676 
THE TROPICAL AGRICtlLTUltlSt. [April 1, 1903. 
Kubber continnea to make satisfactory growth, and 
it is proposed to plant up a favttier 15 acres in this 
product during 1903. The acreage of the Company's 
properties is as follows : — 
VO&AN AND IdDAGODDE. A. B, P. 
Tea in full bearing over 4 years . . 6D8 3 33 
Tea in partial bearing under 4 years 119 0 10 
Tea under 2 years old .. .. 25 0 0 
Rubber .. .. ,, 10 0 0 
Reserve .. .. .. 515 1 38 
Stamford Hill and Barkindale. 
Tea in full bearing 
1,328 2 1 
. 220 0 0 
Total Acreage.. 1,548 2 1 
In terms of the Articles of Association Mr. R, W. 
Harrison retires from the Boaid or Directors, but 
being eligible, offers himself for re-election. It will 
also be necessary to elect an Auditor for 1903. 
UNION ESTATES COMPANY, LIMITED. 
KEPOKT OF THE DIRECTORS. 
Directors :— Messrs W D Gibbon, F L Clementsi 
G M Alston. Estate Inspector.— Mr W D Gibbon- 
Estate Superintendents. — Hayes Group : Mr R J 
Trimen. Dba Ella : Mr W li Vanderslott, 
ACREAGE. 
i~ be 
g a 
P-T. 
»^ 
Hayes Group 509 
Dea Ella 243 
o g ^ a> 
a o 
Q H 
... 30 542 
81 . . 324 
EH 
1.669 2,211 
162 486 
752 3 81 30 866 1,831 2,697 
The Directors submit herewith to the Shareholders 
of the Company the Report and Accounts tor the 
pist year. The Crops secured on Daa Ella were 
65,606 lb Tea, 162 : 3 : 17 : cwt Cocoa, 21,173 Coconuts 
and small quantities of Vauilla and Pepper ; the Tea 
realizfd 30'8l cents per lb and the Cocoa soM RSl 04 
per cwt nett as against 30 69 cents and R33 15 respec- 
tively in 1901. The crops from Hayes Gtoup am'iunted 
to 253,787 1b. Tea and 1,741 lb Cardamoms realizing 
nett 27'45perlb Tea and81'20 cents per lb Cardiimoms 
sold, as against 30'71 cents and Rl*14 respectively in 
1901. The shortfall in tea crop was due to the very 
nntavouiable weather experienced o-i both Estates 
during the last four mouths of the year and to attacks 
of Helopeltis on some of the lower fields on Hayes 
Estate, which seriously affected the crop there. Every 
step is being taken to deal with this pest. The amount 
itt debit of Profit and Loss Accouut at the end of 1901, 
R830'55 was reduced by R450 08 realized m excess of 
the estimated value of balances of crops then unsoU, 
leaving K380'47 to be brought forward to debit of 1902 
accounts. To this must be added lha balance of R1.688' 
74 lods on 1902 working account. The only Capital ex- 
penditure during the past year has been the instalments 
due for the construction of the Hayes Road amountiag 
to K6,776'07. There is now only one further instalment 
of r'3 291'21 due on 30th Juns, which will complete 
all expenditure on this Account. The Estimate 
for 1903 is 323,820 lb Tei, 180 cwt Cocoa, 30,000 Coco- 
nuts and 2,000 lb Cardamoms, on an expenditure on 
Working Account of R91, 509.99. During the past year 
the Hon Mr W H Figg resigned his seat on the 
Board of Directors and the vacancy has been tilled by 
the appointment of MrF L Clements. In terras of the 
Articles of Association, Mr W U Gibbon retires from 
the Office of Director, but is eligible for re-election. 
The appoiutnaent of an Auditor for tbe Cttrreut year 
^ill reit wilb the Me^tin, 
THE COLOMBO TEA TRADERS' 
ASSOCIATION. 
INCREASED SAMPLING ALLOWANCES; THE WEIGHT 
OF PACKAGES, AND FALSE PACKING. 
The Annual General Meeting of the (Jolouibo 
Tea Traders' Associaiion was held at the Chamber 
of Commerce Rooms oa Feb. 27ih. The Hon. Mr. 
Stanley Bois,- Cliairnian of the Association, 
presided, and there were also pre.«ent :— Hon 
Mr J N Ctmpbell, Messrs G H Alston, J G 
Wardrop, A Thoni.son, A H Ayden, H J Scott; 
J H Adfims, S Brown, A Prideanx, W Shak.s- 
peare, E R Waldock, G Cioll, AW Willis, S O 
Jones, A F West, O M Aste, F M Mackwood, 
W Sonierville, H M Waldock, W E Keell, W P 
Ampenoff, A O'dell Figg, W E Mitchell, A R A 
Heath, H B Phillips, Gonlon Frazer, A H Barber, 
H E Day, Seymour P JefFery, Dyer, A O Rainnie, 
D Edward?, H Walihew, C W Booty, Alexander 
Fail lie, A E Lubbock, L O Leefe, C M Wright, 
G A Ginn, E Webb, E B Walker, W E Drury, 
J Locliore, K Davidson, W R Sands and. W 
Bartleet. 
The minutes ot the previous meeting were read. 
THE ANNUAL REPORT. 
Your Committee have now pleasure in presenting 
to you their Report and Accounts for the past year. 
Meetings. — Three General Meetings have been 
held during the period under review, the first being 
the usual Annual General Meeting, a report of which 
appeared in the local press, on the 28th February 
last ; the second being an Emergency Meeting on 
30th Ma.y to discuss the operation of the increase 
in the Cess, which was to become law on the 1st June ; 
and the third also an Emergency Meeting on the 9th 
December, to decide the dates of the two last Sales of 
the year. Your Committee have, in addition, met 
frequently to consider several matters of interest 
which have been brought to their notice. 
Prosecution of Melbourne Tea Importers. — This 
incident, which has been ventilated in the local press, 
was directly dealt with by the Chamber of Commerce, 
with whom, however, your Committee have kept closely 
in touch. From correspondence which the Chamber 
has had both with the Ceylon Government and the 
Melbourne Chamber of Commerce, it would appear 
that the prosecutions referred to were the immediate 
effect of a Cuutom's Ordinance which is open to 
criticism, rather than of an arbitrary interpretation 
of such Ordinance by the Melbourne Minister of 
Customs. The Australian and Colombo Tea Trades 
are in sympathy on this question, and it is to be hoped 
that further efforts to secure an amelioration of so 
stringent an Ordinance will meet with success. 
Patent Packages.— The Agents of Australian Mail 
Steamers have been approached with the object of 
securing an alteration in the Bill of Lading. Instead 
of the weight of a package being limited to 1001b. 
nett, it is suggested that it sbouid be 1301b. gross, 
thereby removing a disability from patent packages, 
which are constructed to contain over 100 lb. nett. 
The proposal was referred to your Committee, but did 
net meet with its support. 
Sampling Allowance.— Owing to the increase in the 
number of buyers and the larger demand for samples 
for foreign countries, there is a feeling that the small 
samples now being distributed in the Fort are iosuffi- 
oieut, and a suggestion has been put forward that the 
sampling allowance should be increased from 3 to 51b. 
A resolution to that effect forms part of the business 
to be brought forwaid at the aonual ^eoeral ui9etiD0 
