Tea 



153 



increases 



with their 

 it becomes 



hands so that all 

 impossible to mix 



and a quantity of leaves thrown into the heated pans and constantly turned over and kept 

 in motion by men and women stationed in front of the pans. The heat immediately 

 •causes the leaves to crack and become quite moist with the sap which is given out under its 

 influence, and in about five minutes the process is complete, the leaves having become quite 

 .soft, pliable, and altogether devoid of their original crispness. The leaves are then taken from 

 the pans and placed upon bamboo tables, around which stand several persons, who take a 

 quantity of the leaves in their hands and carefully roll them on the table in a manner 

 •closely resembling the working and kneading of ordinary baker's dough. The object of this 

 process, which lasts about five or six minutes, is to twist the leaves and, .at the same time, 

 to express the sap and moisture, which escapes through the interstices of the surface of the 

 table. In the next stage of the process the object is to expel the moisture as gradually and 

 .gently as possible, retaining the softness and elasticity of the leaves to the fullest extent. This 

 is effected by taking the rolled leaves, spreading them out thinly and evenly upon a screen 

 made of strips of the ever-useful bamboo, and exposing them to the action of the atmosphere. 

 *v There can be no fixed time for the completion of this process, which depends entirely upon the 

 state of the weather, but experience has taught the operators to avoid placing the leaves 

 in the direct rays of a powerful sun, which evaporates the moisture too rapidly, leaving the 

 leaves crisp, coarse, and quite unfit for the next stage in the manufacture. -The soft and 

 pliant leaves are now again thrown into the drying-pans, and subjected to the action 

 •of a slow, steady fire. It is of great importance that the leaves should not be scorched 

 or burned, and it is the custom for one person to attend solely to the fire while others, 

 standing in front of the pans, mix and agitate the leaves 

 .shall be equally dried. As the temperature 

 the leaves by hand,' so small 

 bamboo whisks or brushes 

 are employed, the. leaves 

 being thrown up against the 

 sloping sides of the pans and 

 allowed to roll back into the 

 iron portion at the bottom. 

 The leaves gradually part 

 with their moisture, twist 

 and curl, and after about an 

 hour, are taken from the 

 pans, to constitute the fin- 

 ished product. Tea so pre- 

 pared is green in colour, but 

 it lacks the vividness of 

 •colour which characterises 

 much of the green teas 

 ■exported to Europe and 

 America, and which, in 

 former days, at any rate, 

 was produced at Canton 

 by dyeing the leaves with 

 gypsum and Prussian blue. 

 It is a significant statement 

 •of Chinese travellers that the 

 Chinese themselves never 

 use the artificially coloured 

 teas ! 



TEA CARAVAN IN THE STREETS OF PEKIN 



