SOILS OF AMERICA AND CHINA. 67 



this, that what tea requires is depth of soil and moisture. 

 "It is planted as a hedge-shrub, both in China and 

 Japan, and along the ridges of the fields." Catholic 

 Missionaries. The soil of Chusan is very light and 

 sandy ; tea is grown on it for domestic use, not for ex- 

 port. The soil of Amoy and Quang-Tong is a stiff hard 

 soil, unfit for tea ; it is grown in both districts, but is of 

 so inferior a quality, and there being no possibility to roll 

 the leaf, which is hard and dry, and the returns from it 

 are so trifling, that the natives will not manufacture it 

 beyond the simple drying of the leaves, which they take 

 into Canton in baskets for sale, and dispose of it at two 

 to four cents per Ib. This tea is very largely mixed 

 with the good teas, and sold to England and America. 



It is of these trees the Chinese give us seeds. Amoy 

 is in the 24th deg. N. lat., and Quang-Tong is the 

 province of the city of Canton, N. lat. 23 degs. ; and 

 these plants being at hand, the Chinese give us as much 

 seed as we require. The proper tea seeds are to be 

 found some 1,000 to 1,200 miles from Canton, and 260 

 miles from Shanghae. Traveling is slow work in China ; 

 there are no steamers or railroads there, and that part up 

 from the 25th deg. of N. lat. is exceedingly mountainous. 

 To get good seed, is not to be accomplished. The East 

 Indian British Government (and no party had the same 

 opportunities), could not succeed ; and brought round to 

 Calcutta large quantities of these seeds, which they sent to 

 the North- West Kamoun, and to the North-East Assam. 

 I cultivated, and had several thousand plants ; the As- 

 sam Company too, the only other party cultivating tea, 

 got in proportion. Neither the Company nor I could get 

 any tea from them, except we stripped off all the leaves, 



