March 1, 1899.] THE TROPICAL 
AGKICULTURIST. 
643 
Mil. BETTS NEW MACHINE. 
The new tea ciryiiip; niasliiiie, which is being 
erected by Messrs. Brown it Co. Ltd., Hatton, 
for Mr. Jas. Bett, of Beechwood, Strathlay, now 
ver<,'es on completion and is expected to be ready 
for trial by uexc week. 
The object of tlic macliino, wiiicli Mr. Bett 
has invented, is not so much to do a <,'ieat deal 
of work as to improve the quality of lea, but 
particularly to save fuel, Mr. I3ett is quite 
sanp;uine of the success in I his direction of his 
new invention. In tliese days when economy is 
sougiit tor, Mr. Jjelt's iiiveniion will, by the 
I'lantin;^ Coiniininity, be looked upon as a great 
boon. We wi.>li j\lr. Belt every success in his 
cew invention.— Co?'. 
TEA PROSPECTS. 
To the Eilitnr of the //. anil C. Mail. 
Sin. — It is, I tlunk, generally admittc'3 that the year 
1898 will not pan out as favourably for the majority of 
tea gardens as even 1807. BiU, after full allowance is 
made for this fact, the opinion, which is gaining ground 
and which was expressed by the f-'colrtiiian writer, ia that 
the situation, unfavourable as it may be, has been over- 
discounted in the thvowawAV vaUiation which was 
recently placed by timid holders on their shareholdines 
boVei in sound companies and in those ot les.s financial 
sirength. 
Your correspondent's allusion to over-capitalisation 
o£ many companies i-, of course, true enough. Truer 
Ftill what he s lyo as to a'ixiona buyers of ihe shares 
having themselves O'/cr-over-capitalised such issues s. ill 
further. This feature, of course, intensified the ill 
(-ffeots of reaction in values when the turn of the tide 
came, as it did, in early 18;)8. 
Your correspondent admits the natural probability 
of 1899 being generally more favourable than 1897 and 
1898 as regards weather and other producine conditions 
and this seems, I agree, hkely, if only on the swing of 
the pendulum principle. 
As regards actual profits ot 1S9S and the diversion of 
rescr.csto dividend equalisation, provided the condi- 
tions are admitted to be exceptional, this would seem 
a vary proper course to follow — mhcre ndcijiiale 7-evcjV:s 
exist. Unfortunately, however, the forniaiion of proper 
leservos, during favourable time.= , has been m ire the 
exception than the rule, and shareholders should insist 
on this bci g done more liberally in the future than it 
has been in the past. 
Your correspondent's allusion to: — 
1. Check given to extensions, 
2. JExpanding markets for the produce, 
3. (jurtailnif-nt of expensi'S, 
4. Diminishing output of old or poor tea, 
5. Going out of cultivation of same, 
6. Only gradual increiise of crop from the large 
new area? planted, and probable over-estimate of what 
thoy are c;ipable of giving — 
To all these points his references are nj doubt 
001 rect. 
Finally, I can only say very much dillo ditto to his 
strong recommendation to all oompunies to f.im at 
having solid cash reserves, — Yours f lithfullv, 
G. SETON. 
-H. and a Mall, Feb. 20. 
THE INDI.\N TEA ASSUCIATION 
(LONDON). 
CONDITIONS OP SALE AT PUBLIC AUCTIONS. 
1 am desired by the Committee to inform you that 
ha'ing h.id this suhject under consideration they arc 
iu favour of amending the Conditions ot Sale in the 
fo'lowing re' po ;ts :-— 
I. TuK Amount cv Dr.i'osrr. — Hitherto it ban been 
tb9 custom for the buyer to pay a deposit at the 
rate of £1 per chest on the Saturday following the da 
of sale. 
This was fixed when the average value of tea was 
considerably higher than it is at present. 
The Committee favour the reduction of this deposit 
to an ad valorem amount of 20 per cent of the value 
with a maximum as at prr sent, of £1 per chest. 
The objection of this alteration is to render it easier 
for the trade to hold larger stocks of lea at the time of 
the year when auciions are heaviest. 
2. The J5iddi.\o at Public Auctions.— The Com- 
mittee think the tjidding should advance by Jd instead 
of id on teas up to Gid per lb. after which only bids of 
Jd shall be received. 
In Calcutta a similar rule has obtained for some time 
with satisfaction to all parties. Bids under G annas 
advance by pies, overG annas by } annas ; 7d in London 
IS, rcuihly speaking, equivalent to 0 annas in Cal- 
cutta. 
3 The Committee think it is desirable that the 
selling broker should have the right of makir.o the first 
bid with the view to more order in the biddiusr and to 
expedite the sales. ^ 
The Committee are now in communication with the 
Ceylon Cornmittee on the subject, and it is proposed 
subsequently to hold a meeting cf members of the 
Association and others interested to consider the 
question. 
In case you are unable to attend the meetin<r when 
called I should be dad to be favoured with an expression 
^'r'-" \^ ''^'i'^''- Ebnest Tye. Secretary. 
14, bt. Mary Axe, London, E.C.,reb (i, 1899 
— i/. and O. Mad, Feb. 10. 
MEXICAN COFFEE PltODUCTIONS. 
v.h,'r°°7 • 'u'Jf'' P'T'^ '■^^ J^'Khest commercial 
value which flourish on the slopes that extend from 
the summit of the high piateau of Mexico down to the 
sea coast are cinchona and coffee. The former has 
had some attention, but has not been cultivated in 
anytcing like the same methodical manner as coffee 
liie cotlee tree is a plant of mild climates. It pro- 
spers in localities where the temperature is not 
commonly inferior to 60 or 64 deg. Eahr , not he 
Dr"7r/^li'''Th"^^'^'/"'^ generally keeping about 60 
OKo deg. The plant requires also a good amount of 
moisture m the atmosphere ; this seems to consutute 
it= life and irrigation is therefore unnecessary. The 
altitudes answeri. g to such temperatures in Mexicoare 
those between 800 and 1,400 metres above the lowest 
Coffee seems to have b en introd iced into Mexico iu 
the early years of the present century, and there ia 
some reason to believe that cultivation first beaan in 
1 °i7 M f-' '^"^ °" '•''=^^'5 fiat in the year 
lol7 the cultivation bad developed iu this ncighbonr- 
hood to an extent which was not paralleled by the 
piogress attained, n any other quarter. This posiiion of 
pre-eminence Cordoba has not been Ei'ftVred to 
maintain ; but even today the production ranks second 
only to that of Soconusco, which has the la.T.t 
output of any coti-ee district in Mexico. This oufpu 
h?s been achieved in fac3 of the general belief lhat 
boconusco IS not an ideally suitable place for the 
cultivation of the berry. Its altitude is from 850 
metres to 900 metres, and we believe that it is an un- 
deniable fac that tho bearing per tree is larger iu 
the cantons of the same State, Huatusco and Coatepec 
lying respec lively at 1,3(J0 metres and 1,20(1 metres 
altitude. The Imik ef each tree is large'r in these 
last cantons, and they ..re obliged to plant them at a 
wider distance fiom each other. Uriz.b.i, at 14 milea 
from Cordeb-v .nd l,'2o0 metres altitude, enjeys the 
very climate fit for coffee, and would be more advanta- 
geous than Its neighbour di.Hrict if the strong southern 
winds which blow the veiy time cf tho bloomine 
ot iho trer, carrying away the flower, bad not up to 
now constituted a very serious check to tho develop- 
mcnt ol the iiidu»tiv. The hai m. perhapH mi>;ht be 
averted by the planting of trees of thick foliag.j iu « 
convenient position. 
