34 Transactions of the 



In Brazil the tea plant grows luxuriantly, especially in tlie 

 vicinity of New Friburg, St Paul, and Santos ; ' gaining,' says 

 Dr Liautaud (who went thither with a commission from the 

 French Government to inquire into its culture), ' the proportions 

 of a third-class tree, and with a rich foliage.' 'But,' he adds, 

 ' the Brazilian teas are too astrigent and bitter, and lack the 

 aroma so much prized in those of China. The cost of manufac- 

 ture, too, is much higher than in China,' 



Hence he infers that, in the long run, the Brazilian teas will 

 not be able to compete with the Chinese, even for home consump- 

 tion. In South Carolina the experiment of tea growing was 

 begun in 1850, by Dr Smith of Greenville ; and it appears to 

 have been carried on under sanguine expectations of success for 

 a considerable period. Its ultimate abandonment is said to have 

 been caused by the high price of labour, rather than by any 

 unfavourable circumstances of soil or climate. 



The following paragraph on tea-growing in America appeared in 

 the Every Saturday (an American paper) for November 4, 1871. 



' Tea-growing is now carried on in the various parts of the 

 South with considerable success. A gentleman in Wilmington, 

 N. C, has successfully raised plants and cured tea, which he claims 

 cannot be excelled in flavour by the imported article. He ob- 

 tained the plants from the agricultural bureau of the patent-office, 

 previous to the war, and their number has increased every year, 

 the latter plants being fully equal in every respect to those first 

 grown. Successful experiments have also recently been made in 

 South Carolina, Tennessee, and California, and the climate of 

 several other sections of the United States is well adapted to this 

 plant. California especially seems to possess peculiar advantages 

 in this respect, and tea culture has already commenced among the 

 Chinese who have settled there, and with the most encouraging 

 results.' 



Many attempts have been made to introduce the tea-plant into 

 Europe ; but for want of proper precautions, most of these 

 attempts have miscarried. The seeds being of an oily nature, are 

 apt to grow rancid during a long voyage, unless proper care is 

 taken to preserve them. The finest tea-plant known in England 

 was raised in Kew Gardens ; but the first that ever flourished 

 was one belonging to the Duke of Northumberland at Sion. The 

 plants which are cultivated in gardens in England thrive well in 

 the green-house during winter, and just stand that season in the 

 open air. 



Linnfeus, who obtained the tea-shrub in its growing state, con- 

 trived to preserve it in the open air in the northern latitude of 

 Sweden. 



