THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST,  fJUNE  i,  1893. 
happy,  must  do  the  best  they  can,  and  we  need  no 
■bring  it  home  to  them,  that  they  are  not  of  the 
‘ favored." 
But  I would  ask  “ Planter  ” to  revise  hia  Estimates 
for  working  an  Upeountry  Estate.  He  says  the  local 
cost  of  producing  350  lb.  per  acre  is  32  cts.  I cer- 
tainly think  it  need  not  he — provided  the  factory  is 
completely  equipped. 
I send  you  an  Estimate  which  I know  can  be 
worked  to : — 
Estimate  for  working  400  acres  giving  350  lb.  per  acre. 
Supervision  and  allowances  . . R6,360 
Tools  . . 200 
Roads  and  drains  . . 600 
Pruning  say  170  acres 'yearly,  all  to  be 
pruned  in  18  months 
Weeding 
Bungalow  lines  and  Tea-house  upkeep 
Boundaries,  watchmen,  &c. 
Manure,  clearing  lines,  &c. 
Crop  charges  140,000  lb.  at  15  cts., 
Plucking  9 cts.,  all  other  charges  to 
shipboard  6 cts. 
Contingencies,  repairs  to  machinery  . 
1,500 
4,800 
1,000 
400 
600 
21,000 
1,500 
R37.960 
140,000  lb.  say  at  27  cts.  leaving  a profit  greater  by 
R7,000,  than  “Planter’s”  figures  show.  That  the  pluck- 
ing can  be  done  for  9 cts.  I can  prove  by  several 
instances.  The  remaining  6 cts.  of  crop  charges  are 
ample,  when  Agents  do  not  enforce,  or  extort  their 
own  charges.  If  Agency  and  Brokerage  cost  3J  per 
cent  instead  of  the  1 or  1J  they  need  cost,  then  it  is  not 
the  fault,  but  the  misfortune  of  the  planter.  A Y.  A. 
or  a proprietor  can  easily  see  how  a cent  can  be 
saved  per  lb.  from  above  Estimate.  X.  Y.  Z. 
STALKS  IN  TEA. 
Dear  Sib, — I do  not  think  the  Etalks  in  tea 
“ discovered  ” by  Mr.  Hughes  have  any  connection 
with  “Patent  Tea  Pluckers”;  but  simply  are  what 
have  always  existed  and  always  will.  This  illus- 
trates the  objection  I have  always  had  to  scientific 
interference  with  tea  planting.  Here  we  have  our 
adviser  and  friend,  who  might  also  become  our 
paid  adviser,  crying  “ stmking-fiBh,’’  that  is 
inviting  attention  to  points  our  enemies  the 
Minoing  Lane  Buyers  and  Dealers  generally 
would,  if  they  could,  be  glad  to  take  advantage 
of.  Sometime  ago  I examined  some  small  leaf 
tea  a traveller  to  Japan  had  brought  with  him. 
After  infusion  on  a plate  a large  proportion  was 
small  stalk.  But  of  course  tea-experts  know  all 
about  this  new  “ disoovery  ” ; only  brokers,  et  hoc 
gems  omne.  will  keep  dark  whenever  anything  can 
be  said  to  depreciate  the  produce  they  live  by 
snapping  up.  PRODUCER. 
[But  surely,  “ Producer”  would  like  to  have  all 
the  information  which  soienoe  can  afford  him ; 
and  especially  when,  as  in  Mr.  Hughes'  report,  the 
teas  were  tabulated  according  to  the  prices  real- 
ized, showing  the  properties,  &o,  which  were  ap- 
parently valued  by  experts.  If  there  is  too  much 
“ stalk,"  is  it  not  possible  by  careful  plucking  to 
do  something  to  reduoe  it?-— En.  T.A.~\ 
“ ECONOMY  ALL  ALONG  THE  LINE  ?” 
Upeountry,  May  13. 
Dear  Sir,— If  you  have  not  ce-n  the  extracts  on 
other  side,  they  may  be  of  interest  at  the  present 
time,  the  notes,  of  course,  apply  to  a temperate 
climate,  but  how  much  more  exhausting  must  a 
tropioal  olimate  be. — Yours  truly, 
AN  OLD  COFFEE  STUMP. 
P.S.—  “ Economy  " all  along  the  line  is  the 
latest  from  “ the  City  — 
“ In  every  oase  the  produce  of  • field  and  the  dura- 
tion of  its  fertility  bear  a fixed  relation  to  the  sum  of 
the  mineral  substanoes  in  the  soil.  The  abundance 
of  the  crop  is  proportional  to  the  rapidity  of  the  action 
of  the  mineral  matters  in  a given  time,  the  total  pro- 
duce of  a field  over  a given  time  is  not  increased,  but 
ody  the  quantity  obtained  in  a given  time." 
