CHAPTER XXXI.

PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF INDIAN TEA.

A few words on the past, the present, and the future of Indian Tea will now conclude this Essay, and will, I hope, be acceptable to the reader.

The subject is one of growing importance, but being a new one, there are points connected with it on which the public are very ignorant, and should be enlightened.

To begin with, the following facts are not disputed by those who know anything of the subject:--

1. Indian Teas have far more body, that is strength, than Chinese Teas.

2. Indian Teas consequently command a higher price at the London sales than Chinese Teas.

3. In spite of its higher price, it is far more economical than the Chinese produce, as, generally speaking, one-third of the quantity suffices.

4. There are lands enough in India to grow all the Tea required for England’s use, and, indeed, for all her colonies.

If these _are_ facts, and I confidentially affirm they are so, how is it that the following holds in England?

1. Indian Tea is not known to the public.

2. Except in one or two shops in London and Glasgow, unknown to the mass of the people, not an ounce of pure Indian Tea can be bought in all England.

3. That India is even a Tea-producing country is scarcely known in England.[84]

I think I can explain some of these anomalies.

Tea is an acquired taste: by which I mean, not only that the adult who had never tasted Tea would not like it when first offered to him, but also that, with those who consume it regularly, any Tea that differs in flavour from what is habitually drunk is not relished.

It matters not whether it is intrinsically better or worse, enough that the flavour is different, for that reason it is not liked.

Indian Tea differs widely from Chinese Tea, and for that reason is rarely appreciated by those accustomed to the latter.

For a long time it appeared as if this difficulty would be a bar to the general introduction of Indian Teas in England, and so indeed it would have proved, had the short-sighted policy adopted at the commencement by one or two Indian Companies that their Teas should be sold retail and pure, that is, unmixed with Chinese, been followed out. It did not avail to tell John Bull it was better Tea, that it was far stronger, that it was in no way adulterated; for he simply shook his head, the flavour was different to what use had made him familiar with, and he would none of it.

But little by little, in spite of the above, it made its way. Grocers soon found that the worst, _id est_, the weakest class of Chinese Teas received _body_ and were made saleable by an addition of Indian Tea. It was not long after this that the trade discovered that pretty well _all_ Chinese Teas were improved, if proportions of Indian Teas were mixed with them. In short, the fact was recognised by Tea vendors that Chinese Teas were weak, and much improved if mixed with Indian.

The public were thus _educated_ to relish the superior flavour of Indian Tea, and did so, when the quantity mixed with the Chinese was not so great as to make the new flavour too _prononcé_. Little by little the custom of so mixing became very general, so much so that it may almost be said to-day that if Indian Teas cannot be purchased pure, no more can Chinese. A mixture of Chinese and Indian Tea, the latter small as compared with the former, is what is now generally used in Great Britain.

This is the case to-day. What will it be in the future?

As the English palate is educated to like the flavour of Indian Tea, more and more of it will be demanded in the mixture made up for the public, and though the day is distant, nay, may never arrive, on account of its greater cost, when it will be generally drunk pure, I do not myself doubt that the demand for it will go on steadily increasing for years to come, as it has for years past.[85]

It is an important query if, with a largely increased demand, the supply will be equal to it. Very far from all India has a good Tea climate, which is a peculiar one, and only exists in perfection in Assam, Cachar, Chittagong, and lands in Bengal close to the foot of the Himalayas.

But in these districts alone there are lands sufficient to supply nearly the whole world with Tea, so that it is not the lands which are wanting, though the Government prices for the lands are prohibitory and will check cultivation. But in Assam, Cachar, and the Terai below the Himalayas labour is very scarce, while in Chittagong the area fit for Tea is not large, so that I do not anticipate any very sudden increase of the cultivation, though year by year it is on the increase and will so continue.

On the other hand, I do not--for the reasons stated, viz., that Tea is an acquired taste and thus a new kind is not at first palatable--anticipate any very sudden increase in the demand. If, however, I am wrong, and from a largely increased demand the prices of Indian Teas rise, I do not doubt that the cultivation will be greatly extended, and that after an interval of four years (it takes that time for the Tea plant to produce) the supply will be equal to the then wants of the English market.

