678 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[May  i,  1893. 
NOTES  ON  PRODUCE  AND  FINANCE. 
Ceylon  Shipments  of  Tea. — The  statement,  still 
made,  we  believe,  in  some  school  books,  that  tea 
comes  from  China  is  an  old  and  very  incomplete 
story  now-a-days.  The  rapid  expansion  of  the  tea 
trade  of  India  knocked  the  bottom  out  of  that  state- 
ment fifteen  years  since,  and  Ceylon  has  upset  the 
idea  altogether.  The  supply  of  tea  from  Ceylon  is 
increasing  to  an  astonishing  extent.  The  shipment 
in  January  amounted  to  5,757,0001b.,  and  for  February 
will  no  doubt  be  in  excess  of  this.  One  ship  in  J anuary 
took  925,850  lb.,  or  over  400  tons,  of  tea,  and  since 
then  another  ship  has  exceeded  even  this  record — 
which  was  the  biggest  up  to  the  end  of  January — 
by  carrying  over  1,000,000  lb.  of  tea  from  Colombo. 
Tea  and  Coffee  in  France. — A discussion  is 
going  forward  in  Paris  about  the  merits  of  coffee 
and  tea.  Just  as  English  people  have  reached  per- 
fection in  the  brewing  of  tea,  the  French  are  con- 
summate artists  in  all  their  dealings  with,  coffee. 
The  English,  who  try  to  imitate  them  in  this, 
and  who  are  not  very  familiar  with  the  ways  of 
the  country,  almost  invariably  blunder.  They  make 
the  discovery  that  chicory  is  used  in  cafe  au  lait, 
and  they  conclude  that  the  success  of  all  French 
coffee,  however  drunk,  lies  in  a judicious  admixture 
of  this  root.  The  cafe  noir,  however,  which  is 
drunk  after  meals,  is  pure  coffee  made  very  strong  : 
at  all  events,  it  should  be  so.  Then  there  is  an 
art  in  the  roasting,  and  much  motive  in  keeping 
the  berries  from  the  fire  until  a short  time  before 
they  are  required.  That  the  French  should  have 
become  great  coffee-drinkers  is  the  natural  conse- 
quence of  their  own  skill  in  preparing  the  beverage. 
They  take  it  for  their  first  breakfast,  they  take  it 
after  their  midday  meal,  and  again  at  night.  Black 
coffee,  strong  as  it  should  be,  has  a powerful  in- 
fluence upon  the  nervous  system,  which  is  not 
moderated  by  the  addition  of  spirit  drunk  with  it 
or  immediately  afterwards.  In  Paris,  where  so  little 
is  needed  to  set  people’s  nerves  wrong,  it  is  said 
that  coffee  is  working  much  mischief.  Who  knows 
how  far  it  may  not  have  been  responsible  for  the 
Panama  scandals?  It  belongs  to  the  category  of 
insidious  agents  of  foreign  origin.  M.  Zola, 
who  now  (according  to  the  correspondent  of  the 
St.  James's  > azette)  appears  to  spend  most  of 
his  time  answering  questions  put  to  him  by 
journalists  of  all  subjects  on  which  it  is  possible 
for  opinions  to  differ,  has  been  prevailed  upon  to 
say  something  about  coffee.  He  tells  us  that  for 
twenty  years  he  has  ceased  to  drink  it,  and  that, 
although  he  takes  a little  now,  it  agrees  badly  with 
his  nerves.  He  long  ago  gave  up  wine  entirely  and 
took  to  tea.  He  confesses  that  he  is  a “great  drinker” 
of  this  beverage.  M.  Clemenceau  is  another  ; tea  is 
the  only  fillip  he  believes  in  when  the  brain  wants 
sharpening. 
On  Tea. — Under  the  title  “ Thoughts  on  Theine  ” a 
pamphlet  has  been  issued  by  a member  of  the  tea 
trade  in  Aberdeen,  in  which  advice  is  offered  on 
the  subject  of  growing,  drying,  selling  and  drinking 
tea.  The  chief  points  suggested  by  the  author  are 
the  following  : The  grower,  by  closely  supervising 
the  coolie  labour  engaged  in  plucking,  curing, 
in  carefully  maiking  on  each  individual  paekage  an 
honest  tare,  and  in  securing  that  the  same  make  and 
quality  are  in  every  package  of  an  invoiced  lot.  The 
seller,  by  keeping  all  his  teas  in  bulk,  notin  paokets, 
and  by  having  these  teas  seleoted  with  due  regard 
to  the  water  of  the  district  in  which  they  are  to  be  used. 
The  consumer  must  put  himself  to  the  trouble  to 
see  that  the  tea  he  likes  has  had  fre  h water,  freshly 
boild,  and  in  its  first  boiled  stage,  poured  upon  it. 
After  standing,  warmly  covered  for  ten  minutes  the  de- 
licate infusion  is  ready,  and.  as  our  author  observes,  is 
“really  nectar  for  the  gods.”  From  judioiously  pre- 
pared blends  a second  cup  of  good  *ea  may  be  had  ; 
but,  in  many  cases,  only  fr<  sb  tea,  freshly  boiled 
wafer,  aLd  another  ten  minutes’  infusion  will  yield 
that  desirable  consummation. 
