THETEAPLANT. 77 



teas are the products of the same plant, treated in 

 different ways. The green tea is made by commencing 

 to dry the leaves in the ovens as soon as they are 

 picked, the whole operation of drying, rolling, and 

 roasting, being done very quickly ; while in the black 

 tea the leaves, when picked, are laid in the sun until 

 they become entirely soft and wilted, when they are 

 shaken about in sieves held over hot steam ; this de- 

 prives them of the peculiar properties which belong 

 to the green tea. When the leaves become quite 

 flaccid and watery, they are put into large copper 

 dishes and roasted for a few minutes over a hot fire, 

 when they are taken out and rolled between the 

 hands. In the finer sorts, each leaf is rolled sepa- 

 rately ; after this, the process of drying and baking 

 is commenced by alternately placing them over the 

 fire, and then exposing them to the air for some 

 hours. This is repeated five or six times, when the 

 tea is fit for use. 



Tea leaves possess properties which will produce 

 giddiness, headache, and even paralysis ; these pro- 

 perties are much weakened in the process of drying; 

 and the longer this is in being completed, the more 

 wholesome tea becomes. Both green and black teas 

 act as powerful nervous stimulants upon a system 

 which has not become accustomed to them; hence 

 the benefit often derived from their use by persons 

 in advanced life who have abstained from them when 

 young. 



The tea plant was cultivated, and its leaves used, 

 as early as the fourth century ; and, in the year 763, 

 7 * 



