334 
TflOPlCAL AQRIOULTURIST. [November 2, 1891. 
Premising that, bo far as I can learn, the Austrian 
Customs duty on tea is equivalent to lOd a lb. 
or at prcfent exchange about half a gulden or 
florin which contains lOO kreutaers. the following 
price list of a wholeealo tea-importing Vienna 
house will be of interest. The price is given per 
kilogramme of 2ith lb. on whioli the duty so 
far as I can make out, would be equal to 1 florin 
and 10 kreuliserB, which sum should bo deducted 
from the prices in each case, the florin being 
counted equal to Is to is Sdeaoh. The 
prioe-liet then is as follows (the only other 
two articles imported and sold by this firm being 
“ hum’* and ** Cognao’M) 
TiUiK. I’f- h.llo 
. 11. kv. 
Nr. 
(r’ust<ima Duty paid 4bout Is 10<l kilo or lOiI a lb 
Bruch-Tlice (broken tea cunal 
„ „ rein (Hue) 
Monlng-Congo 
Pakllng-CoiigO 
Kayaow- ,, 
Klutuck 
Ningisbow 
Soucbuug 
Mandarin 
CHravaiien (Caravan tea) 
„ fclnat (llne«t, ctiual 8 h a lb. wltbont dutyj 
Peccothce ^Pekoo tea,f s a lb.) 
I’ (eniual to 8s a lb.) 
PcccobliUhe (Fekoo blo^^som) 
Caravanea-PeccoL'lUUic (Caravan Pekoe blotwom 
lifts a lb.) 
22 Wlrthrchafta-Moiangc, sobwarz (Hoicl.s' uitx- 
luro, black) .. 
ys Monoiiol-Melange, achwarz 
24 Fctnntc Melange, gehwarz (llneat mixture, black) 
2.5 Kalaer- goblUmt (llowory).. 
26 KaljK'r-Mciaugo, gebliiint, fclniit (luipcrlal mix- 
ture, tlowery, Une»t) ^ ^ 
27 WoHkttuer Melange, gebliluit (mixture, ttowery) 
28 Caravaiien „ achwarz (black) 
29 „ „ gebliini (flowery) 
20 
8U 
80 
3 10 
« 60 
5 60 
8 
0 
10 
3 30 
4 
.5 
8 
60 
SO 
11 
7 
9 
10 r,o 
la 60 
15 50 
4 so 
6 — 
0 80 
7 
8 50 
10 
11 — 
12 i50 
It will bo obeerved that the '* Pecoo-thee” (Pe- 
koe) ranges from 5 b to 83 a lb., inclusive oflOd a 
lb. duty. Now the finest Ceylon ** Broken Pekoe” 
could, 1 suppose, be laid down at Trieste for a 
gulden, Eiiy Is 8d a lb.; or with duty 23 Gd, so 
that the profits to be made on pare Ceylon tea, 
if only a demand were created, are very large in 
Austria. Por, let it be remembered that the above 
are wholesale prices* Retail tea is seldom sold 
beyond quarter lb. packets and those probably range 
from one gulden (la 81) upwards, if indeed 
“ Pekoes'' are used save for blending. 
Before leaving Tea in Vienna, I will give a list 
of the exhibits I find in the Catalogue of interest 
to Ceylon planters. They arc, translated, as fol- 
lows : — 
Ox.Ass VI., Spices, Suoah and Gkockuies. 
56. Cacao manufactory of C- J. Van Houton & 
Zoon, WecBp, (llollaucl). Van lloutcn’s Cooo8» 
Diplomas aud Mtdule. 
56. Collective Exhibition of ftugar, coffee and tea. 
58. Franck, Heinrich, Sons* private factory, Linz. 
Coffee furrogale (additiouR), chicory and malt fabri- 
cations, 26 Medals and Diplomas. 
69. Gottlieb, E., Chinese Tra Depot, Krakaw. 
61. Haecker & Moisaiier. Coffee Import, Coffee 
Peeling Establishment, Trieste. Toffee Bamples from 
all the coffee-producing countries of the world. 
66. Kathreiner’s Bucoefcsor, Muuicb, Bavaria. Malt 
Coffee. _ ^ ... 
70. Mcnill lleidrick & Co., Importers of Pea, 
Bum and Cognac, 1, SebotUnriug, Vicuna. Tea 
speciality, legally protected labels on packets for retail 
rale at 10. 18 aud 35 kreiitzer (I()kr.*^2(i). 
