Sept,  i,  1896.J 
THE  TROPICA! 
AGRICULTURIST. 
187 
to  drop  teas  over  it  yet.  If  the  demand  for  tea  falls 
oft  and  the  supply  increases,  it  does  not  require  a 
sage  to  tell  us  that  the  outlook  will  be  less  pleasant. 
All  industries  are  subject  to  vicissitudes  and  the  pro- 
phet will  always  find  plenty  of  wilderness  to  cry  in. 
There  is  at  this  stage  no  special  occasion  to  decry 
tea,  or  to  lament  that  wisdom  has  gone  from  us, 
because  the  public  are  making  up  for  lost  time  by 
showing  a disposition  to  rush  in  where  they  formerly 
feared  to  tread.  There  is  a limit,  however,  to  the 
development  of  tea  enterprise  unless  new  markets 
are  opened  up,  and  it  is  but  natural  that  some  ot 
the  proprietors  in  the  older  concerns  should  view 
with  apprehension  the  increase  of  new  ventures. 
Certainly  the  activity  in  the  bringing  out  of  new 
companies  should  lend  aid  to  the  work  of  finding  an 
outlet  for  the  increasing  output  of  tea  which  will 
sooner  or  later  result. 
An  Old  Story  Ee-Told. — It  is  historically  useful 
to  learn  from  the  official  “ Statement  exhibiting  the 
Moral  and  Material  Progress  and  Condition  of  India 
during  the  year  1894-95” — the  year,  that  is,  ending  on 
March  31,  1895,  that  the  tea  exports  were  increased 
by  Rx970,00J  in  value,  and  most  of  them  came  to  the 
United  Kingdom.  It  is  noteworthy  that  while  we 
took  93  per  cent  of  our  tea  from  China  in  1865,  and 
onlj  2 per  cent  from  India,  and  not  so  much  as  1 per 
cent  from  Ceylon,  in  1895  we  took  46  per  cent  from 
India  32  per  cent  from  Ceylon,  and  only  16  per  cent 
from  China.  The  importations  from  China  have 
steadily  dwindled. — H.  and  C.  Mail,  July  31. 
♦ 
INDIA  AND  CEYLON  TEAS. 
From  the  well-known  “ T.  A.  C.”  we  have 
received  a profusely  illustrated  copy  of  the  Sun- 
day edition  of  the  Ne^o  York  Herald  containing 
the  following  parody  in  the  shape  of  an  appeal 
to  buy  India  and  Ceylon  Teas  : — 
Portia  : — The  quality  of  those  teas  is  not  strained. 
They  are  pure  as  gentle  dew  from  heaven. 
They  are  twice  blest ; both  blessing  him 
who  sella, 
And  her  who  buys  ; 
Bring  bliss  to  her  who  pours  and  him  who 
quaffs. 
They’re  purest  of  the  pure. 
The  advertisement  is  accompanied  by  an  illus- 
tration of  Portia  in  gown  and  trencher  sipping 
the  fragrant  beverage. 
— -♦ 
BURNSIDE  TEA  COMPANY  OF  CEYLON, 
LIMITED. 
The  mail  lias  brought  us  a copy  of  the  prospectus 
of  this  Company  which  has  just  been  formed 
with  a capital  of  £50,000,  in  5,000  shares  of  £10 
each  : — 
Issue  of  1,400  Shares  of  £10  each— £14,000;  and  5 per 
cent  Debentures — £7,000 ; — £21,000. 
Besides  the  above-mentioned  amounts,  600  fully- 
paid  Shares  will  be  issued  to  the  Vendors  of  Burn- 
side and  Midlothian  Estates  on  account  of  purchase- 
money.  The  total  issue  at  present,  therefore,  will  be 
2,000  Shares  out  of  5,000,  and  £7,000  Debentures. 
It  is  not  intended  to  call  up  more  than  £5  per 
Share.  The  remaining  £5  per  Share,  total  £7,000, 
will  be  specifically  charged  to  secure  the  Debentures, 
the  amount  of  which  is  limited  not  to  exceed  the 
• uncalled  Capital  of  the  Company  for  the  time  being, 
and  which  will  be  furthar  secured  .by  a floating 
charge  upon  the  other  property  of  the  Company. 
The  Debentures  carry  Interest  at  5 per  cent,  per 
annum,  and  are  payable  on  31st  December,  1901. 
Subscriptions  for  the  £7,000  Debentures  are  pay- 
able : — 10  per  cent,  on  Application  and  the  balance 
on  Allotment. 
