November i , 1890.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
3^5 
Shipments to Odessa direct from Colombo, 
would again be more advantageous and when ship- 
ped by the steamers of the Russian Volunteer Fleet 
could be stored free of rent for any length of time, 
in the Company’s bonded warehouses ; this has been 
offered to me by Mr. Vachtine, Director-Inspector 
of the Company. . •„ i. 
As to quantities to be sold the future will show it 
as soon as Ceylon teas begin to be known in the 
country. I do not like to anticipate with figures, 
but it may interest you to hear that it is calculated 
that the firm Popoff & Co., the largest retail tea 
house in Russia, is selling alone over 50,000 pounds of 
tea daily in their various stores all over Russia, and 
supposing that I would sell only 10,000 lb. per 
month for the first and even the second year, or 
120,000 pounds a year,— and this quantity I have, no 
doubt, would be easily reached— at an average profit 
of 15 kopecks a pound only, this would leave a gross 
profit of 18,000 roubles to cover expenses which I 
estimate about as follows : — 
Reclame, advertisements, circulars placards, Rbl. 
cards, printing, etc. ... ••• 5,000 
F-r one Year. 
Rent of oflSoe in Moscow ... ... 500 
Furniture for same ... .•• 250 
Wages to men ... ••• bOO 
My own expenses ... ... 2,000 
3,250 
6,000 
1,000 
3,000 
1,750 
Rent of 5 warehouses and furniture... 
Five Dioenses at Rbl. 200 
Wages to 5 warehousekeepers 
Interest, insurance and travelling expenses 
Say, Rbl. 20,000 
Thus clearing in the first year all the expenditure and 
stock-in-trade as I do not admit that the profit is to 
be only 15 kopecks per pound of tea — this can easily 
be doubled. The article is then introduced with all 
probabilities of a splendid and increasing business in 
the following years. 
For this, a capital of about Roubles 26,000 would be 
necessary to cover the first advances and start the 
business on a sure footing viz. Duty and charges are 
1,000 pounds of tea say a 
rouble 1 per lb. 
Rbls, 
10,000 
First urgent reclame to bo made 
in starting 
2,000 
2 year rent in advance for office 
and five Warehouses 
)l 
2,000 
Furniture for office and Warehouses 
31 
3.000 
Five licenses 
11 
1,000 
year Wages, Salaries, Insurance 
in advance 
J1 
1,500 
Travelling expenses and sundries 
500 
Roubles 
>1 
20,000 
plus about £st600 or say „ 5,000 
To cover the value of about 10,000 pounds of tea 
Cost, freight and Insurance at one Ilufs an Port. Or 
say about £st3,000 to float on a good scale, the whole 
concern which could bo, of course, extended later 
on proportionally as for the yearly results of the 
business. 
Now for the enterprising man to advance this money, 
1 have no hesitation in guaranteeing bim the success. 
This would be a good thing for a Oolomho firm 
intoveste i in tea busine.'s. Remember that all the 
tea retailers in Russia have made their fortune and 
»ve wealthy people, and that as Mr. Vladimiroff told 
m« Chinese Teas decreasing coiisitlerably in qualities 
as well as in quantities, it is now the very favorable 
time fur introducing t'e; Ion Teas in Russia. 
Mo.'Ce w wi'l have m xt year abcut June 1801 a 
large exliibilioii, and 1 tiiink that Ceylon ought to 
he well repiosi iit' il with a Urge kiosk for lea and 
a gol d collection of oUn r Ceylon produce. 
I’leaso give the lo.cg. ing your very can e»t con- 
sideritiun mid plae, ihes^ !ciir.\rks betoro the Com- 
mittee of your I’lmui ;-s’ Association “Tea Fund” 
who, I hope, will u; derstaud that to do such a difficult 
work like the one 1 did uiidertako to do, 1 must 
ho well Rupporlcd by means of more liberality. 
As regards Funds: It is useh ss for mo to repeat 
that the £stl00 granted to me by your “ Tea Fund ” 
Committee was quite inadequate and insufficient to 
do what I have done up to this day travelling from 
Switzerland to London, where I had to .stay over a 
fortnight, to St. Petersburg, via Berlin and Konigsberg 
two days in each place, and over one month’s stay 
in St. Petersberg, to Moscow and Nijui Novgorod 
and stay of already three weeks between both places ! 
When you add to this, all sorts of expenses such, 
as duty and charges on Tea samples over £st80 ! 
Printing matters, carriages, hire, packing of tea, rent 
of godown, interpreter, tips, postages, &o., &c., you 
may easily believe that I have already spent over 
than double that amount of which more than £stl00 
are out of my own pocket, considering moreover that 
I only received £st86 out of the £stl00 granted, Mr. 
Leake having kept the balance of about £sfl4 to cover 
the surplus of Messrs. Malcolm Kearton & Co.’s invoice 
for Tea Samples, which I had to increase over the ,£st30. 
granted by the ” Tea Fund ” Committee for their 
purchase in order to complete my assortment in every 
desirable grade and qualities suitable for the Russian 
market. I may just as well inform you that I am 
now left here without money, in (he most difficult posi- 
tion and not knowing what I have to do : “ Abandon 
the field and return homo ” or “ Hang on a little 
longer with the hope of getting a further allowance 
from your Committee to enable and to continue my 
work ” ? 
But as winter i.s drawing now very near, I should 
like very much to know, before long what is to be 
decided. 
I do fear to remain during the winter, idle and 
without means, in a country like Russia, where the 
life is so expensive, and I wonld be very thankful to 
your Coramiteo to take a decision without further delay. 
It is quite true that it was my own proposition to 
come to Russia and that the amount I have been 
granted for my expenditures, was the figure 
stipulated by mo. When I estimated at a 
£stI00, the approximative amount of my expenses, 
I did it in perfect good faith not knowing what a 
country Russia was. That the duty on Tea was so 
high, and with the hope that the “ Tea Fund would 
be liberal to me after a first start here as expressed in 
the resolution of its Committee. It was only in 
London that I heard more positive information and 
I remember having heard Mr. J. Capper saving: — 
That it was ridiculous to expect anyone to do this 
work wi'h so little money quite inadequate to it. 
My previous reports from St. Petersburg have proved 
it superabundantly, but I left London for this country 
encouraged by many that the Ceylon Tea Fund 
Committee would understand my position and reconsider 
their former decision. 
I acknowledge having made a mistake in my esti- 
mate of expenditure, but is it a reason why the 
scheme should now be aV andoned, when I am so 
near and so hopeful of ob’aining success, and should the 
first money spent, be left behind without return at all ? 
With my work not even half done. This would he 
a very sad conclusion to my mission ! I do not pre- 
tend having shown yet any satisfactory results, but, 
I consider having done already good work, and 1 am 
sure that I could obtain a complete success it more 
money was to be spent and if I was well supported 
in my above proposals. Why could not a Company 
be floated for this purpose in the same way as Mr. 
Pineo did it for America. This is well worth con- 
sidering by your Ceylon merchants and capitalists. 
Tbe c.apital required is not a large one and I think 
slisres could be easity placed. 
Duty on every article Or produce — except tea — im- 
ported in Russia lias, liuco a week, been augmented 
of 20 per cent. 
The Nijni fair was a very interesting sight, it closed 
last Saturday, the 25, h Augunl ICtli Soptember. 
ttonfirraing ray c;ad from these, 1 beg t ) remain, 
dear sir, y :ur.s fa'tlifii'ly, M- RcoivtiP. 
I have written to 
of Ceylon Tea, he 
1,1 13 h Sepf. 
Mr. Leake regarding llio packing 
must have communicated my 
