258 TEA-CULTURE, A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 



exact system in use in India and other tea-growing 

 countries. It is yet possible for our inventors to produce 

 machinery for still further simplifying many of the intri- 

 cate processes now in use even in India and Ceylon. 

 The planters of the latter countries soon discovered 

 that they could not profitably follow the various minute 

 and detailed processes practiced by the Chinese and set 

 themselves to study the philosophy of the whole subject 

 of preparing the leaf for market, eventually mastering it. 

 The result has been that many operations which were 

 previously considered essential have now been either 

 reduced or dispensed with altogether in that country. 

 Instead of following the antiquated Chinese methods, 

 which involved some twelve different operations, occupy- 

 ing three days, the best India teas are now prepared in 

 less than five operations, the entire process being com- 

 pleted inside of two days. It may therefore be found 

 that for home use a less elaborate method of preparation 

 may suffice and that the article might enter into domestic 

 commerce. It could be prepared after the simple but 

 effective manner of Paraguayan tea, or put up in bales as 

 with hops, or it may be pressed into layers of dried leaves, 

 as is done with senna tea, and many other herbs at the 

 present time. The firing, which develops the aroma, 

 might be done immediately before use, as is now the case 

 with coffee, or better still, roasted and ground like that 

 article, the modern cylindrical method of roasting coffee 

 being a great improvement on the old style of hand and 

 pan roasting. Machinery being unknown to the Chinese 

 is probable the strongest reason why they still adhere so 

 closely to the antiquated methods now in use there. 



But while it is probable that many years will- elapse 

 before tea-culture will engage the general attention of 

 farmers and planters in this country, still there is no good 



