September i, 1S90.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST 
177 
PUMIOE STONE. 
The Belgian Consul-General in the Canary Island 
states that a very important mine of pumice 
stone exists on the Teueviffe Peak, of -whioli 
the working was only started in 1888. The 
stone is found in that part of the peak called “ the 
Canadas,” at about 2000 feet above sea level, which i.as 
an area of some 6000 hectares, out of the middle of 
whicli rises the highest part of the peak. The Russian 
Consul at St. Croix bought this property ot the Spanish 
Government in consideration of an annual ])ayiuent for 
the pumice stone working. The Russian Consul has 
associated himself with a Belgian, and they under the 
firm styled Aguilar and V^alcke, commenced oper- 
ations in 1888, but it was only last year exportation 
was really started. At the Paris Exhibition tlio Oon.sul- 
General states that this stone obtained a silver medal, 
and in view of the requireiuen's of England, France 
and America, he believes it will develop a trade of 
great importance before many years. So far the 
Lipari Islands have practically furnished the world’s 
supply of this product, exporting about 100,000 tons 
per annum. The Teueriffe atone being recognized as 
of excellent quality and its extracti m being a much 
more simple matter than in the Lipari Islands, it 
follows that the nrice is much less. More capital will, 
however bo wanted to extend the working operations. 
— Chamber of Commerce Journal, July 5. 
^ 
TEA PACKING, BULKING, &c, 
(By a T^ery Old Colonist.) 
THE MINCING LANE TEA MAKKET AND PEOSPECTS— WEIGH" 
ING, BULKING AND PACKING OP TEA— TEA LEAD — MU. 
DENSHAm’s factory— WHEAT PROSPECTS — RISE OF EX- 
CHANGE. 
London, July 5th, 
Naturally, the first thing I did when I got to 
London was to visit Mincing Lane to see our brokers, 
Messrs. Gow, Wilson & Stanton, and learn from them 
all about the tea market and what was thought about 
its future prospects ; at present the fei ling is “bullish ” 
and in favour of a steady market for some months to 
come. On inspecting some samples of tea after it 
was balked in London, whicn I nad seen before ship- 
ment, I was very much di-apoointed with their ap- 
pearance : they did cot look like the same tea at all 
they were much more dusty and broken than when 
they were shipped On inquiring the cause, I was told, 
it was owing to the rongh way in which tea is re- 
packed in the tea warehouses after bulking. Mr. Wilson 
suggested that I should go to the warehouses and see the 
process of working a paicelof tea from beginning to end. 
Accordingly accompanied by Mr. Davies, who has taken 
much interest in the matter, I went to Cutler’s Wharf to 
inspect the working of a parcel of our own tea 6x“Chye- 
bassa.” It was first weighedgross, package by package, 
tbe weight being chalked on each ; the boxes are then 
opened and a sample of each taken out for inspection. 
If they ran even in appearance, at this point bulking 
might be saved, but in this ca'-e the semides did not 
run even in appearance, so the parcel was taken into 
the bulking room : there the top lead cover, cut up in 
sampling, was torn off and the tea turned oat on 
the floor. The lead lining of tho hox g merally comes 
ont too, and is shoved hack into it in a very crushed 
state. The tea on the floor is turned ov' r several 
times with shovels — this is the meihod f bulking, 
machines have been tried for mixing tbe tea, 
bnt they have not been found to faclL.atc fbd work 
and have been given np. The empty boxes are then 
taken back into the wnigliiiig room and tbe tare is 
ascertained, by weighing each paokago. All tf e weigh- 
ing is done in the most careful wa;!, , and the scales were 
tested several times whilst I was tht n ! 
