Nov.  2,  1896.]  THE  TROPICAL 
SCIENTIFIC  EXPERT  FOR  THE  TEA 
INDUSTRY. 
(From  an  Occasional  Correspondent.) 
Some  time  ago  you  published  a discussion  that 
took  place  at  a meeting  of  the  Indian  Tea  Associa- 
tion regarding  the  appointment  of  a scientific  expert. 
One  speaker  animadverted  rather  severely  on  the 
uiggardlv  manner  in  which  the  Government  of 
India  had  always  dealt  with  this  question,  and  not 
without  just  reason.  Though  the  United  States  and 
Prance  contribute  largely,  Denmark  spends  annually 
£11,000,  and  all  our  colonies  give  liberally  towards 
agricultural  colleges  and  scientific  research,  it  must 
be  borne  in  mind  that  the  British  Board  of  Agriculture, 
even  in  the  face  of  severe  and  long-continued  depression, 
has  never  supported  agricultural  education  and  investi- 
gation to  anything  approaching  the  extent  its  im- 
portance demands,  or  as  the  countries  named  and 
others  have.  May  our  Indian  Government  be  induced 
to  follow  the  better  example  and  not  that  of  the 
mother  country  hereafter.  The  tea  industry  is  a great 
industry  and  if  its  members  act  with  unanimity,  and 
sustained  energy  it  ought  in  these  times  to  be  all- 
powerful  in  such  matters.  No  doubt  with  the  coat 
of  pushing  new  markets,  a still  more  urgent  matter 
for  the  present,  there  may  be  difficulty  in  paying 
a competent  expert  adequately,  and  retaining 
his  services  long  enough,  unaided.  I am  not, 
however,  so  sanguine  of  very  much  being  soon 
accomplished,  beyond  what  has  already  been 
and  may  yet  be  done  by  the  so-called  “ rule  of  thumb” 
of  practical  observation  and  experiments  in  manu- 
facture, because  I do  not  believe  that  chemistry  is 
calculated  to  do  so  much  for  tea  as  in  some  other- 
processes  of  manufacture.  Tea-making  does  not,  I 
consider,  come  within  the  realm  of  science  so  fully 
as  is  generally  supposed,  one  reason  being  it  is 
very  seriously  affected  by  the  uncontrollable  in- 
fluences of  atmosphere  and  weather  in  the  open 
field.  Still,  it  is  but  right  that  practical  men 
should  have  the  aid  of  the  more  skilled  scien- 
tists, and  in  the  course  of  years— possibly  very  soon 
this  might  be  productive  of  great  i-esults  even  in 
manufacture.  Neither  may  science  be  enabled  readily 
to  do  much  in  the  way  of  cure  and  eradication  of 
blio-hts,  but  it  could  not  fail  to  add  to  our  kuowdedge 
ant  do’  something.  Scientific  and  minute  and  care- 
ful observation  of  the  life,  history,  and  habits  of 
most  of  the  parasites  that  affect  tea  have  been  made 
and  recorded  by  Wood-Mason,  Cotes,  Dudgeon,  and 
others,  most  interesting,  doubtless,  but  I have  not 
heard  of  any  practical  benefit  derived.  The  effective 
practical  remedy  is  to  increase  the  constitutional 
vigour  of  the  bushes  and  thus  give  them  power  to 
resist  and  grow  out  of  pests,  or  perhaps  develop 
new  varieties  of  disease-resisting  plants.  But  I 
believe  it  is  in  the  dii-ection  of  analysis  of  soils 
to  ascertain  what  elements  are  wanting  and  what 
manure  or  application  is  necessary  to  yield  or  im- 
prove the  quality  of  the  tea  that  most  is  to  be  ex- 
pected. In  regard  to  this  it  is  to  be  feared  practi- 
ot,!  planters  are  entirely  in  the  dark,  and  experi- 
menting, while  difficult  and  costly,  is  likely  to  be  of 
little  avail.  Of  course  in  regard  to  manuring  accord- 
ing to  soil  for  vigorous,  healthy  plant  growth  gene- 
rally a competent  analytical  agricultural  chemist 
could  not  fail  also  to  be  of  the  greatest  service. 
This  latter  branch  of  manuring  does  not  seem  so 
urgent  for  tea,  which  is  not  an  exhaustive  crop  as 
far  as  rude  growth  of  the  plant  and  leaves,  irres- 
nective  of  cptality,  is  concerned,  certainly  not  so  much 
as  the  extension  of  new  markets  meanwhile. 
Even  should  there  be  no  excess  of  nitrogen  in  the 
rainfall  in  tea  countries  (and  upon  this  doubt  would 
seem  to  be  thrown  by  more  recent  analysis),  the 
cheapest  form  to  supply  it  is  in  green-manuring, 
and  for  this  the  unusual  abundance  of 
leguminous  herbs,  plants,  shrubs,  and  even 
trees  (papiUonacce  is  peculiarly  favourable, 
they  having  all  the  capacity  of  fixing  and 
utilising  the  free  nitrogen  of  the  air.  It  will  be  long, 
I feel  convinced,  before  it  can  prove  profitable  to  ap- 
39 
AGRICULTURIST.  311 
ply  artificial  manures,  except  those,  should  such  be 
discovered,  productive  of  quality.  Unfortunately,  in 
many  parts,  the  supply  of  local  manure  is  very 
limited  and  poor,  and  if  it  were  in  greater  abund- 
ance the  cost  of  transit  would  be  prohibitive.  Hence 
the  importance  of  green-manuring  and  top  dressing, 
little  more  being  practicable  in  many  cases.  The 
indigo  planters  have  always  had  the  reputation  of 
being  good  cultivators,  but  indigo  being  one  of  the 
family  of  Legiiminosie  is  in  their  favour. 