They  will  be  issued  for  sums  of  £50  or  multiples  of 
£50  each.  The  Interest  upon  the  Debentures  will 
commence  from  the  date  of  Allotment,  and  the  first 
payment  will  be  due  on  the  1st  of  January,  1897. 
Directors. — George  William  Paine,  Cotswold  Lodge, 
Upper  Norwood  (Chairman).  Sir  George  Augustus 
Pilkington,  Belle  Vue,  Southport.  Robert  Porter 
(Midlothian  Estate,  Ceylon),  37  Chalmers  Street, 
Edinburgh.  George  Gray  Anderson  (Lyall,  Anderson 
& Co.),  16  Philpot  Lane,  London,  E.C. 
Bankers. — The  National  Bank  of  India,  Limited, 
47  Threadneedle  Street,  E.C. 
Solicitors. — Murray,  Hutchins,  Stirling  & Murray, 
11  Birchin  Lane,  E.C. 
Auditiors. — Cape  & Dalgleish,  8 Old  Jewry,  E.C. 
Ceylon  Agents. — Whittall  & Co.,  Colombo. 
Secretaries  and  Office. — Lyall,  Anderson  & Co., 
16  Philpot  Lane,  E.C. 
This  Company  has  been  formed  primarily  to  pur- 
chase the  following  Estates  : — 
Burnside,  situated  in  the  District  of  Rangalla,  Cey- 
lon, from  Messrs.  Robert  and  George  Porter  and  the 
Rev.  A.  R.  Cavalier. 
Heeloya  also  situated  in  Rangalla  District,  from 
Messrs.  Matheson  & Co. 
Midlothian,  situated  in  the  District  of  Maskeliya, 
from  Mr.  Robert  Porter. 
Burnside  and  Heeloya  Estates  have  been  secured  at 
prices  approved  by  Mr.  Joseph  Fraser,  of  the  Pita- 
kande  Group,  and  Midlothian  Estate  has  been  pur- 
chased at  the  figure  placed  upon  it  by  the  Vendor, 
Mr.  R.  Porter. 
The  following  statement  is  based  upon  information 
received  from  the  Vendors  : — 
Burnside  Estate  consists  of  178  acres  in  all,  and  the 
elevation  is  4,000  to  4 500  feet.  According  to  the  Cey- 
lon Directory  it  contains  : — 
100  acres  Tea  in  full  bearing. 
24  „ young  Tea. 
54  ,,  Forest. 
178  acres. 
There  is  a permanent  Factory  with  a Water  Whee 
and  sufficient  supply  of  water,  and  a Simplex  Roller 
and  Sirocco  Drier. 
There  is  a small  Bungalow  with  several  sets  of 
lines.  A new  permanent  set  has  just  been  built. 
Heeloya  Estate. — The  acreage  is  as  follows  : — 
380  acres  Tea  in  full  bearing. 
10  „ Planted  in  Timber. 
30  ,,  Grass. 
40  ,,  Waste  Land,  &c. 
460  acres. 
The  Factory  is  very  complete,  with  two  Rollers, 
two  Driers,  Tea  Sifters,  &c.,  and  there  is  a Water 
Wheel  with  abundant  Water-power. 
The  yield  of  Tea  on  Heeloya  is  not  so  satis- 
factory as  it  might  be,  but  the  soil  is  good ; the 
bushes  taken  as  a whole  are  well  grown,  and  in 
Mr.  Fraser's  opinion  the  Tea  would  respond  to 
cultivation  as  well  as  it  has  done  on  the 
Pitakande  Group,  and  it  is  the  Directors’  intention 
to  follow  the  system  so  satisfactorily  adopted  by  Mr. 
Fraser  on  the  Estates  named. 
Midlothian  E^t  • e lies  between  the  well-known 
Ormidalc  and  M iu,  Estates,  at  an  elevation  of  about 
4,500  feet. 
It  is  about  two  miles  from  the  Cart  Road,  and 
can  be  easily  manured. 
The  acreage  is  : — 
170  acres  Tea  in  bearing. 
40  „ „ 3 years  old  (coming  into  bearing.) 
30  ,,  „ 2 years  old. 
240 
Say  4 „ Planted  in  Timber. 
244  acres. 
There  is  at  present  no  plan  of  the  Estate,  and 
these  acreages  are  therefore  approximate. 
The  young  tea  is  fine  Jat  from  Mount  Vernon  and 
Brunswick  seed  chiefly,  but  some  of  the  old  tea  is 
not  very  good  .Jat,  and  the  worst  bushes  are  being 
replaced  with  fine  Jat  plants. 
There  is  a permanent  Factory  with  a ,S0-ft.  Iron 
Water  Wheel,  3 Rollers,  a Double  Desiccator,  a Tea 
