588 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST.  [March  i,  1893. 
“cattys,”  a Chinese  weight,  equivalent,  if  I remember 
rightly  to  two  and  a quarter  pounds.  There  is  a simi- 
larity in  the  names  “oaddy”  and  “catty,”  which 
suggests  the  origin  of  the  former,  and  its  derivation 
from  the  latter.  May  I be  excused,  wlen  writ- 
ing on  tea,  if  I draw  the  attention  of  those  of  your 
readers  who  are  connoisseurs  in  tea  to  the  remarkable 
fact  that  the  greater  merit  of  sun-dried  tea  compared 
with  high-dried  tea  ('hat  is  tea  dried  by  artificial  heat) 
appears  to  be  unknown  to  mo-e  than  a few  of  the 
consumers  in  England,  and  to  most  of  the  tea- 
merchants.  Sun-dried  tea  is  superior  to  high-dried  as 
an  Havanna  cigar  is  to  its  English. made  imitation. 
The  high-drying  process  was  invented  many  years 
ago,  so  I was  iuformed  by  my  friends  at  Shanghai 
(whan  the  tea  had  to  remain  in  the  hold  of  a sailing 
ship  for  several  months,)  to  protect  it  from  mildew. 
If  any  of  your  readers  are  temped  to  order  sun  dried, 
tea  from  Shanghai  or  Foochow  or  Ichang,  &e.,  they 
will  find  a small  packet  of  lime  in  each  o.rse.  This  is 
to  absorb  any  moisture  that  may  g<  t in  during 
the  voyage,  which,  however,  now  las's  for  only 
a few  weeks.  The  Russian  “overland”  tea  is  sun- 
dried,  In  nee  its  high  character. — At.fred  P.  Ryder, 
Admiral  of  the  Fleer.  ( Notes  and  Queries , 7th  S.  iv. 
July  9th,  1887,  p.  38). 
Tea  Caddy. — (7th  S , iii.,  308, 435  iv.,38.)  Catty  from 
the  Malay.  See  Marsden’s  Dictionary. — R.  S.  Ohar- 
nock,  St.  Ffonore-les-Bains.  ( Notes  and  Queries,  7th 
S.,  iv.,  Sept.  3rd,  1887,  p.  195.) 
Tea  Clippers. — Can  any  reader  of  “ N.  & Q.”  give 
me  a hint  as  to  (he  best  book  for  informa  ion  re- 
specting the  cow  almost  obsolete  “ tea  clippers’? 
Richard  Edgcombe,  Mount  Edgoumbe,  Devonport. 
{Notes  and  Queries , 7th  S.,  vii.,  Feb.  16th,  1889,  p.  128.) 
Tea  Clippers. — (7th  S.,  vii.,  128.)  Mr.  Edgcumbe  will 
find  a brief  notice  of  the  so-called  clipper  sailing- 
ships,  accompanied  by  a wood-cut  illustration  of  one 
of  them,  in  the  first  edition  of  “ Chambers’s  Ency- 
elopselia”  (1862)  vol.,  iii.,  p,  18.  lu  the  third  volume 
of  the  low  issue  of  the  Encyclopaedia  iust  published, 
"the  notice  is  ent  down  to  ten  lines,  an  abbreviation 
accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  in  the  interval  sinoe 
1862  the  clipper  has  been  superseded  by  the  steam- 
ship, and  is  now  little  more  than  a memory.  Fortu- 
nately, however,  a competent  author,  who  evidently 
writes  from  experience,  has  put  on  record  a vividly 
realistic  picture  of  the  actual  working  of  a China 
tea  clipper,  and  of  the  life  of  a sailor  on  board. 
This  is  contained  in  “Spunyarn  and  Spindrift”  by 
Robert  Brown,  published  inl886  by  Messrs.  Hulston  & 
Sons.  It  purports  to  be  a sailor  boy’s  log,  and  is 
a narrative  in  the  form  of  fiction  of  the  voyage  out 
and  home  of  the  “Albatross,”  a China  tea  clipper  or 
barque  of  722  tons.  The  race  borne  of  the  three 
rival  clippers  from  Foochow  is  a graphic  and  stir- 
ring bit  of  writing,  and,  apart  from  the  now  historic 
value  of  the  book  as  a description  of  an  obs'  lete 
state  of  things  in  the  sea-faring  world,  the  story 
shows  that  Mr.  Brown  is  not  unworthy  to  take  his 
plaos  among  the  bsst  of  onr  modern  tea  novelist-. — 
John  H.  Nodal,  Heaton  Moor,  Stockport.  ( Notes 
and  Queries,  7th  S.,  viii.,  April  13th,  1889,  p.  295.) 
AMERICANS  AS  RUBBER  CONSUMERS. 
The  India  Rubber  World  says: — “In  ord“r  to  show 
the  respective  standing  of  the  countries  which  are 
the  most  important  consumers  of  India  rubber  and 
gutta-percha,  the  following  table  is  given  showing 
the  imports  of  crude  gums  for  the  first  ni  ie  months 
of  1892,  also  the  exports  of  crude  material,  after 
which  is  given  the  amount  remaining,  which  repre- 
sents stock  or  the  consumption  in  manufactures:  — 

— pounds  — 
\ j 
United 
Great 
Germo.ii  | 
Details. 
