382 
the  tropical  agriculturist. 
the  Dividends  now  proposed  to  be  paid,  these  Divi- 
dents  having  been  earned  during  the  Crop  Year 
which  ended  on  30th  Junelast.  Forthe  same  season  the 
p^ebenlures  to  the  nominal  amount  of  £10,000  Nos. 
351  — 450,  will  not  participate  in  the  ne.xl  drawing 
for  redemption. 
Auni  tuno  t,  Tj.vth.vm  A Co.,  (leneral  Manager. 
3. 1,  Great  St.  Helens,  E.C., ‘25th  Sept.  lS9(i. 
PUTUPAULA  TEA  ESTATE  COMPANY, 
LIMITED. 
The  sliarehoklens  of  this  Coniiiany  are  to  be 
congratulated  on  the  eiiiineiitly  satisfactory  re- 
port adopted  at  tiie  annual  meeting  today. 
The  report  recommends  the  jiayment  of  a divi- 
dend of  10  ]ier  cent  for  the  year,  besides  car- 
rying forward  a sub.sfantial  sum  and  making 
permanent  improvements  on  tlie  estate:  — 
Acreage. — Tea  in  bearing  391  acres;  Tea  in  partial 
bearing  30  acres;  Tea  in  under  one  year  .33  acres; 
Liberian  Coffee  10  acres  ; forest — , grass  itc  , and 
waste  land,  235  acres.  Grand  total,  099  acres. 
The  Direct  ns  have  pleasure  in  .submitting  to  the 
Shareholders  the  accounts  for  tlie  past  year.  The 
crop  amonnted  to  153,30.")  lb.  te.i,  (against  an  Estimate 
of  140,0001b.)  and  30  b is.  Liberian  Coffee.  The  nett 
average  sale  price  of  the  former  was  44  cents  per 
lb. — The  latter  realised  R174‘95.  The  nett  profit  of 
the  year  amounted  to  R22,171‘41,  which  with  the 
balance  of  R2,035'x0,  brought  forward  from  last  year 
makes  the  balance  at  credit  of  Profit  and  Loss 
account  R24,800'57.  The  Directors  recommend  a 
dividend  of  40  per  cent  for  the  year  cari-ying  for- 
ward R4,80tr57,  to  the  current  years  accounts.  A 
sum  of  R2, 736-88,  was  spent  during  the  year  in 
manni'ing  a portion  of  the  Estate  and  was  charged 
to  expenditure.  A sum  of  113,217-74,  was  spent  on 
permanent  improvements  to  buildings  and  a further- 
sum  of  R3,5'-0,  in  operriug  30  acres  in  Tea.  These 
items  have  been  charged  to  Capital  account.  The 
Estimated  crop  for  1896 — 97,  is  J65(.001b.  on  an 
estimated  outlay  on  working  account  of  R45,OCO, 
which  includes  R5,000,  for  maiiuriiig  purposes.  In 
terms  of  the  Articles  of  Association  the  Directors 
now  retire  and  Mr.  Kingsbury  atrd  Mr.  Suhren  offer 
themselves  for  re-election.  The  appointment  of  atr 
Auditor  for-  the  current  year  will  rest  with  the 
meeting. — By  order  of  the  Directors,  Attken,  Spence 
& Co.,  Agents  and  Secretaries. 
■ ♦ 
MARKET  FOR  TEA  SHARES. 
Thursday  Evening,  Oct.  8,  1896. — The  general  de- 
pressioir  in  the  Stock  Markets  has  refiected 
itself  slightly  upion  the  market  for  Tea  shares,  and  in 
some  quarters  shares  have  been  sold  at  somewhat 
easier  prices ; the  general  tone,  however,  in  these 
shares  continues  fairly  strong,  and  wherever  buying 
takes  place  prices  tend  to  rise. 
Our  attention  has  been  drawn  to  a paragrapih  in 
the  financial  columns  of  our  contemporary  TmlJi 
(September  24),  which  seems  to  require  notice 
here. 
Truth’s  Calcutta  correspondent  gives  to  myestors 
a warning  against  being  inveigled  into  purchasing  at 
high  prices  poor  or  wornout  Tea  gardens,  and,  we 
cordially  endor.se  this  warning.  But  we  must  be 
allowed  to  take  exception  to  Truth's  apparent 
wholesale  condemnation  of  Ten,,  coirveyed  in  tho 
concluding  sentence  of  its  correspondent’s  letter,  which 
runs  as  follows : 
“ I would  warn  all  capitalists  and  investors  of  this 
grave  fact.  Bengal  has  planted  out  tiirisauds  of 
acres,  year  by  year,  also  Ceylon.  Prices  are  clown, 
and  this  year’s  crops  will  fall  short.  ‘Touch  nor 
handie  not.’  ” 
Here  we  veuturo  to  say  that  tho  facts  are  at  variance 
with  these  statements,  as,  up  to  the  present,  Tea 
prices  this  season  have  been  exceptionally  good,  and 
althought  there  has  been  some  slight  shortage  up  t# 
[Dec.  I,  1896. 
d^e  in  the  crops,  this  has  been  more  than  comjjensa- 
ted  for  by  the  much  higher  prices  which  have  thus 
far  been  obtained  for  the  portion  of  the  crop  so  far 
sold  to  date. 
