SEi'I, 1, 1899.J 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTUEIST. 
167 
To the Editor. 
AN ANSWER TO "QUERIES FOR 
TEA MAKERS": 
MR. THORNTON PETT's ANSWER. 
Elpitiya, July 11. 
Sir, — I have just come across a letter in 
your last weekly edition, signed " Enquirer" 
asking "what errors in the manipulation of 
tea leaf could cause the dry leaf to have a 
reddish brown appearance." Here are a few 
suggestions, &t his service, towards an 
answer : — 
Under-withered leaf kept rather long in 
wet weather, gives, as you say in your note, 
a large percentage of red leaf. 
Over-withered coarse leaf also gives a very 
large percentage of red and reddish leaf. 
One seldom gets a good colour on tea made 
from fields in which the bushes have run a 
long time from pruning. Leaf carelessly 
treated in the withering lofts, left in heaps, and 
trodden on by coolies also turns out a reddish 
tea ; so does leaf that has got heated in bags 
or baskets whilst in transit to factory. The 
remedy for these is obvious. 
I believe it is the almost universal experi- 
ence in Ceylon, and I know it is a fact in 
several districts at medium elevations, that 
leaf plucked during a prolonged drought, and 
especially if there is any wind at the time, 
gives tea with a very pronounced reddish 
tinge, however fine the plucking may have 
been and though there may be no actual 
red leaf in it. This tea, though wanting in 
black appearance, generally sells well as the 
flavour is decidedly augmented : this is not- 
ably the case in Uva, witness the sale prices 
of teas made on estates there in July and 
August, the dry months of that side of the 
country. 
iSeyour correspondent's second query: "Does 
the handling of the leaf in the drawers of 
drier cause greyness of the dry leaf H" If he 
tills his drawers or trays properly, there 
should be but little handling required, and 
the 7iecessary amount of such handling will 
not perceptibly "grey" the tea. A mistake 
some tea makers are apt to make, under the 
false impression, that they are saving time, 
is allowing the firing coolies to lump on to 
the drawer or trays as much rolled leaf as 
they possibly can, when a good deal of turn- 
ing over is, of course, required to get all the 
leaf fired equally. Trays should always be 
spread thinly, and pushed or worked through 
quickly. It is well to near in mind the rule 
that was in force when we used chulas, i.e., 
that it should be possible to see the fii'e 
through the leaf on the loaded tray. Leaf 
saturated with water just before being put 
into the drier will, however, come out rather 
grey if much handled by the firing coolies, 
and a sort of black "soot" or bloom will be 
found adhering to the coolies' hands and the 
mesh of the tray. I have ascertained this 
from actual experiment. This bloom is, of 
course, sap from the leaf cells broken up in 
the rolling, and which has got ditt'used over 
the surface of the leaves. It follows from 
this, I think, that leaf which has been care- 
lessly fermented, and allowed to get dry dur- 
ing the process should be only slightly mois- 
tened with water before firing and not satu- 
rated as I have seen it done by some tea 
makers. — I am, &c., 
GEO. THORNTON PETT. 
TEA : AN INDIAN AND CEYLON 
DISTRIBUTING AGENCY. 
Madulkele, July 19. 
Dear Sir,— Could not the present moment, 
whilst the Indian and Ceylon ti'ade in tea 
is at a standstill, be seized as an opportu- 
nity for starting an Indian and Ceylon Distri- 
buting Agency, and break down elfectually 
the combination against us ? The Agency's 
duty should be to buy tea as required in the 
London market (no draft allowance) and 
supply outside dealers, grocers, and even 
take private orders of not less than a chest 
or box. Advertise in every paper supplies 
direct from importers at wholesale rates, 
expenses of starting to be guaranteed by 
Indian and Ceylon Planters' Association — 
latter out of Thirty Committee funds. Surely 
with such good men on the spot as Ruther- 
ford, Henry Bois, Leake, Campbell for 
Ceylon and others for India, the thing could 
be done. The Agency started and properly 
organised at once, and a Company of Indian 
and Ceylon men would doubtless come forward 
aftei'wards to take over the going concern. 
I think the attempt to do away with the 
l ib allowance has been a mistake, and has 
been undertaken without sufficient fore- 
thought or preparation and at an unfor- 
tunate time. I don't believe that the new 
arrangement, if carried, will benefit growers 
one bit. It is not wise to interfere with the 
channels throiigh which trade passes; but 
now that the channel is blocked why not 
make a new one ? — Yours truly, 
CUSTOS. 
LOCAL ALLOWANCES ON TEA. 
July 19. 
Dear Sir, — Here is a resolution that has 
been omitted at the Tea Traders' Association 
meeting to be held today : — 
"That before we take any active steps 
re 1-lb. draft in London, we must wash our 
hands clear of the allowance we have im- 
posed on sellers in our local market. " 
PLANTER. 
[Will "Planter" tell us plainly what he 
means ? Does he want his tea sold without 
any samples being given out? — if so there will 
be little or no chance of bids. Does he 
gi'udge 3 lb. for samples out of 1,500, or 1,000, 
or 500 lb.? If not, to make all his breaks up 
to that Aveight is the only remedy we can 
see. A merchant, who is himself a proprie- 
tary plixnter, declared in our ofSce yester- 
day, that 3 lb. is now-a-days scarcely enough 
for sampling : so many buyers have to be 
attended to, in Colombo. ' • I wanted the other 
day" he said, "to see a little more of a 
certain tea than the wee sample I had got 
so I went round to the Brokers, and found 
they had less left than in the days when only 
2 lb, were taken for samples."— *' But is it 