72 . Perloff AVa‘8Uy & Sonn, Court Purveyors, 1 
K*ortu*rr)iiff 15. founcleci 1787. Cfltavan Tea, 4 medals. 
73. Pischinfjer, L. , & Son, Chocolata Manufactory, 
Vienna, VI. StiegongasHo 8 and 10. Speciality Pia- 
cliinger Chocolate Extracts. 
7t. Pomni, Joeef, Kaab-Ujvarcos, Bacutca, 46 
Art ColTee. 
78, Sobtriok, Franz, Chocolate Manufactory. Uati- 
bor, Bieilaa. Cacao in lump, Chocolate packets in 
larger and smaller blocks, powiler loose and in packets, 
Chocolate Sweetmeats, instructive Exliibltiou of the 
dilfcrent stages in the preparation of the cacao from 
tbn raw liean upwards. 3 Medals. 
79. Stollwerck Bros., Imperial, Ac. Chocolate Manu- 
factory, Onhigne on the Ubinc. Stollwerok’s “ Heart ” 
Cacao, Chocolate in tablets, Chocolate fancy objects. 
81. Tauber. Josef, Ed., Wien, Somniering. Coffee 
“ Surrogate ” (mixture), ootfee and ground spiee pre- 
psration. Diplomas. 
82. Vcelokor-Coumes, Danio', Bajon, Meiirlho u‘ 
Mo»elle, France. Chicory and Acorn (Eioholn) ColTee. 
83. VVeiaa, Julius, First Vienna ColFoe Extract 
Manufactory, I. Cct; side Market 14. Coffee F.xtract 
and Ceffee Cream in bottles. 
Ckxlon Tea in Bohemia. 
Tho largest tea importer in Prague, the capital 
of Bohemia and a town of over 200,000 people, is 
Mr. Wilbem Stanek, Wradislaw Gaseo, and who, 
I fancy, h.id the Buasian Tea Agency referred to in 
Ferdinand Straseo, where I see hie oBioe was 
formerly held. Mr. John Fraser of Aberdeen 
estate bad referred me to the Bev. Dr. I’irie for 
all informalion and ho again ictroduoed mo to 
Mr. Stanek, whom I found a very ontorprising man ; 
he had commenced life, I think, as travelling 
agent for a Faria house, and in that eapaoity 
had viiitcd tho Far East. Mr. Stanek evidently 
impoHs largo ((uantitios of tea ; but almost all 
“ China", the common kinds from Hamburg and 
the “Caravan” teas from Itusaiu. Though I did 
not question Mr. Hlanek on the eubjeot, I rather 
think Mr. Fraser had experimented through him 
with a consignment of Ceylon tea, without profitable 
results to the Ceylon planter. This is strange, for 
at retail shops whore we enquired, tho commonest 
China could not bo bought under Is to 6s per lb. 
Bat Mr. Stanek repeated what some Vienna large 
lea dealers said, ibat for "Ceylon tea there was no 
taste — it was little thought of." One pieoe of 
information I got here seems to throw light on 
diffloultics in the way of a tea trade through Trieste 
apart from the heavy Customs duty. Questioned as 
to why be, an Anstrian merchant, got bis China tea 
through Hamburg, rather than through Trieste, the 
one great port of the Empire and the one so muob 
nearer the Far East, Mr. Stanek mentioned that the 
ohargos for "handling" — I ioferfor landing, oloaring 
at tho Customs and despatching — were very much 
heavier at Trieste. I fear too that there may bo 
difiieolties through corruption of publio officers 
there ; not long ego there was a great disturbanoe 
about the discovery that certain officers had to be 
regularly fed by large Vienna importing houses 
(dealers in general goods), and it was supposed 
that the latter had been getting their imports 
passed for less than the proper Customs duty ; but 
on examination it was found that the fees, gilts or 
bribes, were simply to enable the firms to get 
their imports passed promptly at the proper and 
full duties— an additional levy on trade in fact. 
Whether this be the case or not, I think it is 
scandalous to the Austrian authorities, that any of 
their merchants even in Bohemia ebould prefer 
doing tmsinesB through Hamburg, rather than Trieste 
tor Asiatic products ; and I cannot understand 
how the Direotors of the Austro -Huagarian Lloyd's 
B. N. Co. have not seen this put right long ago. 
1 have thought it well therefore to address a letter 
on the subject (and referring as well to the heavy 
Oustoms duty on tea and to the subject of Ceylon 
