THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [May 2, 1904. 
SCANDINAVIA. 
In Norway, Sweden and Denmark we continue 
to make quiet but steady progrebs, and although 
these countries are not drlnkinpf more tea they are 
taking more Indian and Ceylon, though I fear that 
here as in Germany, India is reaping the benefit 
of our campaign. The bulk of the Ceylon imported 
was obtained from London, and even more has 
come this year than fc snerly through Hamburg. 
The reason alleged is .that London and Hamburg 
prices have been much lower than Colombo, and 
the terms of payment are more suitable to Scan- 
dinavia, where long credit seems essential. The 
direct exports from Ceylon exceed those of last 
year by some 7,000 lb only. While three of our 
friends in Stockholm and Copenhagen have 
advertised considerably in the local papers as 
well as in many provincial ones and seem 
satisfied with results, the • others do not 
put much faith in this method and prefer adver- 
tisements on behalf of the grocers by means of 
sign boards, placards, price lists, fancy tins and 
canisters, In the past year the number of agents 
reeeiving subsidies has been the same as in 1902 ; 
but next year I hope to add to the number. Grants 
have amounted to £266-9-6 against an expenditure 
of £1276-14-10. 
ITALY AND SWITZERLAND. 
It will be seen from appendix E that I have 
spent £27 3 11 in the former country, and £l6 0 0 
in the latter against an expenditure of £8i 11 10 
and £45 11 10 respectively. I mentioned in my 
report of last year that a hi m in Naples had been 
promised a subsidy but as the accounts had yet !o 
come in, the amount would be paid this year. This 
work has been carried on principally in Sorrento 
and Naples, and part of the expenditure has been 
devoted to the distribution of Ceylon tea in cup, 
but the bulk of the expenditure consisted of 
advertisements in 17 newspapers and iu distribu- 
tion of hand bills. Though 1 consider our tea is 
now suflBciently known in Switzerland to require 
no help at any rate in the large towns, 1 granted 
one gentleman a small subsidy to pnsh it specially 
amongst the Swiss in the German Cantons. The 
recipient is an old friend of Ceylon, who has been 
dealing in our tea for years, and who has spent 
money on advertising and introducing it for over 
8 years, 
KUSSIA. 
As it has been found impossible to go on wiih the 
projected Tea Koom in St. Petersburg, the money 
Eaid last year has been returned to me and will 
a found credited in the accounts. On receipt of 
the news that an extra duty would be levied on 
Ceylon and Indian teas entering Russia t;ja Europe 
I at once communicated with Mr Leake and \yas 
able to give him some information to be embodied 
in the letter he sent to the Secretary of the State. 
I also communicated with Russian firms on the 
subject ; their unanimous opinion is that the sole 
reason for the increase of duty is the wish of the 
Kussian Government to obtain traffic for the 
Siberian Railway. This is also my own view, 
though I cannot explain why the same duty should 
not be imposed on China and Java teas. I am also 
sorry to see that an extra duty of one rouble per 
case is to be imposed on all teas landed at Asiatic 
ports from non Russian-vessels. 
I much regret the delay in sending in this 
report and accounts. I have had great diffi- 
culty in getting in all the accounts promptly 
at the end of the year. I knew that for {part of 
the work in Germany \l should not receive closed 
accounts prior to March, so I made arrangements 
to close these accounts to a ;poiut in October. 
The delay has been caused by one of the Paris 
firms promising me completed accounts by 10th 
January, but delivering them after Ist February. 
(Signed) J. H. Kenton. 
Buckeburg, 2nd Feb. 1904, 
TOBACCO GROWING IN IRELAND. 
In answer to Mr. Flavin (Kerry, N.),' Mr. 
Wyndbam said, — The Department of Agriculture 
has arranp-pH tor the cultivation of tobacco 
on aroiii!;iLiCiul scale iu ilie County of Mealh during 
the present year. No expert has been employed 
to advise on the cultivation i.i the crop, but one 
will be employed to advise ou the treatment of 
he leaf when grown, — London Times, 
^'THE FOOD OF THE GODS." 
As the title enggests this is an interesting little dis 
sertation on Cacao Theobroma, the "Food of the Gods' 
as Linsens .happily named it. The work contains 
nothing new and la of no use to the planter, but as 
a book to be popularly read and to help to boom cacao 
it is attractive and well-adapted. The contents are 
in chapters under the headings : Its Nature, Growth 
and Cultivation, Manufacture, History, Sources and 
Varieties, with appendices on theancieut manufacture 
of cacao, the Bournville Works Suggestion Scheme, 
and the Early Cocoa Houses. The author, Mr Bran- 
don Head, knows most about the Trinidad plantations 
and he describes the work there, mentioning Ceylon, 
however, on frequent occasicns. Phot<'gr8phio illus. 
trations are many and vei y good, eeveral Ceylon 
views being included. The 'icoloured plates will 
attract popular attention, but are not exactly true to 
nature. Altogether it is an attractive little book and 
may do some good by 'encouraging cocoa-drinking ; 
but we fear the publisher, Mr K Brimley Johnson, 4, 
Adam St, Adelphi, WC, has priced the work too high 
at 3s 6d. 
TEA IN WYNAAD. 
Wynaad, March 28.— Some seven or eight years 
ago when the local tea industry was still in ils 
infancy, a well-known authority, who had made 
the staple extremely profitable in another District, 
was credited with having stated that from his 
own observation of the soil generally throughout 
the Wynaad plateau he had come to the conclusion 
that the yield from tea estates situated thereon, 
which had been properly planted, was likely to 
be limited only by the amount; of labour available 
for plucking, and the facilities for manufacture. 
This somewhat optimistic forecast has, so far, 
been scarcely fulfilled, in fact, on one group of 
estates the resident manager committed himself 
to an estimate {re past years qualities) which has 
been proved by actual returns, to have been 
50,000 lb. in excess. That the future of this pro- 
duct is viewed with ultra-sanguine sentiments 
is also demonstrated by the fact that one planter 
here has raised the Canarese cooly and maistry 
pay, by from 25 to 200 per cent, and is at the 
present time engaging such labour at 5 as. for 
men and 3^- as. for women a day, the enlisting 
maistry being also remunerated at 1 a, commission 
for each cooly hired. Hitherto, the scale of wages 
payable to Mysoreans has ruled at 4 as. per man 
and 2| as. per woman daily, the maistry supplying 