One  speaker  who  took  part  in  the  discussion 
referred  to  is  reported  to  have  said  that  the 
subject  of  a scientific  expert  for  tea  had  been 
discussed  at  a meeting  of  the  Royal  Society, 
and  that  Dr.  Voelcker  had  stated  that 
scientific  inquiry  should  extend  over  a period 
of  twenty  years.  I doubt  very  much  if  ever 
this  subject  has  been  under  consideration  by  the 
Royal  Society,  and  am  certain  if  Dr.  Voelcker  ever 
expressed  an  opinion  of  the  kind  he  would  have 
assigned  a muen  longer  period.  The  seme  speaker 
asks  “ how  many  proprietors  of  tea  gardens  could  be 
found  who  were  so  considerate  for  posterity  as  to 
spend  large  sums  of  money  annually  from  which  they 
themselves  could  derive  no  benefit.”  But  withalong- 
lifed  plant  like  tea  especially,  this  is  just  what  must 
be  done  in  the  interests  of  present  proprietors  as  much 
as  that  of  posterity.  There  is  often  short-sighted  pro- 
cedure in  regard  to  the  management  of  tea  property  that 
is  qui.e  as  much  opposed  to  the  interests  of  the  pre- 
sent owners  as  of  posterity  if  rightly  viewed.  This 
applies  equally  to  the  conquering  of  new  markets  as 
to  the  employment  of  scientific  experts.  The  fruits 
of  such  efforts  should  all  be  anticipated,  or  the  ab- 
sence of  them  discounted,  in  estimating  the  present 
value  of  tea  property.  All  who  can  in  any  measure 
realise  the  difficulties  attending  the  chemical  investi- 
gation of  tea  culture  and  manufacture,  and  the  na- 
ture of  scientific  research  in  connection  with  agri- 
cultural chemistry  in  this  country,  so  far  from  con- 
sidering twenty  years  too  long,  must  have  good  reason 
to  fear  that  would  not  prove  long  enough  to  obtain 
really  valuable  results,  not  to  speak  of  exhausting 
the  subject.  We  have  but  to  think  of  the  conflicting 
opinions  and  results  of  agricultural  chemists  in 
different  countries.  Sir  John  Bennet  Lawes  has 
since  1343  been  carefully  conducting  most  elaborate 
scientific  experiments  in  agricultural  chemistry  in  all 
its  departments  on  his  ancestral  property  at  Rotham- 
sted,  aided  by  that  eminent  chemist  Dr.  (now  Sir 
Henry)  Gilbert,  with  a thoroughly  equipped  laboratory 
and  a staff  of  scientific  and  practical  assistants,  at  a 
cost  to  himself  of  thousands  of  pounds  annually. 
They  do  not  consider  their  investigations  yet  exhausted. 
So  far  from  it.  Sir  John  B.  Lawes  in  1889  sot  aside 
f 100,CXX)  under  the  necessary  trust  deed  to  secure  the 
continuance  of  those  experiments  after  his  death. 
Such  is  his  opinion  of  the  time  required  for  such 
research  and  the  duty  to  posterity  in  such  a cause. 
But  we  must  not  for  all  this  be  discouraged.  The 
chemistry  of  tea  may  be  considered  practically  an 
unexplored  field.  There  will  be  all  that  has  been 
accomplished  in  agricultural  chemistry,  and  in  con- 
nection with  the  arts  and  manufactures  up-to-date 
to  aid  us  at  the  outset.  Aud  if  practical  planters 
have  all  thought  out,  and  worked  up  to  the  points 
at  which  they  come  to  a standstill,  and  the  scien- 
tific expert  be  well  dii'ected  aud  put  on  the  track, 
much  may  possibly  be  achieved  in  a short  time. 
Of  course  there  is  much  in  regard  to  such  re- 
search that  proves  rather  interesting  than  of  practical 
utility.  It  is  interesting  to  determine  the  amount 
of  nitrogen  in  the  rainfall,  the  loss  of  nitrogen  by 
drainage,  the  life  history  of  pests  and  parasites, 
possibly  also  the  conditions  of  the  atmosphere  that 
are  suffered  to  mysteriously  affect  quality  but 
unfortunately  those  matters  are  beyond  the 
control  "of  science.  Recently  German  chemists 
have  claimed  the  discovery  of  a method  of  inouclaU 
ing  the  soil,  by  which  it  is  secured  that  the  con- 
ditions under  which  leguminous  plants  can  fully  as- 
similate the  nitrogen  of  the  air  shall  always  be  fuUy 
present.  To  this  inoculating  material  they  have 
given  the  name  “ nitragin.”  If  there  prove  to  bo 
