882 
THE TROPtC^L AQRiCULTURlST. 
[June i, 1892. 
most careful handling — ae much eo as tea — in the 
leaves ; and still again the Indiiin corn of Peru 
where was its equal ; or the wool of the country 
and so on I 
I felt much inclined to get up at the end of 
this, and correct Mr. Markham in re.spect of cin- 
chona bark, by pointing out how the South American 
article came from trees of great ope, or at any rata 
of maturity, while in India and Ceylon, the planters 
had to harvest back from comparatively young 
trees, not becanse if left alone these would not 
have deve'opcd a richer bark, I ut from neoessity — 
in too many eases, it was with Eastern planters : 
My poverty, and not iny will consents. 
But it was getting late end there was no time. 
Col. CnoiiOH followed in a long ard rather prosy 
speech which gradually sent away a good many 
and tired out the President, who jumped up at 
its conelusion, proposed a vote of thanks to the 
writer of the paper and hastily left. 
One i)arafrsph, arising out of Mr. Markham’s 
spooch is given in the Vaify Graphic as follows; — 
On the authority of Mr. Clements Markham, speak- 
ing at the Royal Geograpliicnl Society on Monday 
evening, Central Peru has amar.iug fertility, four 
crops of maize being obtainable from tho soil in one 
year! Moreover, the cobs of tho corn “ are tour to 
five times larger than tlie heads of any other part 
of the world. " Now, as wo can grow iir Essex 
and Norfolk thirty tons of groon iiiaizo to the acre — 
planted in May, and gathered early in October, witli 
tassoUed heads fully eight inches long — the marvel 
crop of T’oru would produce 120 tons to the aero 
with cobs two foet long. Such a wondrous result 
would read like a “ traveller’s talc " but, coming 
from Mr. Markham, has to bo accepted as authentic 
record. At tho present date tho maize crop of J.a 
Plata is on offer in London, May-.Iuly ahipinent, at 
the very low' price of tils ild per ISO lu. uuderselling 
the cheapest American maize, 20s lid, and unsettling 
the Eugfish trade, being 2s 6d a hundred weight 
cheaper than oats. 
THE CEYLON iND CBIKNTAL ESTATES 00., UK 
1 enclose the prospectus, just out, of this new 
Company sllnded to previously by mo. No doubt 
tho Ceylon Agents will give the opportunity lor 
local investments by advertisement. The Board 
of Directors is a strong one with Mr. Hugh C. 
Smith, Director of the Bank of England, as t hair 
man, and Mtss e. II. A. Honeock, Cyril R. John- 
slOD, T. J. Lawranco (formerly of Ceylon), C. A. 
Beiss— all men of high character and standing 
in the City — not to mention the Managing Director, 
Mr. Huntley Thring, who is o l. wcr of strength 
in himself. Mr A. J. Denison conlinnes to he 
Inspeotcir of Estates, and Mr Hngh Chapman, 
Eeoretary,— both oapital appoinlroents,— as the 
Ceylon and Oriental Investment Corporation, Ld., 
is absothed in this new Company. Already £100,000 
of deb( nturoe have been provided for, so there 
can bo no doubt of amplo financial support, 
and it will ho noted that out of £2.')0,000 nominal 
capital, only .El.'iO.OOO is to ho called up. As for 
(he rest the proapectus can only be quoted, end 
all good wishea elfstcd for tho pueoess of this 
younge t, but by no means lesst powerful or 
important of Ceylon Planting Oompaniea ; — 
I'RKBPECTUS. 
This Company haa been formed primarily to take 
over an a going concern the Biisinoss, Estatoa, and 
Assets’, of tho Ceylou and Oriental Investment 
Corporation, Limited, a Company foimcd in iBiK), 
with a capital oi £H7,(>M>, subacribod by the Direotora 
and thoir friends, including in such asaets the Tea 
Estates known na Moralioya and Wilton, I’athra- 
galla, Narthapauaand Doegalla, well secured advances 
on estates and crops, and tlio benefit of a contract 
which tho corporation roccutly entered into witli 
Messrs. Baring Bros. & Co., tor the purchase fro m 
them of the following further important estatesiii 
Ceylon, viz: 
llogahawattee. Le Vallon. Peacock Hill. 
