472 THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST [Jak. 1, 1906. 
The Directors have to report that the severe 
drought and unfavourable weather referred to in the 
last annual report continued almost without inter- 
mission throughout the past season. The crop of tea 
has in consequence been most disappointing, the 
yield from the 1,217 acres in bearing having fallen 
to 326 lb. per acre, against 375 lb. and 440 lb. se- 
cured during the two preceding years respectively. 
The climatic conditions which prevailed during the 
past year are not usual in the Badulla district, and, 
with a return to normal weather, former yields may 
be looked for with confidence. 
The Tea Factory has been successfully completed, 
and the whole of our available area planted with 
tea and fuel, the latter ou steep faces unsuitable 
for tea- 
With the large area of tea coming rapidly int-i 
bearing, and with the facilities for manufacture v.e 
now possess, it is expected that important savings 
in the cost of production will bo effected in the future. 
Oar Manager is of opinion that estimates will be 
more easily framed and worked to, now tliat the 
property is converted into a tea garden, if the 
financial year were made to terminate on the 31st 
December in place of 31st July. Accounts for ihe 
five months ending on the 31st December next will 
therefore be presented to Shareholders early in 
1900 in order to bring this into effect. 
The area of the estate as on 31st July, 1899, 
was as follows : — 
TEA, 
5 years old and over 1045 acres. 
Planted November/December.. 1894 172 „ 
.. 1895 145 
„ 1896 159 „ 
„ 1897 194 „ 
.. 1898 196 
Total under Tea 
Total under Fuel 
Forest, &o. 
1,911 „ 
163 „ 
257 „ 
Total Area ... 2,331 acres 
Mr. J G Wardrop, a member of the Board, retire^ 
on this occasion, and, being eligible, offers himsel' 
for re-election- Messrs, Deloitte, Devor, Griffith^ 
& Co., the Auditors, also offer themselves for re- 
electioU) 
The results of the year, though bearing a favour- 
able comparison with 1897-98 do not come up to 
expectation ; this was mainly owing to a serioas 
drought in the early part of this year, followed by 
long-continued rams. In view of these circumstances, 
it is sati-factory that an increased crop should have 
been obtained, and that at the same time an evi- 
dent improvement in the quality of the Tea has 
been shown. 
Mr. 'i'atliam hopes to secure over 1,250,000 lb. of 
Tea for the current year at under 27 cents per lb., 
and abnut 300 cwts. of Cocoa, and in his last letter 
to che Board states as follows : — 
" I have no doubt that I shall procure my esti- 
mate and also realise a better price for the Teas 
than I did last year, owing entirely to the manure, 
which h IS enabled me to pluck finer and still ittcrease 
my yield-" 
At Doteloya alone there is a considerable acreage 
of land admirably suited to the growing of tea. 
Mr. Tathani strongly urges that this should be 
planted up, and Mr. E H Hancock, who has visited 
the property, thoroughly endorses this opinion. The 
Directors therefore recommend, subject to the ap- 
proval of the Shareholders, that an additional amffuut 
of £20,000 debenture stock should be raised for the 
purpose of developing the Company's property. Your 
Directors would not require the whole amount at 
once, as the expenditure would be spread over the 
next three years; they would therefore only call up 
this additional stock as occasion required. It is 
proposed that the stock should in the first instance 
be offered to the present Shareholders at the price 
of 90 per £100 stock. 
For some months past negotiations have been on 
foot for working the Plumbago on the Company's 
estates, but in consequence of information received 
by the Board from Mr. Tatham, as to the value of 
the vein which has recently been found, the Direc- 
tors have thought it advisable not to lease the 
rights, on the terms already proposed, without placing 
the matter before the Shareholders. 
Mr. E H Hancock, on his return from Ceylon, 
joined the Board in place of Mr. H A Hancock. 
The Directors retiring in rotation, are Mr. E H 
Hancock and Mr. T J Lawrauce, who, being eligible 
offer themselves for re-electioo. 
The Auditors, Messrs. Broads, Paterson & Co., 
also retire and offer themselves for re-election. 
TEA CORPORATION, LTD. (OF CEYLON. 
Report of the Directors, and Accounts for the year 
ending 30th June, 1899, submitted to the annual 
General Meeting ef Shareholders on the 19th Dec. 
The Directors beg to submit herewith the Acco- - 
nnts of the Corporation for the year ending 30th 
June, 1899, which, compared with those of the pre- 
vious year, must be considered satisfactory. 
It will be seen by the working accounts that 
the gross amount of Tea produced on the estates 
was 1,224,442 lbs. The cost f,o,b was 26-10 cents per 
lb., which is nearly 6 cents or Id. per lb. less than 
it was during the previous year. The average price 
obtained was 6Jd. gross and 5 15-16d. nett per lb., 
this also being a great improvement on 1897-98. 
To the ptopfit on Tea is added that on Sundry 
Produce, amounting to £592 143., thus making a to- 
tal of £8,867 193. to be carried to Profit and Loss 
Account. 
This account shows a profit of £4,327 Is. 9d., af- 
ter the deduction of London Expenses and deben- 
ture Interest, etc. Prom this must be further de- 
ducted the loss on lust year, amounting to £1,020 
68., leaving a nett profit of £2,706 153. 9d. as shown 
in the Balance Sheet, 
A dividend on the Preference Shares up to the 
end of February, 1898, was paid on 1st August 
last. 
It is proposed to write off £.393 9s. 03. fcom preli- 
minary expenses, thus reducing that account to 
o- 
CACAO CULTURE. 
It may be true, as stated recently by an 
experienced London broker in the cacao 
trade, that the Ceylon product does not 
come into competition with that of Trinidad 
or, we suppose, with the cacao of Mexico, 
Nicaragua, Ecuador, &c. But it must be, 
nevertheless, a fact that increased produc- 
tion in these Western lands tends to affect 
the market, unless consumption keeps pace, 
more especially on the Continent of Europe. 
We have just been reading a Report on 
"Cacao Culture in Ecuador" (see elsewhere) 
which shows that production in that South 
American State has been increasing since 1836 
and that the crop for 1899 is expected to be 
close on 600,000 cwt. or fifteen times the 
outturn of Ceylon ! This, however, must 
either be a great exaggeration, or the quan- 
tity required for home consumption musfe 
be very large. Hitherto, judging by ship- 
ments, we have credited Ecuador and Peru 
with an outturn of 360,000 cwt. and a home 
consumption of about 90,000 cwt. There can 
be no doubt that Ecuador has a great deal 
of land, and the perfection of climate, for 
cacao culture; but fortunately for Ceylon, 
