$96  THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST.  [March  i,  1893. 
90,000,000  lb.  of  te»  which  it  now  consumes  annually. 
There  are,  he  says,  millions  of  acres  that  are  suitable 
for  tei  cultivation,  notibly  the  lauds  i,n3ide  the  yellow 
pine  belt. 
If  India  and  Ceylon  do  not  over-produce,  we 
have  not  the  slightest  fear  of  the  United  States 
producing  5 million  lb.  a year  of  tea  (in  place  of 
93)  within  the  next  twenty  years  ! 
INDIAN  TEA  CROP  ESTIMATES,  1892. 
To  the  Editob,  “Indian  Planters’  Gazette.” 
Dear  Sir, — In  their  Circular  of  the  17th  September 
1892  the  General  Committee  reproduced  the  original 
estimate  of  the  Indian  Tea  Crop  in  the  following 
figures : — 
Original  Estimate  of  Crop  of  1892. 
Assam 
Cachar  and  Sylhet 
Darjeeling,  Terai,  Dooars 
Chittagong  and  Chota  Nagpore 
Dehra  Dun,  Kumaon  and  Kangra  . . 
Private  and  Native  Gardens 
lb. 
54,210,100 
89,208,652 
25,691,617 
1,442,910 
4,500,000 
4,000,000 
129,053.278 
They  also  published  a revised  estimate  based  upon 
actual  results  to  the  31st  August  as  follows:  — 
_ Manufactured  to  Manufactured  to 
31st  August  1891.  31st  August  1892. 
lb.  lb. 
Assam 
29,305,908 
27,260,859 
Cachar  and  Sylhet 
20,541,311 
18,771,078 
Darjeeling  and  Terai 
7,048,694 
6,539,686 
Dooars 
6,771,616 
7,379,084 
Chittagong  and 
Chota  Nagpore 
722,591 
567,719 
64,390,120 
60,518,426 
Revised  estimate  of  crop  of  1892. 
lb. 
Assam  . . 49,046,574 
Cachar  and  Sylhet  ..  35,772,048 
Darjeeling  and  Terai  . . 10,498,850 
Dooars  . . 13,125,350 
Chittagong  and  Chota  Nagpore  ..  1,263,835 
Dehra  Dun,  Kumaon  and  Kangra  . . 4,500,000 
Private  and  Native  Gardens  . . 4,000,000 
118,206,657 
They  have  now  the  pleasure  to  give  you  the  figures 
showing  the  actual  outturn  of  the  Indian  Tea  Crop 
of  1892. 
Actual  Outturn  of  Crop  of  1892. 
lb. 
Assam 
. . 46  307,348 
Cachar 
. . 16,110,506 
Sylhet 
. . 17,744,557 
Darjeeling 
. . 6,796,315 
Terai 
. . 2,807,530 
Dooars 
. . 14,889,006 
Chittagong 
830,293 
Chotta  Nagpore 
201,328 
Dehra  Dun,  Kumaon  and  Kangra 
. . 4,000,000 
Private  and  Native  Gardens 
. . 4,000,000 
113,6S6,883 
The  total  shipments  to  all  places  from  1st  May  to 
31st  December  1892  are  99,883,106  b.  The  exports  to 
the  Colonies  and  other  ports  are  estimated  not  to 
exceed  7 millions,  which  will  leave  106J  millions  for 
export  to  the  United  Kingdom.— Yours  faithfully, 
S.  E.  J.  Clarke,  Secretary. — Indian  Planters'  Gazette. 
POTATO  CULTURE  AND  DISEASE. 
(From  a Correspondent.) 
In  order  to  ascertain  the  effect  of  applying  a 
mixture  of  sulphate  of  copper  and  lime  to  potatoes 
for  the  purpose  of  prevention  of  potato  disease,  a 
series  of  experimental  plots  have  been  cultivated 
in  three  areas  in  the  Warminister  district.  The 
cultivation  was  carried  on  in  connection  with  the 
teaching  of  the  principles  of  agriculture  and  cottage 
gardening  in  Wiltshire,  by  a sub-committee  of  the 
County  Council  (Technical  Education  Committee. 
One  portion  of  the  plot  was  dressed  twice  with  a 
mixture  composed  of  2tb  each  of  sulphate  of  copper, 
lime,  and  molasses  in  ten  gallons  of  water.  This 
mixture  was  sprayed  over  the  foliage  by  an  “Eclair” 
sprayer  on  July  20th  and  August  16th  at  the  rate 
of  160  gallons  an  acre.  The  effect  of  the 
dressing  in  prolonging  the  life  of  the  plants  for 
weeks  after  the  undressed  foliage  was  decayed,  was 
very  marked. 
