THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST  [July  i,  1896. 
question  tlie  Dinibula  Valley  Tea  Company  acquiied 
those  properties  at  a bargain,  but  that  that 
shoukl  be  a reason  for  repudiating  the  sale  was  a 
ridiculous  idea,  to  say  tlie  very  least.  There  is 
not  an  ficre  of  poor  soil  on  the  wiiulc  group  of 
this  company — the  properties  aie  all  liigh  class 
and  as  one  old  Ceylon  planter  who  owns 
shares  jmt  it, — “when  the  Dimbula  ^ alley 
Company  ceases  to  yivo  handsome  dividends, 
Gotl  lic'lp  the  'I’ca  Enterprise  in  Ceylon  ! ’ In 
any  case,  the  Company’s  iirst  sale  of  tea  a few 
clays  ago  at  over  Is  average  is  a good  augury  ; 
and  clearly 
MK.  JAMES  SINC'LAIK 
has  every  faith  in  it,  as  his  not  having  taken  a 
penny  out  of  the  sale  of  his  ])laces  shows.  Not  only 
so,  but  1 hear  that  his  three  sons  are  large  share- 
holders and  many  personal  friends  besides.  Mr. 
Sinclair’s  “bread  and  butter”  inust  depend  on 
the  success  of  the  Company;  and  if  he  had  no  other 
incentive  than  this  the  shareholders  might  rely 
on  his  leaving  no  stone  unturned  to  make  the 
Company  a success. 
CEYLON  AND  ORIENTAL  E.STATES  CO.,  LU. 
The  sati.sfactory  report,  which  I sent  you  by 
last  mail,  was  duly  passed  by  the  shareholders 
at  the  meeting  yesterday  of  “The  Ceylon  and 
Oriental  Estates  Co.,  Ld.”  1 was  not  able  to 
be  iirescnt ; but  a friend  who  was  there  sends 
me  the  following  notes  : — 
“The  chairman  (Mr.  H.  C.  Smith)  had  practi- 
cally nothing  to  add,  beyond  what  the  report 
contains,  except  that  the  current  year  had  begun 
well,  and  that  the  crops  (tea)  secured  for  January, 
Eebruary  and  March  showed  an  Increase  over  the 
like  months  in  1895  of  about  25  per  cent.  After  a 
few  ordinary  questions  had  been  asked  and  answered 
the  report  and  accounts  were  adopted  ; then  followed 
the  passing  of  the  dividends,  re-election  of  directors, 
and  election  of  auditors,  and  the  proceedings  termi- 
nated with  a vote  of  thanks  to  the  superintendents 
and  directors.” 
TEA  SllIR.MENTS  FUO.M  CEYLON  FOR  MAY. 
The  heavy  shipments  of  tea  telegraj)hcd  as 
likely  to  be  made  from  Colombo  during  May 
(lUi  million  lb.)  may  temporarily  .affect  the  Jiiarket 
here  ; but  the  prospect  for  the  year  as  a whole 
continues  good,  even  in  the  face  of  the  increased 
crops  estimated  for  India  and  Ceylon. 
MR.  WELTON. 
^'I'he  gentleman  wdio  amended  and  secondetl  my 
propos.al  of  thanks  to  the  directors  .and  ollicers 
of  the  Eastern  I’roduce  and  Estates  Co.  was  I 
lind  Mr.  Welton,  undoubtedly  the  well-known 
li(iuidator  of  the  Oriental  IJank,  and  it  would  be 
interesting  if  the  opportunity  presented  itself  to 
ask  him  when  the  long  expected  diviilend  is 
to  be  ]iaid  in  wdiich  so  many  people  are  in- 
terested 
At  a meeting  in  the  city  yesterday  of  the 
IMPERIAL  CEYLON  TEA  E.STATES  CO. 
— at  which  the  decision  was  taken  to  complete 
the  purchase  of  the  Binoya  estate— I hail  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  Messrs.  B.  A.  Bo.s.anquet  and 
(}.  E.  Worthington,  both  looking  very  well,  espe- 
cially Mr.  Bosanquet,  mIio  reported  that  he  had 
so  thoroughly  recovered  the  use  of  Ids  broken 
limb  iis  to  be  able  to  ride  a bicycle  w'ith  com- 
fort and  advantage.  1 had  afterwards  just  lime 
to  shake  hands  with  the  veteran  Mr.  John  Tyn- 
dall who  looked  both  hale  and  hiiarty  and  reported 
that  that  still  older  veteran,  Mr.  John  Caiqier 
continued  to  be  able  to  move  about  with  ease. 
