90 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Aug. 2, 1897. 
and of the remarkable improvement in the tea in- 
dustry in Kochi and Miyazaki prefectures, on the 
other hand. 
COMPARISON or AREA OF MULBERRY AND TEA FARMS. 
Tea Land. 
cho. 
60,669-7 
1890 . . 
Mulberry Laud. 
cho. 
. . 243,842-0 
1891 . . 
, . 247,968-1 
1892 . . 
, . 231,400-8 
1893 . . 
. . 243,£68-8 
1894 . . 
. . 253,889-8 
1895 . . 
. , 266.164-3 
1896 . , 
. , 288,937-0 
69,000-1 
57,728-6 
59,479-1 
PRINCIPAL PKODUCING DISTRICTS. 
Prefectures. 
Kanaga-wa 
Saitama 
Gumma 
Ibaraki 
Yamanashi 
Gifu .. 
Kagano 
Fnkushima 
Yamagata 
Ishikawa 
Mulberry. 
cho. 
9,410-3 
18,803-C 
28,740-5 
11,617-7 
18,657-3 
13,560-8 
25,348-7 
29,422-0 
■ 14,287-1 
10,492-2 
Tea. 
jPa and Prefectures, cho. 
Kyoto 
Saitama 
Ibaraki 
Miye 
Shizuoka 
Gifu . . 
Ehime 
Kochi 
Fukuoka 
Kumamoto 
3,298-0 
1,912-8 
2,903-8 
4,086-0 
14,597-1 
2,148-4 
2,324-5 
2,044-3 
2,053-8 
2,334-8 
SOUTHEKIS INDIA TEA ESTATES 
COMPANY, LIMITED. 
The following is from the directors’ report 
to be submitted at the second annual ordinary 
general meeting, to be held at the office of 
the company, 16 Philpot Lane, London, E. C., 
on Wednesday ne.xt 
The accounts show a net profit of £1,193 6s 9d aftel- 
payment of debenture interest. Out of this sum an 
interim dividend of 5 per cent, was paid on October 
7 1896, and the directors propose now to pay a 
dividend of 5 per cent., making a total of 10 per 
cent, for the year, free of income-tax. The balance 
of £150 Os lOd will be carried forward to 
the current year. Without hitherto making a 
call upon the shareholders, the cultivated 
acreage has been increased by opening 96 
acres of new land, which had been planted with good 
Manipnri seed and makes the total now 516 acres in 
tea The purchase of the adjoining estates— Glen 
mary and Westerton— for £14,000, as from January 1, 
1897 and as put before the company at the general 
meeting of October 7, 1896, has been concluded by the 
directors, and the transfer of these properties to the 
company duly completed ; the vendors agreeing to re. 
ceive payment in 500 fully paid-up 6 per cent. Preef- 
rence shares of £10 each and 900 fully paid-up ordin- 
arv shares of £10 each. The tea growing upon Glen, 
mary and Westerton is of exceptionally good quality- 
and the purchase was recommended by Mr, 
Eobert S. Imray, whose report upon them is m 
the company’s office, and is open to the inspec- 
tion of ^shareholders. The profits for the last 
season were £1,446 4s 5d. The acquisition of 
Glenmary and Westerton will give a compact pro. 
nertv in one biOck with ft total area of 912 acres of teal 
676 acres being in bearing. As a large area of valu 
able land belonging to the company is at present 
unproductive, the directors consider it high y desi 
"able that some of it should be quickly brought 
under cultivation, which, with the company s staff 
nf management and available labour, can be cheaply 
«nd profitably accomplished; and for this purpose it 
^11 ?rnecessary to issue this year 300 new shares 
^say 200 6 per cent, preference and 100 ordinary 
oharL, which it is proposed be first offered to the 
Sareholdexs pro rata at £10 10s per ^are. Fifty 
acres are already felled in Kuduwa Karnum and 
eighty-six in Glenmary and Westerton for the present 
eelson’s planting. The accounts from ffie gardens are 
of a more satisfactory nature than they have been since 
the company entered into possesion of the properties. 
Mr William Forbes Laurie retires in accordance with 
nl' Irficles of association, but offers himself for 
‘jVctS as 1 May 21. 
UDUGAMA TEA AND TIMBER COMPANY, 
LIMITED. 
An extraordinary general meeting of this Com- 
pany was held at the Registered Office ot the 
Company, No. 20 , Baillie Street, Fort, Colombo, 
this afternoon tor the purpose of considering- and 
passing the follow-ing resolution: — 
That the capital of the Company be increased 
from four hundred thousand Eupeea (R400,000) to 
five hundred thousand Rupees (E600,000) by the 
creation of 2,000 new shares of R50 each to be 
called “ preference shares,” entitling the holders 
thereof to a preferential cumulative dividend of eight 
per cent per annum, and in addition thereto in any year 
when the net profits of the Company after payment of 
debenture interest and after writing off such amount 
as the Directors of the Company think proper for 
depreciation, exceed the amount payable as eight 
per cent, dividend upon the “preference shares’’ 
that have been issued, one-third of such excess if 
all the 2,000 “preference shares’’ have been 
issued, or if all have not been issued, a portion 
of such one-third proportionate to the pro- 
portion that shall at the time have been 
issued of such 2,000 shares ; and further entitling such 
preference holders, in the event of the Company being 
wound up, to be paid the amount of their prefer- 
ence shares in full before any payment is made to the 
ordinary Shareholders. 
The original Shareholders in the Company to have 
priority of right to take up the preference shares -/>ro 
}-ata to the number of shares held by each 
Shareholder. 
The resolution was carried, all present voting in 
favour of it, with the exception of Mr. E. L. M. Brown 
who did not record his vote. 
CEYLON TEA IN AU.STKALIA AND THE 
CONTINENT GENERALLY. 
We are glad to welcome back ]\Ir. Marinitach, 
looking exceedingly well after his trip to Europe, 
and -we learn that he brings good news of the 
jirogress of the sale of Ceylon tea throughout 
Austria. The demand for Ceylon tea is in- 
creasing, hut he thinks that perhaps the demand for 
Indian tea is increasing in a larger proportion, 
and he considers that this is due to the 
Indian teas being better prepared. Ceylon tea, 
although of quite good enough quality for 
continental purposes, is not made so attractive 
as it might be, and in many parts of the 
continent “appearance” is the thing of greatest 
importance to secure a ready sale, Mr. Marinitsch 
thinks too that the Ceylon Tea Fund directors 
— and he speaks impartially never having re- 
ceived or asked for any contribution from 
this fund — w-ould do better by advertising Ceylon 
teas on their own account, than by personal 
subsidies, which are too often expended in pro- 
moting individual businesses rather than for the 
-welfare of Ceylon teas as a wdiole. We cer. 
tainly consider, that the time is fast approaching 
when individual subsidies should he abandoned 
in favour of the wider and more impartial ad* 
vertising of our teas. 
Rearing Silkavorms in the Plains.— W e 
regret to see that the experiment w-hich has lately 
been tried, of rearing silkworms in the plains 
from cocoons imported from Assam, has had to 
he abandoned. The increased heat to which they 
Avere subjected in their ncAv habitat proved too 
much for the Avorms, Avhich gradually sickned| 
and died off in the course of a couple of years,— 
Jhe Statesman. 
