226 ASSORTMENT OF LEAVES 



poured upon a table, and four persons were em- 

 ployed in picking out, leaf by leaf, the remaining 

 Hyson skin leaves. This operation is in the tea 

 country performed by women ; and it is, most pro- 

 bably, from a drawing of this nature, which generally 

 accompanies the descriptive drawings of the mani- 

 pulation of tea, that the error has arisen, that each 

 separate leaf has passed through the hands of a 

 female, by whom it was twisted and curled. The 

 leaves, thus separated, were mixed with chaffy 

 leaves, and roasted forty-five minutes. The dust 

 was then sifted, and the tea packed, forming what 

 might be termed fine Hyson skin. 



The remaining leaves, consisting of the even, the 

 well twisted, and bright leaves, formed the Hyson 

 tea, which was roasted one hour and a half, then 

 sifted, and afterwards packed. This tea, supposing 

 the leaves to have been gathered from shrubs equally 

 good with those of the tea country, would have 

 been equal in quality to the chop Cow Mow, and 

 teas of that class, for which the East India Company 

 usually paid 44 tales the pecul, or 2s. 3d. the lb. 



The finest Hysons, such as the chops or breaks, 

 Tien-Hing, and Lum-Hing, or teas for which the 

 East India Company paid 64 tales the pecul, or 

 3s. 2d. the lb., undergo a still further selection, until 

 all the open and pale leaves are picked out, in the 

 same manner as the skin is separated from the 

 Hyson ; so that the " superior Hysons ' require 

 much labour and attention, and are expensive to 



