THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[June i, i8qi. 
562 
his place in Council has more than once descanted on 
the value of salt and advocated its issue at cheap 
rates— to aid us in our present endeavours, by advising 
the Government, even though unasked, to favourably 
entertain the agitation for the issue of salt to agricul- 
turists on exceptional terms. . , , 
[Has any experiment been tried with Kaimt which 
consists so largely of salt? — E d. T. A.] 
THE “TAEING” OF CEYLON TEAS IN 
LONDON NO. I. 
April 20th. 
Deak Sir, — W e are constantly being told by our 
London Brokers “to keep up the quality and not 
the quantity ” of our teas. From the accompanying 
memos of half-a-dozen of my tea sales, it is clear 
that some one does appreciate quality, to our cost, 
for it would seem to me the better the tea the 
more attention it receives, and the higher deduc- 
tions are made. Take for instance shipment A 
in which the Pekoe selling at 1s O-^-d, 10 1b. out 
of 2,700 were deducted, whereas the broken pekoe 
and broken orange pekoe were not so leniently dealt 
with in this A shipment. I would point out for 
the beueht of those of my brother planters who 
seldom if ever see a London account that the 
81 boxes of broken orange pekoe contained 171b 
net in each, and each box was under 281b gross : 
what right then had the “some one” to deduct 
1 lb from each 17 lb net, when each box weighed 
under 28 lb. gross ? In your Siqjplement of April 
mil, you quote from MeEsr.-i Geo. White, & Go's. 
Review for Style of package ■. Leafy kinds 
for self drinking often sell well in boxes, but to 
avoid the 1 ll> draft they should be under 28 lb 
gross.” My local agents wrote home to their 
London representatives, and I wrote direct to the 
selling broker : all the “ satisfaction ” we got was 
to be informed that the Tare must have been 
wrong (1) and this appears to me to be all the re- 
dress one is likely to receive for such a grievance. Is 
this justice, Mr. Editor, and should nou our Planters 
Association strive to place our interests on a better 
footing than they are at present ? Who says the 
Planter is not taxed? Surely a glance at the figures I 
give will convince anyone that we are taxed and 
pretty heavily too, and what I have shown only 
Doints to the one of many. — Yours faithfully, 
^ PROPRIETOR. 
p.S. —Shrinkage of the wood of packages in 
transit is one of the reasons assigned by the 
brokers for lots of weight ; how about a package 
leaving the factory under 28 lb gross ? 
Shipmeut. 
3 
S 
A 
u 
Descriptiou. 
u 
: , 
o'g 
A 
zj 
0 
PQ 
Bro Or Pell 
!?■" 
M 
A 
81«- 
3 ,377 
1/lii 
81 
52 
Ero Pekoe 
2,il02 
l/5i 
101 
30 
Pekoe 
2,700 
1/0;^ 
10 
38 
Pek Souchong 
3,791 
O/lOi 
GS 
B 
95 
Bro Or PeU 
5,225 
1/ci 
196 
Pekoe 
2,160 
1/oi 
33 
20 
Pek Souchong 
2,UOO 
0/lOj 
SO 
17 
Dust 
1,536 
o.nk 
31 
2 
Broken Tea 
225 
0/7 1 
1 
0 
59 
liro Or Pek 
3,287 
1/5.1- 
104 
35 
Pekoe 
3,1.50 
1 / 05 ^ 
80 
42 
Pek Sou 
4,200 
0/1 Oi 
87 
0 
53 
Bro Or Pclc 
2,008 
1/6,1 
98 
30 
Pekoe 
.3,240 
1/1 
49 
40 
St 
C 
0 
0 
Asi 
; 4,000 
0/11 
93 
K 
40 
Bro Pekoe 
2,2l0 
1 / 47 ' 
09 
30 
Pekoe 
2,700 
1/1 i 
20 
3ti 
Pek Souchong 
3,000 
O'lli 
80 
F 
39 
Bro Pekoe 
2 1 
1/41 
08 
25 
Pekoe 
2 , 2.50 
I/l 
40 
42 
Pek souchong 
4,200 
0 Hi 
72 
10 
Bust 
1 ,539 
0/7 i 
39 
3 
Broken Tea 
310 
m 
:i 
NO. II. 
April 25th. 
Dear Sir,— In your issue of 23rd instant, in 
which you were good enough to publish my letter 
under the above heading, in your “ Notes and 
Comments ” you refer to the matter as if it was 
the fault of my selling broker : this gentlemen I 
beg to completely exonerate, as I believe the brokers 
have no hing whatever to do with this part of the 
business, which I am informed is entirely performed 
by that “monster of a monopoly,” the “Dock 
Company” under the iniquitous sj stem of weigh- 
ing adopted — and to which we must submit I 
suppose- by the Customs. If this is not so, I hope 
some gentlemen more behind the scenes than I am, 
will be good enough to correct me. “ Honor to 
whom honor is due,” and I simply write this in de- 
fence of the brokers, who, I understand and believe, 
have no power or voice in the matter under dis- 
cussion. The figures I furnished are instructive, 
and I woud call attention again to them. Take for 
instance shipment B : from the broken orange pekoe, 
value Is 6|d, 195 lb. was deducted from a total of 
5,225 lb. ; from the broken tea value 7Jd but 1 lb. 
vas deducted from a total of 225 lb. Once more 
please refer to the very glaring practice to which 
hipment A : was treated: from only 1,377 lb. of 
broken orange pekoe and this too in boxes under the 
gross weight of 28 lb. in which case I think the 
general belief is that nothing is deducted ; but 
here wo are with 81 lb. taken of tea which sold 
at Islljd; in the same, break pekoe selling at Is id 
10 lb. are taken from 2,7t0 lb. and Irom ))ekoe 
souchong selling at lO^d 68 lb. from 3,791 lb. 
Surely some steps should be taken to stop such, 
what seems to me, abuse. — Yours faithfully, 
PROPRIETOR. 
NO. III. 
Ambagamuwa, April 25th. 
Dear Sir, — You want our experience re taring and 
bulking of teas in London : to please you, mind 
me, I will give you the following — only one of 
several experiences. I had two breaks of tea in 
London aggreganug 6,900 lb. of tea or so of 
different grades; 1 had the inestimable (11) pleasu be 
of receiving my sales with no less than 219 lb 
tea short weight, only a month ago. There, is Mr 
Editor 1 These teas averaged lid a lb. That is 
how the money goes, and pop goes the 
planter. C. T. 
“ TBEFT OF TEA IN THE LONDON 
WAREHOUSES.” 
Dear Sir,— It is abundantly evident that rob- 
bery wholesale and unchecked of our teas is going 
on in the London Warehouses. I entirely disagree 
with the theory that the Merchants and Brokers 
are blameless. That they are indifferent is very 
evident. 
The remedy I would suggest, as a first step, is 
for the Planters’ Association to send a communi- 
cation to the Homo Secretary pointing outjthe fact 
that a considerable percentage of tea is being 
habitually stolen in the London Warehouses and 
somehow smuggled into consumption without paying 
du y, thus defrauding the revenue. 
Further, every Merchant and Broker in London 
ought to be called upon to lake proper precautions. 
The London Aesooiation ought also to employ de- 
tectives. — Yours, A SUFFERER. 
