NOTES TO CHAP. V. 99 



NOTES. 



With respect to the mode of gathering the leaves for tea, it 

 is difficult to reconcile all the Chinese say on this subject with 

 what conies under our immediate observation. The finest black 

 teas are said to have their leaves plucked separately ; and yet 

 we find, in proportion as the tea is of superior quality, so is it 

 more mixed with tender and delicate stalks. In fact, the lux- 

 uriance and delicacy of the shrubs, or the contrary, may be 

 known and distinguished by the quality of the stalks found in 

 the manipulated tea to which they belong. The same may be 

 predicated by the infused leaf. In proportion as the tea is of 

 fine quality, and, consequently, the product of delicate shrubs, 

 the leaves, if masticated between the front teeth, aided by the 

 tongue, will be found soft and pulpy ; or harsh and fibrous, if 

 the product be of coarse shrubs. Thus in proportion as the 

 young shoots are tender and delicate, so is the risk increased 

 of tearing away part of the shoot in the act of plucking the 

 leaf. This might seem to account for the stalks found in Pao- 

 chong tea ; but the true reason I believe is, that the young 

 tender shoots bearing two or more leaves are nipped off with 

 the forefinger and thumb, as described by Mr. Bruce at Assam, 

 and Mr. Jacobson at Java. This latter gentleman is of opinion 

 that the stalks of black tea should not be plucked off; that they 

 favour the process of withering, and do not impede the rolling, 

 because they are succulent and pliant as the leaves. Mr. Jacob- 

 son also states, that the motion of the two hands, for both are 

 employed, is like the oscillation of a pendulum, and that a 

 hundred motions are made in a minute. I have seen the Honan 

 leaves gathered separately ; and all the leaves brought to me 

 in the course of experiments, which will hereafter be detailed, 

 were without their stalks. 



I believe, however, the mode of gathering the leaves varies 

 according to the succulency of the shrubs, and the practice of 



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