324 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Nov. 
what  the  coolies  could  earn  in  their  own  villages.  Al- 
though his  wife  had  repeatedly  declared  she  would 
never  marry  a planter,  she  eventually  did  so,  and 
had  now  over  ten  years’  experience  of  planters  and 
instead  of  classing  them  with  the  villain  Segrce  or 
even  with  the  well-meaning  St.  Clair  who  found 
himself  helpless  in  the,  face  of  the  evil  system 
then  obtaining  in  America,  she  now  classes  plan- 
ters with  the  benevolent  squire  and  farmer  in 
England  without  whom  every  one,  except  the  most 
bigoted  Radical,  admits  the  country  parish  could 
not  get  on.  No  man  is  a hero  to  his  own  valet 
and  few  are  so  to  a w'ife  with  Radical  ideas,  but 
if  practical  experience  can  convert  a Radical  wife 
to  think  well  of  planters’  treatment  of  their 
coolies,  planters  need  not  despair  that  a similar 
experience  may  have  a similar  effect  on  the  Govern- 
ment of  India  and  the  Secretary  of  State.  It  is  for 
that  reason  that  planters  ask  that  an  enquiry  may 
be  made  into  the  w'orking  of  Act  XIII  of  1859  in 
Southern  India.  Planters  have  every  confidence 
' that  the  Collectoi's  of  Southern  India  w'ill  report  as 
the  Commissioner  of  the  Tea  Districts  in  Northern 
India  did  that  the  practical  working  of  the  Act 
is  “ harmless  and  even  beneficial.”  Planters  have 
been  repeatedly  taunted  by  English  lawyers  that 
the  measures  they  demand  are  opposed  to  the 
principles  of  modern  legislation.  In  reply  they 
would  point  to  the  English  Merchant  Shipping 
Act  passed  in  1854  and  amended  so  lately  as  1880. 
In  that  Act  penal  punishment  is  provided  for  the 
breach  of  a civil  contract,  doubtless  because  the  mer- 
chant sailor  being  generally,  not  only  pen- 
niless, but  under  an  advance  from  the  ship 
before  she  sails,  no  fine  can  be  levied.  Planters 
elaim  that  their  case  is  on  all  fours  with  that  of 
the  merchant  captain;  their  coolies  are  not  only 
penniless  but,  like  the  sailor,  always  in  debt  to  some 
one  and  advances  are  absolutely  necessary  to  pro- 
vide for  the  coolies  families  in  their  absence  and  to 
free  them  from  the  debt  they  always  owe  to  the 
village  landlord  and  trader  who  will  not  allow  them 
to  move  until  the  debts  are  paid.  No  fine  can  be 
levied  on  coolies  with  no  property  but  debt  as  it 
cannot  be  levied  on  a sailor  in  a similar  case,  and 
if  the  imprisonment  of  the  English  sailor  for  breach 
of  civil  contract  is  not  opposed  to  the  principles  of 
modern  legislation  it  is  difficult  to  understand  why 
the  imprisonment  of  the  coolies,  for  the  same  offence 
and  under  similar  condition  is. — M.  Mail. 
TEA  PLANTING  IN  CEYLON. 
Rum-tom-tom,  rum  tom-tom,  nun-tom-tom.  These 
were  the  sounds  that  woke  me  up  from  my  sleep 
the  first  morning  after  my  arrival  on  the  tea  estate 
to  which  I had  come  out  to  learn  my  work  a.s  a tea 
planter  under  the  premium  pupil  system.  Wliilc  I 
was  wondering  what  all  the  noise  was  about,  a ser- 
vant knocked  at  my  door  and  told  me  that  the  tom- 
tom was  beating  to  summon  the  coolies  to  work,  and 
that  unless  I wanted  to  be  late  I must  dress  quickly. 
It  was  then  something  after  5-30  a.m.,  and  was  just 
getting  light.  There  is  hardly  any  dawn  or  twilight 
in  Ceylon.  The  variation  of  time,  during  the  twelve 
months,  of  the  sun’s  rising  and  setting  is  only  a 
matter  of  about  twenty  minutes,  and  so  x^^’S'Ctically 
all  the  year  round  daylight  lasts  from  6 a.m.  to  Gp.m. 
In  less  than  no  time  I was  dressed,  for  I was 
young  and  curious,  and,  after  swallowing  down 
a cup  of  tea  along  with  some  toast  and  a 
banana,  away  I rushed  to  the  muster  ground, 
to  find  the  coolies  all  drawn  up  two  deep  in  the 
form  of  throe  sides  of  a square,  the  men  on 
one  side,  the  women  on  another,  and  the  children  on 
the  third.  The  “ conductor,”  i.u.,  native  oveiseer, 
and  the  “kanganies”  stood  in  the  centre,  the  latter 
vigoiously  chewing  aw’ay  at  what  I afterwards  found 
to  be  betel  leaf  and  tobacco.  The  betel  leaf  mixture 
is  the  rcgul.ation  chew,  and  is  as  necessary  to  the 
natives  as  smoking  is  to  us.  'The  women  aud  even 
the  children  use  it.  A small  piece  of  arecanut,  a 
bptel  leaf  smeared  with  lime,  a bit  of  dried  tobacco, 
et  voila  tout  j It  is  lyondeffiil  how  national  and  iii- 
flividual  tastes  differ.  1 have  often  tried  a chew,  with 
the  only  result  of  feeling  distinctly  unw'ell  afterwards. 
