Jan. 1, 1900.] THE TEOPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 469 
CINNAMON IN LONDON. 
The information, which has come to hand 
by a recent mail, on the quarterly auction 
sale of cinnamon held in London on the 27th 
ultimo, helps materially to modify the im- 
pression created by the intelligence, by wire, 
which we published ou the 28th, that spice 
of ordinary quality fetched the previous sale's 
rates. A not unreasonable deduction from 
that brief message would be that there was 
nothing to distinguish the sale in November 
from its predecessor of August ; and that 
prices had remained practically unchanged. 
The fact is that the two sales were as dif- 
ferent as possible in almost every particular. 
In August, the quantity offered (959 bales) 
was below the average, the offerings for 
August 1898 having been over 1,500 bales ; 
last month, the offerings were far above the 
average, if they did not constitute quite a 
record. In August almost all the cinnamon 
offered was disposed of in the sale room ; 
in November considerably less than one-third 
found buyers. In August the demand was 
brisk and the prices were even ; !but last 
month the tone of the market was dull, and 
the variation iu prices was most marked. 
The determining factor was that the market 
was over-stocked, cinnamon as a luxury 
being specially sensitive to over-production ; 
while that, again, was caused to a great ex- 
tent by the inrush of wild and coarse bark. 
Both quantity and quality thus conspired 
to unsettle the market. 
In discussing weather and crops, and in 
interpreting the Export Tables, we pointed 
out, from time to time, that the severe drought 
which prevailed in the lowcountry, during 
the first quarter of this year, followed as it 
was by unusual rainlessness in June-July, 
would tell on the export of cinnamon and 
of the products of the coconut palm. After 
the second drought we felt that it would 
not be possible to make good, before the end 
of the year, the shortage in quilled cinnamon, 
though the exports of chips, scraped fromsticks 
that will not peel, might show an increase. 
Almost immediately after, exports of quilled 
bark kept going up by leaps and bounds, in 
a most unaccountable way, until the pheno- 
menon was explained by the announcement 
that wild bark was being shipped in large 
quantities. The Collector of Customs insisted 
on having a separate heading for what is not 
the true cinnamon bark of commerce ; but 
it is to be feared that, before official notice 
was taken of the new departure, and before 
the Chamber of Commerce sounded a note 
of warning, a great de.al of the wild stuff 
was sent away as cinnamon, both in bales 
and bags. On no other ground can we ex- 
' plain the shipments of quilled bark aggre- 
gating 2,414,035 lb. till the 19th instant, and 
coming so close to the shipments for the 
corresponding period of last year, which were 
2,400.796 lb. The immense growth in the 
exports of chips— 1,748,317 lb., against 1,321,806 
lb. in 1898, and 1,021,838 lb. in 1897, may be 
referred to the droughts which compelled 
the scraping of coarse bark which would not 
peel off— though not if all the quilled bark 
that was shipped was genuine stuff. There is 
reason to fear that in chips, as in bales, the 
59 
exceptionally high figures are due to dis- 
honest dealing, and the shipment of spurious 
bark. 
We should be glad to know that the trade 
in other than cultivated bark received its 
quietus at the sale of three weeks ago. It 
certainly received no encouragement at the 
auctions ; for nearly all of it had to be 
withdrawn. It is probable that, up to the 
middle of this year, genuine cinnamon was 
adulterated with wild and low bark, and that 
high prices and a short supply encouraged 
the dishonest fraternity to attempt a new 
stroke. Nothing can check dishonest trade 
so effectually as the demonstration that it 
does not pay ; and we should greatly rejoice 
if the new columns in our export tables 
would disappear, as a result of the last cinna- 
mon sales. It is satisfactory to find that the 
old marks of cinnamon and the fine qualities 
were all disposed of, and at prices which 
were highly satisfactory — the finest showing 
advance. Even "unworked" cinnamon held 
its own, so that it only wants the elimina- 
tion of wild cinnamon, for the market to 
revert to a healthy state. 
The following report from the leading firm 
we gene^rally quote, is of special interest at the 
present time : — 
9 King William Street, London, E.G., Nov. 28. 
Cinnamon.— The last quarterly auctions of the 
year were held yesterday, when about 4,450 
bales Ceylon growth offered against 959 bales in 
August and 3,901 bales at this period last 
year. 
The selection was not a good one, a very large 
proportion of the extensive supply comprising 
wild and low bark, nearly all of which sorts 
had to be withdrawn as the trade did not bid 
for this poor stuff. 
The tone of the sales was dull but as im- 
porters met the Market, about 1,200 bales were 
cleared in the room. 
" Worked " quill was in small supply and all 
sold, the top grades of fine and good at generally 
firm prices, and the lower qualities mostly at 
Id. per lb. decline. " Unworked " went irregularly, 
at full rates for the better grades and easier 
for the inferior, " Worked " Firsts good and fine 
sold at Is. od. to Is. 8d.; seconds. Is. 4d. to Is. od.; 
thirds It. 2d. to Is. 5d.; fourths 8d. to 12id, " Un- 
worked," first, 8d. to Is. 3d. ; seconds 8d. to 
Is, thirds 7d. to ll^d, and fourths 6d. to 9id. 
per lb. 
Chips, &c.— The enormous supply of about 4,550 
bags offered ; mostly wild and bark that were 
neglected, some 300 bags only finding buyers at 
about late rates; cuttings, &c., 4-|d. to 9d; bark and 
chips l^d. to 3d. per lb. 
Stocks Ceylon.— 5,859 bales against 6,116 in 
j898; 4384 in 1897 and 2,100 in 1896. 
Chips.— 6,705 bags against 1,920 in 1898 ; 4,096 
in 1897 and 4062 in 1896. 
The ss. "Duke of Norfolk" with a quantity of 
Cinnamon on board has not yet arrived. 
The next auctions are fixed for 26th Feb. 1900. 
THE GEOGRAPHY OF TEA. 
This is the title of the paper on the above 
subject read at the International Geographical 
CongresSj held in Berlin on Septenihr 28th, by 
Mr. McEwan, f.^.g.s,— Home and Colonial MaiL 
Dec. 15. 