" The  deduction  is  that  agriculture,  as  at  present 
persued,  tends  to  a present  quiokening  and  increase  of 
prodnoe  at  the  cost  of  the  future  exhaustion  of  soils.” 
Thus  Liebig  says  : — “ The  prevailing  system  of  agri- 
culture tor  balf-a-century  has  been  one  of  spoliation, 
and  that  if  persisted  in,  the  inevitable  result  will  be, 
at  no  distant  date,  the  ruin  of  the  fields  of  agri- 
culturist." 
Again: — “The  apprrently  remunerativeemployment  of 
these  means  on  many  fields  may  last  for  a long  time, 
ere  the  agriculturist  becomes  aware  of  the  injury  be  is 
doing  himself  by  neg'ecting  to  return  the  mineral  sub- 
stances removed  by  his  crops  ; but  the  longer  he  con- 
tinues by  them  to  obtain  larger  crops,  be  is  approaching 
nearer  and  nearer  the  limits  at  which  they  must  cease.” 
A DISASTROUS  COFFEE  SPECULATION. 
The  record  of  another  disastrous  speculation  has 
been  added  to  the  history  of  coffee.  This  had  a strong 
basis  of  support  in  the  prospective  short  crop  of  coffee 
in  1893-94.  The  statistical  position  and  outlook  war- 
ranted a belief  in  high  prices  tor  coffee.  Working  upon 
this,  one  Kaltenbach,  an  operator,  resident  in  Europe, 
became  the  head  of  a clique  which  carried  an  enor- 
mous quantity  of  coffee.  Kaltenbach  was  reputed  as 
having  made  in  his  venture  over  $1,000,000.  As  usual 
with  bull  speculators,  he  accumulated  a heavy  holding 
and  advanced  the  price  of  coffee  by  hie  own  opera- 
tions. The  visible  supply  kept  increasing  and  Kal- 
tenbach  was  unable  to  market  his  coffee  at  ruling  high 
prices.  The  market  steadily  receded,  and  as  Kalten- 
baoh’s  paper  profits  faded,  be  was  pressed  for  margins 
on  a rapidly  declining  market.  Down,  down,  down, 
went  piices  for  the  past  few  days,  and  down  went 
Kaltenbach,  oarrying  with  him  the  large  and  wtll- 
kuowu  firm  of  Thomas  M.  Barr  &Oo.,  his  American 
brokers.  The  closing  piices  of  No.  7 coffee,  Exchange 
standard,  on  the  evening  before  the  Good  Friday 
holidays,  compare  with  the  closing  prices  Tuesday 
night,  April  18,  as  follows 
March  3o.  April  18. 
May  16.35  at  16.40  13.05  at  1310 
June  16.26  at  16  30  13.05  at  13.10 
July  16.20  at  16.25  13,05  at  13.10 
August 16.16  at  16.20  13.05  at  13.10 
September  ...  16.15  at  16.20  13  05  at  13.10 
During  Tuesday,  May  told  at  12.75c  ; June  at 
12.1’Oc  ; July  at  12.65c  ; August  at  12.70c  ; September, 
the  most  extensively  traded  iD,  at  12.60c.  After  theee 
figures  the  market  closed  steady  at  the  recovery  shown 
above. 
The  above  comparative  figures  show  a decline  of 
3.10  at  3.30c,  or  over  $4  per  bag.  If,  as  reported,  the 
clique  carried  750,000  bags,  it  is  evident  that  in  closing 
the  deni,  the  loss  wiped  out  all  tbe  reputed  profits  of 
the  members  and  their  original  capital. 
All  ol  this  does  not  destroy  the  fact  that  the  sta- 
tistical position  of  coffee  is  strong  and  that  now, 
liquidation  having  been  forced,  prices  are  more  likely 
to  advance  than  decline. — American  Grocer. 
Tropical  Fruits  and  Flowers. — The  Editcr 
of  the  “ Horticultural  Times  ” in  his  issue  of  April 
22nd,  pays  a high  compliment  to  our  correspondent 
“ Old  Oolonist."  He  writes  : — 
“ In  a very  interesting  series  of  articles  from  the 
pen  of  Arthur  Sinolair,  now  appearing  in  the  Tropical 
Agriculturist,  we  cull  tbe  lollow  ng  which  caojot  tail 
to  be  of  interest  to  the  horticultural  world  The 
subject  treats  on  travalB  in  Peru  and  the  Upper 
Valley  of  the  Amazon,  and  a perusal  of  the  writer's 
description  of  the  luxuriant  vegetation  is  sufficient 
to  make  any  enthusiastic  representative  of  ‘ tbe  art 
that  doth  mend  nature  ’ yearn  for  a trip  to  the  home 
of  the  graceful  palm.” 
Then  follows  a reproduction  of  the  paper  re- 
ferred to. 
