686 MEALS MEDICINAL. 
leaves still lower “‘ Congou”’ ; while a yet coarser leaf near the 
base of the shoot used to yield “ Bohea,” which has now almost 
entirely disappeared from commerce. In China the whole end 
of the young shoot goes to form Pekoe, while the leaves below 
that are Souchong. Pekoes, and Souchongs are unblended Teas. 
For black Tea the leaves are withered in the sun, and rolled 
until mashy, then made into balls, and allowed to ferment, so 
that the essential oils are produced, some bitterness is developed, 
and the tannin is partially oxidized, becoming less soluble to 
ome extent. For green Tea the fresh leaves are withered in 
hot pans at 160° Fahrenheit, then rolled, and withered again, 
next sweated in bags, and afterwards slowly roasted; thus the 
difference is that green Tea is fermented. 
The character of the water in which Tea is infused is of the 
first importance ; it should be well aerated, and have freshly 
come to the boil (not too hard), and the teapot first warmed, 
so that the boiling temperature may be maintained. The 
addition of milk, or cream, (though an outrage in the eyes of 
connoisseurs), is to be commended, because the albuminous 
matter of the milk tends to throw down some of the tannic acid 
of the Tea in an insoluble form. Sugar does not increase the 
wholesomeness of the beverage, but adds considerably to its 
nutritive value. All second brews should be avoided, because 
every useful constituent of the leaves has been already extracted. 
A Jesuit who came from China, instructed Sir Kenelm Digby, 
1645, “that Tea when infused should not stand longer than 
you can sing the Miserere very leisurely; and then be poured 
on the sugar in the cups.” 
Dr. Haig, a modern authority on rheumatism, protests that 
the alkaloids of Tea, coffee, and cocoa prevent uric acid from 
being excreted, and thrown out of the body; insomuch that 
mischievous urates accumulate therefrom in the blood, giving 
rise to gout, and rheumatic attacks. But his conclusions 
formed thus are probably from a peculiar personal experience 
rather than of general applicability ; at any rate, other observers 
have arrived at different conclusions from his. He finds (in his 
own case) that Tea (dry Ceylon), when drunk, furnishes as much 
as one hundred and seventy-five parts (in a thousand) of uric 
acid, or xanthin. More ruthlessly is it declared, in The New 
ss Hygiene as a Drugless Treatment, that “Tea is a rank poison, 
which fact is evident from experiments on animals; a strong 
