526 
THE TROPIOI^L A'QIWOUJl.TUmsr 
[January i, 1891. 
interesting Irrigation experiments, the pumps being 
worked hy a 30 horse-power engine. It is now Mr. 
Akbar’s wish to erect an extensive Saw-mill, the 
machinery for which is all ready for Mr. Lawrance 
to see put together. 
Apart from Katukande Mr, Akbar owns the 
Hunupitiya Oil Mills in Negombo under the care 
of Mr. James Brown as Engineer and which do an 
extensive business. 
Furthermore, this enterprising Ceylonese gentle- 
man is just maturing bis plans to run a paddle 
steamer early next year between Negombo and 
Colombo, the passenger rates by which are likely 
to be so moderate as one, half and quarter rupee 
each, according to class. We heartily wish all 
success to the steamer, to Katukande, its mills 
and pumps, to Hunupitiya and to Messrs. 
Lawrance and Brown in Mr. Akbar’s service. 
SENDING TEA DIRECT TO LONDON. 
Among the various proposals put forward lately 
to improve the present state of the tea trade, none 
strikes one as so obviously absurd as that of sending 
all tea direct to London. That London at present 
rules the other markets is admitted by even the men 
who suggest this, “ Proprietor” in his very practi- 
cal letter touched the root of the matter when he 
remarked: — ‘‘I am of opinion that so long as an 
increasing quantity of tea is yearly poured upon one 
(ihe London) market, the sterling price lor the 
same is not likely to rise ! This to every one with 
the slightest knowledge of supply and demand is 
obvious. With the present state of prices can the 
producer afford to ignore a single outlet, Calcutta, 
Bombay, Australia, New Zealand, the Cape, or any 
other, no matter how small the quantity wanted ? Is 
it not to his interest to encourage competition from 
every market in a place where ho has at least some 
slight touch ? The idea of a small proprietor being 
left to the tender mercies of the London market with 
the entire crop going there — no competition — is suicidal. 
The saving of importers’ profit is brought forward, but 
what guaiantee have we that it would reach the pro- 
prietor. Itisextremelydoubtfulif these profits are worth 
having. I am told that one has only to know the 
names of the many firms who have given it up during 
the last six years, — one very notable case Iresh to 
memory — to be sure that in this branch, as in every 
other, the keenest competition exists. Added to which 
there is no secrecy about it, as the prices of ail teas 
sold in public auction in Loudon appear in the cata- 
logues, many copies of which are weekly sent to India 
to all large firms. Enquiring the other day in order to 
find out what was being done to push Indian tea, I was 
informed that most of the large firms in Calcutta have 
a ‘‘ buyer,” who, during the off season, is sent to 
various places, London, Australia, New Zealand, Ame- 
rica (this last, my informant added, will certainly in- 
crease its consumption) in order to study the different 
requirements, and push Indian teas generally, by send- 
ing suitable grades, and that these are the meii who 
are reported to “ come out ” every year to import tea, 
and the only people, so far as I could learn, who 
are doing anything to open the fresh markets we so 
much need, 
Ceylon men certainly set an example to us, in 
the way that the producer is always ready to 
respond to any effort in the above direction. 
India seems content with the comforting idea 
tnat at some future date Ceylon is ” going out.” 
The tea certainly has been leaving the country in 
alarmingly increasing quantity for the past five years, 
and many gardens in India seem nearer “ goiug out ” 
point than their despised competitor. As a producer, 
1 woulu certainly prefer to sell my tea at a market 
where competition from all centres comes in ; and 
it does not strike mo as likely that those above 
memiouod will send to Loudon for what they want, 
in any case the increased charges, freight, etc., 
would not come out of tho consumer^' pockets, and 
it is certainly not desirable for the supplying of 
these places to lall into the hands of one or two 
of the largest owners or agents. 1 have not yet 
found a producer with a thorough knowledge of both 
markets advocate it, although the steady sellers in 
Calcutta number among them many names of men 
who have not the reputation of making mistakes. 
It is reported by experts both in London and Cal- 
cutta that this year’s crop is a very poor quality 
one, and 1 suppose this must be accepted, as it is borue 
out by the continual bad weather reports from nearly 
all parts. This, together with the high exchange (how 
we used to grumble at l-4§), is said to account for the 
exceptionally low prices, and it is to be regretted that 
both causes should come together. Probably economy 
could be effected in small ways, and it would be well 
for all interested to look to his, but one fact remains 
that until London is relieved from the weight of tea 
that at present goes there, prices cannot rise to any 
extent. Fresh markets must be opened, certainly none 
abolished, or many of the smaller gardens will either be 
closed or become absorbed by their larger neighbours. 
A remark I overheard the other day struck me rather 
forcibly : there are some gardens in India that produce 
such tea as will uever increase the consumption, and by 
quantity only help to reduce prices, and if some of these 
did go to the wall, it would not be an uumixed evil, — 
Englishman, 
♦ 
THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY IN NORTH 
BORNEO. 
You will; I daresay, have noticed by the Singapore 
and other papers, during the last two years,.that con- 
siderable attention has been attracted to the Western 
Division of Dutch Borneo, principally on account of 
the numerous gold and diamond mining concessions 
taken up there, and also in connection with the con- 
cessions or contracts of land for tobacco planting, 
these latter being almost entirely confined to the 
Sambas district of Western Borneo. It may interest 
your readers to hear what has been done in the way 
of planting there. 
As in the Straits and British North Borneo, so in 
Sambas, the credit of giving a start to planting be- 
longs to the ex-Ceylon Planter. Towards the end of 
1887 a Syndicate was formed by a few gentleman in 
Singapore, to apply for and take some gold mining 
concessions in Sambas, and young W was sent 
across to get the necessary documents signed. While 
in Sambas, the Sultan, hearing he was a planter, 
advised him to have a look at the land in the Sau- 
gauw district, some four to five day’s journey up the 
Sambas river, and where the Sultan had been ex- 
perimenting with Liberian Coffee, Pepper, and Cacao. 
W acted on this advice and was so much taken 
with the quality of the soil and the general appear- 
ance of the country that on his return to Sambas he 
applied for 10,000 bouws of land in the Sangauw dis- 
trict for the Syndicate he represented, and it was 
granted on fairly reasonable terms after a few month's. 
Samples of the rich, chocolate-coloured soil brought 
over by W to Singapore were shown to practical 
Sumatra tobacco-planters, who without exception ex- 
pressed the opinion that better soil for tobacco could 
nob be desired, and the only doubt was as to whether 
the climate of Sambas was suitable or not. 
la a short time a Syndicate was formed in Singapore 
for the purpose of carrying out the experiment on a 
proper scale of, say, 80 to 100 fields, and an ex- 
perienced Dutch Deli planter was engaged to carry 
out the work. 
The first opening was made at “ Simedoem,” 12 
miles by cart-road from the Kampong Sangauw, where 
river carriage cesses, the card-road being constructed 
partly by the estate and partly by the Sultan_ 
Nothing could be finer than the soil on this estate' 
and the work of clearing, roading, and draining &c. ’ 
was carried out in the most approved, Deii manner. 
Here 1 may remark that from what I have seen and 
heard the general run of such work as reading and 
