Nov. h 1899 ] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
307 
and requisitions Sunday as an extra twenty- 
foiu' hours in which to work. His godown 
soon begins to wear a very animated appear- 
ance, and weighing, marking, matting and 
rattanning operations are constantly in 
process. 
The "Century " article states that tea is 
brought to Hankow in sacks as well as half- 
chests and is frequently re-fired. This, how- 
ever, is hardly consistent with facts. Little 
or no tea with any pretension to qiiality 
is so packed, only the common tea dust and 
siftings used in " brick"-making being brought 
in this fashion, and the merchant certainly 
does very little or no firing; as he prefers to 
open as few packages a,s possible. Common 
tea is frequently repacked from half-chests 
to chests, but the biilk of the tea is shipped in 
its original packages. 
A great advantage the merchant g?ts in 
buying China tea is 
A SUBSTANTIAL ALLOWANCE 
in weight given by the tea-men and thus a 
loss in weight is impossible. This is a fact 
that might be seriously borne in mind by the 
planters of Ceylon if they wish to capture new 
markets, especially the Russian. As stated 
in a previous article, another great advan- 
tage is the large size of the break which a 
merchant is able to buy. 
The arrival of the first Russian steamer is 
the sign of great activity on the Bund, hun- 
dreds and huudi-eds of coolies being em- 
ployed in carrying tea to the cargo boats 
for transhipment to the big 'steamer. Each 
Chinaman will carry two half-chests slung one 
on each end of a bamboo pole aci'oss his 
shoulders and the rapidity with which he 
goes is a great contrast Co the slow bullock 
cart of Ceylon. Six weeks of this feverish 
activity brings the "rush" to a close, but 
there is plenty of work for all for another 
two months, though carried on in a more 
leisurely way. 
By the end of August Hankow residents 
settle down to wait for autumn and winter 
sport and their ordinary work ; and the tea- 
tasters ship once more for happier and less 
busy climes. 
HANKOW ITSELF 
is flat and .uninteresting, its Bund 
being the chief promenade for walk- 
ing. In the month of July, the plains 
at the back are flooded and continue so for 
some time, and Hankow is thus practi- 
cally shut in and riding operations are 
very much curtailed. As the« new Con- 
cessions given to the French, Russians 
and Germans are developed, the place will 
grow in importance and some even go so 
far as to say, will rival Shanghai, if not 
in beauty, at least as a trading centre" 
Adjoining the English Concession is the 
densely populated city of Hankow, contain- 
ing 800,000 Chinese, the majority living 
in indescribable hovels and filith. Its size 
may be Judged by the fact that its principal 
street is over three miles in length. 
The condition of life during the Great 
Heat must be appalling as the Chinaman 
knows absolutely nothing of sanitation and 
it is reported that thoiisands die during 
the summer fi'om various diseases. The 
principle of "survival of the fittest" is un- 
doubtedly carried into actual practice to a 
very large extent in such a place as this. 
With all this, hovi'ever, the average China- 
man seems to be a contented man and they 
seem to have solved the question of the 
"happiness of the greatest number." 
Opposite to Hankow on the other side of 
the river is Wuchang, the capital of the 
Province of Hupeh, whose Viceroy is 
THE CELEBRATED CHANG CHIH TENG, 
famed for his Western learning. Famed 
until he is known, when he is found to 
be, at bed-rock, of much the same build 
and character as the ordinary Mandarin. 
He has established arsenals, iron works, 
cotton mills and an agricultural department, 
but with only partial success. He has 
competent Europeans to guide things, but 
from lack of matei'ial given them, they are 
unable to get any very good results. His 
agricultural department is still without 
ground for the planting of seed,- a rather 
important item in agriculture, one would 
think. Also, while at the outset, he was 
willing to buy every agricultural imple- 
ment existing, now it is hard to get those 
really necessary. Thus is China's most ad- 
vanced man only surface-polished with 
Western ideas and at heart still the old- 
fashioned Oriental. What China needs most 
to-day are strong, honest and conscientious 
leaders and until she gets them she will 
continue in the rut of impotence she is now in. 
ASSOCIATED TEA ESTATES OF CEYLON, 
LIMITED. 
DIRECTORS' REPORT. 
FOR THE 12 MONTHS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1899. 
The area of tlie Company's Estates planted 
with tea as per last report was ... 1,889 acres. 
to whicli falls to be added as com- 
pleted during theyear ... 16 do. 
and for certification of area at Dora- 
galla ... ... 25 do. 
Making a netb planted area in tea of 1,930 acres. 
In addition to which there are 13 acres of fuel 
trees on Doragalla. 
No further extensions are in progress. 
The yield was as follows : — lb. 
Silver Kandy ... .. 100,210 
Chesterford ... ... 280,514 
Horagoda ... 45,700 
Doragalla .. ... 238,032 
664,456 
This shows a decrease of 43,513 lb. on the pre- 
vious 12 montlis' yield, and of 119,294 lb. on the 
aggregate of the Superintendents' estimates. 
The two high-lying estates gave an increase of 
34,371 lb. and the two low-country properties a 
falling off of 77,884 lb. The Superintendents and 
the Visiting Agent are unable to give any reason 
for the deficiency beyond natural causes, the 
weather in the low country having been unsatis- 
factory for producing a heavy yield of tea. 
Of the crop, the entire produce of one estate 
Avas sold in London, and of the three others 
