Dec.  I,  1896.] 
rnii  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
38.1 
but  the  cost  of  production  must  also  be  compara- 
tive. Indirectly  and  directly,  the  British  Aiti.saii 
has  a good  deal  to  do  with  tea.  Until  recently 
only  English  mechanics  were  employed  to  cleau  and 
repair  the  machinery,  and  only  English  ai'tisans 
were  in  the  carpenters’  shop  at  Nouoti.  But 
they  have  been  replaced  by  coolies,  who  are 
not  only  cheaper,  but  more  handy  and  less  trouble- 
some. The  British  workman  is  frequently  spoken  of 
as  ‘ a difficulty’  in  Natal.  There  must  be  soniethiuS 
manifestly  wrong  for  a colony  so  essential  English 
in  its  tone  and  warm  in  its  welcome  to  English 
settlers  to  have  to  come  to  the  decision  of  importing 
coolies.” — H.  and  C.  Mail,  Oct.  9. 

TEA  GROWING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA, 
U.  S.  A. 
Mr.  Charles  LL  Shepard,  of  Pineliur.sfc,  Soutli 
Carolina,  U.  S.  A.,  writes  under  date  Sept.  28: — 
“ My  little  experimentation  with  the  cultivation  of 
tea  in  this  country  has  been  thus  far  successful  that 
during  almost  the  entire  picking  season  of  1896  the 
orders  were  in  excess  of  stock  on  hand.  I intend 
increasing  my  acreage  by  planting  out  more  gardens 
of  Darjiling  and  other  suitable  seed  until  I reach 
the  limit  of  the  capacity  of  my  factory.” 
We  shall  be  glad  to  learn  the  result  of  Mr. 
Shepard’s  further  experiments. 
THE  NEW  DIM  HULA  COMPANY, 
LIMITED. 
KEPORT,  .SEA, SON  189d-9G. 
The  Directors,  in  submitting  tlieir  eleventh 
Annual  Report,  have  the  pleasure  to  state  that 
tlie  past  season  has  been  satisfactory  in  all 
respects. 
The  yield  of  Tea  exceeded  the  estimate  and 
the  |>nces  were  better  tlian  in  the  previous 
eason. 
The  additions  to  the  Eactory  and  Machinery, 
referred  to  in  last  year’s  Report,  have  been  car- 
ried out,  and  the  Estate  is  reported  in  good  order. 
The  area  land  in  bearing  is  2,193  acres, 
and  ^the  Directors  have  sanctioned  the  opening 
of  an  additional  dO  acres  during  cm  rent  year. 
Tl)C  accounts  now  presented  .show  a .surplus  of 
£20,433  O.s.  dd.  after  writing  oil'  the  amount  of 
Tea  Extcii.  ion  account,  viz.,  ,£1BG  18s.  lOd.  and 
the  amount  of  the  “Factory  and  Machinery  ac- 
count,” viz.,  £.3,2d9  O.s.  lOd.  'i'hc  Directors  pro- 
pose  a diviileud  of  8 jier  cent,  per  annum  on  the 
A”  and  “ B”  .shares  and  0 poi'  cent,  per  annum 
on  the  “ C ” shares  for  the  year  ended  30th 
June  last,  a moiety  of  which  was  paid  in  March. 
The  Directors  also  lu  oiiose  an  additional  dividend 
of  8 per  cent,  on  all  shares,  and  the  placing 
of  .£d,000  to  the  Reserve  Fund. 
The  Ceylon  iManager  has  dealt  very  eiliciently 
with  the  Factory  extension,  with  the  labour  sup- 
ply, and  with  the  general  inanuhicture,  and  the 
Directors  desire  to  express  their  great  satisfaction 
with  the  management,  and  witli  the  work  of 
the  stall'  in  Ceylon. — By  order  of  the  Board, 
A.  Ckaijbk, 
Secretary. 
THE  TEA  TRADE  WITH  CHINESE 
TURiaSTAN. 
Many  of  our  readers  arc  planters.  It  is  to  them 
that  our  leader  is  addressed.  At  the  same  time  we 
would  impress  upon  all  who  are  interested  in  opening 
out  the  trade  with  Central  Asia  the  necessity  of 
bringing  before  tlie  Commerce  Department  the  fact 
than  is  their  duty  to  guard  and  foster  our  coin- 
luetrcial  interests  along  this  most  promising  of  our 
trade  routes,  which  leads  over  the  northern  frontiers 
of  Hindustan. 
The  Pioneer  has  most  steadily  endeavoured  to 
arouse  public  attention  in  the  Lcli-Yarkand  trade. 
The  Ciril  and  Militanj  Gazette  has  followed  suit. 
Those  journals  of  course  take  up  the  question  from 
a political  as  well  as  from  a commercial  view.  We 
however — although  as  citizens  wo  deplore  the  want 
of  energy  of  the  powers  that  be — have  chielly  to  deal 
with  what  affects  so  many  of  our  constituents,  and 
will  coniine  our  remarks  to  the  tea  trade. 
