966 
rWF TftOPIGAL AGRICULTURIST. 
f O ctober i, iSgii 
Indisn tea will prodnee 7i gallons of a almlUr beve- 
rage. To add to this, the average price of 1 lb. of 
IndUn tea U •CArcely more than that of iu rlvi»l. 
A verv small portion onlv of our manufacture, it will 
bo surptiiing to learn, much fo the ahame and diroredit 
of the Indiana is consumed in India! aouroely 2 
million lb. or l-60th part Of a whole aeaeon a crop la 
retained for local naej and as this quantify Isapparently 
more than India, judging from eiperienoea gained by 
experiment! (the tottering condition of the Inoiin lea 
Supply Company, Limited, fumishea "mp'®. 
will ever consume, the proportion **’* 
the production mcreaaea annually. The bulk of the 
manDfaetnre, therefore, Is exported to the United 
Kingdom. Australia takes a •“*'> 
miaaa verv soon to absorb more. In theseastn 18.7* 
88 we o^ortod thence lS88-e9 
2,869.0001^ in 1889 90 3.696,000 lb. and this ataaon a 
1801-99 exDorts bida fair to oiitatrip the last, which 
ataodrat d,87».<»° ‘>7 !“*{ 
begun to give our teaa a trial, and will a.ioii accord 
them more of her patronage. French epicures are 
begfning fo acquire a taste for our leaf, and Rusaia 
atni purohasea our Onest deaoriptions. 
Tea driiikera iu India think ft abantd to psy more 
than 12 annas, or at the nntuidn R1 for a lb. of ten. 
What will they say to tea having been aold m London, 
by auction, from the Oartmore Estate of Ceylon, at 
fil45 and mtS pet lb. and in our sales m Calcutta, 
only so recently as the 80tb of .Tuly last, at R-10, 
K20 and R16 per lb. from the Nassau Toa Garden 
of the Kangra Valley District. 
I ahall now give a full idea as to tlic present posi- 
tion of our industry as compared with that cf ita 
rival in the United Kingdom, coupled with some 
other interesting facts. . ... . . 
From the year 1849 to 1869, Cbioa tea held uninter- 
rupted sway ita conaumption having incresaod from 
eoW.OOO.to 76,000,000 lb. In 18M Indian toa niado 
Its’ appearance in the field; insignifiMnt at the time, 
bat promising to prove a formidable foe ; it kept 
iuorcaaing in strength, so did its rival, (the con- 
sumption of Chinn tea having increatcd from 861 millions 
(o 118i millions while Indian, beginning with 21 mil- 
lion lb. increased to ISJ milUoua within the space of 
10 years, from 1804-1874 ; but in 1884 down fell tlie 
quantity exported by Cbioa, while Indian had almost 
doubled itself. Ceylon now appeared on the scare, and 
11 million lb. were consumed. In 1889 the figures 
stood thus 
China tea, drank — 61.100.000 Ib. 
... - 96 028,000 „ 
Oeyl‘on i,’ 28.5C«,OJO 
Thus, within a period of 28 years from 1864-1889, 
the average monthly home conaumption of Indian tea 
steadily and rapidly increased from^ J million Ib.,^ or 
from 3 per cent, to 67 per cent., while that of China, 
by various fluctuations, commeiiciog with less than 
74 millions iu 1864, and reaohiog the highest point, a 
little over 101 millions in 1879, when scarcely 3 mil- 
lion lb. of our staple was drunk, ultimately fell to 5 
million lb. in 1889. The rapid snd extensive oou- 
snmption of Indian toa has been further stimulated 
by the fall in prices. For itisUooe, Medium Pekoes 
and Pekoe Souchongs have falJeu in the course of 
eleven (11) years from 1880-90, from Is Od to lO^d 
and la 3d to 94 per lb. resp, ctiyely. 
Large quBUtiiiea of toa am iol,l locally every werk 
bv snotion, and good portion, the major in foot, is 
shipped direct to London to be disposed of them at 
the hammer. The teas sold here are purchased by our 
merS who, for tbe most p.rt aclaa.s agents on 
behalf of Londou ^hulofa e dr alt rs, 
rt T. 'TL,5ors s 
ef the article itself,, are indispeos.blc to b«y *“ 
vantage. But notwithstanding, it often a ^ 
happens that purchases made hero under the amve 
conditions heavily lose money when resold in London. 
