July 1, 1899.] THE TEOPICaL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
47 
Ceylon is now to be congratulated on gaining the 
active aid and experience of Mr. Blechyndeu, as his 
services have been secured by the shrewd, progressive 
firm of Messrs. Whittall & Co., of Colombo, whose 
interests he will guide and advance in America. 
The plan for the expenditure of the money voted 
for next year has not yet been disclosed to the public; 
but it will, doubtless, be largely on lines laid down 
and recommended ty Messrs. Blechynden and Mac- 
kenzie, who, it is to be hoped, wili not base their 
plans on a system of subsidies, which system can 
only be entered upon when guarded by conditions 
so stringent that no firm of high and honourable 
standing will care to accept. At best, this system is a 
poor make-shift aiiair, vicious in its bearings, and 
susceptible of great ahuse, and ending — usually — m 
dissatisfaction, loss and calumny. 
It may be accepted and recognised as a fact that 
both the American and Canadian consumer give the 
preference to Ceylon pure teas, andtake to them more 
readily than to the teas of India, which are, however 
us2d in larger proportions than Ceylon's for blending 
with and fortifying inferior teas of other countries 
My contention is that Ceylon has done but little 
more than tickle the f^round in the United States, 
and that more aggressive work is demanded ; while 
nc thought of decreasing our efforts should — for a 
moment — be entertained. 
A population of 75,000,000 people, increasing stead- 
ily and rapidly, cannot be reached without a pro- 
tracted and vigorous siege. The people who drink 
tea are not those who dwell in large cities, but they 
who live in the smaller towns, villages, and country, 
many of whom use it three times a day, while the 
majority of them never saw Ceylon tea ! How is it 
proposed to get at this class ? The retailer is the 
only medium that can be used, and he is the one to 
be helped. If, when granting a subsidy to a v/hole- 
sale man, it can be arranged that a poition, at least, 
goes to the retailer, — the latter will have an 
incentive and will, probably, do good work ; otherwise 
he will have nothing to gain, and much cannot be 
expected of him. A plan for reaching the real 
consuming class was suljmitted by me, but its very 
simplicity has, most likely, caused it to be received 
with disfavor, and yet the plan is a good one and 
can be elaborated and improved upon and made more 
workable. 
Canada is not nearly conquered; but it is fast com- 
ing into line. 
The lower or Maritime Provinces use nearly six 
pounds of tea per head per annum, whereas the upper 
i>rovinoes only consume about three pounds. 
The merchants of the Maritime Provinces have 
be"un an aggressive campaign and our interests will 
be"actively advanced by them, but, in the Upper 
Provinces, and in the Great North West, where large 
numbers of Russians are now settling, much remains 
to be done, and this work, we hope, will be conducted, 
with spirit and energy, by the merchants, who, how- 
ever, should be assisted in every possible way,that may 
be considered advisable. 
In Ml*. Renton's guiding hands we can confidently 
and safely leave our interests in France, Germany, 
Austria, Italy, and the lesser kingdoms of the Con- 
tinent ; but in Russia we have much to do, and our 
efforts should ha largely directed to securing a re- 
daction in the duties on tea, so as to bring our tea 
within the roach of the masses of the people. This 
must, of course, be done by the aid of the Imperial 
Government, and through the devious, delicate channels 
of diplomacy; but it is a matter of vast importance to 
Ceylon, and hence should be constantly kept in view. 
In order to reach the acme of success Ceylon 
must continue to agitate, be aggressive and, in 
some form, advertise. Now the principal objects to 
be striven for in advertising are to attract, impress, 
convince and convey to the mind something that 
will long be remembered. Having these matters 
constantly before us, we must study just what kind 
of advertisement will be best suited to our pur- 
pose, and what mediums shall be used to reach 
|he people we waul to capture- 
Nowhere is the act of advertising studied with 
greater fidelity and assiduity than in the United 
States, where men make it a vocation and give their 
undivided attention to it, and where ihey are a highly 
paid and absolutely necessary part of every establish- 
ment that seeks the purchasing public. 
Advertising that brings results must be bright, 
alert, aggressive and constant, and its main object as 
before stated, should be to attract and so impress the 
reader s mind that he will remember it. No ordinary 
advertisement will do this, nor will a lack of per- 
sistcnt effort ever lead to success. Jumping or makin" 
a spurt and then easing off will not accomplish 
anything permanent, and this leads me to conclude 
ray little say by imploring the " Thirty Committee " 
not to contract, but, on the contrary, to expand and 
increase its efi'orts in the United States, where a rich 
aud satisfactory harvest may in time be secured if 
cultivation of the ground be persistently conducted 
and uninterruptedly maintained. 
Pears' soap has made a world-wide reputation and 
can be foand in every first-class drug store in the 
"World, and yet its owners go on increasing their 
advertising expenditure aud effort every year and 
that, too, iu all parts of the globe. In the United 
States, the Royal Bakirg Powder Company long 
established — spend something like a million dollars a 
year in advertising and making demonstrations, and 
yet no Grocery would thiuk its stock complete with- 
out this article. Baker's cacao has been known for 
nearly a century, but the Company spends more and 
more money every year iu advertising, and at the 
principal Food Exhibits ii; the country this cacao can 
be found in its attractive booths. The managers of 
these profitable concerns know that without constant 
increasing advertising effort their business would 
decrease in volunii aud in amount. " Our own and 
only" Liptoii's furnishes us with an object 
lesson, and where can a shrewder or more successful 
advertiser in modern, up-to-date business methods 
and management be found ? 
If we want to succeed we must advertise, and if we 
advertise it is our bounden duty to learn how when 
and where to advertise. Circulars are mediums of 
waste laud, no one in America heeds them. Advertis- 
ing in the plethoric Sunday papers issued in the large 
cities of America is abwlutely futile, and the same 
assertion is fairly applicable to the dailies— hence 
these mediums should all be rigorously excluded from 
any proposed plan. 
As au.xiliary to and part of my plan of demonstra- 
tions, which may bs classed as one form of advertis- 
ing. Cave's lecture on the buried cities of Ceylon 
with its attendant paraphernalia, could be utilized and 
delivered before Lyceums, Lecture Rooms, and Church 
Vestrys, where the tea drinking class do mostly con. 
gregate during the long evenings of winter; then 
Ceylon tea would become popularised and known far 
and wide. Many other forms of useful advertising 
might be enumerated, but enough for my present con- 
tention has already been said. 
When we have succeeded in placing 25,000 000 lb 
of our tea in the markets of America, then, a!nd not 
till then, can we lay back and let the merchant 
in place of the grower, advertise Ceylon tea ' 
If, Mr. Editor, you consid>^r this little pine of 
mine worthy of space in your valuable journal please 
give It room— you will know what to do with it 
should it, in your opinion, be of doubtful interest to 
your readers-and if it will in a feeble way arouse 
the planters, for whom it is primarily intended soma 
good may emanate from its little wail.— Yours &c 
B. E. PINEO. '' 
PROGRESS IN NORTH BORNEO. 
Kandy, June 9, 
Dear Sir,,— The following facts relative to 
progress ui Borneo are interesting :— The in- 
crease in vahie of Imports 1898 over 1897 i.s 
over half a million ; of dollars ; Cloth shows 
an increase of $88,631 ; Treasure $81 016 • 
Machinery and Vessels $69,430; Opiuui happily 