The future of Indian Tea is, I think, a bright one, and I know nothing in which capital can be more profitably invested if the business is conducted with knowledge and experience, but to embark in it without these two requisites is ruin.

A few figures may be given here. The imports into Great Britain of Indian Teas have been yearly increasing, till in 1873 they amounted to 18,367,000 lbs., and, judging from the estimate out here of the produce this year, viz., 1874, the imports into Great Britain in 1874 will not be far short of 20,000,000 lbs.[86]

But as the annual consumption of Tea in the United Kingdom is not less than 130,000,000 lbs., India is still very far from supplying enough to give a mixture of three-fourths Chinese and one-fourth India Tea.[87]

The finest Chinese Tea sells in London in bond at 2_s._ 4_d._ to 2_s._ 6_d._, while the finest Indian in bond fetches 3_s._ to 3_s._ 6_d._[88]

What, then, will be the future of Indian Tea? It is an important query. The industry is one which, if successful, might attain to wide limits, and help not a little to relieve the Indian State Exchequer, while it would afford occupation to many a class of Englishmen who at present look about in vain for employment.

Tea speculation has passed through the first two preliminary phases to which most new ventures are liable. First, we had the wild rush, the mad fever, when every man thought that to own a few Tea bushes was to realise wealth. In those days existing plantations were bought at eight and ten times their value; nominal areas of 500 acres were paid for which, on subsequent measurement, proved to be under 100; new gardens were commenced on impossible sites, and by men as managers who not only did not know a Tea plant from a cabbage, but who were equally ignorant of the commonest rules of agriculture. Boards highly paid, with secretaries still more liberally remunerated, were formed both in Calcutta and London to carry on the enterprise; and, in short, money was lavished in every conceivable way, while mismanagement ran rampant in each department. It is not strange that the whole thing collapsed: the wonder is it did not do so earlier.

The second stage was then entered upon. Numbers had been bitten, and the idea, once formed, grew apace, that Tea could not pay at all. Everyone wanted to sell, and down went all Tea shares to a figure which only increased the general panic. Many companies, and not a few individuals, unable to carry on, had to wind up and sell their estates for whatever they would fetch. Gardens that had cost lakhs were sold for as many hundreds, and the very word “Tea” stank in the nostrils of the commercial public. A few of the best companies held on, as also such individuals embarked in the speculation as could weather the storm; but some of the companies were bowed down with heavy debts, and it has been with many, from that cause, a losing race ever since.

This great smash occurred in 1867. I purpose, therefore, to examine into the future prospects of the industry, now that time has been given to test its vitality. Naturally the mistakes made at the first have not been repeated since, so the speculation has had more or less of a fair chance to show what it can do.

In the first place, the share list of Tea companies in the public prints does not at all represent the true position of Tea property to-day. It only gives the dividends declared and the value of the shares in those few limited liability companies which were able to weather the storm, but who, in common with all the others, were bowed down with debt, and are suffering up to the present time, both from that and the numberless mistakes made at the commencement of the enterprise. There are a few notable exceptions, even among the Tea companies. Some of these have done very well, pay large dividends, and are quoted at a high premium, which shows that Tea can and will pay even with the disadvantages attached to limited liability companies. I mean that in these latter work is always expensively done, and that much of the profits are swallowed up by secretaries, directors, &c., besides which, generally from interested motives, the Teas are sent home for sale which private planters know from experience is _not_ the best plan.

But to return to the share list. The very many gardens held by firms or private individuals are absent, and inasmuch as many of these were begun more lately, and consequently, the blunders made in other gardens were avoided, it is evident that _their_ position, if it could be ascertained, would give the true picture needed.

There is one class of plantations which it would be by no means fair to include. I mean those gardens bought for a mere song during the panic. On many of these necessarily enormous profits have been made, but it proves nothing, inasmuch as the profits, to be legitimate profits for criticism, should on the debit side include the whole cost incurred in making the plantation. To form a fair appreciation of the profits Tea planting can give, we must select gardens constructed after knowledge on the subject was attained, where good management, combined with economy in all details, has been carried out, and where the necessary natural conditions for success exist--and such are rare.