Whilst the lot of tea weighed out .veil, i.herc was a 
loss of about 1 per cent in the tares frons. inequality of 
the weights of the boxes. The tsred boxes are then 
taken back into the bulking room. The tea after being 
again turned over is shovelled into them ; and if pos- 
23 
Bible inside the lead lining. When the box is nearly full 
a piece ot gunoy is placed on the top and a man 
tolerably heavily shod sot on to it and stamped the 
tea in the box with all his energy. What wonder, 
then, that crisp tea is broken in the process and much 
dust made ? 
We adopt a similar process in packing in Ceylon, but 
it is done more carefully and gradually. By this way 
of packing we get more tea into the box than the ware- 
house laborers can without stamping it in. The stamp- 
ing operation has generally to be done twice. There 
is no doubt in my mind that in packing the tea 
as we do in Ceylon, we are penny wise and pound 
foolish ; we save a trifle in freight and lose a 
penny per lb. in price, owing to the deterioration 
in appearance from ciushiug Unless we bulk on the 
estate I think ro more tea should be put into the boxes 
than can be got by thorough shaking, then tho ware- 
house people can get the same quantity into the 
boxes without stamping. No care can be taken in rejiack- 
ing to adjust the lead lining: if it slips into its place 
well and good ; the tea goes into it, if it does not, it is 
crammed in ; the tea on the top of it ; and its want is 
supplied by sheets of paper placed next the wood and 
as the torn lead cover is useless, its place is also sup- 
plied by paper. The lids of the boxes being prized open 
with a chisel are generally much broRen and are nailed 
on again anyhow. We are told that our tea does not 
keepwell. How can it keep exposed as it is to the effects 
of a damp climate 1 should say now that in my 
opinion the rough usage of our tea and packages in 
the warehouses is unavoidable. It is impossible to 
give the time necessary to repack as carefully 
as we pack : the remedy I think is in our 
own bands — either let us bulli: on estates or pack in 
such a way as to admit of tho tea being repacked 
without treadiDg and stamping. With such enormous 
quantities of tea to be hamilod in the way I have 
described, time cannot be given to do the work care- 
fully. The mischief, I should say, hurts us most with 
exporters : how can we expject them to buy and ship 
our tea with all the chances of deterioration from 
imperfect protection from the damp atmosphere ? 
What is the use of packing tea in lead at all, if it 
is only for tbe voyage ? The sooner some other way 
of hermetically packing tea can be devised or some 
method oi making the tea lead adhere to the boxes 
when the tea is turned out the better. 
Messrs. Gow, Wilson & Stanton gave me a pieco 
of their tea lead laid on thick paper, which ba-i ' ef ■ 
used by Mr. T. C. Anderson and is much approved ■ 
by the dealers.* If I can find out where it is ma ie i 
send out a supply, because it could be pas 
on to tho sides of the boxes before they are made -.q 
and then it could not be rendered useless by the me. 
in the warehouses. 
After seeing the bulking and repacking process, Mr. 
Davies took me to see Rlr. Denshaw of Mazawattc 
celebrity. He kindly took us through his faotoiy 
from top to bottom and showed us the whole process 
of blending and packing from beginning to tbe end. 
I was much pleased and interested in what I saw. 
All tbe tea is now, I believe, honestly described 
on the packages, and I think he has done much to 
push the sale of Ceylon tea. The quantity he buys 
and sells is very large : he has about 4,000 agents, 
and packs tea as directed for a large number of 
retailers who have their own names put on the 
packages. I was particularly struck with his blending 
machines and especially with his cutting and sorting 
machine : it cuts and sorts more evenly than any of our 
machines. The establishment is a very large one. The 
Bteam engines to work tho machinery are at the top 
of the warehouse which is some six stories high. 
This letter is intolerably long, but I do not care to 
apply the pruuing knife to it or to rewrite it; so you must 
just try and make commonseuse out of it. If tbe 
weather does not change very soon for the better 
* A sample sent to us by Mr. Anderson some *iiiie ago 
was very favourably reported on by Messrs. Somerville 
& Co. We are not aware of tho cost compared with 
ordinary tea lead. — E d. T. A. 
