Gliflon College Scientific Society. 45 



market of the United Kingdom. Now and then a vessel with a 

 cargo of tea goes to Bristol or Dublin, but this is very seldom. 

 On arrival in London the vessel sails into one of the large 

 docks, and there discharges its cargo into bonded ware- 

 houses, which are under the supervision of the custom-house 

 officers, who have them locked up every night. The merchant in 

 London who imports the tea, or to whom it is consigned for sale, 

 gives an order to a tea-broker to sample any portion of the teas, 

 still under the eye of the custom-house. The broker inspects the 

 tea, and takes away samples, values it, and reports the same to 

 the merchant, who gives him instructions as to its sale. The tea 

 is then sold by sample in bond — that is, not duty paid — at a public 

 auction. Tea buyers are called ' The Trade,' or ' Tea-Dealers,' 

 for they generally confine their business entirely to tea. These 

 ' tea-dealers ' again sell the tea to smaller wholesale or retail 

 buyers all over the country, sending samples by post, or rail, 

 or by travellers appointed for that purpose. 



There is also another class of buyers who buy from the tea 

 brokers, the exporters or shippers, who buy for shipment to Eussia, 

 the continent, America, and the colonies, though, of course, Ame- 

 rica and the Australian colonies are chiefly supplied directly from 

 China. The tea-broker supplies tea to the whole trade. He receives 

 the money when due, and hands it over to the merchant — in fact, 

 does all the work for him — for the merchant's time is occupied 

 with consignments of tea from China, and shipments to China, 

 India, &c. 



Black tea is used chiefly in England. Green tea is used as 

 much as black in America. In England one-tenth only of the tea 

 is green. The Eussians consume the. finest black teas, which they 

 obtain by overland route from China, paying a high price for it. 



China supplies the chief consuming tea countries, — viz.. Great 

 Britain, British Colonies, America, and Eussia (besides what is 

 consumed in China itself) with not less than 200,000,000 lbs. of 

 tea annually. 



Japan supplies about 15,000,000 lbs., chiefly to America. 



British India exports 13,000,000 lbs. to Great Britain, being 

 the produce of Assam, Cachar, Kargeeling, and Sythet, and a 

 little of late from the Neilgherry Hills. 



Java also produces a small quantity of tea, some of which finds 

 its way to this country. 



In countries where the tea-plant does not exist, and where a 

 constant supply of the leaves from China is no easy matter, the 

 people naturally look out for some substitute for tea. 



At the head of all such stands the Paraguay tea or mate. The 

 plants belong to the natural order Aqui/oliacea: Its scientific 



