i'Hi:  IROPICAL  AGRlClil.rURlSr. 
[Sht^T.  2,  1895. 
io6 
the  loae  amoiiutiiij,' to  1,500,000  lb.  That  loss,  together 
with  the  low  prices,  instead  of  making  that  estito 
the  head  of  the  list  for  production  and  pioxits, 
put  it  very  low  down  in  the  list  indeed.  The  disease 
did  not  affect  the  other  estates  to  anything  like  the 
same  extent,  and  so.  though  the  quality  of  the 
cane  was  not  so  good,  we  have  no  great  reason  to 
complain  of  the  disease.  At  Britannia  the  sugar  in 
the  cane,  instead  of  averaging  a trifio  over  13  per 
cent.,  averaged  only  a little  over  11  per  cent. 
The  three  adverse  factors,  therefore,  have  been  the 
low  prices,  the  disease,  and  the  weather.  The  weather 
is  not  a serious  item.  It  has  diminished  our  output, 
but  to  nothing  like  the  same  extent  as  the  disease. 
We  have  had,  very  unwillingly,  slightly  to  increase 
our  holding  in  Mauritius;  but  there  was  an  estate 
which  was  being  partitioned  right  in  the  heart  of  one 
of  our  properties,  and  which  we  took  up  owing  to 
the  need  01  giving  a certain  amount  of  land  rest  at 
Britannia.  You  have  in  your  employ  Mr.  Nash,  our 
head  attorney,  and  Mr.  Byrd,  who  take  a very  in- 
telligent interest  in  the  cultivation  of  sugar,  and  who 
are  very  well  up  to  date  in  their  operations.  They 
have  been  resting  the  land  largely,  and  giving  it  nitro- 
gen by  growing  green  crops  and  ploughing  them  in.  Not 
only  have  they  been  able  to  give  the  necessary  nitro- 
gen in  a better  form  than  by  the  application  of  ma- 
nure, but  the  manager  tells  me  there  is  the  greatest  pos‘ 
sible  difference  in  the  appearance  of  the  canes  which 
have  been  undel'  these  green  crops  and  those  which 
have  not  been  so  treated.  To  enable  us  to  put  the 
land  thrown  out  under  these  green  crops  300  acres 
were  bought  near  the  Britannia  property.  The  dir- 
ectors did  not  want  to  buy  the  land  but  Mr.  Nash 
recommended  them  to  do  so,  and,  believing  it  was 
in  the  interests  of  the  company,  the  purchase  was 
sanctioned.  The  opinion  of  the  board  is  that  we 
ought  not  to  increase  in  Mauritius  if  we  can  avoid 
it.  I am  glad  I did  not  prophesy  last  year  as  to 
the  future  of  the  sugar  estates,  for  I should  not 
have  prophesied  a fall  of  .li-l  a ton,  and  that  fall 
would  have  nullified  any  remarks  1 should  have  bad 
to  make.  We  have  now  all  we  can  do  to  weather 
the  storm.  We  have  sent  out  the  most  stringent  in- 
structions about  the  limitation  of  expenditure,  we 
have  been  through  the  estates  and  found  out  the 
lowest  point  at  which  they  could  have  produced  in 
favourable  years,  and  we  have  given  a definite 
limit  which  will  prevent  your  losing  money  at 
these  prices.  I do  not  think  they  can  con- 
tinue, and  for  this  reason ; Other  people  are  losing 
very  much  more  heavily  than  we  are  and  it, 
is  quite  clear  that  the  present  price  of  sugar  is  below 
the  cost  of  production  on  the  Continent,  and  also 
below  the  cost  of  production  in  most  parts  of  Cuba. 
Of  course,  I must  except  a few  places  with  special  ad- 
vantages ; but  in  the  long  run  I look  for  some  Increase 
in  the  price  of  sugar.  We  must  not  lose  sight  of  the 
disturbances  in  Cuba.  Some  men  were  expecting 
1,000,000  lb.  from  the  island ; they  are  now  talking  of 
600,000  lb.  or  700,000  lb.  1 believe  both  figures  are 
extreme  ; for  the  production  could  hardly  have  reached 
1,000,000  lb.,  and  it  would  not  be  as  low  as  600,000  lb. 
Apparently,  the  insurgents  are  insisting  on  the  man- 
agers not  cultivating  their  estates.  You  will  have 
noticed  something  in  the  Times  about  it.  The  insur- 
gent leaders  have  been  saying  that  the  Bpanish  of- 
ficals  will  stay  in  the  island  as  long  as  there  is  a 
revenue,  aiid  the  only  way  to  send  them  back  is 
to  stop  the  Revenue — that  is,  the  cultivation — and 
these  declarations  may  have  a certain  amount  of  ef- 
fect. Tlie  insurrection  is  not  confined  to  any  particu- 
lar spot,  but  the  insurgent  leaders  have  gone  on 
the  principle  of  scattering  their  forces  all  over 
the  country,  and  harrying  those  who  do  not  agree 
with  them.  Some  sugar  estates  are  escaping  this  by 
paying  a subvention  to  the  insurgents  ; but  all  will 
not  do  that,  and  perhaps  some,  after  they  have  done 
it,  will  still  bo  harried.  The  result  in  Cuba  must 
tend,  at  any  rate,  to  have  some  beneficial  (dfect  upon 
the  price  of  sugar  in  the  market.  I will  now  lor- 
mally  move  the  adoption  of  the  report  and  balance- 
alieet  which  are  in  your  hands. 
