Feb.  t,  1897.] 
THE  TROPIC  VL 
AGRICaLfUKlSr. 
557 
British-grown  Ted,  look  aa  Well  as  ever)  and,  although 
clouds  appear  on  the  horizon  from  time  to  time,  and 
we  are  threatened  with  competition  frOm  other  coun- 
tries, I fully  believe  we  shall  be  able  to  hold  ourown. 
As  to  the  accounts  they  have  been  audited  by  your 
excellent  Auditors)  and  I need  say  nothing  further 
about  them  except  to  ask  you  to  be  content  with 
the  modest  dividend  of  six  per  cent,  for  the  year, 
and,  gentlemen,  I hope  I have  your  approval,  as  1 
have  that  of  my  colleagues  on  the  Board,  when  I ask 
you  to  be  satisfied  with  dividends  not  exceeding  six  per 
cent,  until  such  time  as  we  have  built  up  a substantial 
Reserve  Fund,  which,  with  the  progress  we  are  now 
making,  should  not  be  long,  and  we  shall  then  be 
iu  a position  to  treat  you  more  liberally. 
Mr.  H.vnnen  seconded  the  adoption  of  the  Report, 
which  was  carried  unanimously. 
The  Cn.viBM.aN  also  proposed  that  a final  dividend  of 
Four  shillings  per  Share,  free  of  Income  Tax,  be 
paid  on  1st  January  in  respect  of  the  3,100  Ordinary 
Shares  fully  paid  as  at  31st  July,  and  thii,  being 
seconded  by  Mr.  Harwood,  was  also  agreed  to.  This, 
with  the  previous  dividend  paid  in  July,  will  make  a 
return  of  Six  per  cent,  for  the  year. 
Mr.  M.  P.  Evans,  who  retired  by  rotation  from 
the  Board,  was  re-elected  as  a Dii-ector. 
The  Auditors,  Messrs.  Fuller  and  Wise,  were 
also  re-elected. 
The  ijroceedings  closed  with  a vote  of  thanks  to 
the  Chairman  and  Officers  of  the  Company. 
C.  £.  Stracuan,  Chairman. 
♦ 
MARKET  FOR  INDIAN  TEA  SHARES, 
THE  YEAR  1896. 
(From  H.  and  C.  Mail,  Jap.  1.) 
The  early  part  of  the  year  which  is  just  drawing 
to  a close  was,  so  far  as  Indian  tea  companies' 
shares  are  concerned,  much  on  a par  with  that  of  1895. 
During  the  latter  half  of  1896,  value  of  shares  have 
kept  fully  steady,  any  declines  which  have  taken 
place  in  the  less  marketable  shares  having  been  more 
than  compensated  for  by  tbe  rises  in  the  most 
favourite  among  the  more  marketable  ones,  especially 
iu  those  of  some  of  the  older  established  companies. 
Among  some  of  the  more  recent  (especially  the 
preference)  issues,  however,  which  were,  at  first,  rather 
“ boomed,)  there  has  laterly  been  a little  set  back. 
The  increasing  interest  of  the  public  in  tea  plant- 
ing investments,  which  was  the  feature  of  1895,  has 
been  -more  thau  ever  noticeable  in  1896,  and,  as 
already  suggested,  this  has  been  further  stimulated 
by  tbe  difficulty  now  experienced  by  investors  in 
obtaining  a reasonable  rate  of  interest  on  their  money. 
Even  now,  despite  the  rise  iu  values,  a careful  in- 
vestor in  tea  shares  can  obtain,  with  reasonable 
security,  a yield  .of  six  and  half  per  cent  on 
Ordinary  and  four  and  half  per  cent  on  Secured 
Prefei’ence  shares  of  these  concerns. 
The  RuiJee  exchange,  though  latterly  a little  higher, 
has  not,  on  the  whole,  advanced  sufficiently  to  affect 
materially  the  results  of  working,  though  cost  of  pro- 
duction will  undoubtedly  be  slightly  euhanc.ed  for  1896. 
The  high  prices  of  food  stuffs  in  Bengal  and 
elsewhere  will,  iir  those  districts  where  rice  has 
to  be  imported,  tell  against  the  planter,  but  it 
must  not  be  overlooked  per  contra  that  famine  in 
the  labour-recruiting  districts  will  render  tim  task 
of  obtaining  fresh  coolies  for  tea  districts  much  less 
ouerqns  anu  less  costly. 
Although  the  creation  of  entirely  new  gardens  has 
not  been  very  marked,  amalgamations  of  one  estate 
with  another  and  the  absorption  of  smaller  estates 
by  large  corporations  has  gone  on  apace,  so  that 
the  demand  by  investors  for'  a larger  selection  of 
readily-negotiable  and  officially-quoted  tea  securities 
has  been  amply  supplied.  We  have  to  chronicle  the 
formation  of  the  following  reconstructions  in,  datal 
order,  during  1896 : — 
The  British  Darjeeling  Tea  Company  (the  late  Mr. 
Lloyd’s  Darjeeli:  g estvtes.) 
The  Consolidated  Tea  and  Lands  Company  (Glas- 
gow), combining  the  estates  of  the  old  private  North 
Sylhet  and  South  Sylhet  companies. 
The  Darjeeling  Consolidated  Company  combining 
four  old  and  well-kuowu  Calcutta  companies. 
