Sept,  i,  1896.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIS  I’. 
167 
dered  in  “ bloated  armaments ''  and  doles  to  rich 
landowners  gave  the  Radicals  an  excellent  text,  and 
they  did  not  fail  to  improve  upon  it. 
Nkw  Indian  Tea  Company.— The  Oodmarie  Tea 
Company,  Limited,  Assam,  his  been  formed  with  a 
capital  of  T40,000  for  the  purpose  of  acquiring  as 
from  January  1,  1896,  and  working  as  one  concern, 
the  three  tea  estates  known  as  Oodmarie,  Balijuri, 
and  Lung  Soong,  situate  in  the  district  of  Nowgong 
and  province  of  Assam,  India,  together  with  all 
buildings,  machinery,  stock,  coolies  under  contract,  &c. 
Gkocbus  and  Packet  Teas. — Some  correspondents 
have  recently  called  attention  to  the  evils,  from  the 
grocer’s  point  of  view,  of  the  packet  tea  trade.  But 
the  Grocer  gives  its  readers  some  advice  on  the  sub- 
ject, which  they  must  of  necessity  ponder  on.  It 
says;  “There  will  be  agents,  and  there  will  be 
packet  teas:  query,  is  it  practicable  for  a grocer  to 
refuse  to  sell  all  such  goods  ? However  desirable 
the  own-blend  system  may  be,  you  do  not  get  rid  of  a 
danger  by  ignoring  it.  The  feature  of  these  packet 
teas  is  that  they  are  so  easily  handled  that  no 
special  skill  is  required  in  those  who  sell  them.  If 
grocers  generally  refused  to  sell  them,  the  wholesale 
merchants  would  easily  enough  obtain  the  services 
of  confectioners,  chemists,  or  even  perhaps  tobacco- 
nists (who  have  already  somewhat  too  much  ex- 
perience of  packet  goods  for  their  comfort)  as  their 
agents,  and  although  nobody  else  could  be  half  so 
efficient  in  that  capacity  as  the  grocer,  the  latter 
would  probably  lose  a little  of  his  trade,  and  see 
other  people  gradually  extending  their  encroachments 
upon  it.  Quite  so  ! 
Coffee  Drunkenness. — Medical  men  are  delight- 
fully impartial  in  their  attacks  on  tea  and  coffee 
drinking.  When  they  have  finished  for  a time  the 
operation  of  jumping  on  tea  drinkers,  they  give  the 
coffee  imbiber  a turn.  There  is  an  outcry  in  America 
and  on  the  European  continent  against  coffee  drunken- 
ness, which  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  latest  dangers. 
A New  York  doctor,  who  has  made  a special  study 
of  the  subject,  says  his  observation  has  shown  be- 
yond question  that  chronic  coffee  poisoning  is  much 
more  common  than  is  generally  supposed.  “ The 
symptoms  are  usually  confounded  with  alcoholic  dis-. 
turbance,  because  coffee  dyspepsia  bears  a striking 
resenfblance  to  alcoholic  dyspepsia.  There  is  the 
same  disgust  for  food,  morning  expectoration  of  mucus, 
and  marked  anorexia.  This  disgust  for  food  increases  in 
severe  cases  until  the  patient  can  only  take  coffee  or 
bread  soaked  in  coffee  Nausea  follows,  and  many  of  the 
other  ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to.  Concerning  the  same 
evil  Dr.  Mendel  of  Berlin  has  published  a clinical  study 
ivhich  is  the  most  thorough  yet  made,  as  he  had  a 
community  of  coffee  drinkers  under  his  constant  ob- 
servation, the  working  women  in  and  about  Essen.  He 
found  many  of  these  women  consumed  over  a pound  of 
coffee' , a week.  The  leading  symptoms  of  the  ills  that 
afflict  them  were  profound  depression  of  spirits  and  fre- 
quent headaches,  with  insomnia.  A strong  dose  of 
coffee  would  relieve  them  for  a time,  then  the  ailment 
would  return.  The  muscles  became  weak  aud  trembl- 
ing, and  the  hands  trembled  when  at  rest.  The  victims 
suffered  so  seiionsly  they  dared  not  abandon  the  drink- 
ing of  coffee  for  fear  of  death.”  All  this  worked  up 
into  the  shilling  shocker  form  would  be  thrilling. — II. 
and  C.  Mail,  .July  10. 
THE  GAL  AHA  CEYLON  TEA  ESTATES 
AND  AGENCY  CO.,  LTD. 
This  company  is  formed  to  acquire  carry  on,  and 
develop  a group  of  freehold  tea  estates,  two  freehold 
factiries,  and  the  general  and  agency  business  of 
Messrs.  Chas.  Strachan  & Co.,  in  Colombo.  The 
vendor  tells  us  in  the  prospectus  that  he  estimates 
the  profits  for  the  next  twelve  months  at  .£'13,546. 
Why  not  give  the  actual  net  profits  for  last  year  or 
the  year  before,  as  he  has  managed  the  estates  and 
business  for  many  years  ? Investors  could  then  see 
the  increase  of  profits  as  the  plantations  come  into 
full  bearing.  Under  present  conditions  we  cannot 
see  anything  in  the  prospectus  to  recommend  investors 
to  subscribe  to  this  issue. — Financial  Bulletin,  July  4. 
