HARRISONS AND CROSFIELD
When he spoke to the shareholders of Harrisons and Crosfield last week Mr. H. Eric Miller displayed a calm confidence based on intimate knowledge. There can, he points out, be no question of a shortage of tea, since pro- ducing capacity is still much greater than any possible con- sumptive demand. He recognised that circumstances had forced upon the Government their decision to requisition supplies of tea in this country and new stocks as they arrive, but he made a strong plea that those important consuming countries, the U.S.A., Canada and Australia, should be enabled to get their normal supplies direct from the East. Equally with rubber, Mr. Miller pointed out that the estate stocks of about 50,000 tons which have been built up in the East are an adequate safeguard against any squeeze. Germany, Austria and Czecho-Slovakia have been absorbing about aro,000 tons per annum, Poland about 8,000 tons last year, and further supplies are unlikely to arrive during the war. Continental neutrals, too, will, he expects, be strictly rationed to their own needs. Other countries are likely to require additional supplies, but Mr. Miller feels that the International Committee should have no difficulty in fulfilling its function.
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