.— 2Ù1 — 



„good sorts of tea" '), 20.000 China plants were sent to the Himalaya 

 mountains (Kumaon and Dehra Dhun, N W. provinces), where they siic- 

 ceeded very well. The remainder, 2000 plants, were transported to Madras, 

 but hère they died within two years (towards the end of 1836). with few 

 exceptions in the Nilgherry Hills. In Assam, the plantlets, at the advice of 

 Wallich, Griffith and Me. Clelland, w.ere placed in nurseries near Sadiya, 

 under the supervision of C. A. Bruce, but by injudicious treatment this 

 plantation also soon died. 



Besides thèse ill-fated Chinese plants, a beginning was made in 

 Assam with the exploitation of the wild-growing tea. In order to facilitate 

 survey, a lot was planted just beside the China tea — luckily, the end of this 

 Crossing expérimenta) was the death of both parties Further order was 

 given to the native chiefs to clear the jungle where tea was first discovered; 

 supervision being insufficient, however, this order was not obeyed, or, 

 where it was, even the tea plants were for the greater part eut down 

 and burned. This was the case in Tingri ; Griffith, who saw the resuit in 

 the end of 1836, says about the outward appearance of the plants^): „The 

 „shoots, which had been given off from the stunips were numerous, giving to 

 ,,the plant a bushy appearance." (Increased resemblance to China tea, therefore 

 an improvement.) ,,But this was counteracted by a most palpable coarseness 

 ,,in the texture of the leaves, and was accompanied by an unhealthy yellow 



,,tint The flowers were moreover totally destitute of odour." 



(Probably the yellow tint is the well-known characteristic of Assam-tea 

 shoots. I do not know what value to attribute to the asserted loss of odour.) 



Meanwhile, Bruce zealously continued searching for new tea tracts. 

 In 1837 he had found several new localities in the Muttack country, near 

 Sadiya, and in 1839 their number had already, as appears from Bruce's 

 map (Fig. 2) increased to 120'*); the most extensive one was in Namsang 



') This advice, suggested by tiie expériences of C. Abel (1818) and other travellers 

 in China, and contradicted by Griffith (1838) and ever since, only shows how 

 wide a range of climatic conditions the tea plant niay endure, Indeed, évidence of 

 this kind has in several instances proved to be a very faliacious one! 



2) Perhaps this expression may be iinderstood in a literal sensé hère. For, one of the 

 measures, recommended by Griffith to „work up" (,,reclaim") the Assam tea-plant 

 as rapidly as possible, was: artificial crossing with good sorts of China tea!! 



^) W. Griffith 1838. p. 169; 1847, p. 53. In this last place, it makes us smile to read: 

 „My conviction is, that the tea wiil not flourish in open sunshine; at any rate, 

 ,,subjection* to this should be graduai." (This is the same wrong idea that caused 

 JUNQHUHN in Java to plant Cinchona in shadow, since in its native country it is a 

 forest tree!) „Further, that cutting the main stem is detrimentai, not only inducing 

 ,,long shoots, but most probably weakening the flavour of the leaves." 



■*) C. A. Bruce 1839. For instance, in 1838 he found a ,,tea tract" near „Jaipore" in 

 the Naga Hills, where one of the biggest trees was 2 cubits (1 meter) ingirth,and 

 40 cubits (20 meters) high. Other tracts: Teweack, Cheriedoo, Hauthoweah. At 

 Gabrcw hill tea flowers very fragrant, ,,unlike the smell of our other tea 

 ,, plants", for the rest being the same. On the „Singpho tea tracts" he writes (p. 524): 

 „The tea from thèse tracts is said by the Chinamen to be very fine. Some of the 

 ,, tracts are very extensive, and many may run for miles into the jungles for what 

 „we know." The tea plants, he says, ,,may be traced from tract to tract to Hoo- 

 „kum IHookhong with Griffith, Hnkawng with othersl, thus forming a chain of 

 „tea tracts from the Irawaddy to the borders of China, east of Assam." 



