528 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
COFFER  AND  CAimoN. 
The  way  that  tlio  receipts  at  ]{io  and  Santos  are 
maintained  must  he  very  discouraging  to  those  con- 
tinental operators  who,  on  the  basis  of  the  early 
estimates  of  this  season’s  crop,  initiated  a “ bull  ” 
campaign,  and  many  must  begin  to  question  very 
much  whether  the  predictions  of  a five  million  bags 
crem  for  Brazil  arc  not  likely  to  prove  somewhat 
wide  of  the  inark.  Up  to  the  beginning  of  last 
month  the  position  looked  fairly  encouraging  for 
the  “ bull  ” party,  the  receipts  in  itio  being  on  a 
comparatively  small  scale,  while  tliose  at  Santos 
were  only  of  moderate  extent,  d’ho  total  receipts 
at  the  two  ports  were  then  2,7ir),onO  bag.s,  as  com- 
pared with  l)ags  in  the  previous  season, 
and  fair  channel  llio  for  December  delivery  tonrhetl 
09s,  while  Ma}'  delivery  stood  at  (iS.s.  The  woild’s 
visible  supply  also  mai'ked  a decrease  of  OOO  tons 
for  whereas  stocks  in  Kuropo  had  increased  by  some 
1,800  tons,  those  in  America  had  fallen  away  to 
the  extent  of  0,000  tons.  But,  from  this  time,  edr- 
cumstances  seemed  to  have  conspired  to  defeat  the 
ends  of  the  wicked  conspiratoi’s,  and  their  position 
is  not  now  an  altogetlier  enviable  one. 
In  the  first  place,  the  Brazilian  )ecei))t.s  have 
increased  in  an  astonishing  manner,  and  in  jdaee 
of  a widening  gap  in  the  totals  of  this  and  the 
previous  season's  arrivals  at  ports  of  shipment,  a nai- 
rowing  down  of  the  difference  to  about  255, (KiO  bags  has 
occurred.  This  materially  alters  ilu-  jn-nspeet  of  a 
live  million  bags  crop,  il,i5ti,000  bags  having  already 
been  received  at  Bio  and  Santos  in  the  space  of 
scarcely  five  months  and  a-half,  leaving  little  more 
than  another  million  and  a-half  bags  to  come  to 
hand  during  the  intervening  period  to  the  end  of 
June  next,  if  the  before-mentioned  estimate  is  to  be 
verified.  Therefore,  a sharp  falling  away  of  receipts 
will  be  necessary,  but  up  to  the  present  there  is 
no  sign  of  this  occurring,  for  although  the  crop 
)uovement  has  been  somewhat  sinalle)’  during  the 
last  week  or  so,  it  is  still  greatly  in  excess  of  that 
of  last  season  at  Bio,  while  at  Santos  it  is  also 
somewhat  heavier. 
Secondly,  the  trade  demand  h.as  of  late  been  very 
disappointing,  the  financial  dillicnlties  caused  by  the 
collapse  of  the  mining  “ boom  ” and  the  generally 
disturbed  condition  of  the  political  situation  no  doubt, 
to  some  extent,  accounting  for  this.  Consequently 
with  supplies  exceeding  expectations  and  deliveries  on 
a smaller  scale  than  looked  for.  stocks  have  aug- 
mented, and  visible  supplies,  during  last  month,  in- 
creased to  the  extent  of  2,9-10  tons,  being  now,  accord- 
ing to  Messrs  J.  B.  Bouse  A Co.,  l!)t;,010  tonscompared 
with  102,910  tons  ayear  ago.  Jjast  month’s  deliveries 
were  especially  disappointing,  falling  short  of  that  of 
the  corresponding  month  by  nearly  10,000  tons,  but  as 
the  imports  were  more  than  19,000  tons  smaller  Enro- 
ean  stocks  did  not  increase  to  so  large  an  extent  as  they 
id  in  November  last  year.  Still  compared  with  a 
year  ago,  there  is  shown  to  be  over  2fi,700  tons  more 
coffee  in  store  now  than  then. 
Iir  the  third  place  we  have  to  take  into  consider- 
ation the  prospect  of  the  growing  Braz.il  crop  and 
the  extent  of  supplies  likely  to  be  received  from 
other  sources.  The  blossoming  of  the  plant  through- 
out Brazil  was  accomplished  under  favourable  con- 
ditions, and  although  subsequently  reports  were  re- 
ceived that  the  Santos  crop  had  been  damaged  by 
excessive  rains  no  revision  of  the  estimates  accom- 
panied them.  Certainly  we  have  not  lately  heard  of 
predictions  of  a yield  of  ten  million  bags,  but  con- 
servative and  trustworthy  houses  have  not  hesitated 
to  estimate  that  should  everything  continue  favourable 
wa  may  have  a crop  of  3,500,000  bags  next  season  from 
the  Bio  and  Santos  districts.  Of  course  much  m.ay  hap- 
pen between  this  next  June  to  occasion  a revision 
of  the  estimates.  The  appearance  of  frost  during 
the  second  flowering,  for  instance,  would  cause  con- 
siderable damage  and  greatly  shorten  the  yield  of 
Cafe  das  Aguas,  but  the  fruit  of  the  first  crop  having 
set  well,  we  are,  under  any  circumstances,  likely  to 
see  a larger  crop  gathered  next  season  than  during 
the  present  one.  Beiiorts  from  other  producing 
countries,  liowevcr,  do  not  point  to  crops  in  all 
cases  being  as  large  as  last  year,  when  it  is  osti' 
[Ff.b,  I,  iSgf), 
niatod  250,000  tons  was  growing.  But  considering 
that  the  plantations  ai’c  being  extended  and  new 
distiict.s  are  continually  being  opened  up,  it  would 
be  somewhat  rash  to  at  once  jump  to  the  conclusion 
that  supplies  from  other  countries  than  Brazil  will 
be  much,  if  any  smaller,  because  somewhat  reduced 
estimates  have  been  received  from  the  better  known 
sources  of  supply. 
