March i, 1900.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
and exceedingly hard kernel, which can be worked 
like ivory. One Imudred of these fruits only cost 
about four shillii gs. Their use for buttons dtid 
small articles offeis great advantages, and the 
"ivory "can be passed off as tlie genuine article, the 
resemblance beingso great tliat it is soid at the same 
price. It can be coloiired also just like genuine 
ivory. M Pasquier, of Liege, now gives a practi- 
cal method to distinguisli tiie two varieties of 
ivory. It is the following : — Concentrated sul- 
phuric acid applied to vegetable ivory will cause 
a pink colouring to appear in about ten to twelve 
minutes, which can be removed by washing* with 
water. Applied to genuine ivoiy, this acid does 
not affect it in any manner. — The Family Herald. 
THE TALGASWELA T!"A CO. OF CEYLON. 
(LIMITED) 
THE ANNUAL EEPORT 
The report of the directors was is follows : — 
Approximate acreage of tea cultivated . . 516 acres. 
Not weeded 
Ciimamon .. .. .. 50 ,, 
Forest, Chena, &c. .. ..1,473 „ 
TotPol 2 039 „ 
AcBEAGE. — In October last 210 acres were taken 
out of cultivation, upon the. recommendsition of the 
Visiting Agent, who reportred that the busbes were 
stunted ; and, owing to the large number of vacancies, 
the yield from this portion of the estate was inadequate 
as compared with the cost of upkeep and cultivation. 
This will effect economy in working, without, except 
very slightly, reducing returns. The area specified 
in lea is still however nominal, owing to the inclusion 
of swamps and ravines in acreage statement as retained 
in cultivation. 
The Directors beg to lay before the Shareholders 
their Twelfth Annual Report with a duly audited 
statement of the Company's affairs on the 31at 
December, 1899. 
Mr. E. M orison last visited the estate on the 
30th ar.d 31st December. Ilis report is attached for 
the information of the shareholders. 
The yield for the year was 148,902 lb., against 
and original estimate of 160,000 lb., and a revised 
estimate of 145,OU0 lb., dry weather being responsible 
for the shortage. It was all sold locally, at an 
average of 34 92 cents per lb., against an averace of 
34-71 cents for the preceding year. The demand for 
Ceylon teas in the local market during the year 
has, on the v/hole, been satisErxtory, a very noticeable 
feature throughout having been the good prices made 
by teas of medium .and lower qutility. 
The expenditure on manure was R4,36511, equal to 
02 74 per lb. of made tea, and was debited to r-evenno 
account. After paying for this and writing off the 
usual depreciatiou on buildmgs and machinery, the 
balance at the credit of profit and loss account is 
R4,070 96, which, in view of the heavy e.xpenditure on 
manure recommended by the Visiting Agent, the 
Directors strongly recommend the shareholders to 
carry over to a new account, they being strongly of 
opinion that to declare a dividend in the present posi- 
tion of the company would be suicidal. 
The estimate for the coming season is 160,0001b. 
and the Directors are fully alive to the importance of 
keeping expenditure down to the lowest point com- 
patible with ei£ciercy and proper cultivation. The 
Directors feel assured that the only method of mak- 
ing this property pay is to cultivate highly and to 
manure heavily, and they are prepared to follow out 
the recommendations made by the Visiting Agent in 
his last report relative to the manuring of certain 
fields. 
Plumbago — An offer of £1,001) with a five per cent 
royalty was made for an option for six months on the 
mining rights of the property, but the Board thought 
the offer insufficient, and it was declined. In view of 
possible developments in connection with plumbago, 
the Directors think it would be advisiible for the Share- 
holders by consent to authorisa them to make such 
arrangements as may be compatible with the interest 
of the shareholders, 
Messrs. W MacGregor and J A Henderson were 
elected Directors at the last General Meeting; and of 
the e Mr. Henderson retires by rotation, and does not 
offer himself for re-election, as he is going home. 
The Directors recommend the appointment of Mr. 
Morison, the Visiting Agent, in l)is stead. 
The appointment of an Auditor is left to the 
meeting. 
THE VISITING AGKNT'S REPORT. 
In reply to your post-card asking for an abridged 
report on Talgaswela, I think that the following 
might be taken as the expression of what appears to 
me important at the present times on Talgaswela. 
Masubisg. — As previously reported, 40 acres of 
No 1 was manured in June-August, 1899; while 60 
acres of the same field, the 22 acre field, and 4 acres 
of No. 5 had prunings buried along with basic slag. 
The appearance of ail these fields is very satisfactory, 
and the fields will I think fully justify the cost of 
manuring by shewing paying returns within tlie 12 
months, if the work is now completed by manuring 
in the alternate lines to those in which prunings 
were buried. This work should be done by applying 
the manure in long narrow holes 6 inches deep up 
middle of alternate lines, or by forking in np middle 
of alternate lines. I recommend 800 lb. per acre as 
follows : — 
lb. 
per acre. per ton; per acre. 
500 W Castor Cake at 68-88 15 37 
130 B . sic slag at 54 63 3 17 
85 Snlph. of Potash at 171 00 6 4S 
85 Blood Meal at 152 50 5-79 
800 30-81 
Tranp. 6 Appl. 4/10 00 
40 81 per acre. 
In future working I would very strongly urge the 
burying of prunings as described in previous reports, 
each hole having added to it on top of prunings 
about one-half pound of basic slag. [See report of 
30th March, 1899.] The present condicions of the 
tea bushes is so largely due to want of organic matter 
in the soil, and that want is a point of such vital 
importance in the considerations of any of. scheme 
cultivation, that the burying of prnninga (the only 
means available within practical limits for increasmg 
this organic mattei) -appears to be little less than an 
absolute necessity. This is emphasized by the fact 
conclusively proved by chemical aualysi-i that each 
pruning left unburied deprives the soil of essential 
fertilizmg ingredients to an extent equal to one, two, 
or three fail manurings accordins to the vigour of the 
bushes dealt with ; in othpr words, the non-burying of 
prunings may. in certain circumstances, and at one 
single pruning, be equal to ihe throwing away ■ f ferti- 
lising matter represented by six years' outlay in 
manuring on a liberal scale. 
A point of much importance as an aid to any scheme 
of cultivation which may be adopted is that the actual 
acreage in tea shoula be clearly defined. An essential 
element in any system of manuring is the checking 
of cost against returns obtained, and this is of course 
impossible with undefined fields. In such fields data 
which will cleajly shew whether and how much mauur- 
iiig pays is impossible, 'ind any work done must be 
sui3ject to adverse crif.icisui. Without advocating 
any eliiboate detailing of n,cres, I therefore fhiok a 
survey whi.-h would place the actual tea in the pl in 
in your fair sized fields such as Mr. S.yinonds le- 
commended for working purposes is a most desirable 
thing and necessity if cultivation is to go on. — lam, 
dear sir, yours faithfully, (Signed) R. Mokison, 
Neboda", 6th Feb,, 1900. 
