634 
rHF TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[March i, iSga. 
Lovers of “ the cups that cheer but uot inebriate” 
will learn, without any degree of pleasure, that 
there is likely to be a rise in the price of tea in 
the London market. In consequence of the early 
and most aevero weather, the Indian tea crop season 
has closed with a considerable deficiency on the 
estimates. There will also be a falling off in the 
supply which was expected from Ceylon. This was 
expected to reach seventy millions of pounds, but 
the octiutl export is not now likely to roach sixty- 
five millions, if even that figure is reached. The 
monthly exports have gone down steadily from tlie 
unprecedented total of 7,075,000 lb. in June to 
3,078,000 in November, the aggregate export for 
the eleven months being 60,37W,000, so that sup- 
posing four millions be added for December, the 
total will be considerably short of sixty-five millions. 
The total to this country, both from India and Ceylon 
in 1891, will not greatly exceed 150 or KiO millions of 
pounds, so that with such Hgnres, and in view of the un- 
settled state of China, there is the prospect of the fa- 
vourite beverage in so many families beingr-athor dearer. 
BRITISH INTERESTS IN CHINA. 
By Colonel Howaup Vincent, c.b., M.P. 
II. — Tea and Oticm. 
TO TUB EDITOK of TUE ‘‘ HAILY GBAPIIIO.” 
Sir, — The stsp'e export ol China, nnd the one with 
which the Celestial Empire is most closely identified in 
the popular miud is, of conrse, her tea. lu 1670 80 lb. 
of China tea were exported into Eoglsiid, and, despite 
export duties, varying in China snd in the United 
Kingdom from 400 per cent on the prod active cost, 100 
nr oerit at the prnaerit time, the trade inert as^d to 
08,000,000 pounds ill 1880 
eoMl'ETITION or INDIAN TEA. 
Since then there has, however, been s seri ons decline 
iecreaaiug so much, from year to year, ss to jeopsidise 
the entire industry. This ii declared to be mainly 
owing to the fortuitous development of tea planting in 
India slid Ceylon,* and to the pruferenoe showu by the 
English oorisuiiier (or tea of British growth. Twelve 
months after the Queen's s' corsioii, 400 lb. of Indian 
tea were sunt to England ns an experiment. In 1899 the 
oonsigument wss over 100,000,000 lb., and Cevlon sent 
nearly half as muoh. The effect has be' ii that, while 
in 1866, out of every lO'llb. of tea sold in England, 97 lli 
were Chinese snd only 8 lb. Indisn, in 1890 tbe Chinese 
proportion bad falleii to shout SO per cent, snd the cert 
to the British tea drinker was also ins like degree re- 
duced. One reason put forward by the experts, oou- 
•nlted by the Maritime Customs, is that ‘ a good stout 
tea, that will stand several waterings, is what suits the 
mass of English oousumers, snd this India provides 
muoh bolter than Chins.” The English merchatits at 
Hhanghai and Foochow affirm, however, that this 
greater strength is purchased by tbe retention of dele- 
terious properties, 
AVATIIY OF THE CIIINESB. 
It is in vain that tho attention of Chinese cultiva- 
tors has been called to the condition of the tea industry 
by all ooncoriitd. Moreover, ftur years ogo, tbe In 
spcctor-Geueral of Customs thus addrssted the Imperial 
authorities;— 
” To a government, itn people’s industries must be of 
higher importance than revenue. I would, thereTore, 
advise that taxes be remitted, in order that iudustrics 
may be preserved. Think fur the people, nnd forego 
revenue. Export duties ought to bo light, in order 
that tbe surplus production of a people may go for sale 
elsewhere. Import duties, on tho contrary, ate the 
duties which onght to be retniued ; but the use to be 
made of each commodity onght to be well weighed. H 
it is something people eannot do without, it ought 
to be exempt from duty ; but if it is a luxury it 
ought to be heavily taxed. On the right application 
of ttiese principles depend the nation’s wealth, and the 
people’s too.” 
DECLINE IN KXPOBT. 