But first let me explain what I mean by the “necessary natural conditions for success.” Manageable areas; flat or nearly flat land for the garden; a good class of indigenous and hybrid plants; local labour, or anyhow a good proportion of this; facilities for manuring; a good soil; a good Tea climate; and cheap means of transport constitute these, and where they exist I hold Tea _must_, and _does_, pay well. I don’t believe in plantations of 600 or 800 acres; some of these pay, but they would pay much better if reduced in size. A garden of 300 acres, yielding even at the rate of four maunds an acre, will pay much better than another of 500 acres, yielding but two and a-half or three maunds.

The reason is obvious, the larger produce is against a smaller expenditure. Were I to commence a Tea plantation to-day, it should not exceed 300 or 400 acres in size. This passion for large areas is the rock on which, more than any other, Tea Companies have wrecked themselves; experience has already shown this, and will show it more, as time goes on.

Flat land for Tea gardens is a great desideratum. Steep lands are difficult to cultivate; the soil is continually washing away from the roots of the plants; it is impossible to manure them successfully, and the consequence of all this is that the Tea bushes do not thrive.

The Chinese plant gives a small and inferior produce, the indigenous and hybrid kind a larger and very superior one; thus I think the latter one of the “necessary conditions for success.” On the other points, with the exception of manuring, nothing need be said, inasmuch as their necessity is evident; but on the point of manure I must say a few words. The Tea plant is being continually denuded of its leaves; nothing is returned to the soil; and consequently in process of time that soil is exhausted. It was held once that manure destroyed the flavour of Tea. This idea, at variance with all agricultural experience, is now completely exploded, like many others received from the Chinamen who first came from the Flowery Land to teach the art of Tea cultivation and Tea manufacture to the Indian public. Many of them had never perhaps seen a Tea bush, anyhow in many respects theirs was faulty teaching, and all experienced planters are convinced, and it is truth, that more knowledge on Tea exists in India than China at the present time.

But to return to the subject of manure. It is, and is now generally allowed to be, a necessity to the lengthened and successful maintenance of a plantation. Means for its production are now largely adopted in Assam and Cachar, and the results will be a yield per acre the most sanguine have never dreamt of. Chittagong, on this head, has great advantages; manure in any quantity can there be procured for a trifle, and the results have shown its great value.

We have scarcely yet entered on the third stage to which any new speculation, after the two first (the wild venture, and the unreasoning panic have passed), tends; but as knowledge of the financial results of Tea plantations in the hands of private firms and private individuals increases, that third stage will dawn, if it has not done so already. It consists in a sober appreciation of the subject opposed to both the extremely exulting and depressing views passed through, and when it arrives, the great and successful future of Indian Tea will be only a question of time.

FOOTNOTES:

[84] Note to Third Edition.--The above three statements, quite true when written, are not so now. The heavy fall in the value of both Indian and Chinese Teas in 1877, while pressing hard on the Indian producer, has certainly had the one good effect for him of making Indian Teas more widely known. They _are_ generally known now, in many cases sold pure as Indian Tea, and used by all retail dealers to give the body, or strength lacking in most Chinese kinds.

[85] Note to Third Edition.--Yes; the demand has largely increased, but, alas! production has increased in a greater ratio. In short, the supply exceeds the demand, and hence the low prices now ruling. As regards the use of Indian Teas, so much have the English public been now made familiar with their flavour, they, as a rule, reject any Teas which have it not more or less. In fact, the English public, as I predicted years ago, have now begun to like the new flavour, and even pure Indian Teas are now relished by many.

[86] Note to Third Edition.--The imports have been as follows during the last three years:--

1875 25,615,000. 1876 29,384,000. 1877 31,882,000.

[87] Note to Third Edition.--The annual consumption of all Teas in Great Britain in 1877 was:--

Chinese 158,000,000 India 28,000,000 ----------- Total 186,000,000

[88] Note to Third Edition.--In 1876 the _average_ prices of the two kinds in bond were:--Chinese, 1_s._ 2_d._; Indian, 1_s._ 10_d._ per lb.

_ADDITIONS TO THE FOURTH EDITION._