698 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[May  1,  1S93. 
revealed  to  ue,  namely,  that  the  “plucking”  of  tea-leaf 
on  the  fields  of  not  a few  of  cur  laiger  ‘ tea  concerns 
(to  use  an  Anglo-Indian  business  term)  is  guided  or 
influenced,  by  telegraph  from  London.  For  in- 
stance, plucking  on  not  a few  places  has  become  a 
little  freer  if  not  coarser  ever  since  it  became 
clear  that  the  home  trade  were  determined 
to  have  cheap  teas.  It  can  be  seen  how  im- 
portant it  is  for  large  Companies  or  the  owners  of 
plantations  of  500  or  more  acres,  to  have  early  and 
accurate  information  of  this  kind  ; for  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that  even  a little  change  in  the 
pluoking  may  materially  influence  profits  when 
“ Pekoe  Souchongs”  are  within  2d  a lb  of  “ Broken 
Pekoes  ” or  when,  as  happened  the  other  day 
“broken  tea”  described  by  the  Loridnn  Agents  as 
mere  stuff,  sold  for  7Jd  a lb.  This  was  equal  to 
42  cents  in  Colombo  for  a tea  that  would  not  have 
realized  here  more  than  20  to  22  cents!  Without 
saying  that  “ coarse  ” has  superseded  “ medium  ’’ 
plucking  upcountry,  we  believe  the  tendency,  and 
very  naturally,  has  of  late  been  to  freer  plucking 
in  correspondence  with  the  tone  of  the  home 
market  and  that  this  faot,  as  well  as  the  favourable 
flushing  weather,  will  influence  the  large  quan- 
tities of  tea  which  April  and  May  will  see  pass 
through  Colombo.  It  is  already  asked  up- 
oountry  as  well  as  in  Colombo,  bow  the  “official’' 
estimate,  looks  in  the  face  of  the  facts  already 
realized  as  well  as  the  prospect  thus  described. 
With  a comparative  increase  of  4 millions  lb. 
on  the  first  quarter,  we  have  met  no  one  who 
anticipates  a less  proportionate  increase  in  the 
Becond  quarter.  What  then  about  the  third  and 
fourth  quarters  ? Without  looking  ahead  so  far,  it  is 
quite  evident  that  we  must  now  count  on  a total  ex- 
port in  txoess  of  80  million  lb.  iD  1893,  unless  some- 
thing very  unusual  occur;  and  our  special  desire 
at  present  is  that  our  friends,  the  buyers  already 
flocking  out  to  China,  would  bear  this  faot  in  mind 
and  be  guided  in  their  operations  on  behalf  of 
the  London  market  by  it,  to  some  extent  at  least. 
In  over  production,  or  rather  low  prices,  at  present 
lies  the  risk  before  our  tea-planters,  far  more  than 
in  any  enemy  or  drawback  incidental  to  local  culti- 
vation. As  has  been  said  again  and  agaiD,  we  can 
offer  such  a fight  to  even  the  minutest  enemy  that  may 
develope  in  the  hardy,  deep-rooted  tea  bush,  aB 
we  never  could  to  the  fungus  or  bug  on  coffee, 
and  what  therefore  we  have  occasion  to  be 
anxious  about  is  the  extent  to  which  Australia, 
and  especially  America,  is  likely  to  relieve  the 
London  market  of  our  Cc-ylon  tea  exports 
during  the  current  and  coming  years.  This, 
certainly,  then,  is  not  the  time  for  a 
contemporary,  to  indulge  in  abuse  of  the 
Americans  who — after  a fashion,  perhaps,  pe- 
culiar to  themselves  and  the  style  of 
business  in  their  country— have  been  undoubtedly 
advertising  and  distributing  our  teas  to  an  extent 
which,  malgre  the  Chicago  Exhibition,  could 
not  have  been  accomplished  by  any  other 
Bgenoy  that  Ceylon  planters  could  possibly  com- 
pass, for  many  years  to  come. 
Trout  in  New  Zealand.— “ I have  caught  this 
year,”  says  Mr.  fchury,  of  Ashburton  (N.  Z),  “ 213 
trout,  weighing  750  lb.  8 ozs.—one  fish  14  lb.  one 
12  lb„  two  of  101b.,  six  of  9 lb.,  six  of  8 lb.,  and 
thirteen  of  7 lb.,  and  any  quantity  from  3 lb.  to 
fib.”  This  appears  to  be  the  outcome  of  under 
wenty  days’  fishing.  On  November  21  he  took 
nineteen  fish,  weighing  109  lb.  4 ozs. ; and  on  the 
two  days  (January  2 and  3,  1893)  thirty-five  fisb, 
weighing  140  lb.  The  fisb  were  taken  from  the 
Jtakqia  a,nd  Ashburton  rivers. — Colonies  and  India. 
DARJEELING:  ITS  TEA  AND 
SANITARIUM. 