^yell,  the  coolies  were  then  all  sent  to  their  respec- 
tive occupations,  each  gang  attended  by  one  or  more 
kanganies,  the  women  and  children  to  pluck  the  tea 
leaves,  and  the  men  to  various  ether  things,  such  as 
cleaning  out  drains,  mending  roads,  et  hoc  genus  omne 
of  work. 
I remember  the  first  mystery  I was  initiated  into 
w’as  the  plucking  of  tea  leaves.  The  plucking  coolies 
are  all  ai'med  with  cane  baskets  about  2ft.  to 
3ft.  deep  and  from  1ft.  to  IJft.  wide.  These 
they  tie  round  their  waists  or  sling  over  their  heads. 
Then  each  coolie  is  given  a row  of  tea  bushes,  for  the 
tea  bush  are  always  planted  in  rows  about  3i  feet 
distant  and  3J  feet  from  each  other.  Wlien  a coolie 
has  finished  her  row  she  takes  the  fii’st  after 
the  last  row  being  plucked,  and  so  they  go  on.  Tea 
bushes  are  ready  to  be  plucked  every  eight  days  or 
so,  for  by  that  time  the  new  shoots  have  grown  big 
enough,  aud  if  allow'ed  to  remain  longer,  the  leaf  runs 
away  and  gets  too  coarse.  At  different  times  of  the 
year  the  shoots  grow  quicker  or  slower.  The  art  in 
plucking  is  this.  The  new  shoot  starts  with  a small 
leaf  called  the  fish  leaf.  Now,  one  leaf,  or  at  all 
events,  half  a leaf,  should  be  left  above  the  fish  leaf, 
and  the  stalk  above  nipped  off  ai>d  put  into  the 
basket,  and  the  shoot  should  only  have  grown 
enough  to  have  the  spike  and  two  leaves  on  the 
plucked  stalk,  thus.  Of  course,  one  cannot  always 
get  round  the  estate  quick  enough  to  get 
the  leaf  plucked  off  in  this  condition  ; during 
some  parts  of  the  year  rushes  will  come  on, 
and  the  leaf  will  run  away.  The  result  of  which 
is  a great  deal  of  coarse  leaf  in  the  tea,  which  de- 
tracts much  from  the  delicate  flavour  of  the  spike  aud 
first  two  leaves. 
I did  feel  very  foolish  that  first  morning  among  the 
coolies,  to  hear  them  all  jabbering  round  one  like  so 
many  monkeys  let  loose  out  of  the  Zoo. ; to  feel  instinc- 
tively that  I was  the  subject  of  their  conversation,  aud 
yet  not  to  understand  a single  word  ; to  wander  about 
and  try  to  look  as  if  I knew  all  about  it,  when  Ifelt 
most  distinctly  that  I knew  absolutely  nothing.  To 
try  to  climb  the  steep  side  of  the  hill,  holding  on  to 
the  tea  bushes  for  dear  life,  with  the  only  result  of 
tumbling  I a ;k  myself,  or  sending  a shower  of  earth  and 
stones  on  to  the  coolies  beneath  me  amidst  the  suppres- 
sed titters  of  all  excep  the  one  who  received  the 
shower.  I guess  she  thought  the  more.  Oh ! it  was 
most  embarrassing.  I thought  the  morning  was  never 
going  to  come  to  an  end,  but  at  last  I was  ftiformed 
that  it  was  time  to  weigh  the  leaf. 
Weighing  the  leaf  is  quite  a business.  Every  coolie 
brings  tip  his  or  her  basket  of  leaf,  whicli  is  weighed 
with  a pocket  balance.  The  number  of  lbs.  plucked 
is  marked  in  a check-book,  aud  the  loaf  is  emptied 
into  big  baskets,  which  are  carried  down  to  the  factory 
by  coolies.  One  big  basket  of  leaf  weighs  about  (iO  lb., 
and  this  weight  a man  coolie  will  carry  on  his 
head  with  the  greatest  ease.  On  many  estates  now 
they  run  the  leaf  in  sacks  from  the  tops  of  the  hill* 
down  to  the  factory  by  one  or  more  wire  shoots.  This 
method  saves  a great  deal  of  labour. 
As  soon  as  the  weighing  was  over,  I toiled  back  to 
the  bungalow  to  enjoy  the  luxury  of  a bath.  And  a 
luxui’y  it  was,  too.  We  then  had  breakfast,  or  what 
they  call  breakfast,  for  to  me  it  seemed  like  an  early 
dinner.  Mulligatawny  sou}),  a couple  of  entries,  cold 
beef,  curried  fowl,  bread  aud  cheese,  the  whole 
washed  down  by  excellent  draught  beer.  1-30  p.m. 
saw  me  out  again,  and,  after  losing  myself  two  or 
three  times  on  the  estate  roads,  I at  last  managed  to 
find  the  plucking  coolies,  who  had  just  had  their 
leaf  weighed  for  the  second  time.  Then  till  four 
o’clock  followed  almo.str.  o pt;tit’.o!.  of  tii,'  nioi  nmg.  only 
i was  bcgiiiniug  bo  leoi  ^uite  }uoud  of  mysel:  ny  ihi* 
time,  for  1 could  say  inge\ a " (iniiu:'  lieiii),  ' Ange 
)0  ” (go  there),  and  a few  other  lilte  phrases.  At 
our  o'clock  the  horn  blew  at  the  factory,  and  away 
we  went  down  there  for  afternoon  muster.  The  loaf 
was  then  weighed  for  the  third  time,  aud  every 
coolie  who  had  pluckrffi  a certain  amount  of  green 
h'af  during  tho  day  got  “ full  name,”  and  those  that 
had  plucked  under  that  amount  “half  name.”  Of 
course,  tho  number  of  pounds  varies  according  to  the 
