682 
ItiE TliOPICAi. AGEICULTUKIST. [April I, 1903. 
fair he should read to them a few remarks from a 
leller wliicli had been sent to them by Messrs- J T 
de Saram and D B Seneviratne who were native 
buyers, in tliat n)arkef. Proceeding the Cliair- 
man quoted largely from the followiiie letter : — 
A rROlJiST BY NATIVE BUYERS. 
63, Maliban-street, Pettah, Colombo. 16ih Feb. 1903. 
F W Waldock. E^q., Secretary, 
Colombo Tea Traders' Association, Colombo. 
Sir, — On behalf of the native eellera and buyers who 
patronise the Weekly Tea Sales held at the Cham- 
ber of Commerce, allow us to take objection to the 
saggeated introduction of certain new rules formibg 
the subject of the 5th and 6th Besolationa to be pro- 
posed aC the AuDual General Meeting of the Colombo 
Tea Traders' Association to be held on the 27th inst. 
We humbly beg to submit that if the proposed rules 
be passed and adopted by your Association they will 
involve great harclsbips on native sellers and buyers 
of Tea, and such rales will not iu any way improve 
the Tea market, nor will they ou the other hand be 
conducive to the benefit of the European Tea grower 
or planter. 
As far as we could see, the adoption of these 
rules will only benefit the Broker, who will have 
to be paid an extra commission for buying Tea at 
the Chamber of 'Jommerce Tea Sales for native dealers. 
The other tlternative allowed for the native 
seller is that their Tea should be bulked and re- 
packed in the stores of a bona fide Member of Ibe 
Colombo Tea Traders' Association, which would be 
an expensive process as far as the native seller is 
concerned, and ultimately the benefit accruing 
from this will also result only iu the advantage 
of the European Storekeeper. The native dealer 
has to sell his Teas cheaper than his European 
brother, and that be should be mulsted in ex- 
tra brokerage or commission as a result of 
these rules coming into force would be very 
unfair and would absorb altogether the little 
profit he makes. These rules wouid therefore be an 
infliction principally on the Colombo Tea Traders' 
Association, on the native sellers and buyers, and 
they appear to be fiamed with the object of restricting 
natives dealing in Ceylon's staple without any justi- 
fication whatever for so doing. A good proportion of 
the Teas purchased by the natives at the auction sales 
are used tor local consumption. The local retail dealers 
get their supplies of Tea from those who purchased at 
the Tea sale of the Chamber of Commerce. And under 
the new rules, Tea for these dealers could only be 
obtained at an extra expense. This would be an 
unnecessary additional tax on the local consumer. 
Finally, we beg to submit that there is no ne- 
cessity for the innovations contemplated. It has 
been the custom for many years for natives to 
offer and Luy Teas a t these Sales. The conditions 
of sale which now obtuiu at these Sales have not been 
found panting — wanting in the sense as to make any 
invidious improvements affecting the native dealer 
only. If these rules have been suggested by any other 
motive, such as the prevention of fraud and deception 
in the packing and bulking of Tea by the native seller 
only, we beg to state that the 7th clause of the existing 
ouditions of sale is quite ample to meet the case, and 
that under this clause any Tea not properly offered 
could be re-jected.l |We beg to inform you that a copy 
of this letter has been sent to the Chairman of the 
Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and for the reasons 
tlready urged, and for other reasons, we trust that the 
^oposed rules will not be passed by your Association 
towards which end we solicit your co-operation by duly 
presenting this letter before the meeting ou the 27ih 
instant.— We beg to remain, Sir, Yours faithfully, 
(Signed.) J. T. De SARAM. 
( „ ) D. B. SENEVIRATNE. 
Proceeding the Chairman said he felt perfectly 
certain that no native trader, who was carrying 
on a legitimate trade, would be hampered in any 
^ay by Uiul Aeaociation. lie could yuly lurtlier 
say that he welcomed with pleasure the remarks 
of Mr. ^yebb and Mr. Campbell on the fub- 
ject of the positiou of the Planters' Asisociatiou 
lor he felt su.e any opposition they could possibly 
have could only he due to their not thoroughly 
understanding the object of the resolution. (Ap- 
plause.) 
The resolution was put and cairied nem con. 
The Chairman :— Before going further I might 
ask when this new regulation is to come into force. 
Mr, Dkuey :— I would suggest firtt sale in 
April. 
flon. Mr. Campbell :— Is that the first of.April? 
(Laughter.) 
The Chairman :— These regulations will be 
printed as conditions of sale, 1 suppose. 
Mr. Druky :-- Yes. 
A RESOLUTION WITHDRAWN. 
The Chairman — who was to have moved on 
beha,lf of Messrs. Bois Bios — " That adtnission 
to the Tea Sales at the Ceylon Chamber of Com- 
merce Rooms shall be strictly confined to Mem- 
bers of the Association, their accredited represen- 
tatives, and visitors introduced by them ' .said that 
in view of the previous resolution he did not 
think it was necessary lo put that before them 
aud with the permission of the meeting he begged 
leave to withdraw the same. 
WEIGHT OF PACKAGES TO AUSTRALIA: 
FREE TRADE IN TEA BOXES WANTED. 
Mr. J G Wardrop— (Colombo Commercial 
Company, Ltd.)— moved the following resolution 
standing in his firm's name :— That the Steamship 
Companies be asked to substitute for the existing 
clause inserted on all Bills of Lading for Tea 
shipped to Australia, which is as follows : — 
' No package to contain more than 100 lb tea ; 
otherwise the sleamer is not responsible nor liable 
for damage." 
The following, viz: — 
" No package of tea to weigh more than 129 ib 
gross ; otherwise the steamer is not responsible 
nor liable for damage." 
The original clause referred to in that resolution 
was inserted 7 years ago with the object of 
minimising the claims of the shipping Companies 
with respect to that tea. He thought they must 
admit it as a fact that the producer in the past 
had not been as careful of package-s to send Co 
lombo for sale as to the sale in London and hence 
the necessity lor that clause in the Bills of Lading. 
At the time that clause was brought into oper- 
ation patent packages were used to a very small 
extent. Now a patent package can be legiti- 
mately said to contain 110 lbs. of tea against 100 
in the wooden packages and the consequent eflect 
of that stipulation of the Bills of Lading is to 
penalise the users of the patent boxes. If they 
adopted that resolution he was now moving it 
would inflict no hardship on the wooden packages 
and it would pub the patent packages in a more 
fair position. There was no restriction in tlie 
amount packed from Colombo to London or to 
any country except Australia with regard to the 
value of the patent packets, he could only mention 
the case of a Company doing business in Ceylon 
with Russia. Their Russian friends found the 
patent boxes useful and well adapted to their 
tiade, strong, lieht and capable of standing long 
aud varied trans^-ort. He thought they were 
sufficiently used to warrant their takine this 
action. " 
