534 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
[Feb. 1, 1900. 
some of the trees being 18 feet high, ia apparently 
''not iDjuiious to the tea," and that "all our Para 
and OastiJloa rubber, from six to two years old, is 
gfowing through the tea, with no damage to tea at 
present— trees 30 feet high and 27 inches girth at three 
feet from the ground." The statistics available as to 
the yield of rubber from Castilloa and Para trees 
in Ceylon are so far incomplete. It ip, however, 
known that the yield o£ rubber in the Straits Set- 
tlements is in excess of the best returns in Ceylon, 
and this is mentioned in connection with Mr. 
Derry's Keport on Government Gardens in the Straits 
for 1897, from which I quote the following: — 
" How for this industry is deserving of attention 
may be inferred from the following moderate esti- 
mate. Para trees planted 14 by 14 feet equal to 225 
to the acre : — 
Yield per Gross value per 
Yield per acree.i. acre estimated 
Age. 
tree. 
1 tree 
at 2a 
per 
by 225. 
lb. 
oz. 
lb. 
£ 
s. 
d. 
6 
10 
140A 
14 
10 
0 
7 
18 
250 
25 
0 
0 
8 
26 
365 
36 
15 
0 
9 
34 
478 
47 
13 
0 
10 
42 
590^ 
59 
10 
0 
The importance of close planting is not generally 
realised. Planted at 14 by 14 feet, against 25 by 25 
feet, would possibly result in a diiferenae of one year 
in six, in favour of close planting. I am of opinion 
that planted 14 by 14 the trees could be tapped in the 
fifln year, if not earlier. Para rubber is a remark- 
ably adap .able tree, growing in swampy land, or dry 
high ground, without, so far as I have tested, any 
difierence in the yield of rubber." 
Ere long I shall probably have more complete 
figures aa to the yield of rubber from Para and 
Castilloa in Ceylon, but I have heard enough to show 
that the cultivation of these rubber trees promises to 
be a very profitable venture in that island, and I 
believe that excellent results await the enterprise in 
South India. Castilloa seed appears to be ciifticult 
to procure, but fresh Para seed is now available on 
application to Messrs. William Bros., Henaratgoda, 
Ceylon, at K5 per 1,000. — Madras Mail, Dec. 30. 
CEYLON TEA EXPORTS : 
ESTIMATES (1900) AND RESULTS (1899). 
We have brought together below some 
figures which present in comparative form 
the estimates of onr tea exports to the chief 
countries served, for 1899 and 1900, together 
with the quantities actually sent away during 
the past year. The estimate for Russia in 1899, 
it will be seen, was 50 per cent too high; but 
seeing how greatly the Colombo market has 
been cultivated by the Russians during the 
past twelve months, we are not surprised to 
see the official figure is 6 million lb. again 
this year. The requirements of Australia 
also were over-estimated, but not excessively, 
and the estimate this year is, therefore, re- 
duced by a million, merely— that is, put at 
400,000 lb. ahead of the quantity sent soiith- 
ward last year. As for America, it is no 
doubt a little surprising to seethe estimate 
for this year nearly doubling the exports 
of last ; but— and it is a point to which we 
have already drawn some attention— we are 
convinced that what is put down in the 
Chamber of Commerce list for 1899 as ex- 
ported toChina, i.e. l,381:,4901b., is really (or at 
least the large bulk of it) intended for tran- 
shipment via Hongkong to San Francisco or 
Vancouver, for California, British Columbia 
and Western America, generally. Thus the 
expprts tio AmeriC}^ i4l8y9 TvoukUhen aijiount, 
roughly, to 4,46i,492 lb. insteadof 3,080,002 lb. 
as given in the table. Hence, perhaps, comes 
the justification for the extraordinary 
reduction of the 19(K1 estimate for other 
countries as compared with 1899, bv 
one-half, or by 800,0001b. on the total 
quantity exported last Tear — in the 
latter case the exports to China being 
more properly counted in with the estimate 
for America. The total estimate for all 
countries other than the United Kingdom is 
four millions ahead of what was sent to them 
last year— a fairly accurate calculation, we 
believe it rt ill prove— and two millions behind 
the estimate for 1899. The United Kingdom, 
however, took 10 millions more than was ex- 
pected last year, so the estimate is increased 
by 15,000.000— or five millions ahead of the 
exports in 1899. Finally, the total estimate 
for 1900-namely 138 millions— appears to 
us a rather liberal one. We have hitherto 
experienced that the yearly increases are 
alternately large and small. - The increases 
since 1891 are roughly as follows :— 
1891 ... 21.300,000 
1892 ... 2.900,000 
1893 ... 13,300,000 
1894 ... 100,000 
189.5 ... 13,400,000 
189(5 ... 10,200.000 
1897 ... 7,900,000 
1898 ... 3.700,000 
1899 ... 10,100,000 
Up to 1895 it is erident that the theory 
of alternation held good. In 1896 the fall 
is smaller owing to the quantity of 
fresh estates coming into bearing and to 
the fame that Ceylon tea was beginning 
to win for itself throughout the world ; the 
figures of 1897, where we should have expected 
an increase, in reality balanced the smaller 
drop of the previous year, and in 1898 and 1899 
the theory again holds good. Thus it 
appears to us, judging by the last 10 
years, that the 1900 estimate is rather too 
high and that January 1901 may find us 
with nearer 135,000,000 lbs. exported for the 
last year in the century than 1:38,000.000. 
However, this remains to be seen, and with 
so much depending on weather, labour and 
even prices, it is impossible to dogmatise. 
Meanwhile the following from last Sunday's 
Pioneer is curiously inaccurate : — 
The Exports of Indian Tea during the calen- 
dar year 1899 amounted to over 131| million 
pounds against 136 millions in 1898. The exports 
of tea from Ceylon rose to nearly 121 million 
pounds as compared with less than IIU millions. 
"121" should be 130, while "llli " should 
be "119." We should need to go back to 
1896 to find one year's exports below 110 
millions. 
The following are the figures for Ceylon 
commented on above :— 
Estimate, Eesult, Estimate, 
1899. 1899. 1900. 
Russia ... 6,000,000 3,949,740 6,000,000 
Australia ... 17,000,000 15,606,833 16,000,000 
America ... 4,000,000 3,080,002 5,500,000 
Other Coun 
tries ... 5,000,000 3,309,437 2,500,000 
32,000,000 25,946,032 30,000,000 
United King- 
dom ... 93,000,000 103,948,124 108,000,000 
Total ,., 125,000,000 129,894,156 138,000,000 
