— 211 — 



that black and green tea come from ail provinces; nay, Fortune tells 

 us ') how the green tea district Ning-chau (Ning-chow) began with the 

 production of black tea when the niarket turned ont to favour the latter. 

 Notwithstanding, it would seem that the Northern régions produce more 

 green th\n black tea, and there is indeed some reason to call certain 

 districts spécial producers of one of the sorts. According to Abel, who 

 reported on the embassy (1816 — 1817) of Lord Amherst to China 2), the 

 „green tea districts" are situated between Hang-chow and the Yang-tse- 

 kiang, whereas the „black tea districts" are said to occupy about the 

 same area as the Woo-ee mountains, which hâve given their name to the 

 Thea bohea, as we shall hereafter see 3), 



The three journeys of Fortune give us very valuable elucidation 

 about ihose tea districts of Eastern China. His conclusions might be put 

 briefly in this way: The green-tea plant from the Che-kiang district (i.e. 

 Ning-pi, Chu-san island, etc.) is identical with the black tea of Fu-chau'*), 

 but the black tea from the vicinity of Can-ton is altogether différent from 

 the former. According to Fortune, the tea grown in the South is Thea 

 bohca, that in the North Thea viridis; the tea cultivated in the Bohea 

 mountains is, curiously enough, not T. bohea, but more ailied to the other 

 form (,.is closely ailied to the Thea viridis and originally identical with 

 „that species, but slightly altered by climate" ^)). 



But those cullivation districts are, although they hâve furnished us 

 with the first botanical data and the first tea seed, of minor importance 

 for the historical problem that is occupying us now. Where does the wild 

 plant grow? Apparently we should seek it far inland. Guigon 6) says, 

 without any référence, that tea grows wild to the North of Hankow. It 

 is rather doubtful; but, anyhow, there is tea farther up the Yang-tse 

 still. The town Chung-king. situated at the point where steamer traffic 

 ceases'^), is even a kind of export-centre. Close by this town, to the S. 

 E. of it, lies Nan-chuen, and from hère a „wild" tea plant has been col- 



') R. Fortune 1857, p. 393. 



2) C. Abel 1818; p. 221 — 226 about tea. Sumir.arized by W. Griffith (1838). With map. 



3) P. 223: the green-tea districts of Kiang-nan are situated between lat. 29 and 31" N. 

 at the N. W. end of a mountain range that séparâtes Che-kiang from Kiang-nan 

 (presenily Ngan-hui). Black tea occurs in Fo-kien between lat. 27 and 28" N., on 

 the S. E. slopes of a mountain range that séparâtes Fo-kien from Kiang si. Missio- 

 naries say that the plants in the green tea districts are not allowed to grow high 

 (,,perhap3 kept down by pruning"), but in the black-tea districts they may attain 

 10 - 12 feet. 



^) R. Fortune 1847, p. 188 and 382; 1853, I. p. 291. -He traveiled in the vicinity of 

 Ning-po, the Chu-san archipelago and the surroundings of Fu-chau. 



5) R. Fortune 1852, p. 284; 1853, II, p. 244.— He re-visited Chu-san, Ning-po and Fu- 

 chau. and went to the Sung-lo hills and the Wu-yi range (to the latter from Hang- 

 chau up river to Kwang-hsin, Yuen-shan and Tsong-ngan), in order to coliect tea 

 seed and plants, and to gain workmen for the Himalaya plantations. 



6) C-A. GuiGON 1901, p. 14. 



7) Since 1898, according to H. B. MoRSE 1913, p. 229. 



