2C0 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Oct. 1, 1900. 
lb. dearer; firsts 9.'> to Is Id ; seconds !)';d to 
lid; thirds OVi to lid; and toarliis to yd per 
lb. A few lols of native growth sold ut 2d to 
7d per lb. for fifths to firsts. 
The sale of the "worked"" cinnamon was very 
exceptional, and for most of tlie marks tiie in- 
crease in price ranged from Id up to Id per 
lb. Tlie opening bids for tlie leading mark, 
were cautiously made, and it appeared tliat 
easier prices vrere likely to be established. 
As the lots progressed, a strong spirit of com- 
petition set in between two or three of tlie leading 
buyers, with the result tliat prices were forced 
in some cases 2d to 4d per li). firsts, seconds 
and thirds occasionally being practically bought 
at nearly the same price. Some lots sold at excep- 
tionally high prices ; these, however, must not 
be taken as representing true market value, and 
such prices are not likely to be obtained again. 
Firsts realized Is Id to IsJUd ; Seconds 10.;^d to Is 
7d ; Thirds !)i to Is 7d ; Fourths .S^d to Is Id per lb. 
About 1,300 Bales wild Ceylon were quite neg- 
lected and all bought in. Of low chips and bark, 
.some 1800 bags offered and were nearly all, with- 
drawd for lack of bids, a few bags Bark being 
sold atld,'Chips 3d and Quillings &c. (5h to lOdper ib. 
Stocks of Ceylon 2,541 bales ; Wdd i,o-Sl bales ; 
Ckips 5,205 bags ; and Wild Bark, &c. 8,037 bales. 
Next Auctions 26th November. 
FOIUJES, FOKBKS AND Co., J/l'D. 
CEYLON IMPORT DUTY ON TEA. 
Ceylon iniiioses a 25 cents import duty on all 
foreign teas coming into the Island. The aboli- 
tion "of this altogether unjustifiable duty has 
all along been opposed by Ceylon planters. 1 he 
Ceylon Observer suggests tliat the Planters' 
Association should move the Imperial Customs 
officials to fix a pi'oper tea standard so as to 
exclude rubbishy and worse teas. The unfor- 
tunate part of the business is that Ceylon alone 
dees not suffer, our produce likewise gets a bad 
name. People in Australia and other parts of 
the world are not, generally, sulficiently well 
versed in geograpiiy to distinguish between 
Ceylon and' Indian teas— to tlie'ii they are one 
and tlie same. We think that all the Tea Asso- 
ciations (London, ,Indian and (Jeylon) should 
take cognisance of the matter, and, working in 
unison, adopt measures to move Her Majesty's 
Customs to fix some proper standard at all ports, 
.so as to prevent the shipping of rubbishy teas, 
and worse, from the countries of production. 
AVe have never been able to understand the 
action of the Crown colony imposing a 25 cents 
import duty on our produce considering that its 
teas are admitted free into this country. The tax 
is undoubtedly detrimental to the best commercial 
interests of the Colombo port, as, were it not for 
this prohibitive duty, Southern Indian tea at least 
•would be shipped for sale to that mart. Some 
time ago we suggested Indian teas being shipped 
to Colombo and there blended and sold, making 
that place the great Indo Ceylon mart for all 
Indian and Ceylon teas. The suggestion, lor 
obvious reasons, met with no favour, and our 
fellow-planters in the Island weie dead against 
it, for it of course meant the abolition of ilie 25 
cents imjtort duty. We trust that they will now 
see that the retention of the tax is opposed to their 
best interests. A fixed and proper tea standard 
by Her Majest,y's Customs would do away with 
ail necessity' for' ilie duty, and its abolition would 
lead to a great expansion of business in Colondio; 
whicdi would greatly benefit the Island in very 
many more ways than one.— Indian Planters' 
Gazette, Sept. 8. 
BOOK KIFLES FOR SMALL GAME IN 
CEYLON. 
(To the Editor of "Hie Asian.''') 
Sir, — In a recent issue of your valuable jour- 
nal 1 noti'.-ed a most interesting article by your 
constant correspondent, " Fieur-de-lys. '' He 
brought to the notice of s|)ort-!men a branch of 
sport fev.' lealiss th"^ existence of — myself amongst 
tlie number — viz, the excellent rook rifle prac- 
tice to be had at small game of which there is an 
alMind^iice in the 1 )W ountry of Ceylon, and 
which ofl'/r abs(>lutely no sport with the gun. In 
the tank countiy tl imingoes .and the larger kind 
of water birds, inlanJ j ickal, big squirrels, lures 
and pigeon of variou^ kinds are very plentiful, and 
afibrd splendid testsof skill wii li tliesniall-bore rifle, 
while there would be no fun in shooting tliem willi 
a shot gun> It is only done when shooting for 
"the pot" and wlien there is no danger of disiurb- 
ing better game. The great objection, in Ceylon 
atany rate, is the necessity of taking an extra 
rifle lor two rea^^ons, viz.,(\) the wrong weapon is 
sure to be htinded to you by the wretched 
'trackers" (?l we have to employ; (2) t!ie great 
trouble of having to keep an extra gun clean — this 
is no small consideration out here as our servants 
are quite iuca]iible of keeping firearms clean, more 
especially small-bores, which they soon succeed in 
chocking : if you value the weapon you must clean 
it yourself. However, your correspondent suggests 
the use f>fawe.ip'jn which is aiiapted to shoot 
\vith a reduced charge. With thi.s end in view I 
have been experimenting with a breecti adaptor 
and the niiu'ature cartridges in a Ma' tini-Metford 
•3j3 by Kigby. I may bs unfortunate wiuh the 
ammunition, but theaccuracy with ^hese cartridges 
has bsen most disappointing. What diagrams 
would your correspondent (who is undoubtedly an 
expert) think possible at 50 and 100 yds.? Has he, 
or any of your reader-, had any experience with 
the "latest, American rifle, the Savage, which 
Messrs. Westly liichards have taken up the agency 
of ? This rifle has a most taking a|)pearanne, being 
haiMinerless witha self-containeii magazine (6 shot). 
It shoots a nickel soft-noBed bullet with very much 
the same velocity and force of the British '.303, and 
it also has a miniature cartridge which is claimed 
to shoot with great ])reeision uj) to 100 yds. The 
price is also most reasonable, viz., about £4 0 0. 
Any information on this subject from any of your 
readers will greatly oblige others as well as— M. L. 
W.— Madukellie (Ceylon), .30th August, 1900. 
— Asian, Sejit. lltli. [The above initials will be 
recognised at once as those of a well-known young 
Knuckles planter and sportsman.- Ed. CO.] 
Short Crop op Cacao in Central 
America. — Up to the present time the short- 
age of cacao from the Machala and Sauta 
Ro.sa districts exceeds 10,003 bags says a 
Gtiayaqnil correspondent of the B. 1\ Journal, 
of July 15. This represents an average value of 
a quarter of a million sterling, or one-fifth 
of the exports. Not only does this alone 
cause a despondent feeling in coiuraercial 
circles, but the civil war in Colombia along 
the Ecuadorian frontier also has a bad effect 
on trade. The export tables of coffee, rubber, 
hides, and vegetable ivory or tagua show 
that there exists a considerable amount of 
excessive trading as well as speculation. 
