'230 
THE  TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST 
[Oct.  I,  i8g6. 
large  (jiuintilies  of  tea  over  the  PolLli  and 
Persian  frontiers,  lliu.s  Having  a portion  of  tlie  high 
iluty,  which  in  Kussia  almost  amounts  to  “2s. 
per  Ih.  This  inactice  of  smuggling  leads  to  fre- 
(juent  and  often  hloody  conliicts  with  the  Im- 
Jierial  frontier  Customs  guanh;.  Persians  and 
Jews  freipiently  get  killed  in  these  encounters. 
Another  dodge,  formmly  much  practised  in 
M0.SC0W,  wa.s  for  the  tea  merchants,  i.  c.  the 
more  unscrupulous  of  them,  to  huy  U|)  all  the 
“leavings'’  from  the  Trakters,  or  teashups,  to  dry 
the  same  and  then  mix  this  rubbish  with  cheap 
China  tea.  This  compound  was  then  sold  to  the 
ignorant  Moujiks  for  about  3s.  to  3s.  Od.  per  lb., 
for  which  price  tliey  would  in  England  be  able 
to  purchase  genuine  good  unadulterated  lea. 
The  majority  of  the  poorer  classes  in  Russia 
can  hardly  ever  afford  good  tea,  seeing 
that  the  duty  and  expenses  on  this  necessary  of 
life  is  from  three  to  four  times  as  much  as  it 
is  in  England.  * In  consequence  of  the  high 
duty,  and  the  w'ant  of  principle  among  many  of 
the  tea  merchants,  one  can  safely  say  that  the 
poorer  classes  in  Russia  do  not  even  know  yet 
w'hat  good  tea  means.  It  is  also  dillicult  for  the 
tea  merchants — even  when  ihey  wish  to  be 
honest — to  sell  their  tea  chea))  umier  the  condi- 
tions at  present  obtaining  in  Russia. 
In  the  coui-se  of  my  frequent  journeys  through 
that  country  and  w’hilst  witnessing  the  terrible 
devastation  caused  by  Vodka  amongst  the 
peasantry,  1 came  to  the  conclusion  that,  if  the 
Minister  of  Einance  would  increase  the  duty 
•n  spirits  and,  in  proportion,  diminish  the 
present  excessive  duties  on  tea,  colfee,  and 
cocoa,  he  would  be  the  indirect  means  of 
saving  thousands  and  jrerhaps  hundreds  of 
thousands  from  death,  disease  and  poverty — 
.in  short  all  those  mi.scries  that  arc  caused  l>y 
the  abuse  and  use  of  spirituous  drinks. 
Whilst  engaged  in  the  work  of  introducing 
Ceylon  'lea  in  “ WhitcsLoiie  Mo.scow’,”  I had 
the  pleasuie  of  making  the  acquaintance  of 
bir  Craeme  Klphinstone,  who,  liearing  what  I 
was  about,  came  all  the  way  from  Petersburg 
expressly  to  see  whether  business  operations 
might  not  bo  continued  on  a more  hopeful  foot- 
ing. Sir  Craeme  produced  on  me  such  an 
agreeable  impression,  that  1 should  have  been 
glad  to  re|)resent  him  and  the  other  ])lanters  of 
Ceylon,  had  not  fate  willed  it  otlierwise.  In 
fact,  if, I remember  rightly,  you,  as  well  as  Sir 
Craeme  suggested  that  I should  accej)t  this  post 
of  trust.  Rut  this  w-as  not  to  be.  My  health, 
which  had  been  gradually  undermined  by  an  attack 
of  inilamniation  of  the  lungs  and  a se\  ere  cattarih, 
at  last  com})elled  me  to  return  to  London,  where 
1 remainetl  the  whole  winter  under  medical  care. 
During  my  absence  from  Russia  the  business  natu- 
rally ])asseii  into  othe)'  hands. 
Tlie  Ceylon  ti;a  planters,  apparently  acting  on 
the  suggestions  made  by  me  in  my  early  letters  to 
the  CcijloH  Oii.s-i'rrrr,  deci«le<l  to  establish  the 
business  on  a.  pi-o|>cr  footing  ami  commissioned  Mr. 
ItogiviK'.  Under  tiiat  gentleman’s  able  manage- 
ment,and  with  the  (,>;i  planters’  support,  the  busi- 
ness seems  to  have  prospered.  'I'here  are  now 
shops  engaged  in  selluig Ceylon  Leaallover  Knssia: 
in  Mo.scow,  I’eterslmrg,  \ itebsk,  ^'ilno,  Odessa, 
Rostotl',  Kharkoir  and  other  iihiees. 
d'lie  business  is,  howe\(;r,  still  in  its  iid'ancy,  and 
much  hai'il  work  vemaiTis  lobedome  When  I c.all 
to  mind  that  about  eight  yeai-s  ago,  when  I was  in 
Moscow,  the  public  would  .‘careely  look  at  Ceylon 
'I’ea  and  that  now  seroral  million  poiitids  ol  it 
♦ Til  i.J  practice,  1 am  told,  is  still  in  existence. 
are  annually  imported  into  Russia,  I cannot  but 
think  that  there  is  for  the  high-class  teas  grown  on 
your  island  a great  future  in  the  vast  Russian 
Empire.  That  future  will  not  however  benelit 
my  pocket  ; for  although  1 conceived  and  com- 
menced this  busine.ss,  its  completion  and 
establishment  is  being  left  in  other  hands. 
