000  lb.  and  108,000,000  lb., 
which  are  the  actual  estimate?.  'Ihere  seems  to  be 
a fascination  about  “ China’s  millions.”  Except  that 
Sir  Charles  is  belittling  instead  of  magnifying  facts, 
we  might  almost  be  reminded  of  a missionary  en- 
thusiast lamenting  over  the  400,000,000  of  benighted 
heathen  for  whose  chastening  this  riva'ry  hap,  perhaps, 
ariseD. 
The  real  figures,  however,  are  discouraging  enough 
and  must  surely  end  by  startling  even  the  Chinese 
Government  out  of  its  lethargy.  Tea  may  be  only 
one  item  in  the  commerce  of  the  Empire  ; the  quan- 
tity exported  may  be  trifling  compared  to  the  great 
internal  consumption;  English  demand  may  bo  oi  ly 
a single  feature  of  the  export  trade.  Still,  a demand 
which  once  amounted  to  nearly  200  000,0001b.  is  a 
consr  quential  item  ; and  China  may  rtst  assured  that 
the  Rusaian  demand  which  seemed  at  one  time  to  be 
growing  as  fast  as  the  English  shrank,  will  prove,  in  the 
long  run,  a delusive  reed.  It  seems  probable  indeed 
that  both  the  Russian  and  English  markets  have 
reached,  temporarily,  their  approximate  limits,  both 
of  expansion  and  contraction.  It  is  unlikely  that 
China  tea  will  disappear  completely  from  the  latter, 
but  the  siza  of  Rus-;ia  is  not  an  exact  criterion  by 
which  to  measure  her  capabilities  of  purchase.  The 
bulk  of  her  populaticn  will  have  to  abate  their  taste  for 
alcohol  before  they  will  have  money  to  sp  ire  for  buying 
tea;  and  nothing  is  more  likely  than  that  India  and 
Ceylon  will  succeed,  by-aLd-bv,  in  concdining  the 
Russian  as  they  have  captivated  the  English  taste.  Al- 
ready Ceylon  teas  have  obtained  an  entry  into  the 
Russian  market,  and  considerable  shipments  have  been 
made  this  year  to  Odessa.  With  Japan  gradually  sup- 
planting her  in  the  United  Slates  China  might  therefore 
see  reason  to  bestir  herself  vigorously  indeed,  if 
Orientals  could  ever  be  induced  to  look  beyond  the 
requirements  of  the  hour. 
Unwillingness  to  adopt  the  machinery  which  is  cm- 
ployed  to  suoh  economical  purpose  by  its  rivals  may 
have  something  to  do  with  the  decline  of  China  be- 
fore their  competition;  though  the  excellence  of 
her  best  teas  goes  to  show  that  it  is  chiefly  in  an 
economic  sense  that  that  form  of  competition  tells. 
Negligent  cultivation  is  probably  more  important. 
The  unpruned  trees  growing  in  comparatively  un- 
cultivated grounds,  whioh  have  been  so  often  de- 
picted, cannot  be  expected  to  yield  an  average  crop 
oomparable  with  the  bulk  of  the  carefully-tended 
India  and  Ceylon  leaf.  But  does  this  not  bring  us  back 
after  all  to  the  question  of  inland  taxation  which  seems 
to  thwart  every  prospect  of  commercial  development  in 
China?  How,  it  may  be  asked  again,  can  tea  whioh 
is  subject  to  an  average  tax  of  30  per  cent,  compete 
with  tea  which  is  put  on  hoard  chip  free?  Would 
not  that  30  per  cent,  just  enable  the  grower  to 
expend  on  his  plants  the  time  and  attention  they 
require?  Ohinefe  Tea  merchants  appreciate  the  fixa- 
tion ; and  certain  inquiries  made,  lately,  from  Peking 
would  seem  to  indicate  that  the  Government  itself 
is  at  lost  awaking  to  the  truth  of  the  fable  cf  the 
go'den  egg.  But  even  if  the  Board  of  Revenue  could 
be  brought  to  deoree  the  immediate  abolition  of 
lekin  aud  the  reduction  of  a Customs  valuation 
which  is  so  monstrously  in  excess  of  the  reality — 
there  would  remain  very  much  to  be  done  if 
China  is  to  hold  her  own  in  ths  world’s  market. 