In  the  ollice  of  Messrs,  Barley  A Butler  besides 
Mr.  Theodore  .Stretch,  a former  merchant  of 
Colombo,  1 met  Mr.  MucMurtiu  luul  Mr.  J.  Mail- 
land-Kirwan,  and  the  latter  is  as  hopeful  as  the 
promoters  of  the  Acme  Tea  Chest,  that  his  pa- 
tent for  tea  packing  boxes  will  yet  become  popu- 
lar and  freely  used  in  Ceylon ; it  is  making 
its  way  grtidually  in  the  meantime. 
CEYLON  TEA  FOR  AMERICA  : COMPLAINT.S  A.S  TO 
(iUALITY. 
I was  sorry  to  hear  from  more  than  one  quarter 
that  certain  shipments  of  very  poor  Ceylon  tea 
have  been  made  to  America,  so  indifferent  indectl 
that  in  one  case  an  American  tea-dealer  said 
that  he  felt  inclined  to  throw  it  into  the  street 
rather  than  serve  it  to  his  customers.  Whatever 
m.ay  be  said  about  the  custom  of  sending  poor 
Ceylon  teas  to  England  or  Australia,  in  the  case 
of  America  to  do  so  at  the  present  time  when 
we  are  trying  to  eonquer  the  country  for  our 
teas  is  absolutely  suicidal,  if  not  wicked  ; and 
the  Ceylon  Planters’  Association  ought  to  offer 
a reward  for  the  di.scovery  of  the  .shipper,  who 
is  doing  his  best  in  this  way  to  undo  the  work 
of  the  Ceylon  Tea  Fund  and  discredit  the  colony. 
It  is  ilillicult  enough  to  force  on  our  good  teas 
in  America,  but  if  the  attempt  is  made  to  send 
trashy  stulI  .across  the  Atlantic  on  .account  of 
cheapne.ss,  farewell  to  the  hope  that  a striking 
adv.ance  c.an  be  made  during  tlie  next  few  years. 
In  this  connection  I have  had  eonlirmation  of 
the  extraordinary  rates  charged  for  advertising 
in  the  United  States — far  above  anything  known 
in  Englaiul,  and  as  a consequence,  showing  the 
much  greater  imiiortance  ait.ached  to,  aiul  the 
competition  existing  for,  advertising  among  the 
commercial  and  trading  folk  over  there.  Mr. 
Mackenzie  told  me  that  the  back  cover  of  a 
])opular  magazine  published  in  New  York  was 
let  .as  high  as  £75  for  one  insertion  of  a page, 
advertisement.  Well,  now  in  England  I do  not 
think  that  half  this  amount  is  obtainable  for  the 
most  popular  of  our  periodicals.  Cooper,  Cooper 
A Co.,  the  great  tea-dealers,  filled  .a  whole  page 
of  the  London  'Times  the  other  day,  equal  in 
size,  of  course,  to  many  periodical  pages,  but  I 
do  not  suppose  the  cost  was  one-half  that  of  the 
rate  mentioned  above. 
MR,  J.  L.  SIIANl). 
Mr.  J.  L.  Shaiul  is  starting  tomorrow,  I hear, 
for  Costa  llica  on  a mission  which  will  occupy 
a couple  of  months,  in  connection  with  coffee- 
[ilanting  develojiment,  supported  by  a City  .Syndi- 
cate. 
Some  time  ago  1 learned  that  there  w.as  a 
similar  project  in  connection  with  the  States  of 
Colombia,  for  which  Mr.  A.  II.  Uunc.an  might 
possibly  be  eng.agcd  to  report  on  forestland,  Ac.  ; 
but  this  was  a mistake,  and  Mr.  .Shand’s  is,  1 
believe,  the  only  mission. 
iJisADVANTAOEs  OF  bAW  bu.AOE. — A correspondent 
remiuds  ua  that  shade  of  any  kind  is  bad  for  tea, 
as  the  effect  on  flushing,  as  Bamber  states,  is  deci- 
dedly prejudicial.  The  writer  states  tliat  this  is  his 
own  experience  also  both  in  Ceylon  and  South  India 
for  the  last  15  years.  Of  course,  where  blight  is  so 
bad  that  toa  won’t  Hush  at  all,  then  the  lialf  loaf 
under  shade  is  better  than  no  broad  in  the  open 
lie  further  states  that  he  has  found  shade  in  tea 
dr.vw  a weak,  spindly  flusii,  which  does  not  liquor  well. 
Tills  is  of  course  absolutely  true,  but  we  are  not 
aware  that  wc  ever  reooinmcnded  tiio  planting  of 
Albi-^eia  sli/nilald,  or  any  other  true  as  s/mdc  for  tea. 
What  wo  advocate  is  the  choice  of  tliis  special  tree 
ill  or  near  toa  are  planted  in  lieu 
of  either  bluegums  or  grevellias.  The  litter,  when 
cut  (lo\yii  for  fuel  or  thinning  purposes,  will  greatly 
eiirich  the  sod  even  without  counting  the  beneficial 
May2ll  Upinion, 
