102 
THE TE0PICA1> 
AGRICULTTJKIST, 
[Aug. 1, 1903. 
Scottish Ceylon and Yatiyautoba, all realised 
from about :|d to ^d below the results of 1901. 
Some eouipauies have taken to selling part ot 
their produce in Colombo, greatly to iheir advant- 
age, as they save the heavy London charges, as 
■well as freight and insurance cost. Of these the 
Burnside conies near the top, and from its two 
groups of estates realised 6.30d and 8 34d in 
London compared with 6.05d and 7.11d a year 
ago, and in Ceylon, 29 and 38 cents against 
32i and 37-i cents. A considerable num- 
ber of the companies are now going in for 
MAKING GREEN TEA, 
the pioneer apparently being the Ceylon 
Tea Plantations. This company increased 
its output for the American and Canadian 
markets from 78,2781b. to 513.489 1b, but the 
proportion to the total crop was apparently not 
large enough to ihov/ any substantial benefit, as 
tlie average realised was only 7.24d against 7.41d. 
The Eiirnside has ulso been making this class i<f 
te!), and last year turned out 4,2151b. as an ex- 
periment, which proved fairly remunerative, aiid 
the Ederapoila and Kelani Valley aie both 
proposing to make a start in the same direction. 
Other coinpanies believe in Para Rubber as a profit- 
producing subsidiary, while others again prefer 
cocoa, coconuts, or cardamom*. The Bandarapola, 
indeed, goes in largely for cocoa, and lias no less 
than 224 acres in beariD£r. Coconuts are the special 
favourite of the Ceyloii Tea PI intations, which has 
become interested in a patent process for treating 
the kernel, and expects remunerative results when 
once the necessary machinery, now being installed, 
is working. It is, however, not; so nat row-minded 
as to be content with only a second stiing, and is 
also devoting itself to tlie cultivation of rubber, 
and it will surely be a bad year when the com- 
pany is unable to maintain its proud record of the 
past sixteen years in the matter of dividends. 
The Poonagalla Valley pins its faith to 
cofiee and cardamoms, and has now forty- 
five acres planted with the lattei . 
Net Profits. Sums put to Divi- 
Company. Depreoiation, etc. dends. 
' 1902. 1901. 1902. 1901. 1902. 
£ £ £ p.c. 
5,581 1,000 1,000 6 
2,047 1,026 974 6 
184 — — — 
1901. 
£ 
4,869 
2,224 
—74a 
Alliance 
Bandarapola 
Enmside 
Ceylon Tea Plan- 
tatious 37,199 37,971 
Dhnbula Valley 14,000 13,933 
Eastern Produce 
and Estates 
E'ier.ipalla 
General Ceylon 
Hii^hland 
IiuperiKl Ceylon 
Eelani Valley 
p.c. 
7 
5,000 10,000 
2,500 500 
16,839 16.278 c7,875 c7,875 
N>;ha!ma 
Nu'.vara Bliya 
Pauawal 
Poonagalla 
Portraore 
Rangalla 
Scottish Oeylon 
Standard 
Yatiyantota 
1;357 
1,898 
2,870 
1 
—298 
1,336 
3,718 
1,499 
4,062 
613 
—653 
11.893 15,800 
923 1,514 
—1,234 1.650 
4,376 3,930 
1.669 d — 
4,154 2,705 
S,f/60 10,375 
5,963 8,157 
300 
250 
500 
638 
2,000 
250 
5IJ0 
15 
15 
8 
2,000 
2,000 
6 
6 
80 
3 
7 
12 
10 
1,000 
d — 
4 
d — 
429 
8 
5 
1,500 
15 
15 
1,000 
1,000 
2i 
5 
a Net sale price. 
6 No i iiformation available. 
c 7,500 debentaroa paid off each year with bourn 
of 5 per cent. 
(Z No information available. 
The net results of tlie year's working, a? might 
have been expected, were varied. Both the Ceylon 
Tea Plantations and the Standard did well, and 
were able not only to maintain their dividends 
at the high figure of 15 per cent, but also to 
increase their allowances for depreciation, the 
former transferring £10,000 to that account and 
the latter £1,500, compared with £5,000 and nil 
a year ago. The Panawal raised its dividend 
once more to 7 per cent, against a mere 3 per 
cent in 1901, but only managed it by p.llowing a 
trifle of £80 for depreciation, and the Yatiyan- 
tota doubled its distribution, carrying £1,U00 in 
each year to depreciation. Two others, the Alliance 
and i;he Highland, managed to pay an extra I per 
cent, after making their usual provision, and 
several more, including the Eastern Produce and 
Estates. Imperial Ceylon and Nuwara Eliya, 
contented themselves with repeating last year's 
performa;iee3. The Bandarapola, Dimliul a Valley, 
and tderapolla p ii l the .-^auie dividends, as bifore, 
bat at the exoease of the estates, the Dimbnla 
Valley transferring £2,000 and the Bandarapola 
£52 less, while the Ederapoila only managel it by 
ignoring the question altogether. Although the 
Poonagalla converted a loss of £1,234 into a 
profit of £1,650, most of it was required to wipe 
out the debit balance, but the outcome was none 
the less fairly satisfactory, as the company carried 
forward a credit of £632, and has, therefore, a 
rather better prospect of once more recruiting the 
dividend-paying class, after an ab.sence of two 
years. The B.rrnside also made a profit of £184 
against a loss of £743 in 1901, but has still a lot of 
leeway to make up before it reaches smooth 
water, as a debit ot £884 yet remains to be wiped 
out, and the Nahalma is in just about as bad a 
E light. Its loss was only £298, compared with£653, 
ut there are two years' debenture interest, and 
some £51 of interest on interest deposits unpaid, 
so altogether it is £1,197 to the bad. Both 
the Scottish Ceylon and the Portmore had oot 
only to leave out ot consideration the matter of 
depreciation, but to again reduce their dividends 
from 8 to 5 per cent, and 12 to 10 per cent respec- 
tively. The Kelani Valley's profits dwindled from 
£613 to less than £1, a result which apparently 
caused them to try the effect of a little new blood, 
as the superintendent of two of their estates was 
chauged in July. A new factory erected on one 
of the estates at a cost of £2, il5, in place of an 
old one reported dangerous, rcade a serious inroad 
into the profits of the General Ceylon Tea Estates, 
and the net profits fell from £3,718 to £1,214, but 
with the help of a Lirge balance brougn forvvard 
the directors were able to provide tlij u'^umI 
£2,000 for depreciation, and carry forward £1,425, 
and we congratulate them uponadopting this course, 
instead of tantalising the shareholders with a 
small dividend even though it is some years since 
these had the gratification of receiving any return 
on their investment. The Kangalla directors are 
apparently too much ashamed of tlie year's trading, 
as an application for the annual statement met 
with the reply that the report; was not issued to 
the press. These results, taken as a whole, and 
coming on top of the bad record for 1901, would 
seem -suHiuient to cause those interested in Ceylon 
tea planting in any shape or form to despair of ever 
seeing brighter days for the industry, yet if the 
reports are practically unanimous in bewailing bad 
fortune in the past, they are equally unanimous 