The  crop  of  potatoes  which  was  raised  and 
weighed  on  the  ground  in  the  presence  of  reporters 
and  visitors,  weighed  on  the  undressed  half  perch 
of  “Imperators”  1751b.  large,  2ilb.  small,  6ilb. 
diseased — total  1841b.  The  weight  on  the  adjoining 
half  perch  which  had  been  sprayed  was  2051b. 
large,  3flb.  small,  11-lb.  diseased — total  2101  lb., 
being  at  the  rate  of  30  tons  1 cwt.  per  acre  gross, 
and  an  increase  over  the  undressed  area  at  the 
rate  of  over  4 tons  per  acre  of  sound  tubers. 
The  extraordinary  weight  of  potatoes  raised  from 
these  and  other  plots  has  excited  much  surprise. 
It  is  alluded  to  by  Sir  John  Lawes  in  Terms  of 
gentle  irony.  “We  have,”  he  says,  “carried  out 
experiments  on  potato  growing  for  many  years.  As, 
however,  our  highest  yield  per  acre  does  not 
amount  to  much  more  than  half  the  lowest  yield 
in  the  Warminster  experiments,  it  is  evidently 
quite  time  to  bring  ours  to  a close.  If  technical 
education  can  make  such  rapid  progress  in  its 
infancy,  what  may  we  expect  when  it  reaches 
maturity  ?”  The  experiments  were  carried  out  with 
every  possible  care,  and  the  full  report  is  now 
being  published  by  the  Wiltshire  County  Council. 
In  explanation  of  the  phenomenal  weight  of  potatoes 
obtained  from  many  of  the  plots,  and  particularly 
from  the  one  illustrated,  it  may  be  stated  that — (1) 
The  cultivation  was  of  the  most  thorough  kind. 
(2)  The  land  was  allotment  land,  deep  and  rich,  and 
Dr.  Munro  (who  acted  as  consulting  chemist  to  the 
committee)  predicted  from  the  analysis  that  a good 
crop  would  be  yielded,  even  by  the  unmanured 
plots.  One  unmanured  plot  of  "Beauty  of  Hebron” 
(a  far  less  heavy  cr  pper  than  many  of  the  sorts 
grown)  yieh'ed  at  the  rate  of  nearly  eleven  tons 
per  acre.  (3)  The  sets  were  carefully  selected  of 
large  size,  and  were  planted  at  dis  ances  of  31  by 
17|  inches  apart ; also  the  time  of  planting  was 
sufficiently  early.  (4)  The  manure  was  at  the  rate 
of  4 cwt.  per  acre  each  of  superphosphate  of  lime, 
kainit,  and  nitrate  of  soda,  the  latter  being  applied 
in  two  instalments  five  weeks  apart.  (5)  “ Imperators  “ 
have  been  recognised  by  Continental  and  American 
growers  as  the  heaviest  cropping  variety  in  cultivation. 
(6)  The  s’.eady  and  moderate  rainfall  during  the 
laiter  half  of  the  growth  favoured  this  and  other 
late  varieties. — Hailg  Graphic , Dec.  22. 
COMMERCIAL  ENTERPRISE  IN  CENTRAL 
AFRICA. 
INTERVIEW  WITH  CAPTAIN  LOVETT  CAMERON,  R.N.,  C.B. 
A couple  of  years  ago  every  one  in  London  was 
talking  of  the  South  African  Company  and  of  Mr. 
Rhodes.  For  the  last  three  or  four  months  we  have  all 
been  discussing  the  East  African  Company  and  the 
railway  projected  by  Sir  Wm.  McKinnon  and  his 
able  co-directors.  Now  it  seems  probable  that  in 
the  near  future  yet  another  company  with  similar 
aims  may  gain  the  public  ear.  The  Central  African 
and  Zoutpansberg  Exploration  Company  deserves 
more  attention  than  has  yet  been  accorded  to  it. 
First  of  all,  it  is  an  international  undertaking  with 
purely  commercial  objects.  From  the  King  of  the 
Belgians  it  has  acquired  rights  over  that  part 
of  the  vast  Hinterland  of  the  Congo  Free  State  which 
abuts  on  Lake  Tanganyika.  The  Portuguese  Go- 
vevnemt  has  ceded  to  it  valuable  powers  over  the  Por- 
