304 
[Nov.  I,  1895. 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
XBA  THE  Ml-LBEIlIiV. 
“The  Japanese  manufaQjjui'e  greea  tea  almost 
Bo'ely,’  said  the  Professor  111  response  to  a ques- 
tion. ■*  What  is  consumed  in  the  country  cannot 
be  determined  by  accurate  data ; but  they  e.xporl 
from  five  to  six  miliion  yens  worth  per  annum,  and 
tins  may  be  gaid  co  be  all  green  tea,  and  almost 
all  of  it  goes  to  America.’’ 
“ Can  you  tell  me  why  the  amount  exported  is 
not  increasing?’’ 
‘‘  The  I)  ulberry,”  was  the  reply,  “ is  already  growing 
along  with  the  tea,  and  silk  culture  and  manu- 
facture is  far  n ore  profitable  and  attractive  to  the 
peop  e.  They  export  IG  million  yens  of  silk,  and 
this  is  a minimum  oslimaie.  Thus,  I think,  the 
export  of  the  green  tei  will  decrease  insteid  of 
inert  asing ; and  that  the  extonsion  of  the  mulberry 
will  be  preferred.  Tlie  old  fanipus  tea  distric.s  will 
remain  ; but  there  wi  1 be  litt  e new  land  op  ned 
up  in  tea,  and  sone  will  be  changed  in  favonr  of  silk 
produoiiou.” 
TUB  AGE  AND  YIELD  OF  TEA. 
“Anything  about  tea  interests  ns  here.  Professor; 
will  you  tell  me  what  effect  age  has  on  the  bushes?” 
“ Theit;  are  shrubs  l.'K)  years  old,  and  though 
the  quantity  is  less  lire  qutlity  is  better  than 
when  they  were  young.  Tliat  is  the  rule  iu  good 
districts  where  the  soil  is  suitable.  The  average 
up  to  which  the  heavy  yields  continue  is  some 
30  years,  and  then,  as  I have  s lid,  the  quality 
rather  improves.  There  are  two  seasons  for  pluck- 
ing ; in  the  year,  the  first  commencing  now,  on  a 
little  later,  with  the  snmmer  Miensoon.  In  a wet 
year  there  would  bo  a third  time  of  plucking ; but 
this  would  be  only  inferior  tea.  Of  course,  bushes 
have  a rest  in  tire  winter;  but  it  is  a striking  fact 
that  the  annual  yield  per  acre  in  Japan  is  larger 
than  in  Ceylon  or  Java.  I have  compared  the 
yields,  and  so  beneficial  is  the  winter  rest,  ap- 
parently, for  the  subsequent  enormous  reproduction 
of  oaves,  that  the  montns  of  idleness  compared 
with  plucking  all  the  year  round,  represents  no 
loss  at  all,  hut  the  reverse.  The  Japanese  cut  the 
shiubs  one  metre  high,  and  only  iu  those  districts 
which  in  winter  have  rather  much  snow  aie  they 
cut  lower.  Every  year  the  bushes  are  pruned  into 
shape.” 
“CONCEHNLXG  MANUKING  ? ” 
the  intorrogalor  remarked. 
“Oil  cakes,  which  are  expressive  out  there,”  leplied 
the  Professor,  “ are  used  on  the  most  Valuable  p an- 
tatious;but  iu  the  ordinary  way  any  kind  of  manure 
is  used,  ascording  as  jt  is  available.  The  manuring 
commences  from  the  beginning,  and  is  not  only 
done  anually  but  several  times  a year,  each  bush 
being  manured.  On  many  places  it  is  recognised 
as  a mistake  to  use  forcing  manure.  It  is  better, 
of  course,  to  uso  a gentle,  strengthening  kind  that 
Will  bcuef^  the  shrubs  theiMsolves,  rather  thaa  pro- 
duce an  abnormal  flush.” 
THE  DECADENCE  OF  GREEN  TEA,  AND  CEYLON  PROSPECTS 
IN  AMERICA. 
“I  can  remember  the  time,”  continued  our 
visitor,  “ when  we  in  Germany  drank  a good  deal 
of  green  tea,  and  it  was  so  in  England,  too,  where 
YOU  can  renie^iiber  black  and  green  were  blended. 
Now  in  Japan  itself  the  Europeai  s mostly  drink 
tlie  black  tea  from  Chiiw,  which  is  less  strolls’. 
The  Japanese,  who  take  tea  withoui  sugar  or  milk, 
drink  their  ow  n strong  beverage,  an  I take  it  in  small 
cups  in  consequence.  I don't  think  it  is  iiijuriona ; 
aid  I have  found  it  very  refreshing,  a,fter  walking 
a long  distance  and  going  into  a lea  house  by 
the  road  side.  The  price  of  tea  has  been  going 
(iOwn  and  down,  and  this  has  been  disappointing 
to  the  producer;  heJides  which,  from  Iho  value  of 
the  total  export  which  I gave  yon  in  Mexican 
dollars,  you  wi)1  am  that  their  must  be  plenty  of 
rosAn  tor  CeyloH  tea  in  the  United  BtaUis.  Japan 
cannot  by  any  means  supply  such  incraasiog  de- 
mands, though,  of  course  ” fin  reply  to  a conclud- 
i g qaesiion)“I  am  unable  to  s.ay  what  Ceylon 
can  do  to  induce  Americans  to  drink  its  tea 
beyond  the  usual  plan  of  making  known  what  you 
have  to  c ffer,  and  showing  that  it  iS  good  value 
for  the  money.  Prosit.” 