Mincing  Lane,  though  slightly  easier,  keeps,  fairly 
steady,  and  fine  Teas  still  maintain  a liigh  range  of 
price. 
FbtKsii  Issues. 
Consoliclated  Tea  and  Lauds. — We  are  informed 
that  an  ofiicial  quotation  for  these  shares  will  very 
shortly  be  granted.  The  Firsts  have  changed  hands  at 
15s  premium,  but  are  now  scarcely  so  high  as  that. 
The  Seconds,  however,  still  quote  ,£T  premiiini 
upwards. 
East  India  and  Ceylon  shares  keep  rather 
sluggish. 
Syihet  Co.  Shares. — Some  may  be  .sliortly  for  sale, 
and  might  he  open  to  a fair  offer. 
RLANTING  AND  RRUDLX'E. 
The  Tea  Tkadeof  Central  Asi.\. — In  the  i-epoit  on 
Central  Asian  trade,  which  appears  elsewhere,  Vice- 
Consul  Riiigler  Thomson  offers  some  opinions  about 
the  decay  of  the  green  tea  trade  and  the  respective 
positions  of  India  and  China  as  competitors  in  the 
tee.  trade  of  Ceutral  Asia.  Apropos  of  this,  we  notice 
tn.it  Mr.  Leslie  Rogers,  a well-known  planter  of 
Northern  India,  seeks  to  sho\C  in  the  Allahabad 
Pioneer  that  in  virtue  of  all  that  has  been  done,  enter- 
prise to  get  a footing  in  the  Central  Asian  markets 
has  not  been  wanting  among  the  Indian  planters,  yet 
their  trade  has  not  been  an  undoubted  success.  Indian 
tea  exported  to  Cabiil,  which  is  the  especial  foothold 
of  North  Indian  desires,  was  in  April  and  Mav,  1896 
of  a value  of  only  R31,-4-1.5,  as  against  R94,. 501  during 
the  same  period  last  year  ; and  the  same  tale  is  told 
in  regard  to  most  articles  of  commerce  sent  to 
Cabul,  to  Thibet,  or  to  Western  China.  Mr.  Leslie 
Rogers  maintains  that  since  1880,  when  the  A,fghan 
War  revived  the  once  fioiu-ishiug  green  tea  trade 
witli  Cabul,  Meshed,  Bokhara,  and  Sainar- 
caud,  tlie  planters  of  Northern  India  have  left  not 
a stone  unturned  to  revive  their  connection  with  all 
these  Central  Asian  markets.  Grievances,  how- 
ever, arose  for  the  planter.s  to  bear,  in  the  shape  of 
“almost  prohibitive  restrictions”  placed  on  all  trade 
by  both  the  Amir  of  Cabul  and  the  new  formed 
Russian  Customs  Department  in  Bokhara,  and  the 
North  Indian  planters  went  in  a body  to  petition 
Sir  James  Lyall  to  get  the  Government  of  India 
to  do  something  in  their  behalf.  Several  times 
too  they  have  made  an  effort  to  get  the  Amir  to 
receive  a delegate  at  Cabul,  and  discuss  matters 
personally  with  His  Highness  at  home  , but  accor- 
ding to  the  account,  the  Amir  had  “ foolish  suspici- 
ous as  to  tho  leal  intentions,  and  on  every 
occasion  has  declined  to  admit  a trade  apostle.  Mr 
Rogers  contends,  therefore,  that  by  proceedings  such 
as  these,  as  well  as  by  “keeping  up  a constant 
corrospoij deuce  in  tho  home  and  Indian  papers  on 
the  subject,”  the  North  Indian  planter  has  not 
been  wanting  in  onterpiise,  and  that  “with  little 
more  public  spirited  support  of  bis  interests  by  the 
home  and  Indian  Governments  ho  would  not  com- 
pare nil  favourably  with  any  other  nationality  in 
the  race  for  the  markets  of  Central  Asia.” 
Coolie  Labour  in  Natal.— In  an  article  publish 
ed  111  the  alohe  oh  “ Tlie  British  Artisan  in 
Africa”  tlie  writer,  referring  to  Natal,  says  : “ It 
is  because  the  British  Artisan  has  been  found  un- 
satisfactory that  ili'i  people  of  tliis  most  Eimlish 
colony  are  obliged  to  fall  back  upon  coolies  • and 
in  future  indentured  coolie  artisans  will  bo  imported 
from  Irdia.  Tho  products  of  Natal  have  to 
compete  wi  h clieap  and  efiiciei  t labour  elsewhere 
and  the  iiidusUies  dependent  upon  labour  must 
keep  tliis  fact  steadily  before  them.  Let  us  take 
tea-planting,  which  is  worked  entirely  by  coolie 
labour.  Tliis  iiidustry  has  to  compete  with  the  teas 
01  India,  Ceylon,  and  China.  It  is  not  sufficient 
to  raise  the  quality  of  tho  tea  to  the  same  level 
