THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[June I, 189?. 
S34 
1895, the conditions with regard to exchange, rice, 
and price of tea were considered fairly satisfac- 
tory by growers, and a comparison between that 
year and 1897 will show you how adversely our 
interests have been affected by these causes alone. 
First, then, with regard to exhange, the Ceylon 
crops for 1897 was 116,000,000 lb. of tea, which 
roughly cost 1130,000,000 to prorluee, so that 
had the favourable rate of 1895 continued the 
planters of Ceylon would have had £250,000 more 
prolit from this item. It is presumed we now 
know the worst about the rupee. There is still, 
however, some hope of the Indian Government 
taking the producer’s views into consideration 
and fixing the rupee at a lower value than Is dil. 
As every Id in exchange means a difierence of 
£150,000 to the Ceyon tea growers on the current 
year’s crop it is to be hoped that some relief will be 
afforded the enterprise in whatever s'.eps the 
Government may take with regard to the silver 
currency question. Had the Indian famine not 
taken place and tlie price' of rice (the stajjlefood 
of our coolies) remained the same as it was in 
1895, the tea planters of the colony would last 
year have been better off' by £100,000. It isa matter 
for satisfaction that Indian famines do not 
come more frequently as dear food means 
a higher cost of production for our tea. 
The sale price of Ceylon tea for 1897 
was fd per lb. below that of 1895, so that 
from this cause there was a loss of £360,000. 
These three i'ems represent a total loss to the 
tea growers of (leylon of £710,000 arising from 
the difference of conditions existing last year 
as compared with those of 1895. This is equi- 
valent to a drop of l^d per lb. on the tea 
produced, or a loss of [uolit of about £2 5.s Od 
per acre on the lands under tea. To this Com- 
pany the loss arising from the diff'erence in 
conditions obtaining in 1897 as against 1895 has 
been £17, COO, and this notwithstanding our teas 
only fell :]:d per lb. in ])rice as against a drop 
of |d per lb. for Ceylon tea generally. The 
steady drop year by year in the price of tea, 
may appear to many the most serious matter 
we have to contend against. To a certain ex- 
tent this is so, but although not very ple.asant 
at the time, it has the reileeming feature of 
checking Large extensions of tea clearings and 
of pressing home on us the absolute nece.ssity 
of economic production, of maintaining the 
quality of our teas and perseverirvg in pushing their 
consumption in new markets (hear, hear). When 
these two desirable things — a lessened animal in- 
ei ease of ]n'oduction and increased consumption— are 
brought about, W’c may hope to see the product 
in a better position in the market than it is 
today. To retuin to our own special interests 
in the Ceylon Tea Plantations Company, I 
may say your directors have no fear whatever 
for its future, unless, indeed, the tea consmning 
world give.= n]> drinking the licverage, wdiieh is 
scarcely likely in our time. When this Company 
is able to earn 22 jrer cent on its ordinary 
share capital after ]iaying its preference interest, 
in the worst year the Ceylon tea industry has 
experienerd it appears reasonable to enteriain 
the belief that we are likely to continne for many 
years to conn; to pay good diviilends (apiilausc.) 
I consider it is advisahh; to point tins out, as 
there is an unreasonable appichension at the 
])rescnt moment with regard to all tea Com- 
|).anies and the shares of good concerns arc in 
times like the.se prejudicially affected in sym- 
pathy with le.ss favourable situated ventures, 
From the repoit you will observe the yield was 
equal to 4951b. per acre from 8,067 acres, so that 
wlien our j’oung tea is a little obler we may 
reasonably look for an annual crop of not less 
than 500 lb [ler acre, which over sudi a large 
acreage is a good yield. The trees on our co- 
conut estate.s are reirorted as doing well and 
every year noiv, will see a steady increase in 
crop. The only ]daec we have in hearing is Se- 
ringapathe, and this gave a prolit of 7 per cent 
on its capital cost. When the whole of this 
estate is in full bearing we expect a return of 
at least 8 per cent, which, if obtained you will 
I think consider sati^-factory on this port’on of 
our reserve fund. ]Ma" atta fibre factory i.< now 
completed anil we hojie to have sati.sfaetoiy re- 
sults from it and also the Hunupitiya desiccating 
and coconut oil milks during the current year. 
Our other reserve investments ot £28,829 in se- 
curities are taken as usual at their cost values 
and the balance of onr re.serve is prolitably em- 
ploj^ed in the ag(;ncy business we have in con- 
nection with other tea Companies and ])roprietors. 
I do not know that 1 need say anytliing further 
but as usual shall be very pleased to answer 
any questions the slureliolders may desire to ask 
and to give you any information that may he 
in our power to afford. I would now ))roiiose 
“That the report and .statement of accounts, as 
submitted, he received and adopted, and that a 
final dividend of 8 jier cent on the ordinary 
shares, making 15 per cent for I lie year, free of 
income tax, he decl.ared payable on and after 30tli 
inst.” (Applause). 
Mr. G. A, Talhot : — 1 have much pleasure in 
seconding the adoption of tire re]iort .and the ac- 
counts. 1 have a.s most of you know, lately re- 
turned from visiting the e.states in Ceyloy, and 
I can fairly say they are as carefully worked as 
tliey have been heretofore, and are all in good 
order. Our Chairman has rightly pointed out 
what he has correctly termed the'anxiety about 
the tea of the future, and I, a.s one of those re- 
sponsible for the working of the estates, have na- 
turally looked to this part of the question and con- 
sidered the position as to our strength, and reserve, 
for withstanding what we may call a siege of bad 
prices and low exchange, .and how we shall be 
•able to wiblisLand them if these difficulties in- 
crease. Yon have heard me speak before .about 
plucking and manuring. Onr plucking is being 
caiefnlly done, and the bushes ,'iave not been 
exhausted more than has been absolutely neces- 
sary. We have, where the conditions have been 
favourable, jilanted gr.ass and instituted cattle 
sheds, and renewed -with sustaining manure the 
iields that required it most. So we have, if 
r q Hired, a reserve strengtli in our Lushes to 
f di back upon. But I have been further into 
tbi subject of manuring. Hereto^’ore we have 
not resorted to artiheial manures .as they are 
called, partly because there was no need to do 
so, and partly because no one was quite cer- 
tain of the eti'ect they had, and we wished to do 
iDthins' that would injure the strength of onr 
hushes by the use of any forcing manures. 
Lately, Imwever, a great deal has been done in 
finding out the effects ana different manures in 
Ce.ylon by .analysis of soils and by experiments ; 
and must say hero that I think" the good feel- 
ing tliat there is in Ceylon wliich prompts the 
planlers to lielp each other by information, 
speaks very much in their favour and assists 
them all round. As far as I am concerned, when in 
Ceylon I had every assistance, from tliose who 