Peradenia. Keenakollo. Rajatalawa. 
Wiltshire and Denegama (one Oodewello (one 
Hampshire. half). half). 
'The opportunity of acquiring those estates being 
exceptional, the contract has boon arranged on tenna 
whicn tho Directors of the corporation considered 
to be advantageous, but the constitution of that 
Company appearing inconvenient for tho purpose 
of carrying out this contract and others in contem- 
plation, it was decided to reconstitute tho corporation 
by tho formation of tho pres- nt Company. 
'The Company has also entered into a contract for 
the purchase from Mr. J. Huntley 'Thring of tho 
Ceylon Estate known as Wangio Ova. Mr. 'Thring, who 
has accepted the appointment of Managing Director 
of tho Company, has agreed to take payment of 
one-half at least of the price of the ahovo-inentioued 
Estate in Shares, thus retaining a substantial interest 
in the Company, and ho also guarantees the net 
profit from the working of the Estate during the 
next three years to average not leas than £2,500 
per annum. 
The price to be paid to tho Ceylon and Oriental 
Investment Corporation, Limited, for its goodwill, 
property and assots, as above mentioned, is £37,0.50 in 
ordinary shares of tho Company credited with £3 per 
share paid up thereon, to bo issued in substitution. 
Share per Share, for tho Ordinai-y Shares issued by 
the Corporation, and £l,17ti in cash, and 392 fully 
paid-up I’referonce Shares of the Company, to lio issued 
in exchange for the Founders' Shares of the Corporation, 
being at the rate of £B and two fully paid-up Preference 
Shares in exchange for each Founder’s Share, which 
will bo thereby extinguished. 'The price to bo paid for 
tho Estates of Messrs. Baring Bros, and Co. and 
Wangio Ova is £119,000, payable as to £82,000 in cash, 
wbioh will bo provided out of tlie proceeds of the 
issue of the Debentnrea, ns to £9,000 in folly paid- 
up Preference Shares of tho Company, and as to the 
balance, partly in cash and partly in Ordinary Shares 
credited with £3 per Share paid up. 
'.The Estates purchased from Messrs. Baring Bros. 
<fe Co., and Mr. Thring made a profit of over £10, (KX) 
for tho year ending 30th June, 1891, and owing to 
the large acreage of Tea which has since come into 
bearing, the Directors estimate for tho present season 
a profit of £1.3,000 from these properties, equal to 
over 10 per cent, on their purchase price, and they 
confidently anticipate tliat the other properties which 
they hope to acquire by means of this issue will givo 
equally satisfactory returns. 
The Tea on the Estates, which will bo taken over 
by the Company as from tho 1st .January, 1892,18 for 
the most part yonng, and a large proportion of the 
acreage planted has yet to come into full bearing, 
hence the output in the future should steadily increaso 
ami largly augment the profits. 'Tlio present deprocia- 
tion of silver is greatly in favour of tho iiidustry, 
lessoning, as it does, the cost of produoton. 
Tsking iho Forest and Cht-cna portiuu of the Es- 
tstos at £2 10s per sore, the cost of the cultivated 
area which the Company purciiasea averages under 
£.33 per acre, which curopares faviuirahly with prices 
reoenlly paid for similar land. Tlie average Oapital 
value per acre of the Estati a of 27 ol the Isrgeat luiiiau 
Tea C< nipauie.-i regi-U-nd in Leudoii is stated to bo 
over -17 per acre aud theaverace profi' earned by such 
Compani.-s for the year 1S90 is lelurued nt e'39 
per cent. 
The business of the Oompsiiy will also comprise ad- 
vulioiiig money upon Estates slid produce, managing 
fstates, and receiving crops for realiz.itioii on c m- 
misaioii, a.-id from their experience of the business the 
Directors fi el confident ttiat lavoiiralile opportunities 
will srise lor the prolitahle employment of tho capital 
now ofl'ered for suliScripliDD. 
Tho O' ornioiis increase in the oonsnniption of Ceylon 
'Tea in tho tjnited Kingdom during the last few years 
is shown Viy the subjoined figures, supplied by tho 
Coylon Association in Lunduo 
