THE TROPICAL AGKiqULTURIST. [July 1, 190S. 
they should not see the low-priced rubbieh that they 
saw today— it would not come into the country. He 
hoped the Chancellor of the Exchequer would sbick 
to his guns, and whether we liked the corn tax or not 
that he would not touch tea." — But 
thb; days op shilling tea seem numbered. 
We hear that a number of the large dealers, in- 
cluding Liptons, the International Tea Company, and 
others, have decided to abolish the sale of Is tea at 
once. Tliese firms will not sell any tea under Is 2d, 
and those of them who have been selling over weight 
tea at Is Bd will now charge Is 8d.— i2 & 0 Mail, May 22. 
TEA BY THE SIBERIAN RAILWAY. 
The British Commercial agent in Russia reports 
that, with the forLhcoraing opening of regular 
traffic on the Manchuriaa Railway the tea trade 
will receive a considerable impulse from the direct 
communications organised by the new line, with 
the steamer service attached to it, enabling tea to 
be carried direct from Ilangkow, Shanghai and 
Ceylon (for Ceylon tea) to the chief stations of the 
- Siberian and Russian railway systems including 
Moscow, Nijni, St. Petersburg and Warsaw. The 
full cost of delivery per poud (36 lb.) of tea from 
the above-named ports will be from 4-79 roubles to 
5-1 roubles to Moscow ; 5-8 roubles to 5-.30 roubles 
to St. Petersburg ; and 5-31 roubles to 5-53 roubles 
to Warsaw, according to port of despatch.— P^awi- 
ing Opinion, June 6. [A rouble is 2s l|d.— Ed. 
T.A.] 
ALLEGED GREAT PLUMBAGO DISCOVERIES 
IN AMERICA. 
CEYLON'S INABILITY TO MEET THE 
NEW YORK DEMAND. 
A striking example of Yankee tall talk has 
reached us, which, were it to be launched upon 
those interested iu the plumbago industry in 
Ceylon and unversed in the mysteries of exagger-a- 
tion whieU characterise American journalism, 
might cause plumbago kings to tremble and a 
panic among holders of plumbago scrip. It 
appears from the " Pittsburg Post " that "in all 
the glory of American mining " the endeavour to 
find a mine to divide " the magnificent profits with 
the famous graphite deposit on the island of 
Ceylon" had proved fruitless up till now. The 
"long looked-f or deposit" has been found at last 
"if not on United States ground just across the 
border in Canada" only a few hours' ride from New 
York City. • The writer proceeds as if he was 
familiar with every detail of the Ceylon work. 
Graphite, which sells in New York at two hundred 
Dollars a ton, is never to be found on the market 
awaiting a purchaser. It is bonghfc on orders placed 
months betoro delivery, and the delays to which 
manufaotnrerB who use the mineral are frec^uently sub. 
jected result in great loss. The demand for graphite 
cannot possibly be filled by the Ceylon mine, and the 
few similar mines are of eo little consequence as not to 
be considere'J— furnishing as ftiey do only 10 per cent 
of the production. The problem has faced many of 
the most important industries as to where the future 
•supply was to be found. 
It has been realised from at least a century's ex- 
perience that the Coylou mine will always be worked 
and owned by a few f.'inilies of natives, a.s has been the 
case since the discovery of the deposit which has made 
fortunes tor many generations of Ceyloneae,the mines 
descending from f'lthor to sou. It is utterly impossible 
to introduce modern mining methods on the island, and 
therefore just as impossible to increase the output in 
the mines. The graphite is mined by hand, is carried 
to the surface in baskets on the heads ol Sinhalese, 
and is sorted by hand. And -when the product is 
ready for shipment it is Ten Thousand miles from 
the market at New York. The crucible mskers in 
i'ennsylvania, whose work is entirely dependent on 
graphite ; the manufacturers of steel, who cannot turn 
out their products without the crucibles ; the workers 
in finer metals requiring crucibles ; the mann- 
facturera of graphite lubiicants and the finer grades 
of machinery dependent on graphite as a lubricant ; 
the manufacturers of structural paints ; the owners of 
powder mills ; all these and dozens of others who have 
millions of dollars invested in manufacturing eater- 
prise, heretofore could look only to these coolies of 
Ceylon, carrying the graphite from the mines on their 
heads. As the mines have been worked to increasing 
depth and therefore with greater difficulty the output 
has decreased, while the demand has been increasing 
by leaps and bounds. The development of electricity 
has been another potent factor iu increasing the de- 
mand in Europe and America, for the manufacture of 
core carbons, rheostats, cable conduits and electrical 
appliances of various kinds. The Ceylon mine has 
quadrupled in value. The vulue of this new mine has 
been increased in exactly similar proportion. 
SOME IMPORTANT USES OF GKAPHITE. 
Graphite has over 1,000 every day uses iu com- 
merce and the arts. A few of the more important 
uses calling for a constant increase of the sup- 
ply are : — 
In the manufacture of Crucibles for Steel, Brass 
anl Copper. 
In the manufacturing of Crucibles for the Precious 
Metals. 
Iu the manufacture of Paints for Metal Surfaces. 
As a Lubricant, 
In the manufacture of Core Carbons, Rheostats and 
many other uses in the generation and use of electri 
city and electrical machinery. 
In the manufacture of Stove Polish. 
In the manufacture of Lead Pencils, 
As a Polish for Gunpowder. 
As a polish for Nuts and Small Metal Parts, 
As a Packing for Pipes. 
For Foundry Facings. 
For Electrotyping. 
For Shot Polishing. 
Over 20,000 tons of Graphite are now imported 
into the United States yearly from Ceylon for the 
above and kiudred purposes. It will be readily 
understood that an American market awaits the 
10,000 tons a year which the Grenville Company 
proposes to mine, whereas the European market, 
equally lartre, can be supplied by the Grenville 
mine much cheaper than by the Ceylon mine. 
MECHANICAL TREATMENT OF COCOA, 
FROM POD TO SACK, 
The cocoa planters of Trinidad can now always 
boast that Trinidad was the first cocoa country 
that treated cocoa mechanically from the pod to 
the sack as such is now the case, and the honour 
of doing some belongs to Messrs. Marcus Mason 
& Co., Produce Exchange, New York, who are well 
known manufacturers of all kinds of tropical 
plantation machinery and who have .spent a great 
deal of time, labour and money to obtain this 
result; and must therefore be heartily congratulated 
on the great and important success which they 
have now achieved. It ia very interesting to see 
working the plant which been installed at the 
Philippine estate, Gian Couva, an estate which 
is under the managemeut of Mr. Julius Boos. 
The first machine is 