As a case in point: Facts and figures 
cournging when this season 1891-92 opmed. that the 
roost eautiouB buyen here, (uppottod by the advieo 
of their home friends (oommeroial), entertained the 
moat sanguine hopes of tlio most satisfactory results 
attending their purchases and oonsrquently paid much 
higher than actual value, They very aoon learnt how 
sadly erroneous their estimates of the Londou market 
were, (or, upon re-sale losses nveraged from about 
15 to 30 per cent. Not a single parcel of tea, even 
so much as “ soraped ont " much less shewed a profit. 
And cases of this kind are of common occur- 
rernc. 1 would, therefore, not be far wrong in 
S-yiog that this busiuess is absolutely clothed 
in uncertainty, as no amount of fure'ightednoss or 
expirktioe can ssy whether tea is going to pay or lose 
till it is actually sold. 
Tea merchanta place their loteresta in the hands of 
tea experts or tea -1 astera, whose services they engage 
at fair rnmnnoratious. These men have to undergo a 
long course of training in tea-tasting before they are 
considered competent to manage the tea purchase de- 
partment of a firm. They must be able to discern, by 
means of their palate, the oharaoter of a tea, — in other 
words, whether it poasefses strength or flavour, how 
much of the latter or the former, or of both, and 
accordingly determine its value. They must not forget 
at the same time to throw into Uie acoonut the various 
iuflnenciug agents of the market. They must be able, 
with existing facts and figures of toi alatislics, to 
gauge the future, at least two or thrie months hence, 
for teaa bought here at a certain time oiin only be 
placid on tha market some two montha after. Their 
responsibility eau never bo over-estimated, and it 
is for this condition alone tbat they are remu- 
nerated. Upon their shoniders, in a groat measure, 
rests the welfare of the bnsincss. They nan wake 
or ruin a firm. Such being the Oise, their appoint- 
ment is always at a risk, and greatly depeudent 
upon the temperament and mercy of their em- 
ployera ; probably, in mauv places, their aotioua aro 
viewed with auspioiou and hence closely watched, and 
at seasonable opportunities scrutinised, if fur no other 
reason, with the object of keeping them aright, and of 
preventing irregularilies. They can, therefore, bo 
never too carefol, and must alwaj s look a dozen times 
before they leap, lest they should take a false step, and 
thereby render themaelvos open to rebuke. In re- 
lation to their employers their positiou is acutely 
delinate- , . , . 
Not so the tea broker, or tlie independent indivi- 
dual in whoso bauds merobauts place the diaposul of 
their tens by a action. It is true he has a lot of running 
about to do, aud a great deal of worry, and betimes a 
lot of snapping aud snarling to aocept with all defer- 
lence and humility, aud under choking aensationa, 
which he has to bridle much to hia own disoomfiture ; 
but be baa the eatisfootion uevertbelsas of knowing 
tliat be is a free agent It ia true tliat he gives hia 
labour for a nominal som of one rupee for every 100 
rupees of tea sold, and a similar returu for every 
100 rupees of tea bought, but as nothing can 
be sold or bought acoordiug to commercial 
rules, relating to tlie tea trade, without bis 
mediation, he turns a decent penny monthly. Ha 
can afford to pay R2S0 per mensem to the board- 
ing house keeper; aa much or moie in addition to hie 
cIhIi for sundry pege, etc.; keep horses and con- 
veyanoea aid b.ve left, after ail such modeiate 
expenditures, ample to retire upon after C or 9 or, 
not to h« fou inooDsiderate, say 10 years of service. 
He can always obtain market value, which is his own 
value, for a tea. It would bo unreal enable to expect 
a better result of him, and ho does not care a button 
whelbir you do or yon do rot. He isolall labourers 
the most independent, aud least taxed, oevi rtholesa 
liiu best remaiirraled. Al-rehauts may coun and 
inei chants may go, but he goes on for ever. Every 
lubourer is worthy of his hire, ho knows tliia well, 
kiid he is pretty certain of his. Newe of tveiy 
description he has always on the lips of hie fingers 
to suit each of his eustomois aoeurding to each one’s 
immediate requirements, and he can spout it I'Ut 
with a sympathetic sssutanco, A tea broker, like 
others ot the same fratoruity, is an anomaly. He 
gois to the toa aeller aud whispers oonfideiitially to 
