Jan. 1, 1903.] THE TROPICAL AGRICUI.TURIST. 
dom^panb ence. 
To the Editor. 
MR. R. V. WEBSTER AND PURE 
CEYLON TEA: 
"THE MAN FOR ST, LOUIS?" 
CuHen, N.B., 4th Nov., 1902, 
Dear Sib,— I enclose a booklet that came 
to hand last night, sent by Mr. Webster and, 
I think, you will admit there is food for 
reflection in its contents : — 
(1) Mr. Webster has for twelve years sold 
only pure Ceylon teas. 
(2) He has hitherto sold them all in "foreign 
countries" and till now has sold none in 
Great Britain. 
These I take it, are the essence of the 
aims of the "Thirty Committee's " efforts and 
yet what recognition or assistance has he 
received at their hands* ? 1 recollect advo- 
cating his cause on the Planters' Association 
Committee or " Thirty Committee some 
years ago, about the time he was complain- 
ing that not only had his teas sent to 
Chicago Exhibition been improperly exhi- 
bited, but that the very copies of his illus- 
trations in his booklet has been pirated by 
an opposing firm; but my efforts bore little 
fruit. Years have passed since then, and 
while the business of almost every Ceylon 
planter, who started tea-vending, has become 
bankrupt or sunk into insignificance, Mr. 
Webster's business has increased all over the 
world, till it is now of considerable magni- 
tude, and he is this year spending about 
£5,000 in advertiser) lenLs alone, and hopes to 
bring his sales up to three to four million 
pounds. 
He mentioned in conversation that he seri- 
ously contemplated making a new departure 
and selling blends with teas of other coun- 
tries in them, as he could purchase Indians 
at better values than Ceylons, and as al- 
though he had consistently sold pure Ceylon 
teas hitherto his efforts had hardly been 
recognised, while he saw others subsidised 
with Ceylon planters' moneys, selling blends 
containing Indian and China teas. 
Till this booklet came to hand I was un- 
aware that he had carried his ideas into 
execution and in losing him as a vendor of 
exclusively pure Ceylon teas we have lost 
the most enterprising and successful man 
who handled them. Under the circumstances 
he is quite right to handle the teas which 
will give him best returns, but whether the 
"Thirty Committee" would not do well to 
try and induce him to again handle purely 
Ceylon te.is is another matter. I believe it 
would pay them well to do so.— Yours 
faithfully, 
L. DAVIDSON. 
P.S.—U\\ Webster told me that a shop- 
keeper in one of the ports, wliere the Boer 
L*How long ago is it since Mr, Webster 
drew £500 from the Cess Fund— and was 
he not favored at the Paris Exhibition ?— 
Ed; .^1,] 
60 
471 
prisoners landed, secured 100 boxes imported, 
duty free, cheap, from the prisoners " with 
the compliments of the Planters' Association" 
on them. L, D. 
THE COCONUT-AND QUESTIONS 
PROM AUSTRALIA. 
Wahroonga, New South Wales, Nov. 17. 
Sir, — Will you kindly inform me if coconut 
oil suitable for use as a substitute for dairy 
butter, mutton, beef and hog's fat is pro- 
duced in Ceylon? If so is the oil made from 
the fi'esh nuts or from copra? What other 
articles ai'e produced from the coconut 
that are suitable for use in connection with 
human food ? 
About how many tons of copra are shipped 
from Ceylon per annum, and how much 
coconut oil and how much of other coconut 
products? I would like to see a copy of your 
paper with reply to above questions. — Yours, 
M. G. KELLOGG, M.D. 
[Dr, Kellogg will find a good deal of the 
information he wants in our '■ Manual of 
the Coconut Palm " and the needful statistics 
in the copy of our "T.A," we send him. 
No doubt his enquiries are prompted by the 
fact that owing to the drought in Aus- 
tralia almost extinguishing the export of lard, 
coconut oil, " butter " and other products of 
the palm are in special demand,— Ed, T,A.]\ 
BEANS— AND BEANS. 
Boer Camp, Nov. 20, 
Dear Sib, — Can you give me any parti- 
culars concerning the Tongan Bean adver* 
tised in your columns :— whether a heavy 
cropper or otherwise and if usable as a good 
cooking bean. I am forwarding you another 
bean pod which is strange to me, and the 
name of which I would like to have and 
also any other particulars concerning same. 
I have no doubt the information may be 
interesting to others besides — Yours etc., 
VISITOR, 
[The Tonga, Tonka or Tonquin bean is the 
Dipterix odorata of botanists and this is 
what we are told about it : — 
"D. odorata yields the fragrant seed called Ton- 
quin, Tonka, or Tonga bean, used for scenting 
snuff. Perfumers also obtain an extract from it, 
which forms an ingredient in some bouquets, and 
tlie pulverised seed is employed in the prepara- 
tion of sachet powders. The odour resembles that 
of new-mown liay, and is due to tlie presence of 
cuiimarine . The tree producing these seeds grows 
sixty or eighty feet high, and is a native of Oayenne. 
The fruit bears some resemblance to that of the 
almond tree, and the seed or bean is shaped like an 
almond, but much longer, and is covered with a 
shining black skin." 
The bean pods sent by our correspondent 
are surely of the ordinary broad-beau species 
—a little varied by climate and mode of 
cultivation? To settle the matter, "Visitor" 
should send a pod and leaves to Mr. Nock 
of the Hakgala Gardens.— Ed. T.A.] 
