juLY 1, 1901.J THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
13 
" ^, — . — . — _ 
To the Editor. 
CEYLON AND INDIAN TEA IN LONDON 
London, 10th May. 
Sir, — I send you an analysis of tlie propoi" 
tionf5 of the three lowest grades of Indian and 
Ceylon Tea, taken from Gow, Wilson & Stanton's 
Circular: — 
INDIAN TEA, APRIL 4TH, 1901. 
36,790 packa});es ;— of tisis 
7,559 were Pekoe Souchong'or 20 cent 
2,371 were Broken and Souchong or 6| do 
3,445 were Dast, Fannings &c., or 9|- do 
Total lowest grades 35| per cent 
CEYLON TEA, APPJL 4TH, 1901. 
25,479 packages ;— of this 
2,991 were Pekoe Souchong or 12 per cent 
107 were Broken and Souchong or \ do 
1,167 were Dust, Fannings c&o., or 4| do 
Total lowest grades 17 par ceUj. 
INDIAN TEA, APRIL 19TH, 1901. 
32,594 packages;— of this 
7,270 were Pekoe Souchong or 22 per cent 
2,447 were Broken and Souchong or 74 do 
2,033 were Dust, Fannings &o., or 6| do 
Total lowest grades 35| per cent 
CEYLON TEA, APRIL 19TH, 1901. 
31,594 packages — of this 
3,487 were Pekoe Souchong or 11 per cent 
289 were Broken and Souchong or J- do 
1,362 were Dust, Fannings, &o., or 4{- do 
Total lowest grades 1&| per cent 
INDIAN TEA, APRIL 26TH, 1901. 
25,286 packages— of this 
5,088 were Pekoe Souchong or 18 per cent 
1,742 were Broken and Souchong or 7 do 
2,581 were Dust, Fannings, &c,, or 10 do 
Total lowest grades 87 per cent 
CEYLON TEA; APRIL 26TH, 1901. 
33,329 packages— of this 
4,144 were Pekoe Souchong or 12^ per cent 
372 were Broken and Souchong or 1\ do 
1,778 were Dust and Fannings or 5* do 
Total lowest grades ISJ per cent 
CEYLON TEA, MAY 3RD, 1901. 
25,641 packages— of this 
2,808 were Pekoe Souchong or 11 per cent 
127 were Broken and Souchong or \ do 
1,173 were Dust, Fannings &c., or 5 do 
Total lowest grades 16i per cent 
I have not checked the figures. Anyone can do 
so, who may think they are wrongi They are ■ 
worth consideration. As you know whence thefigures 
are derived, you will be able to take them out 
for yourself ; it will I think be worth your while 
to do so. 
Those who ever thought that High Country 
planters would put out of plucking any of the 
Tea yielding prohtahle results, for the benetit of 
their Low Country neighbours, must have an 
imperfect knowledge of human nature. 
It is the injpracticable part of the scheme of 
the Joint Committee that has failed. Ceylon 
planters were blamed for making too much in-s 
ferior tea ; they are now blamed for going to 
make too much good tea ! ! See Messrs. Gow, 
Wilson & Stanton's circular of 3rd May, 1901. 
C. S. 
P.i?.— Does not making better tea mean restricted 
production from finer plucking ?—C. S. 
GROWING PEPPER AT A HIGH ELE- 
VATION. 
North Cove, Bogawantalavra, May 14. 
Dear Sir,— I have been looking through 
some of your back numbers for information 
about " Pepper " but can find nothing to 
help me. Would you or any of your corre- 
spondents tell me vvhether pepper may be 
grown to pay at 5,000 feet elevation, and if 
so what is the best variety to cultivate. 
I know where to find any quantity of 
wild pepper and it seems to bear well. If 
you can ai3:ord me any information on this 
subject, I shall be extremely obliged, as I am 
thiiakiug of applying to Government for a 
grant of land on lease for the purpose of ex- 
perimenting at a high elevation.— t am, vours, 
&c., T. FARR. 
[To save a delay of three weeks in answer- 
ing, we venture to give Mr. Farr's letter 
insertion in our daily, in order co say that 
we have never heard of pepper being grown 
in Ceylon successfully above 2,000 to 2,500 feet. 
If therefore Mr. Farr is prepared to spend 
money in pioneering experiments at 4,000 to 
5,000 feet elevation, he certainly will deserve 
encouragement by a grant of land. But first 
let him have the v/ild pepper tested by sending 
a sample to his Colombo and London Agents. 
Our manual "All about Spices " is unfortu- 
nately out of print; but we can send Mr. Farr 
two back numbers of the T.A. of which the 
late Dr. Trimen wrote in his Annual Report 
(in 1889) as follows : - 
" As regards Pepper, I am glad to see signs of its 
being taken up ou a larger scale. We have disposed 
of considerable quantities of both cuttings and seeds 
of the good native variety grown at Honaratgoda, 
and it is satisfactory to learn thit a consignment 
of this sort grown on an estate near Kandy, so high 
as 2,000 feet, has sold in London at an excellent price. 
This cultivation is also of course eminently suited to 
the native villager, by whom indeed it has long been 
practised on a small scale. Good accounts of the modes 
of cultivation followed in Johore and in Malabar, 
respectively, will be found in the ' Tropical Agricul- 
turist ' for September andNovember, 1888, (pp. 154 and 
354) ; the latter being probably the most suited to the 
conditions prevailing here," 
— Bd, T.A.] 
RUBBER PLANTING IN CEYLON. 
Upcountry, May 5.3. 
Sir, — Would you advise anyone going in for 
rubber cultivation in Ceylon ? What is the best 
kind to plant, and how long would one have to 
wait for returns ? Any inforination on the above 
will much oblige, yours, AN INQUIRER. 
[Certainly, we advise rubber planting in suitable 
soil and damp climate up to 1,500 feet. Study 
" Ail About Rubber," and the Tropical Acjricid^ 
turist, with the Royal Botanic Ganlena circulars 
of Mr. Willis and his coadjutors — and see our 
summary of all available information in the 
"Directory arid Handbook" early u?xt luowth* 
