Page:The Cyclopedia of India (Specimen Issue).pdf/167

 nuns—the Brahmatutra Tea (0-. I11. and the Scottish Assam Tea Co.. Ld.. among them—had been tornted.

In the meantime production haul been advancing. despite the de- presion. From 1.600.000 lbs. in 1862. the crop reached 8; millions in I867; and bv 1870 it hadrisen

trout callus. K.

Tani-0d [Mom I. noon In; and trout Rum-on. align. and Dchn Dun 600.000 the. Thus

that about twenty yars the Ilium. districts. 0t which so much was at one time expected. did not

vieldarropolnntillion nds. Front r870 tothe nt tune the

otthet gsolara mu ,huheen

By 1880 an area of 208,490 lain; cultivated: aid was 42,915.02 ylftct the cultivnt ma

'8" ‘33 62"

“2.036.406 mo ‘ decade witneaed an mu We.

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THE CYCLOPEDIA OF INDIA.

Provinca and the Punjab have exhibited the least tendency to expansion. At the pment time their cultivated am is ofﬁcially returned as 17,300 acres; and their production at 4,439,829 115. But a a large number of the gardens an: of very small extent, and are in the bands of native cul‘gzittmis, thscﬁguresmay notbca utc ' reliable. I, It has been already remarked that the United Kingdom has atl- ways been the principal market tor Indian tea. Perhaps, there- fore, it may be 01 interest to trace brieﬂythe of the tea drink- ing habit in but country. Whnt seems so he the earliest recon! of the importation of tea from China into England in an entry in the books at the East India Company in June r664 at a present at zlhs z or. at that having been math.- to the Ki (Charles II). The price m 40.31th per lb. Two vents later the Company made His Majes- ty 3 further present at :2! I13. at 50 shillan a pound. By 1677 the Company seem to have no- cured at surply for commercial [unto-es. ricu ranged lrom ﬁt: to f to sterling per pound. A vy irnpmt duty 0 5 shillings per pound end 5 per rent. and Moran m levied in tbﬁu. Naturally it dismunged conunnption. But nevertheless in 1703 the ho ts mounted to 105.00» its; an the ' had dropped to 16 shillings. From x710 to tho the (Intriguth sales ted 50,219.01 .. vnlued at :29, .595. 0! this quantity about 116 mds. were re. to other countries. In

rat: the quantity ol tea CC!ch in the United Kingdom is recorded as ' 32,454,532 Illa: in 1820 it rent: 25. :2.935 lbs; in 1830, “6.035 .;m 1840. 31,716,000


 * in t85o. 51,000,000 flit: in
 * 860. 76,800,000 lills” ol Whitmln

mull proport on was pm ). moduli. At a Very early period in the history ol ten the East India y ohtninnd from the Brit-

tab moment the rightto he the

goat sole in. This ‘vdcge they Wear] mm;qu and eighty years, it '03 abolished as late a 1833.

Out of the most striking features in the history at the Indian ta: industry is the gradual displacement

of China tea by Indian in the United Kingdom. In 1866 China ten representedqﬁ per cent. of the totll consumption. and Indian tcathcrcmaining4wrcent. From that time to the [resent the Indian proportion has been stadin in- creasing. In 1870 it rose tu 11 per cent,88:tond thence to 28 per cent. in 1 ;to 52 cent. in 1800; and to 59 parent. in :90}. Ceylon tea: t made their appearance on the London market in 1883. Of the total consumption they that represented one per rent. In ten years the n. I'm-c tn 3:. at about which it Itill Mantis. As regards actual weight the imports at (him ta did not dt'clinc until alter 1870. In that year they reached their maximum at “6.340.000 In. 'lhey have since no tar mntrartal that in r_ they did not much exceed 1: mt . lb. Andeven lit-tore 1879Cln'nn m lulled 0 two- ahrast ol the Egan's dcntant . From the «werw min; proportion of 96 per cent. in [866, it tell to 83 cent. in 1870. By 1880 it ed 59 per cent; by r896 it per cent; and in up: it taught: us low as 7 cent. are ex . and they tarnish roomivm- many ol the energy with which lndtan and Cevlon tea [noprietors have [rushed their product. They moltntemtnlwuihtminghuw thr British public gradually te' allied the stigma-ﬂy 0! Indian tens over new. The upturn oi the British market has been indeed a great triumph tor the British planter. But like most victories it has entailed a sacriﬁce. As the consumption of Indian and Ceylon tea has gone on incrqu ing. the aw price has continued to lull. In t i when the con- sumption at Indian ten in the Unitednliin Inhewns just {sit lln't inn “t nvcrngcw - ﬁle [tire was is. 5d. per lb. By 181.! this had dropped to told; by up: it hader 7%; and ut tqoq it stood at 0-8911. Jinn}; causes IliaVekéonttibuted to this result. no acorn "nlorat market. prices mwdtgline, be- cause the emote supply from the diluent mpetitors was to exceed the demnd. This has been theaseasregzrdstainthelinited