Tea  Proipects  and  Tea  Estimates.— Discussing  this 
subject  the  Grocer  says  “ The  firmuesa  and  buoy- 
ancy whioh  characterised  the  market  during  the 
olosing  months  of  1892  end  in  January  of  this  year, 
chiefly  on  the  strength  of  the  revised  estimates 
issued  last  autumn  having  been  carried  too 
far,  have  been  succeeded  by  flatness  and  de- 
pression, and  the  advance  in  value  then  estab- 
lished has  since  been  partly  lost.  It  mar,  however, 
be  presumed  that  the  total  of  113,687,0001b.  in  round 
numbers)  fairly  represents  the  extent  of  the  1892-93 
orop,  so  that  the  trade  may  feel  pretty  sure  that 
no  serious  discrepancies  in  the  estimates  (real  or 
imaginary)  will  from  thiH  time  be  announred.  Both 
importers  and  the  wholesale  dealers  will  now  know 
better  what  supply  they  will  have  to  depend  on  until 
the  period  arrives  for  the  new  crops  of  Indian  tea 
to  come  forward,  and  it  is  possible  for  the  market 
to  exhibit  greater  steadiness,  as  arrivals  begin  to 
fall  off  materially,  and  the  quantities  in  publio 
sales  to  shrink  into  smal'er  dimensions.  Still  it 
must  not  be  forgotten  that,  whilst  stocks  of 
Oeylon  and  Ohina  descriptions  are  much  lighter 
than  in  1892,  those  of  Indian  teas,  equalling 
50.000. 000  lb.  on  the  1st  instant,  are  in  excess  of  the 
weight  on  hand  in  1892,  end  considerably  larger 
than  the  average  of  40,000,000  lb.,  or  more,  that 
were  held  in  this  port  at  the  same  period  of  the  two 
previous  years.  It  is  also  reckoned  that  tbe  ship- 
ments of  tea  from  Calcutta  to  all  places  from 
May  1st  to  Deoember  31st,  1892,  reached  nearly 
100.000. 000  lb.  and  allowing  7,000,000  lb.  for  ex- 
portation from  thence  to  tbe  colonies  aDd  other 
ports,  there  remained  close  upon  6,700,000  lb.  to  be 
afterwards  shipped  to  this  ccuQtry,  whioh  would 
bring  the  exports  hither  for  tbe  enrrent  sessoD  up 
to  107,000,000  lb.,  or  more  than  sufficient,  plus  the 
bonded  Btock,  to  satisfy  the  wants  of  consumers, 
who  in  the  United  Kingdom,  during  1892  took 
off  109,528,169  lb.  of  tea  of  this  olass,  against 
98,941,931  lb.  iu  1891,  and  101,961,6861b  in  1890.”— 
H.  and  C . Mail,  March  3. 
COFFEE,  COCOA  AND  CARDAMOMS. 
(From  I.  A.  Rucker  and  Bencraft's  Weekly 
Circular.) 
London,  March  2nd,  1893. 
COFFEE. — We  have  received  the  well  known 
yearly  table  of  statistics  issued  by  the  following 
Rotterdam  Brokers.  Messrs.  G.  Duuring  and  Zoon, 
Dalen  andPlemp,  Kolff,  and  W.  A.  Kamp,  and  Leonard 
Jacobson  and  Zonen,  from  which  we  extract  as  follows: — 
Imports — Europe  and  United  States: — 
1893.  1892.  1891. 
Bags. 
Bags. 
Bags. 
Mexico  & C.  America. . 
1,500,000 
1,258,000 
1,349,100 
Venezuela 
900,000 
859,000 
816,700 
West  Indian  Islands  ... 
200,000 
257,000 
179,900 
Haiti 
500,000 
476,000 
454,700 
Brazil  Exports  : — 
1892-93. 
1891-92. 
1890-91. 
Rio 
3,000,000 
3,702,000 
2,350,000 
Santos 
3,500,000 
3,588,000 
3,041,000 
Bahia 
250,000 
306,200 
156,000 
Imports — Menado  into 
Holland  ... 
11,000 
3,500 
5,100 
Exports — Macassar 
and  Timor 
80,000 
50,000 
32,100 
Exports — Ceylon 
42,000 
50,000 
116,700 
Imports — Europe  and 
States  of 
East  India 
and  Manilla 
250,000 
338,000 
208,700 
Imports — Africa  and 
Moka 
220,000 
215,000 
114,000 
Java  Government  and 
Private 
950,000 
695,600 
398,700 
Padang 
83,000 
59,800 
74,300 
Grand  Total  .. 
11,486,000  11,858,100 
9,297,000 
Imports — Europe  and  United  States  : — 
1890. 
1889. 
1888. 
Eags. 
Bags. 
Bags. 
Mexico  & C.  America. . 
997,200 
1,055,200 
900,900 
Venezuela 
612,300 
701,400 
713,900 
West  Indian  Island  . . 
269,300 
296,900 
214,600 
Haiti 
463,200 
449,700 
769,100 