Tea,  as  a beverage,  has  been  steadily  growing  in 
public  favour  despite  the  occasional  onslaughts  of 
various  members  of  the  medical  profession  directed 
against  its  effects  on  the  nervous  system.  Conse- 
quently, it  is  not  surprising  that  tea-growing  is  a 
remunerative  industry,  and  many  of  the  Indian  and 
Ceylon  companies  are  very  prosperous  concerns,  and 
offer  good  opportunities  for  investment  to  those  who 
want  more  than  2.^  per  cent  or  so  for  their  money. 
It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  every  tea 
estate  pays,  and  the  public  must  exercise  caution  and 
discreiion  in  selecting  those  in  which  to  invest.  The 
Galaha  Ceylon  Tea  Estates  and  Agency  Company 
(Limited)  does  not  impress  us  as  one  we  can  recom- 
mend. It  is  formed  with  a capital  of  £110,000, 
divided  into  £60,000  cumulative  6 per  cent  preference 
shares  of  .£10  each  and  .£50,000  ordinaiy  shares  of  .£*10 
each.  There  is  also  a debenture  capital  of  £55,000 
paying  5 per  cent.  The  objects  of  the  company  are 
to  acquire  certain  freehold  tea  estates,  with  tea 
factories,  &c.,  in  Ceylon,  and  the  general  agency  of 
Messrs.  Strachan  & Co.,  in  Colombo.  The  estates, 
business,  &c.,  are  to  be  purchased  for  the  sum  of 
.£155,000  and  the  vendor  takes  the  £'50,000  of  ordinary 
shares  and  the  balance  .£105,000,  in  cash,  so  that  his 
total  interest  in  the  concern  will  be  comparatively 
small.  We  do  not  notice  any  independent  valuation 
of  the  properties,  &c.,  taken  over.  Another  point 
calling  for  remark  is  that  although  the  businesses 
have  been  carried  on  sometime,  no  statement  of  the 
profits  earned  in  past  years  is  put  forward.  Instead 
thereof  we  have  the  vendor’s  estimate  of  sales,  work- 
ing expenses,  Ac.,  from  July  1,  1896,  to  June  30. 1897, 
showing,  of  course,  a satisfactory  profit.  We  cannot 
say  that  this  estimate  will  not  be  realised,  but  the 
intending  investor  will  bear  in  mind  that  estimates 
of  future  profits  are  vastly  inferior  to  statements  of 
past  profits  as  a basis  on  which  to  value  a business. 
The  concern  may  be  perfectly  good  and  sound — we 
know  nothing  to  the  contrary — but  if  so,  the  pros- 
pectus certainly  does  nothing  to  demonstrate  the  fact, 
— Commerce,  Jnly  1. 
COFFEE  IN  THE  KELANI  VALLEY. 
Mr.  11.  M.  Dawkin,  who  to  a certain  e.xtent, 
at  least,  i.s  the  pioneer  of  colfee  planting  in  the 
Kelani  Valley,  has  kindly  furnished  our  repre- 
sentative with  particulars  regarding  an  exiieri- 
ment  he  has  made  on  his  estate  of  Kanangania. 
A year  jiast  in  April  a few  bushes  were  planted, 
from  a nursery,  close  to  the  conductor’s  quarters. 
Tliese  were  carefully  nurtured,  precautions  being 
taken  to  ensure  that  they  were  properly  shaded” 
manured  and  watered.  These  bushes  liave  thriven 
wonderfully,  some  of  them  being  between  4 and  5 
feet  high.  Quite  recently  there  was  a fair  crop 
of  blossom  on  them,  which  “ for  the  good  of  the 
bush”  was  plucked  off  and  not  allowed  to 
mature.  In  September  last  year  Mr.  Dawkin 
planted  100  acres  in  liberian  coffee.  The  bushes, 
like  those  first  experimented  with,  have  a strong 
and  liealthy  appearance  and  .some  of  them  have 
grown  to  a height  of  between  two  and  three  feet. 
It  is  Mr.  Dawkin’s  intention  to  plant 
another  50  acres  in  liberian  coffee  shaded 
with  dadup  treAs  20  feet  apart.  The  “ Laird 
of  Kanangama”  is  well  satisfied  wdth  the  results 
of  the  experiment  so  far  as  it  has  gone, 
and  he  is  liopeful  that  his  acreage  of  coffee  ' will 
have  come  into  bearing  in  the  course  of  two  and 
a half  years.  At  all  event.s,  he  is  determined 
to  give  tlie  experiment  a five  years  trial,  holding 
as  he  does,  that  previous  coffee  growing  trials  in 
t!ie  K.V,  did  not  get  fair  play  owing  to  owners 
preferring  to  go  in  for  tea  wdiich,  at  the  time 
the  experiments  w'ere  made,  was  realising  long 
jirices.  The  Hon.  T.  N.  Christie,  we  learn,  takes 
an  interest  in  the  departure  inaugurated  by 
Mr.  Dawkin  and  some  day  intends  to  have 
a look  at  the  Kanangama  coffee.  We  wish 
it  am!  its  owner  the  best  of  luck. 