That  good  Indian-grown  tea  is  preferred  to  the 
Chinese  article  is  well-known  to  travellers  who  have 
journeyed  over  the  Keradorain  ranges,  but  the  tea 
must  be  of  the  best ; it  must  be  suited  to  the  taste 
of  the  purchasers.  A clean,  well-rolled  black  tea, 
with  a certain  proportion  of  green  added,  is  what 
a^Dpears  to  be  most  appreciated,  hut  it  will  probably 
be  found  to  be  advisable  to  send  samples  of  both 
green  and  black  in  order  to  thoroughly  test  the 
market. 
Leh  is  not  so  far  distant  that  any  planter  need 
dread  the  journey,  and  he  might  do  worse  than 
spend  his  holiday  on  a trip  through  Kashmir  and 
on  to  Leh,  taking  witti  him  carefully  packed  samples 
of  the  products  of  his  garden.  Now  is  the  time  to 
meet  the  traders.  They  are  all  assembling  in  Ladakh, 
and  will  shortly  be  cn  route  to  Srinagar,  but  we  re- 
peat ourselves  in  hopes  of  impressing  on  our  readers 
the  fact  that  the  Kashmir  Ladakhi  and  transfron- 
tier tribesmen  are  connoisseurs  ; even  the  poorest 
will  not  buy  rubbish  of  the  kind  formerly  exported 
to  Kabul  as  green  tea.  To  the  traveller  tea  in 
his  one  luxury  ; as  soon  as  the  packs  arc  off  the 
ponies  a little  biutze  or  other  fuel  is  collected,  and 
the  Sainovatur  is  set  to  boil.  The  villager,  directly 
he  returns  from  his  fields,  has  his  bowl  of  tea;  it  is 
Cu  beverage  eminently  suited  to  their  tastes.  It 
is  true  they  add  salt  and  other  condiments  which 
are  not  suited  to  our  Western  palates,  but  they 
declare  it  brings  out  the  flavour.  It  is  the  business 
of  the  planter  to  supp)ly  a tea  which  is  capable  of 
having  flavour,  and  not  to  imagine  that  ” any  stuff 
is  good  enough  for  tlie  uncivilized  people  who  live 
amongst  the  uplands  of  the  Himalayas.” 
The  distrust  of  the  merchants  hastj  be  overcome, 
for  they  all  know  tliat  inferior  teas  were  formerly 
sent  to  Central  Asia,  but  this  distrust  can  be  ovei- 
come  by  any  one  who  will  cater  for  the  taste  of 
his  customers  and  will  strictly  keep  his  wares  up  to 
standard.  The  Central  Asian  trader  is  generally  a 
Pathan  ; he  is  very  quick  at  seeing  his  own  advan- 
tage, and  would  gladly  deal  at  first  wit!  in  a European. 
He  cannot,  however,  afford  to  make  a false  step,  and 
must  feel  that  he  is  sure  of  his  market,  and  that 
depends  entirely  on  the  goodno.ss  a;,d  sititability  of 
the  tea. 
The  trader's  time  is  a rough  one.  After  arriving  in 
Leh  in  the  early  autumn  he  has  first  to  recruit  his 
ponies,  selling  off  some  and  turning  others  out  to 
graze  in  the  lucerne  fields  where  they  gathered 
strength  for  the  return  journey.  AVhilst  this  is  going 
on  he  sells  his  A’arkand  goods  and  buys  coral,  piece 
goods  and  other  articles  which  are  sent  up  from 
the  Paujab.  Then  he  caters  on  his  dreary  march 
to  Y^arkand  wdth  no  c'nance  of  changing  his  carriage 
en  route.  On  arriving  there,  he  has  either  to  retail  his 
goods  or  hand  them  over  to  a -tniddieman  who  sel- 
dom pays  until  he  has  sold  the  stock.  Their  ideas 
of  trade  are  peculiar.  A Pathan  trader  who  had 
brought  goods  from  India  passed  on  most  of  them  to 
a shop-keeper.  Wearily  he  waited  for  payment.  After 
a year  had  passed  the  man  who  was  anxious  to  be 
off  sued  his  debtor;  the  Court  decreed  that  the  mer- 
chant was  entitled  to  hand  over  the  balance  of  his 
goods  to  the  retailer,  but  that  he  must  wait  for 
payment  for  the  whole  let  until  ho  next  returned 
from  Leh.  Many  of  the  merchants  are  men  of  sub- 
stance ; they  can  afford  to  wait  for  Ihcir  money,  and, 
what  is  more  to  the  puipose,  they  oiui  pay  in  Leh 
for  the  goods  they  require  in  i-pilc  el  their  diffi- 
culties in  Chinese  Turkislan.  Wo  do  not  advise 
any  Eumpean  to  endeavour  lo  tiude  in  Yarkand 
or  to  send  their  own  caravans,  but  as  far  up  the 
route  as  Ijeh  there  are  no  difficulties  ; cither  by 
the  Kulu  or  Brinagar  roads  the  pony-owners  will 