One  thing  is  certain,  and  that  is.  that  while  of 
late  years  the  supply  of  fine  growths  has  been  con- 
tinually decreasing  the  iiroportion  of  common  grades 
has  steadily'  increased,  and  therefore  the  quantity  of 
coffee,  such  as  is  taken  for  the  Continent,  gradually 
becomes  larger.  These  grades  come  into  competi- 
tion with  Brazil  coffees,  and  tend  to  diminish  the 
rise  of  the  latter,  more  especially  when  prices  are 
artificially  tnaintaiued,  as  is  at  present  the  case. 
The  deduction  is  that,  should  the  “bull”  manipu- 
lation be  continued,  the  commoner  grades  of  other 
descriptions  will  be  consumed  instead  of  Brazil 
kinds,  and  .ariivals  of  the  latter  will  have  to  be  taken 
up  by  tlie  “ bull”  clique,  which  will  in  time  find  its 
holding  grow  to  such  unwieldy  proportions  as  to 
become  unbearable. — /oiirnnl  of  Fivoncr,  Dec.  1>S. 
lU  lUMA  AS  IWAUKRT  FOB  TEA. 
Dipping  into  a book  containing  the  early  annals 
of  the  T'.nglish  in  Jiengal,  lately  published  (of  which 
more  shortly),  we  came  across  the  statement  that 
abo\it  two  liundred  years  ago  tea  was  drunk  all  over 
India.  It  would  be  imagined  that  a conservative 
people  like  the  inhabitants  of  India,  wdio  through 
centuries  have  retained  their  customs  and  habits 
without  cliange,  would  not  have  lost,  during  the 
comparatively  short  period  of  two  hundred  years, 
their  taste  for  the  cup  that  cheers  so  completely  as 
they  have.  The  bulk  of  the  Indian  people  at  the 
present  time  are  not  tea-drinkers,  nor  would  they 
appear  to  take  kindly  to  the  fragrant  Hohea  even 
when  tempted  to  str.ay  from  the  paths  of  water- 
(h inking  by  the.  to  the  Indian,  almost  irresistible 
inducoineut  of  fret’  tea.  Those  interested  in  the 
Indian  tea  trade,  while  making  heroic  efforts  to 
exploit  foreign  markets,  bethought  themselves 
suddenly  one  day  of  the  yirofitable  maike.t  which  lay 
at  their  very  doors  if  the  tiOO  millions  in  India 
could  only  be  induced  to  buy  their  tea.  Small 
p.ickets  were,  made  up  and  distributed  free  in  their 
thousands,  throughout  tin;  land.  'The  people  took 
them  ; some  tried  a cup  of  tea.  but  rejected  the  un- 
•accustomed  bevei’age.  while  the  greater  portion 
used  the  packages  of  tea  as  paperweights  or  for 
any  other  purpose  than  what  they  were  intended 
for.  The  attempt  to  lead  the  people  back  to  their 
ancient  habit  of  tea-drinking  was  given  up.  If, 
however,  lodiin  tea  ■|)lantei-3  had  looked  a little 
further  they  would  have  found  in  Burma  a few 
million  people  who  might  have  been  induced  to 
drink  their  teas,  as  they  are,  for  the  most  part, 
very  partial  to  the  mild  stimulant.  All  the 
Mongolian  rices  aie  tea-diinkei-s.  It  may  be  hard 
at  first  to  get  the  ])cop!e  in  Burma  to  take  to  Indian 
te.a.  China  has  been  l)efore  us  for  a considerable  time 
non.  and  the  taste  of  the  j'eople  bis  been  long  ac- 
customed to  the  light  fo.is  of  China.  The  China  tea 
which  is  consumed  hy  the  bulk  of  the  people  is,  also, 
cheap,  so  the  Indian  tea  introduced  here  must  be  of  a 
low  price.  Indian  tea.s  of  a thin,  light  liquor  should 
first  be  tried  as  a compromise  between  the  two 
teas,  and  when  the  people  become  accustomed 
to  the  taste  it  will  be  a very  short  step  to  dis- 
carding China  tea  altogether  in  favour  of  the  In- 
dian article.  Wo  would  seriously  advise  Indian 
planters  to  look  into  the  matter.  A represen- 
tative might  be  sent  over  here  to  study  the 
subject  on  the  spot,  and  the  knowledge  and  in- 
formation acquired  would  be  veil  worth  the  money 
spent  on  the  uudertukiug.  In  a ju-evious  issue  we 
had  .some  remarks  in  f.rvour  of  Ihe  cultivation  of 
tea  in  Burma:  the  fact  of  a market  for  Burma  tea 
being  at  hand  in  the  very  country  should  be  a 
large  inducement  to  speculators  in  this  direction. 
Wc  would  much  rather  that  the  market  in  Burni  i 
was  supplied  with  tea  grown  in  the  country,  but  if 
