BOTANICAL DIFFERENCE. 313 



the most part disregarded by the Chinese, and all 

 mixed together in each country and on each farm, 

 in the course of manipulation and packing, like 

 many varieties of the apple in most cider orchards 

 in the making of cider ; or like different varieties of 

 the grape in making the vin de pays. I am much 

 disposed to believe that this may be found to be the 

 fact. 



But we have no authentic information on this 

 subject ; no botanist has ever been able to penetrate 

 into those particular districts, where the tea shrub 

 is cultivated for foreign consumption. 



So far as my information extends, there is not 

 even any certainty that specimens of the plant 

 from the black and green tea districts have been 

 examined and described by any botanist. It is an 

 undeniable fact that no reliance can be placed on 

 the genuineness of the numerous specimens sent 

 to Europe. The plants generally furnished and 

 sold by the Chinese as such, are mostly Canton 

 plants ; the Thea Bohea, or Stricta, being the 

 Honan plant, and the Viridis or laxa, consisting 

 of plants procured from Sy-chin shan, Pe-yuen- 

 hiang, and other villages in the province of Quong 

 Tong ; the fresh leaves of which are of a light green 

 colour, though they are commonly employed to 

 make black tea for Chinese consumption. 



That true specimens have been procured at 

 different periods from the tea districts cannot be 

 doubted, but the instances have been rare ; and 