States. 
Britain. 
umpire. 
Imports,  nine 
months 
..  27,407,233 
26,373,424 
7,506,180 
Exports,  n;ne 
months 
734,710 
11,740,806 
1,661,880 
Remaining  for 
14,902,618 
i 
5,844,300  i 
home  use 
..  26,672,523 
It  will  be  observed  that  of  the  amount  consumed  by 
the  three  countries  named  largely  mere  than  half  is 
used  by  the  Unit'd  Statfs.  If  allowance  be  made 
for  tbe  fact  that  of  the  rubber  goods  made  in  Great 
Britain  a considerable  rhare  is  exported,  while  by 
far  the  larger  part  of  those  made  in  this  country 
are  Bold  end  used  at  home,  it  may  safely  be  calcula- 
ted even  in  view  of  our  large  population,  that  the 
use  of  rubber  goods  per  capita  is  much  greater  ia 
the  United  Slates  than  in  any  other  part  of  the 
world.  It  may  be  a’ded,  by  the  way,  that  a similar 
fact  exists  with  rrg«rd  to  almost  every  other  com- 
modity entering  into  general  u e in  America — from 
iron  to  sugar,  from  paper  to  beefsteaks.  Truly  tbe 
buying  classes  in  this  ccuntry  e fiord  a wonderful 
market.” 
VARIOUS  NOTES. 
Java  Teas,  whioh  are  of  no  value  for  exportation, 
are  being  improved  in  flavour  by  the  flowets  of 
Jasminum  sambac,  Aiton,  Aglaia  odorata.  Lour., 
and  Gardenia  pictorum,  Hassk.  According  to  llcv. 
Intcrnat.  des  Falsif , an  industry  has  been  started 
at  Cheribon,  Java,  to  prepare  Bueh  teas  in  imitation 
of  Chinese  tea  — Amer  Jour.  Phar. 
North  Borneo. — We  regret  to  hear  hail 
accounts  of  the  prospects  of  North  Borneo:  retire- 
ment is  the  ordc-r  of  the  day  to  such  an  extent  that 
all  the  lea  ing  Government  servants,  save  three  or 
four  are  under  orders  to  1 eve.  Of  those  retained, 
our  old  friend  Mr.  Henry  Walker  is  one  we  are 
glad  to  say.  We  hope  matters  will  improve  before 
long  in  the  settlement. 
The  Eucalyptus  Oil  Industry. — We  call 
attention  to  the  interesting  paper  from  the  Chemist 
and  Druggist  in  the  Tropical  Agriculturist,  giving  an 
account  of  the  rush  into  this  distilling  business  caused 
some  time  ago  by  the  influenza  epidemio  in  Eng- 
land. Of  course,  the  first  manufacturers  in  the 
field  made  a fortune — pity  that  some  Ceylon  owners 
of  blue  gums  were  not  able  to  share  in  the  profits — 
butnowalas!  the  industry  has  been  so  overdone 
that  it  will  take  a loDg  time  to  reduce  stocks,  unless 
indeed  ii  fluerza  become  generally  rife  agaiD,  or 
what  is  more  likely  and  more  to  be  desired,  new 
uses  are  found  for  the  Eucalyptus  oil. 
Gambir  as  a Planting  Product. — Our  atten- 
tion has  been  called  by  Dr  Trimen  to  the  number 
of  the  “ Agricultural  Bulletin  of  the  Malay  Penin- 
sula ” which  contains  an  “ admirable  snd  ex- 
haustive account  of  Gambir  ” prepared  ty  Mr. 
H.  N.  Ridley,  Director  of  Gardens  and  Forests  at 
the  Straits,  and  which  he  thinks  ought  to  be 
reprinted  in  the  Tropical  Agriculturist.  We  very 
readily  give  effect  to  this  request.  Mr.  Ridley’s 
compilation  is  at  odcs  concise  and  exhaustive  ; 
it  covers  seme  20  pages  dr  my,  and  gives  a des- 
cription and  history  of  the  plant  and  drug,  and 
short  ohap  ers  on  “ the  uses  of  the  Drug,  the 
forms  of  Gambir,  Planting,  Nursing,  Cuttings, 
j Seedlings,  Enemies,  Cropping,  Manufacture,  Adul- 
t ration,  i hemical  Composition,  Analysis,  Cultiva- 
tion for  Profit,”  dco.  The  profit  Mr.  Ridley  shows 
in  certain  cases  to  be  equal  to  about  R70  per  acre. 
Gambir  is  the  second  most  important  vegetable 
produot  of  the  Malay  Peninsula  and  the  average 
annual  export  for  five  years  is  equal  to  4 682  333 
: dollars  ; and  yet  this  important  cultivation  has 
| scarcely  been  touched  by  Europeans,  being  all  in 
the  hands  of  the  Chinese  and  Malays.  Now,  with 
Mr.  Ridle  . ’a  paper  before  them  on  page  590, 
we  do  not  see  why  Ceylon  planters  should  not 
do  something  more  in  the  lowoountry  with  Gambir. 
We  are  aware  of  experiments  already  made  ; hut 
j we  think  there  is  hope  for  greater  suoeess  if 
I attention  be  paid  to  Mr.  Ridley’s  insti  actions. 