Nothing whatever has been done. From Foochow 
* How “ fortuitous We are reminded of D’Israell's 
” fortuitous oouoourse of atomi;”— Eo, T. A, 
the export has declined by oue-haH iu leu ye.srs.aud de- 
privid the revenue of a million taels a year, and the 
people of five million taels in wages. The opinion is, 
indeed, geueral “ that the gradual cilinotioii of tho 
China ten trade is praotioally assured, unless some thing 
ratards Indian and Ceylon produotiou, of drastic mea- 
sntes are adopted." 
The ” Sbanli,” or Iiill tax, tho 9 Liliiu,” or war tax. 
Slid tho export duty are oil maintained intact, and the 
unfortunate Chinees growers hare to complete with the 
nntaxud tea of India and Ceylon. What distress is 
likely soon to ensue may be gatherel from the fact that 
tbe i.ruductiou of one half only of the outpnt of the 
Assam Company, with its few hundred employ <1-, affords 
tbe main susleiiaiioe of ‘1,500 Obineso fomilies, or, say, 
about 20,090 pert OU. 1 . They are themselves, mortover, 
so apprehensive that the iiitrodnction of the mathiuery 
iu vogue in lutlia and Ceylon will ilimiuish ooiploymeiit 
that the Govornmout has uot felt itaalf strong ocough 
to protect its use. 
STAVELKSS CASKS. 
Have you heard ol the new system of mannfao- 
lui'ing ” Btavelees aasks" after tbe fashion desoribed 
in the London Tiim-s : — 
Stavelebr Casks — It is doubtless a matter of 
geueral knowledge that the bodies of casks and barrels 
are composed of a number of tapered staves, which 
are osseuiblod together, held in posistion and hooped 
up. Uy a novel and iugenions method of manufac- 
ture, invented by Mr. Onoken, casks are now being 
manufactured from one piece of wood, and therefore 
withont any staves, or, it may bo said, with only one, 
tho body constituting in itself a long, single stave: 
Tho method of preparing the body of tho cask may 
bo likened to the sharpening of a lead pencil by a 
pocket sharpener. Tho stem of the tree is first out 
up into p eces or logs, of a length according to that 
ot tho barrel required, and is then boiled for two or 
thi'co hours in a closed vessel to soften tho wood, a 
enrrent of electricity being passed through the water 
the whole time. From the boiler tho log of wood ig 
taken to tho machine, where it is held at each end 
horizontally between two points, mucli in tlie same 
way as a piece of wood is hold in the lathe. Rota- 
tion is given to the piece of timber, which is advanced 
towards a broad blade fixed on a frame having a 
slot in it in a line with tbe edge of the blade, just 
ns in a plane, which the cutting part of the machine 
may be said to resemble. As the trunk of tbe tree 
is revolved against the blade a continuous sheet of 
wood is produced of any desired thiokness. The wood 
is drawn out fiat from tho rear of the machine by 
hand on to a table. The sheet of wood thus obtained is 
cut transversely into pieces each of tho required length 
for one barrel. The pieces are then pnased through 
a grooving machine, which outs the groove in which 
the head is eventually fitted. Auother machine outs 
narrow V-shaped pieces at intervals out of tlie edgoi 
of the pieces of wood, whicli are then easily beut 
round into aoylindor and firmly liooped, the V-sUaped 
slots enabling it to assume the necessary conical 
form at each end. There is thus only one joint in 
tho body of tho cask or baiTol. Tho casks are after- 
wards dried in a special apparatus, after which tliey 
are ready for use. A factory is in operation iu Ger- 
many manufacturing these casks, some of which we 
recently examined at tlie olBoes of the Uiiokon 
i’atcnts Syndicate, 10, Old Jewry Chamliers, London. 
We were also shown a model of the niachino and 
some samples of wood of various thiokuesses, iucliid- 
ing some exceedingly thin veneers. 
LITTON AND Ills TEA TliADE. 
I am Borry to boo no sign of the “Ceylon tea 
planler” or “ tea estate proprietor,’’ .Mr. Lipton, 
doing anything to promote the sale of pare Ceylon 
tea: a deputaiion to sit on him is perhaps more 
needed than on Sir Arthur Clark ; for in the 
latest Lipton oiroular placed before me of “ grand 
opening” of new brsnohes, “ Lipton, the largest 
tea dealer in the world,” annonnoes only blends 
Is, Is 4d, Is 7d (the last of Ceylon and Indian) 
desoribed ; — 