There  is  a marked  improvement  for  the  better  in 
the  weather  and  the  temperature  as  the  days  are 
decidedly  clearer,  better  and  warmer,  and  the  genial 
fo't  breath  of  summer  is  already  with  us.  The  sum- 
mer birds  are  beginning  to  return  from  below  end 
new  faces  are  to  be  met  every  day  and  ere  the  6Dd 
1 f the  month  the  season  will  be  in  fall  swing. 
Every  house  has  been  taken  up  and  Darjeelmg  pro- 
mises to  be  fuller  than  ever  this  year. 
Thanks  to  the  intelligent  energy  of  Mr.  Cary,  the 
General  Manager  of  the  Darjseling-Himalayan  Rail- 
way, a way  has  been  discovered  by  which  ample 
light  can  be  obtniued  for  working  the  Iooal  trains  op 
and  down  hill  with  perfect  .safety  on  the  darkest 
nights, 
The  good  people  of  Darjeeling  are  always  alive  to  the 
acquirements  of  their  beautiful  sanitarium  to  increase  its 
comforts,  conveniences,  popularity  aDd  attraction  as 
a summer  resort.  The  Municipality  has  done  much 
of  late  years  to  improve  things  and  have  just  spent 
1130,000,  borrow  e i from  Government,  in  perfeuting 
the  latrines  and  drains  and  are  now  taekling  the  water 
question  ; not  that  the  water  needs  improvement,  as 
it  is  the  best  and  purest  in  India,  but  ouly  that 
more  has  to  be  brought  in  from  the  supply  head  at 
Senchell  to  thoroughly  flush  the  new  and  improved 
drains  and  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  Dew  Military 
Cantonment  to  be  established  on  the  LabODg  Spur. — 
Indian  Planters'  Gazette,  March  11. 
JAMAICA  DRUG  AND  OTHER  CULTURES. 
The  annual  report  of  the  Director  of  the  Jamaica 
Botanical  Department  contains  a few  interesting  bits 
of  information  on  the  Drugs  exported  from  the  island. 
The  production  of  annatto  is  falling  off,  and  this  the 
writer  of  the  report  considers  strange,  though,  in  the 
light  of  the  prices  which  the  product  realises,  the  fact 
does  not  appear  so  very  extraordinary.  As  cattle  do 
not  eat  the  annatto-leaves,  the  plant  can  very  easily 
be  grown  along  the  fences  of  pastures.  Arrowroot  is 
not  a Jamaican  industry  ; only  a few  hundredweights 
of  it  are  exported  yearly.  The  main  reason  of  this  is 
that  it  is  an  unsuitable  crop  for  the  small  farmer,  as 
its  manufacture  requires,  the  use  of  more  expensive 
appliances  than  he  can  afford  and  of  greater  skill  than 
he  possesses.  The  shipments  of  quassia-wood  are 
increasing  very  quickly*.  They  have  multiplied  ten- 
fold within  five  years. 
The  growing  and  curing  of  ginger  is  a work  well 
suited  to  small  settlers,  and  the  exports  of  the  drug 
have  increased  considerably  of  late  years.  The  lime- 
juice  industry  might  be  made  more  flourishing  if  the 
essential  oil  of  the  limes  were  extracted  from  the  peel 
and  the  “first  quality  of  lime-juice  made  from  the 
drainings  of  the  fruit  when  cut  before  being  pressed 
to  make  the  “ concentrated  juice.”  The  cultivation 
of  liquorice  is  strongly  recommended  to  settlers. 
The  attention  of  planters  and  small  settlers  has  been 
directed  to  the  large  profits  to  be  made  in  the  cul- 
tivation of  nutmegs,  hence  this  industry  is  entered 
upon  with  spirit  and  energy,  as  many  as  20,978  plants 
having  been  sold  by  the  Department  during  the  year. 
All  the  nutmegs  used  as  seed  are  most  carefully 
selected  on  one  of  the  best  estates  in  Grenada.  Sub- 
joined are  the  figures  relating  to  the  export  of  the 
principal  Jamaican  drugs.  No  statistics  are  given  for 
the  year  1890  : — 
1892 
1891 
1839 
1888 
1887 
Annatto  . . 
..lb. 
476,735 
511,800 
456,874 
524,429 
363,669 
Do 
...£ 
3,973 
4,265 
3,799 
3,534 
6,1,61 
Quassia  . , 
.tons 
1,121 
924 
650 
219 
09 
Do 
...£ 
2,211 
1,818 
1,300 
437 
155 
Ginger.. . 
.cwt. 
10,273 
10,886 
8,952 
10,222 
9,927 
L’o 
..£ 
40,681 
24,493 
18,615 
19,463 
17,789 
Lime-juice  gal. 
116,705 
52,884 
77,745 
85,963 
96,153 
Do 
...£ 
4,865 
2,245 
3,239 
2,865 
3,205 
Pimento. . 
. .cw 
63.729 
90,302 
46,179 
66,559 
65,497 
Do 
..£ 
50,98 1 . 
81,326 
47,842 
44,728 
46,848 
—■Chemist  and  Druggist, 