All  who  are  interested  in  the  China  trade  must  be 
content  to  put  their  hands  in  their  pockets  and 
exhibit  something  of  the  enterprise  which  has  helped 
forward  India  and  Ceylon.  It  has  been  truly  said  that 
the  Eoglish  housewife  who  would  buy  a pound  of 
China  tea  can  actually  not  procure  it.  She  oan  buy 
pure  Assam,  or  pure  OeyloD,  as  muoh  as  she  wants; 
but  China  is  only  procurable  as  a mixture  with  other 
binds.  There  may  be  shops  in  existence  which  form  an 
exception  to  thatrnle,  bnt  they  are  practically  non- 
existent to  the  every  day  buyer.  Nor  is  the  slightest 
attempt  tver  made  to  challenge  the  standing  advertise- 
ments that  Ceylon  teis  teat  the  world  in  cheapness 
and  fragrance  and  flavour  and  every  other  virtue.  Wc 
may  be  certain  that  Japan  aswell  ns  India  and  CeyloD, 
will  take  care  to  he  adequately  represented  and  to 
advertise,  each,  the  excellence  of  its  produce,  at  the 
forthcoming  Chicago  Exhibition.  The  desirability  of 
China  Tea  being  similarly  pushed  to  the  front  has,  we 
know,  been  mooted.  Have  arrangements  beeiT  per- 
fected for  carrying  out  the  proposal  ? All  ibis  requires 
money  and  effort,  and  it  may  te  argued  that  it  is  the 
Chinese,  as  the  people  most  interes’ed,  who  should  take 
the  necessary  action.  But  Chinese  require  help 
and  gnidonce.  'Iho  Chinese  Governm*  nt  need 
that  Sir  Robert  Hart  should  impress  upen  them 
the  daDger  to  the'r  revenue,  instead  cf  contending, 
as  he  once  did,  that  there  is  no  evidence  that  the 
trade  is  in  need  of  fiscal  relief.  Chinese  merchants 
reed  to  be  put  in  ti  e way  of  opening  shops  anO  of 
having  them  advertised  in  London  and  other  great 
o;ties,  and  cf  having  provision  made  for  the  supply 
of  China  tea,  as  well  as  models  of  Oh  nc-o  junks,  at 
the  forthcoming  American  Exhibition.  We  believe,  as 
we  have  already  said, that  they  appreciate  the  situation, 
and  would  be  willing  to  contribute  to  those  ends;  nor 
do  we  believe  that  the  majority  of  foreigners  interested 
in  the  trade  would  refram  from  giving  their  meed  of 
help  if  those  projects  wero  taken  energetically  in  h nd 
and  given  purpose  and  shape.  If  all  concerned,  from 
the  Government  down  to  the  grower,  would  put  the’r 
shoulder  to  the  whee  l,  we  sre  far  from  believing  that 
the  consumption  of  China  tea  is  “ almost,”  or  likely 
to  become,  “ extinct.  ’ But  there  never  was  a time  in 
the  world’s  hirtory  when  it  was  more  necessary  for 
men  to  help  themselves  : and  Chinese  teamen  ore 
certainly  no  exception  to  the  rule.— L.  and  C.  Express. 
Oct.  7 
♦ 
A New  Tea  Drier  — Mr,  Humphry  Aram  Hole, 
tea  planter  of  Atgram,  fiylbet,  has  applied  for  re- 
gistration of  an  invention  for  “ An  improved  tea 
drying  machine  which  can  also  be  used  for  wither- 
ing fresh  tea  leaf.’’ — If.  Times. 
Is  America  as  a Rice-grower  to  Compete 
with  India  ? — The  Pioneer  state  s 
The  latest  American  papers  received  contain  some 
news  of  ccnsiderabla  interest  to  the  rice  exporters  of 
Rangoon  snd  Calcutta.  The  new  rice  crop  in  the 
Southern  States  is  said  to  be  the  most  extraordinary 
ever  raised  in  America,  and  if  the  staterm  nte  of  the 
New  Orleans  press  can  he  cr<  diti  d,  ore  can  well  be- 
lieve it.  The  bulk  of  the  rice  hitherto  grown  in  the 
United  States  was  raised  in  Sonth  Carolina  and  Geor- 
gia on  their  low-lying  lands  : but  some  pushing  meu 
from  the  Western  States  migrated  southwards  some 
half  dozen  years  ago,  and  their  energy  ar.d  enterprise 
have  resulted  ia  an  enormous  extension  of  the  area  of 
cultivation.  Louisiana  alone  will  raise  more  rice  this 
year  by  a hundred  million  pounds  than  the  entire 
United  States  ever  raised  beforo.  Two  years  ago 
there  were  some  12,000  acres  cultivated  in  rice;  this 
year  the  area  had  risen  to  179,000  acre?  ; »ud  we  are 
told  that  next  year  the  aore age  will  be  doubled.  Within 
the  last  few  years  the  export  of  rice  from  India  to 
South  America  has  been  rising  rapidly  ; last  year  it 
amount*  d to  1|  million  cwt,  ; and  there  is  even  a 
rmal!  trade  with  the  United  States.  With  the  enor- 
mous devlopment  of  rice  cultivation  in  the  Southern 
States,  however,  it  is  plain  that  the  competition 
for  these  markets  will  become  much  more  acute. 
Unless  the  present  feason  in  the  Southern  States  is  to 
bs  accepte  t f s altogether  abnormal,  the  chances  are 
that  Indian  grown  rice  will  be  gradually  excluded — a 
Somewhat  disconcerting  prospect  if  we  remember  that, 
omitting  the  last  two  years,  when  Iho  conditions  were 
abnormal  owiDg  to  a failure  of  the  harvest  in  Japan 
and  an  extraordinary  demand  in  Europe,  the  exports 
of  India  have  been  practically  stationary. 