“ Thank  you,  and  hon  voyage,  Professor.” — Ibid. 
VAEIOUS  PLANTING  NOTES. 
A New  Pencil. — The  Blaisdell  Paper  Pencil  Com- 
pany, Philadelphia,  U.S.A.,  has  introduced  a kind 
of  pencil,  the  lead  of  which  is  seen,  on  examina- 
tion, to  be  covered  with  many  very  narrow  trips  of 
paper.  The  pencil  never  needs  cutting  in  the  or- 
dinaiy  sense  of  the  word,  but,  to  expose  more  lead, 
all  that  is  necessary  is  to  make  a iinall  alit  in  the 
paper  near  the  lead,  thus  raising  a tiny  flap.  By 
gently  pulling  and  unwinding  this,  working  towards 
the  point,  a spiral  of  paner  is  twieted  off,  and  a 
length  of  the  lead  is  laid  bare.  This  process  can 
be  repeated  as  required,  till  the  pencil  is  too  short 
to  be  used  at  all,  and  is  kss  laborious,  and  is  more 
cert  I in  in  results  than  is  cutting  with  a knife. 
The  lead  is  excellent  in  quality,  and  keeps  a good 
point.  In  appeaiauce  this  pencil  always  resembles 
an  oidinary  cedar  pencil,  ihe  “uncot”  end  of  it 
being  covered  with  red  glazed  paper,  which  increases 
the  likeness,  and  is  pleasant  to  handle. — Gardeners' 
Chronicle. 
The  Cotton  Plant  is  losing  its  popularity  as  a 
“safe  investment”  in  the  very  heart  of  the  cotton- 
growing  States  of  America.  Time  was — some  forty 
^ears  since — such  an  assertion  would  have  been 
laught^d  at.  “You  cannot  do  without  American 
cotton”  was  the  article  of  faith  set  up  by  growers 
and  brokers  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic; 
s'.arvation  iu  Lancashire  during  the  cotton  famine 
shook  the  belief  iu  many  minds,  and  alteiatioua  iu 
spinning  and  weaving  machinery  brought  under 
subjection  cottons  of  short  staple;  planters  and 
capitalists  took  up  the  cultivation  of  the  plant ; aud 
to-day,  Lancashire  is  no  longer  dominated  by  New 
Orleans  or  New  York.  But  planters  in  the  Southern 
States  kepi  on ; and  in  the  face  of  a steady  fall  iu 
prices,  opened  up  all  over  the  world  a market  for 
cotton  seed,  cotton  oil,  and  cotton  cake.  Of  course, 
the  same  products  can  be  placed  on  the  market 
wherever  cotton  is  grown,  anU  capital  can  be  ut  Used. 
Should  it  be  desired  to  learn  where  cotion  is  giown 
at  the  present  time,  the  intelligence  can  be  had  from 
the  “market”  columns  roc.ording  sales  iu  any  daily 
paper  any  morning  in  the  week.  And  it  has  come 
to  pass,  that  it  has  been  determined  to  reduce  con- 
siderably ti  e growth  of  cotton  in  America.  The 
remit  of  the  special  investigation  set  on  foot  by 
the  Federal  Government's  Agricultural  Department 
in  720  Cotton-growing  counties  in  the  United  States 
shows  ihat  in  eighty-eight  there  will  bo  little  or  no 
change  in  acreage  as  compared  with  1894;  five 
report  an  increase  up  to  10  per  ce  t.;  two,  an 
increase  of  from  11  to  20  per  cent ; three  an  increase 
of  from  21  to  30  per  cent. ; a' d three  an  increase  of 
over  30  per  cent.;  127  show  a decrease  of  10  per 
cent,  aud  less;  250  a decrease  of  from  11  to  20  per 
cent;  168  a decrease  of  from  21  to  30  per  cent.; 
forty-four  a decrease  of  from  31  to  40  per  cent.  ; 
B3Ven  a decrease  ai  from  41  to  60;  and  thirty-three 
a decrease  01  more  than  half.  This  decnase  in 
acreage  is  not  confined  to  any  particular  lo.  ality, 
but  covers  a widespread  territory,  embiacing  almost 
the  entire  area  devoted  to  Cotton  cul  ure.  Tlie  ex- 
traordinary low  price  of  the  staple  gave  rise  to  the 
agitation  as  to  the  necessity  for  reducing  the  acre- 
age in  1895;  this  rosuUed  in  a convention  this  year, 
and  a rise  in  prices  is  hoped  for.  Uoulrtless.  much 
may  be  done  in  improving  the  TRvieties  now  grown, 
amt  so  placing  on  the  maiket  the  highest  class  of 
raw  material.  Meanwhile,  the  above  noted  facts  are 
sorely  well  worth  record.— Ibid. 