]\Iy  friends  in  Moscow  and  elsewhere,  who,  in 
1SS8,  amused  themselves  at  my  expense  lor 
entertaining  such  a mad  idea  as  the  above,  will 
now'  see  that  I w-as  right  and  that  on  this,  as 
well  as  on  other  occasions,  I have  seen  far 
ahead  of  others.  I have  in  fact  been  a pioneer, 
and,  like  many  pioneers,  have  sowm  that  others 
may  rea[>. — Yours  respectfully, 
WTLLIAM  R.  STEV'ENI. 
PLANTING  OF  SHADE  TREES. 
The  following  is  a tabulated  statement  of  the 
number  of  shade  and  fruit  trees  growing  at  the 
close  of  1895.  Shade  is  now  given  to  the  weary 
traveller  along  many  of  the  most  ex])osed  roads 
of  the  country. 
Shade-giving  Trees.  Fruit  Trees. 
< 
Province.  Inga- 
Margosa  & 
Iron 
Various 
samam. 
Suriya,  Ac. 
Bark. 
kinds. 
Western  5 525 
432 
, , 
697 
Central  5,9S1 
12,081 
27,304 
3,658 
Northern  1,979 
Southern  3,750 
5,157 
46.S 
7 
^ , 
462 
Eastern  5,9fi() 
110 
718 
North-Western  5,000 
41 
213 
North-Central  3,IG3 
, , 
, , 
617 
Q va  5,585 
174 
, , 
354 
Sabaragamuwa  5,150 
4 
1,509 
— Public  Works  Adminutralion  llejwrt. 
— 0 
COST  OF  PRODUCTION  OF  TEA  ON 
THE  NILGIRIS. 
[Contnbufed.) 
The  cost  of  laying  down  our  Nilgiri  Teas  at  the 
Shipping  Port  or  on  the  London  Market  is  of  such 
irnportajice  to  planters  that  I may  perhaps  be  ex- 
cused for  addressing  you  at  some  length  on  the  sub- 
ject. In  doing  so  1 hope  it  will  be  understood  that 
my  chkf  oljject  is  to  gain  information  from  those 
whose  residence  and  experience  on  these  hills  make 
their  opinion  of  special  value  in  this  respect,  while 
at  the  same  time  the  views  of  a planter  trained  in 
another  country  and  a different  school  may  be  of 
some  benefit  to  them. 
'With  reference  to  some  recent  correspondence  in 
your  journal  on  the  subject,  it  would  appear  that 
the  fact  of  most,  if  not  all  of  the  estates  in  this 
district  packing  a proportion  or,  in  some  cases, 
nearly  all  their  crops,  in  1 lb.  or  i lb.  packets  has 
been  overlooked,  their  so  doing  increases  the  cost 
of  production  per  lb.  considerably.  This  does  not 
of  course  interfere  with  the  profits,  provided  a 
corresponding  enhanced  price  i.s  obtained  for  such 
packet  teas,  but  the  comparative  cost  of  produc- 
tion with  otlier  Tea-producing  countries  such  as 
Ceylon,  where  with  very  few  exceptions  the  tea 
is  packed  in  Inilk  in  che.sts  or  half-chests,  is 
obviously  unfair.  The  cost  of  making  up  tea  in  1 lb. 
lead  ])ackcts  with  wrappers,  Ac.,  and  putting  same 
in  c.liest,  is  1 anna  (i  pio  per  lb.  above  the  cost  of 
packing  in  the  o..iiuary  lead-lined  chests  in  bulk. 
Suppose  two  gardens  working  under  equal  conditions 
and  turning  out  say  loO.OiX)  lb.  of  made  tea  each,  one 
of  which  puts  halt  its  crop  in  lib.  packets:  this 
means  that  the  garden  so  doing  would  have  an  ex- 
penditure above  its  neighbour  of  117,000  odd,  or  the 
equivalent  cost  of  about ‘.I  pics  per  Ih.  over  the  garden 
packing  all  its  crop  in  tmik  in  chest.s. 
All  tilings  considered  tlio  Nitgiris  ought  to  bo  able 
to  hold  its  own  with  Northern  India  and  Ceylon  as 
regards  cost  per  lb.  of  placing  its  tea  f.o.b.  Calicat 
