February i, 1892.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
549 
NOTES FEOM OUR LONDON LETTERS. 
MB. KOGIVUB's mission — A SHPABATH BOOM FOB 
THE SALE OF CEYLON TEA IN MINCING LANE 
— PALAIS INDIEN CO. AND CEYLON TEA FUND 
— MB. LOUGH AND CEYLON TEA — CELLULOSE 
OF COCONUT FIBBE — JOKAI AND JHANSZIE 
COMPANIES. 
LoNtON, Dec. 11th, 
Before you can receive this will doubtless 
have had sent you for publication Mr. Fogivue'a 
lengthy report to your Planters' Association on 
■what he has done in introducing Ceylon tea into 
Russia. He sent a copy of hia very voluminous 
report to the Ceylon Association, but the copy (on 
copying paper) is almost illegible. We gather, how- 
ever, that, up to date of his reporting Mr. Rogivue 
had received about 40,000 lb. of Ceylon tea, of 
which quantity he had disposed of about 35,0001b, 
This does not appear to us a very large amount 
considering the time his agency has been working ; 
but it would be unfair for us to judge of this 
without a full readicg of what he has written 
direct to Ceylon. 
The question of finding a remedy for the 
difficulty about the sales of Oeylon tea in 
Mincing Lane appears likely to find a solution by 
the beginning of the new year. The brokers 
are now arranging among themselves and with the 
proprietors of the eale-rooms to conduct Ceylon 
sales throughout the whole of Thursdays in a room 
distinct from that in which the sales of Indian are 
carried on. If this arrangement can be fully 
carried out, it will no doubt aliord a large measure 
of relief, though competent opinion informs me 
that it will not be likely to sufiSoe for your full 
needs for more than two years at the outside. 
Meanwhile the brokers have further bestirred them- 
selves to bring their samples into the rooms at 
an earlier time, so |that we do not now hear 
of the complaints lately made that it was im- 
possible to duly test their quality. It is not 
known to me whether to effect their earlier show- 
ing it has been found to be necessary to some- 
what defer sales ; but oven if this be the case we 
feel very sure the sellers willj find their balance 
of advantage in the arrangement, and since the 
more time has been given it is undoubtedly the 
fact that Oeylon teas have been fetching better 
relative prices than those of India. 
The Sub-Committee that I wrote you had been 
appointed to negotiate with the directors of the 
Palais Indien Company having had a conference, 
have submitted a resolution to the efieot that 
it does not think it possible to frame any scheme 
of co-operation which would be likely to meet 
with the approval of the Ceylon Tea Fund. 
They found upon inquiry that the financial 
position of the company is not without its 
embarrassments, and the fact would prevent the 
Tea Fund from subscribing the additional capi- 
tal which the Palais Indien directors desire to raise. 
Meanwhile, the Sub-Committee report that they 
consider that company to have done, and to be 
doing, good work. 
In this connection I must toll you that I seem 
to have somewhat misunderstood Mr. Lough's 
position with regard to the agency for the dis- 
posal of your tea in Paris. It was always my 
impression that ho had accepted that agency quite 
indnpondently of bis association with the Palais 
Indien Company. It has now been pointed out to 
me that bin aoceptanoo of the agency was con- 
tingent upon Ooylon aubuoribing towards the capital 
of that company. As this is not now likely to 
be done, all relations between Mr. Lough and the 
Oeylon Assoaiation in London have olosod, and i£ 
he sells Ceylon tea in his Paris kiosks it will be 
only because he finds it is to the taste of hia 
customers, and not in pursuance of any obligation 
he had contracted with the Association and with 
your own local bodies, As, however, this latter 
fact has only just now been established, 
anything that has been previously written by mo 
with respect to what Mr. Lough said at the 
meeting o( his company would still hold good, 
as at that time he was certainly recognized as the 
authorized agent, although the terms of his accep- 
tance of that oflioo had not then been deoied upon. 
My last letter referred to experiments pro- 
ceeding at Portsmouth by the Admiralty to test 
the alleged qualities of cellulose of coconut. Ap- 
parently they have gone beyond us in this res- 
pect in America, for we see a paragraph in the 
Engineer, which informs us that a large factory, 
with extensive plant, is being erected in Phila- 
delphia for the manufacture of the article. That 
journal gives us the additional information that 
it is exceedingly diflScult to make a hole of any 
kind through this cellulose, and we presume this 
to mean that on the withdrawal of any piercing 
or boring tool, the fibre of the cellulose at once 
closes the hole made. This would certainly be 
a most valuable quality for the lining of ships, 
and we hope soon to hear more about this 
material and how it is prepared, whether from 
tha nut itself or from the fibrous husk. We 
should naturally assume that it must bo from 
the latter. 
The directors of the Jokai (Assam) Tea Com- 
pany ("Limited) have declared the usual interim 
dividend of 5 per cent per annum on account 
of the working of season 1891, being lOs per 
per share payable on the 10th instant. Similarly the 
managing agents of the Jhanzie Tea Association 
state that the customary interim dividend of 4 
per cent per annum, being 4 shillings per share 
will be paid on account of the 1891 crops on the 
10th instant. 
CEYLON TEA PLANTATIONS COMPANY AND THE 
PBOPOSED CULTIVATION OF COFFEE IN 
THE MALAY PENINSULA — THE " GEOCEE " 
ON CEYLON TEA. 
London, Dee. 18. 
The Oeylon Tea Plantations Company is, we hear, 
intending to commence coffee cultivation in the 
Malay Peninsula. You will be aware that the 
Company's manager in Oeylon, Mr. G, A. Talbot, 
visited the Peninsula as late as last October, in order 
to report on the prospects that would lie before such 
an enterprise. Consequent upon that gentleman's 
report, the directors of the Ceylon Tea Plantations 
Company have sent round a circular to its share- 
holders, convening a meeting for the 6tli January 
next, " to explain fully the reasons which influence 
them in extending t^eir interests to the Malay 
Peninsula." Mr. TalAot has reported that during 
his visit he saw much of the country and visited 
many of tha coffee estates in Perak and Selangor. 
After m:ilure consideration, he reports that the 
cultivation of coffee yields results which would 
warrant his Company in extending its operations 
into the Stniita Settlements, and that the results 
would m" terially add to the Company's prosperity. 
The circular above referred to states that the Com- 
pany has tt force in Ceylon of G,000 coolies, and a 
numbof of superintendents who are well versed in 
coffee cultivation and are in touch with the 
labojur f upply of Southern India ; and as the want 
Of abour appears to be tho only ditlioulty felt by 
t he ooU'oo plcntora of the Straits, the Com- 
pany would bo able to work without esporigaciug 