Mr.  Alex.  W.  Crichton  soconded  the  resolution,  and, 
in  doing  so,  attributed  the  non-declaration  of  a 
dividend  entirely  to  the  climatic  and  other  circum 
stances  w-hich  had  existed  in  Mauritius. 
In  reply  to  questions. 
The  Cii!i'>-man  said  that  i’15,(KX)  i-epresented  mainly 
controlling  interests  in  certain  Mauritius  estates 
which  w'ere  not  ac<iuired  by  the  present  board,  but 
which  were  part  or  its  inheritance.  The  directors 
were  working  them  to  the  best  of  their  ability.  With 
regard  to  dividends,  the  directors  deemed  it  unwise  to 
distribute  anything  at  the  present  time,  as  it  was 
necessary  for  the  company  to  have  a certain  amount 
of  working  capital.  Borrowing  at  high  rates  was 
often  ruinous,  and  the  sugar  business  was  very  risky. 
The  reserve  was  on  deposit  at  the  bank. 
Tbe  report  was  adopted. 
On  the  motion  of  the  Chairman,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Rutherford,  Mr.  Norman  W.  Grieve  was  re-elected 
a director. 
Messrs.  Welton,  Jones  & Co.  were  re-appointed 
auditors,  and  a further  resolution  was  passed  to  re- 
quest them  in  future  to  add  to  the  certificate  the 
following  words,  or  words  to  a like  effect — viz,  that 
“ the  balance-sheet  is  a full  and  fair  balance-sheet, 
and  correctly  exhibits  the  true  position  of  the  company.” 
Mr.  C.  J.  Thomas  proposed  a vote  of  thanks  to 
the  chairman  and  directors,  which  was  seconded  by 
Mr.  C.  Bishop,  and  passed  unanimously. — Fimncial 
News,  July  a6. 
CHINA  TEA  EXPORTS  AND  CONFUSING 
STATISTICS. 
The  experienced  journali.st  who  i.s  gouil  enough 
to  send  us  the  special  teiegiani.s  of  Tea  Ship- 
ments from  the  Far  East  to  the  United  King- 
dom, writes  under  date,  Hongkiuig,  J uly  2o  : — 
“ Of  course  you  understand  that  these  telegrams 
only  cover  the  shipments  to  Great  Britain.  There 
is  now  a good  deal  which  goes  direct  to  the  Continent, 
beside  what  goes  to  Odessa,  which  alone  takes  more 
than  Great  Britain  does  now  that  you,  by  putting 
tea  into  the  mouths  of  the  people  there,  have  taken 
the  bread  out  of  the  mouths  of  your  unfortunate 
brethren  in  China. 
“ Statistics  are  becoming  increasingly  difficult  to 
get ; merchants  go  by  the  season  ; the  Customs  by 
the  year  ; some  returns  are  in  chests  and  half-chests, 
some  in  lb.,  and  what  is  worse  the  Chambers  of  Com- 
merce of  the  different  ports  won’t  work  together  and 
the  merchants  even  won't  work  with  their  own  Cham- 
bers. Not  even  the  Customs  figures  when  they  come 
to  be  made  up  are  correct,  for  they  do  not  include 
what  comes  to  Hongkong  by  junk  from  Kwangtung 
and  Kwangsi  for  shipment  here.  I wish  Japan  had  been 
allowed  and  induced  to  take  over  the  whole  of  China 
and  ‘ run  ’ it  in  the  intelligent  and  enterprising 
way  they  do  things  in  their  own  country.” 
THE  AGRICULTURAL  MAGAZINE. 
The  following  are  the  contents  of  the  August 
number: — Dairying,  Occasional  Notes,  Rainfall 
taken  at  the  School  of  Agriculture  during. luly, 
Law.s  of  (-'eylo)ii  Relating  to  Agriculture,  Bazaar 
Dings  in  Veterinary  Practice,  Lady  Birds,  The 
Value  of  Kainit,  An  important  Letter  about  Rhea, 
Contagious  Diseases  of  Insects,  Dairy  Pickings, 
Camphor,  Common  Mortar,  Rhea  (Ramie)  and 
China  Grass — a Distinction,  and  General  Items. 
The  two  articles  on  lady  bird.s  and  contagious 
diseases  of  insects  are  specially  interesting,  as 
dealing  with  a subject  which  is  prominently  be- 
fore the  planting  community  at  )>resent,  viz.,  the 
t.aking  advantage  of  natural  mean.s  of  destroying 
insect  enemies.  The  article  on  kainit  serves  to 
show  that  jiotash  is  a far  more  important  in- 
greilient  of  manures  than  it  is  generally  considered 
to  be.  We  are  glad  to  liml  that  there  is  a tic 
mand  on  the  part  of  private  laml -owners  for  the 
animiUs  bred  lu  the  Go\  crninent  dairy  farm. 
