776 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST 
[May 1, I89y 
MR. T. N. CHRISTIE. 
A FAREWELL INTBRVIIiW. 
Befoi-e tliis well-known Ceylon pbinttr and 
estate proprictoi/ Icd't by the.s.s. "Statt'oi-dshire" 
recently we had a brief interview with him, 
asking several (luestions of general interest 
tf) the platiting connnunity of whicli lie lias 
f<jr many years been a distinguished and 
valuable member. The answers to our 
enquiries we here briefly summarises. 
Mr. Christie's gener;vl im[)res.Tion of 
THE TEA IN THE J)ISTrUt'TH 
he saw was that it was t!minently satisfaf- 
tory, and far m(jre so than soniewhat-rc^cent 
reports and ])rices would have led peo[»le to 
anticipate. He did not, beside this, notice 
anytViing special, and certaiidy Ik? had seen 
nothing in any way likely to alfc-ct for the 
worse the prospect of tim tea ci-op for the cui'- 
rent year. As to 
lVIANUJ!IN(i, 
of course, Mr. t/hristic said, no general ruh; 
can be laid down. In some cases it is worth- 
while, ill others di'cidedly not. Jf you ar<> 
going to get only Od to (ijd for your teas, 
you will be running the minimum cost of 
production very close and by the extra 
outlay on manure you will injure or destroy 
the very slight margin of jjrofit tiiat might 
have been yours, hnt if your prices are 
bound to run higher than that you can 
att'ord to manure plentifully and be pretty 
certain that some result be seen in en- 
hanced prices. He had noticed the " blister 
and grey blights " upon the tea in several 
places, but neither was likely to do any 
serious liarm or to spread w"ith the fatal 
power or even the rapidity of a disease, like 
HcmUeia for instance. 
The 
LABOUR SUPPLY 
iu Oeylon he considered would never be found 
superabundant to a degree that would in time 
check the immigration of coolies from the 
neighboui'ing peninsula. Of 
FUEL 
too, he thought there would always be a good 
supply. Nothing had struck him more in this 
last visit than the marvellous celerity of 
growth (since he was last in Ceylon) in" the 
trees that had been planted with a view 
to fuel supply. The timber in the country 
was likely to last, well, — as long as it was 
wanted. The 
ROADS 
in the planting districts, too, he found to be 
everywhere in very good order. 
As to 
THE SALE OP TEA IN RUSSIA 
and on the Continent generally, Mr. Christie 
was highly pleased, and here and there as- 
tonished, with the inunense pi'ogi'ess made. 
He had read om- recent interview with the 
local tea-buyers (appearing in our issue of 
March 30th), and found nothing therein to 
contradict or even supplement. On the 
subject of tea in America Mr. Christie was 
not very coniniunicative, but could scarcely 
assert that Ceylon ought just yet to give 
up its campaign, costly though it was. 
AS TO OTHER PRODUCTS 
he found Cacao doing well, and the cacao 
disease he considered far from serious ; it 
pould not be comparecl to ttiat pf poffiee for 
danger and destructiveness. Cardamoms 
too, were luaking good progiesK, but nujn»)ei4 
ot acres he saw had heeu jjlant^^d in soil 
»!i T /.u""^''!^^'''*' 't- <^'a>-<iamoins 
needed the richest soil, x irgin Unasi soil, at 
a rair elevation, under good continuous 
Miaae, and /to/ 111 a very damp situation -at 
any rate as regarded the lie of the gixjuiid 
they giew 111. * 
For the projiosed 
Af /.I "^t-tukal ukpaktment 
Mv. tliiistie had no gre.it piaine «,r en- 
couragement to offer : .such departments weM^ 
seldom xyorth their cost anA the tixiuhle 
expended. And he would certainly not have 
ail revenue cadets jmss tlir.n.gh (:,'ii-eiicesU'r 
t'Olk^ge. 1 hey would come .mt here know- 
ing tar too much for their position, and 
^\llh an utterly insuHicient cjuantity of 
practical exjierience to balance it.* 
As Ut the alxtlition of the 
KICK nUTY 
Jie thought it very desirable, wen- it |H.N.sil,|,. 
to substitute an e(|uitableandea«i!v < ollert.'.l 
tax in Its pla.e.l At present he li.ul sf^n 
no suitable substitute suggested. The Lnnd 
lax he could not l,y anv m»-ans approve. 
HKWI PKICEH l-OR (OMJIOX TKAS, 
Which of late have become lik.'lv to contimie, 
-Mr. Cliristie thought would " undoubted Iv 
encourage larger iiiiptnts of China tea iiit;. 
tJie liiited Kingdom this year; but 
le did not consider the effect would 
l)e so m;.rked in the home as in 
the continental markets. In conchisi<.n 
y\i , w .^"'^Pi''«-^«1 strong coudeiaualiou 
of the abolition of the 
LMPOKT DUTY ON TEA. 
As we stated two days ago, it would, he 
telt sure, encourage the importation of 
Indian and ( hina teas by iinscruiiulous dea- 
lers in Colombo, who after keejiing it awhile 
in their godowns, would shij) it <jff without 
compunction, and without unpacking it even 
as Ceylon tea. Even if Ceylon does sell 
some of the comn'on-ist teas now, the inrush 
ot other common teas in the manner des- 
cribed would go far to blind the public to 
the good name our Colony has also possessed 
hitherto tor exporting some of the finest te^ to 
be tasted anywhere. As to macking Colombo 
a general blending depot, he did not know 
ot any marked advantages contained in the 
proposal, if the tea-duty were not abolished 
J3ut against that abolition, Mr. Chiistie 
remains, like most of his planting brethren, 
immovably firm. 
Apropos of the 
PLANTING COMMISSION 
at the Paris Exhibition, we learnt in reply 
to a question we put to him, that our de- 
parted visitor had no intention of serving on 
It it he were asked. Mr. Christie hopes to 
return to Ceylon in twelve months' time, 
probablv visiting the Paris Exhibition en 
route, ^\ e look forward to his next triij 
tnther and to whatever he may have to tell 
us, either by way of change or comfirniaton 
ot his views, with anticipation of a pleasur- 
bale kind. 
* In Java, the resalt uf the system "is, we believe" 
that a more sympathetic interest is taken in all 
the native and other branches of agriculture.— 
t Or to keep down expenditure to E82,O00,O0O, the 
rate cf two years ago ?— Ep. 1:J., v^ij 
