532 
THE TROPICAL AGKICULTUKIST. 
[Feb. 1, 1899. 
high prices, and whicli weie sought to be sup- 
pressed a few years a^'o hy pr()i)rietors who saw 
now it was s(itiding down tlie price of quills, 
have now toppud the round million. Nor is tiie 
trade in cliips likely to languish, with tlic present 
prices which they command. Bnt, as we wire 
remarking, the iiir;;e exports from here are 
seen in the London catalogues ; for wliereas the 
August sales brought 1,517 hales to tiie hammer 
and the November sales ot last year ^3,<i93— 
itself a phenomenal quantity — last month found 
.3,901 bales in the catalogues. It is no womler 
that prices receded in jiresence of perhaps the 
largest catalogue ever presented to the trade, 
even if the cloud under which our 
best customer, at any rate for the best 
sorts — Spain — would not tell adversely on 
prices. But we saw how at the two previous 
sales, during the Spanisli-Anierican war and 
after, the demand from Spain feU ofT; and it 
is not to be expected that trade will begin to 
flow in the old channels there, at any rale 
tor some time to come. The finer sorts tliere- 
fore met with less competition, and had to sub- 
mit to a drop in price of from Id to 21 per 
lb., while ordinary and coarse sorts fetched only 
id to Id less than at the previous sale. It 
will be noted that quillings etc., — the ends and 
sides that are scissored oft' in trimming the quills 
— continue to command exceptional prices, and 
so do chips ; so that producers are fairly com- 
pensated, and the development of our exports 
will not yet be arrested. The statistical jjosi- 
tion of tiie spice is, however, not very re-assuring 
with larger stocks than were ever before refiorted. 
Still there is no reason for alarm. We quote as 
follows from the Report of a leading London 
Film in the trade : — 
London, 30th November, 1898. 
Cinnamon. — The concUuling auctions of the year 
were held on Monday "laat when a total of 3,901 bales 
Ceylon was presented against l,al7 bales in August aud 
3,0'J3 in November last year. 
The largo supplies offered were more than the 
market could take, biit as a disposition was shown to 
sell at best rates buyers responded. The good clearance 
of about '2,450 bales being effected. Prices rule3 irre- 
gular, " good " to '• fine " showiue: the heaviest decline 
ot Id to lid and occasionally 23 per lb., while ordinary 
and medium qnill went about id to Id per lb. cheaper. 
The demand f roni Losin was very poor. Firsts sold at 
lOd to la 6d; seconds 8d to is Id ; thirds 8d to Is 3 I ; 
fourths 7id to lid and common firsts to fourths 5.^d to 
9d per lb. 
Quillings, (fee, sold to 5d to 9d an3 chips at 3Jd to 
4jd per lb. about 400 bags being sold out of 840 pack- 
ages iffered. 
1895. 1896. 1895. 
Stock 6,116 bales against 4.384 2,100 5,679 biles. 
The next sales will be held 27th February, 1899. 
« . 
The Dutch have had possession of Java for 
over 3)0 years with a short interregnum by the 
British, and have pursued a system of adminis- 
tration at once prosperous to the people and- 
profitable to Holland. It covers an area of 50,000 
square miles and the population numbers 
24,000,000. The natives are governed just the 
opposite ot the way we employ with natives in 
India, yet the Javanese are hajipy and con- 
tented. — Pioneer Oor. [ That is the natives in Java 
are treated as well-fed servants, forbidden to learn 
Dutch, or to rise out of the position of servitude.— 
Ed. X.A.] 
CEVLON TEA IN GERMANY. 
Mil nA(;ENI5l!:CK'S E.MEHFHISE. 
We had ihe privih'ge ot insj'eeting i-jwci- 
inens of, tliiee siziw of retail lii.s which are i:ow 
being used l>y Mr. Il;igen!>eck in his ten enter- 
prise in (Jerniany and fiL^o a large advert isenitrnt 
on glass wliicli he is disiribuliug to nil grocers 
who sell the "Ceylon Thee" supplied liy 
firm. They are very attractively got-np in diff- 
erent colours and cannot fail to catch the eye 
ot those who, it is hoped, will l»econie cuhtoiner* 
in increasing numbers. The gla-* a'lverli>eii;ent 
in addition to having the name of ttie firm m 
Ceylon tea merchants prominently displayed ou 
it, has also a large reprcsentalion of an elephant 
with a pile of tea boxes sn its back. Miniafnres 
of this picture are painted on one side of the tins, 
the other sides sliowing a bullock laden with le\ 
cheats, a tea garden wi'h .i cooly jilucking in 
the foreground and a native atten<lant bt'rving the 
(dieering cup. Mr. Hagenbeck ilei-iies great <-redit 
for his enterprise and we heartily wish him all 
success. 
PRODUCE AND PLANTING. 
Changes in- the Tea Tuadr.— Tbe T/oi/uce .VaiAw'* 
llC'-ieir, which we presiiino is wri'tea by groceisfor 
grucurs, in in series of arliclea ou the tea trade baa, 
in its issue of last Satuiduv, goinethiug to Buy HDuut 
the changes in the trade, aud also nbout blecunig. It 
points out that " ii 't many years aj;o it was u general 
practice among the larger grocers to bold relaiivcly 
very large stocks of tea in bond, but the recent de- 
velopments in the trade have greatly modified this 
custom. It is not only the wholesale trade who 
are no longer Buflfioieutly interested to lock up 
their money in tea, but the far la-ger aggregate 
stocks shat used to be held by the retailers huve 
been so greatly moJiSed as to the compnatively 
a negligible quiatity. Overwbehniiig aud constant 
public sales throughout the the greater part of the 
year, coupled with the miserably small lots and 
with the tall in prices and in profits, of course 
account for this change. Neverthoiess, the change 
is not wholly bcnifi::ial, as notwithstanding tbe 
deluge of teas or perhaps in consequence of it, it 
is increasingly diflicult for the retailer to miin- 
tain ih". flivour aud strength of his blends at a 
standard where his customers do not notice any 
change. Any noticeable alteration at once leads to 
complaint ou the part of the captious though nn- 
criti-;al Briliih public, Etrangely ignorant as it ia 
of tea, aud demanding chiefly two things — a black 
infusion and a strong thick fl.i.vour." 
Blending. — "It is partly this difficulty of main- 
taining standards on a small scale," says the 
lli'.i:ic>i' . " that has caused the great ii. crease in whole- 
sale blending of the late years, for the large 
sti^cks always held by the larger London leadefB 
and their being constantly in the market, ensure 
their having a supply at all times of the suitable 
sorts to prepare any blend that may be wanted. 
They have, of course many other advantages. Work 
ou a large scale is always cheaper than on a 
small one, especia'ly when, as in this case, machi- 
nery can be employt-d which is iijt only far more 
economical, bnt does the mixing ftir more evenly 
than can be done by hand, with the advantage 
also, which is iiou possessed by the smaller re- 
tailers, cutting the leaf to an even size — the im- 
portant matter when tea is measured into the pot 
ill a spoon, and is not weighed Besides this the 
wholesale dealers, from the greater extent of their 
experience are certain to make more saleable blends 
— for it is a common place that far too many of the gro- 
cers still spoil the tea which they try at great coat 
to improve. Nor is it a trifling consideration to 
save all the worry and mess pf such a dusty wi 