The  Empire  of  India  and  Ceylon  Company,  com- 
posed of  the  Borjuli  andDapoota  properties  iu  Assam, 
arid  some  Dooars  and  Ceylon  properties. 
The  Amalgamated  Tea  Estates  Comp  my  (Glasgow) 
— Formed  ol  the  astates  of  the  old  L lud  Mortgage 
Bank  of  ludi.i,  of  the  well-known  Darjeeling  estates  of 
the  late  Dr.  Brougham,  the  Hathibari  property  in  As- 
sam, etc. 
Besides  several  smaller  reconstructions,  which  space 
does  not  admit  of  our  recapitalating. 
In  addition  to  these  the  Makum  Company  has 
issued  £25,000  of  Five  per  Cent.  Debentures, 
the  Borelli  Company  issues  .t'10,000  Five  per 
Cent.  Preference  capital  to  provide  for  improve- 
ments, and  the  Moabund  Company  reconstructs  as 
from  next  year,  with  a total  capital  of  £300,000,  divided 
equally  into  Five  per  Cent.  Preference  aud  Ordinary 
Snares,  of  which  one  half  is  now  issued. 
We  append  our  usual  abstract  statement,  showing  in 
the  case  of  the  best-known  shares  the  range  of  values 
during  the  year.  This  again  shows  a very  remarkable 
rise  iu  values  ; — Rise  Rise 
Yeau  1896. 
Jan.  Bot.  Top. 
Dec. 
per  per 
Share.  £T00* 
Assam 
48 
48 
62 
60 
12 
60 
Attaree  Khat  . . 
6i 
6| 
10 
91 
24 
50 
Borelli 
84 
10 
94 
1 
10 
Brit.  Indian 
34 
34 
44 
44 
1 
20 
Brahma 
lOi 
lOi 
14 
124 
2i 
45 
C ich.  and  D'rsOrc 
■ 94 
95 
124 
lli 
2 
20 
Cach  and  D’rs  Fret'.  121 
12 
135 
I3i 
1 
10 
Chargola  Ord.  . . 
i 
li 
14 
i 
25 
Chargola  I’ ref.  . . 
1^ 
li 
Ig 
14 
4 
124 
Chuba  Ord. 
54 
55 
7i 
7 
li 
25 
Chuba 
o| 
7.1 
74 
5 
15 
Dejoo 
8 
8 
104 
10 
2 
20 
Dooars  Ord. 
17 
16i 
21 
19 
2 
20 
Doors  Pref. 
17 
17 
185 
18 
1 
10 
Doom  Dooina  . . 
155 
15J 
20* 
194 
35 
374- 
E.Iud.  ACey.  ZW.  12i 
12i 
14 
13 
5 
74 
Indian  of  Cachar 
7 
64 
7 
64 
—4 
—5 
Jhanzio 
n 
74 
9 
8| 
14 
30 
Jokai  Ord.  . , 
15 
15 
19 
18 
3 
30 
Jokai  J'rej 
144 
14i 
17 
164 
2 
20 
Jorehaut 
48 
48 
62 
58 
10 
50 
Lebong 
14 
14 
18i 
174 
34 
44 
Luugla  Ord. 
lOi 
104 
13‘ 
125 
2 
20 
Luugla  Fref.  .. 
13 
13 
144 
135 
74 
Majuli 
8i 
8i 
84 
84 
a 
H 
Moabund  Ord.  . . 
2 
2 
25 
n 
5 
75 
Moabund  Fref. 
1| 
15 
2 
2 
a 
624 
Mungledye  Fref. 
2§ 
2i 
3 
25 
4 
5 
Scottish  Assam 
10 
10 
115 
loi 
5 
74 
Oinglo  Ord. 
105 
10* 
Mi 
125 
2 
20 
Single  Fref. 
13  i 
13i 
15i 
m 
— 
— 
CEYLON 
SHARES 
(for  cornpanson). 
Ceylon  T.  Plant 
Ord. 
25 
25 
31 
29 
4 
40 
Ceylon  T.  Plant 
Fref. 
17 
17 
18 
10 
1 
10 
* Notk.-— i.r.,  per  £T00  stock  at  par. 
^Vo quote,  to  supplement  tlie  above  aud  the  e.\- 
teniled  tables  lately  published  by  us,  certain  figures 
published  by  our  local  evening  contemporary  : — 
THE  CEYLON  8HARE  MARKET  IN  1896. 
LIST  OF  THE  COMPANIES  FLOATED  IN  LONDON  IN  1896, 
Nuwara  Eliya  Estates  Co.  ..  £T37,000‘ 
Imperial  Estates  Co.  . . 90,000 
Kintyre  Co.  . . 65,000 
Central  Tea  Co.  . . 35,070 
Ederapolia  'Tea  Co.  . . 22,000 
Dimbulla  Valley  Tea  Co.  . . 150,000 
Poonagalla  Tea  Co.  . . 17,500 
Korale  'Tea  Estates  Co.  . . 56,000 
Midland  Tea  Plantations  . . 20,000 
Highland  Tea  Co.  ..  32,000 
Galaha  Tea  Co.  ..  110,000 
Burnside  Tea  Co.  . . 17,600 
Associated  Estates  Co.  . . 150,000 
Total  £902,170 
