176 THE NEW AGRICULTURE. 



little tannin while at the same time the stimulating property 

 is markedly present. 



The tea plant grows into a luxuriant bush several feet in 

 diameter and from three to four feet high. The part used 

 practically amounts to the very tip of each stem, together 

 with one or two of the top leaves. At Pinehurst the pick- 

 ing is all done by a carefully trained corps of colored children, 

 who are judiciously superintended in the field, and whose in- 

 terests are in some measure looked after during the entire 

 year. They have shown great aptitude in the work, and it 

 is by their employment that the management at Pinehurst has 

 solved the labor problem the problem of competing with the 

 coolie labor of the Oriental world. There have been instances 

 at Pinehurst of fine pluckings of 50 pounds of green leaf per 

 day, whereas the laborer of China, Japan or India will with 

 difficulty pluck 30. In the case of the coarser pluckings 100 

 pounds may be gathered in a day. 



It is, therefore, demonstrated that the cultivation of the tea 

 plant in this country is an entirely feasible proposition. The 

 Agricultural Department at Washington believes in the future 

 of the industry and has not only aided the work at Pinehurst, 

 but has established an experimental garden in Texas. With 

 the known ability of our growers to eliminate the undesirable 

 and increase the elements which are wanted in a plant, it is 

 not surprising to learn that the per cent, of tannin in home- 

 grown tea is very small, while the per cent, of theine, that 

 nerve soothing substance which makes tea a really valuable 

 beverage, has been greatly increased. We may expect, there- 

 fore, that eventually the best tea in the world will be pro- 

 duced within the boundaries of our Southern States, that the 

 price will always be that of a fancy article, but that the de- 



