Aug. 1, 1899.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
THE TEA AND PKODUCE COMMITTEE. 
REPORT. 
The Committee has held tour meetings during 
the year. 
The lirst subject brought under notice of the 
Committee was the ))roposal for the reduction or 
abolition of the duty on tea imported into the 
United Kingdom. A Joint Committee ivas ap- 
pointed to consider the matter, consisting of three 
members of the Indian Tea Association (London) 
and three members of this Committee, Messrs. W. 
H. Amlerson, H. Bois and H. K. Rutherford. But 
in view of the opinion, expressed by the Com- 
mittee of t'\e Planters' Association of Ceylon, that 
it was not desirable at the present time to press 
for the proposed relief it was decided to postpone 
any action. 
A correspondence took place with the Postmaster- 
General as to the rates of postage and the limits of 
weight for samples of Tea posted between London 
and Ceylon, but no modification of the rules was 
obtained. 
The Indian Tea Association (London) submitted 
to the Committee certain proposals for changing 
the conditions of Public Sales of Tea. The chief of 
these was the reduction of the biddings at Sales up 
to 6^d from id to Jd, but the proposed alteration 
did not meet witli the approval of the Committee. 
A new scale for deposits, payable on the purciiases 
of Tea at Public Sales, was approved by tiie Com- 
mittee, but it has not yet been adopted in practice. 
An attempt was made without success to ob- 
tain a reduction of the very high rates of freight 
ruling for Tea and other i'roduce between Co- 
lomho and the Australian ports. 
In canned ion wich the Indian Tea Association 
(London) a circular has been issued to all Pro- 
ducers and Importers of Tea, inviting assent to 
the proposed abolition of the allowance of 1 lb. 
draft on each package of Tea solsold at Public 
Sales. A large number of assents has already 
been received, and it is hoped that there may 
be sufficient support to enable the reform to be 
shortly carried into efiect. 
The great improvement in the statistical posi- 
tion of tea during tiie year, as giving hope of a 
more prosperous time in the near future, is matter 
for congratalaton to all concerned. 
GREAT WESTERN TEA 
CEYLON. 
COMPANY OF 
DIRECTORS' REPORT. 
The report of the directors was submitted as 
follows : — 
The Directors submit their Annual Beport and Ac- 
counts for the Season ending Slat March, 1899. 
The yield of Tea during the Season has been only 
313,425 lb. (incliidinc; a balance of IS.'S lb. from the 
prcvio'is Season) being a decrease of 145,728 lb. on last 
Season's crop. 
This is due partly to the unfavourable Season which 
adversely affected the yield of all Ceylon Estates and 
partly to more careful plucking — the Tea averaging 
48-15 cents per lb. a?ainsfc 40-27 cents in 1897- -98— and 
partly to the necessity of nursing some of the fields 
which were suffering from previous overplucking. 
The cost F. O. B. Colombo is 35-98 cents per lb. (in- 
cluding 3-56 cents for manuring) against 3013 cents the 
previous Season, showing a prufit on cultivation of 12 17 
cents against 10-14 cents last Season. 
The amount receive! under the Loss-ot-Profit Policy 
effected over the Factory was R21,S4()-75 of which 
R13, 184-46 (representing the additional cost of outside 
manufacture and transport caused by the deslrustion 
of the Factory) has been deducted from , -c. ^■ 
ture of last Season and this, and the balaii^,_ S'a KtR-9Q 
(taken as a set-off against the loss entailed in 4, 1-/^ 
has been passed to credit of Profit and Loss Accou 'i^' 
The amount available for distribution is thu, 
R45,376-88, out o£ which the Directors recommend the 
payment of a Dividend of 6A per cent, absorbing 
E37,9b000, and in view of the present cost of and 
difficulty of obtaining firewood, and the need for the 
erection of other motive power, they recommend the 
carrying forward the balance R7, 416-88. 
The estimated crop for the current Season is 400,000 
lbs. and the expenditure not including that on Capital 
Account El24,404 15 being at the rate of 31-10 cents per 
lb. tea inclusive of 3 06 cents per lb. for manuring. 
In terms of the Articles of Association Mr. G. F. 
Walker retires by rotation, and being eligible offers 
himself for re-election. 
PLANTING (TEA AND COFFEE) IN THE 
PHILLIPINES. 
Mr. T. H. Stephens, well-known here and 
who IS practising his profession as dentist 
m Manilla, sends us some planting informa- 
tion and in return we are glad to mention 
that Mr. Stephens says '-he can get land 
cheap for anyone requiring it in the Philip- 
pines." He himself is introducing tea there • 
but he believes in cott'ee as well. From a 
local paper we quote the following account 
of what reads like, a planting Eldorado 
Mr. Donaldson-Sim finds that Benguet is a 
splendid place for plantations. He has over 8 000 
mn .^''^''^ bearing excellently, besides some 
30,000 tea seedlmgs and some 3,000 full-o-rovvn tea 
plants, bearing well and ready for pickins: He 
has one of the best plantations in northern Luzon 
He has practically no neighbors, that is to sav 
there is no other plantation anywhere near his 
and the nearest village is about four or five miles 
away. His place is several hundred feet higher 
than the village, and is 4,600 feet above sea-ltvel 
He has done a good deal of experimental planting 
with other things with results so promising that 
the vexation of having the province overrun with 
armed lunatics, stopping all work, destroyine all 
business, damaging all property and putting an 
end to every plan and scheme, is disheartening 
enough to drive a man mad. There is nothing t% 
rebel about m Benguet, and the Benguet neonle 
themselves have no desire to rebel. They have 
nobody to rebel against and there would have been 
no disturbance at all if the Aguinaldists would 
only let people live and attend to their business 
in peace. 
'-^ believed to be the richest province in 
the Phaippines for gold. There are native gold 
workings all over the province, the natives only 
working alluvial, but there is also quartz gold The 
province is alsorich in iron, copper and silver m'ines 
It has some splendid mineral springs, especially 
at the village of Itogon and in Tublai in the north 
of t-he province. Benguet is partly wooded over 
with magnificent pine forests as good as Norwav 
pine, and very fine quality of wood, and the re- 
mainder of the province, probably about a half at 
a rough guess, is open pasture land. It is difficult 
to estimate how much is wood and how much is 
open because it is all in patches here and there 
The pasture land is excellent, and horses and cows 
thrive better tnere than in any other part of the 
island. Most of the hills are fairly gentle undu 
latmg slopes, not precipitous to aiiy great extent. 
Cattle and ponies, fine, large animals, are verv 
cheap in Benguet. 
What about labour we would ask and its 
cost?— also rainfall ? Mr. Stephens knows that 
the unsettlem(?nt caused by niinin"- is not 
favourable to jdanters and their worlf 
