33-2 



N E W £ .\ 



AND FARMER 



APRII. I, 1840. 



MISCELLANEOUS 



THE HORSE. 



On Eastern plains— his native land — 

 Free, imconlroUed, he paws the sand ; 

 His mane streams in llie desert wind, 

 As faints the caravan behind ; 

 And neighing at their hapless fate, 

 Flings out his heels io scornful hate ; 

 Nor stops, till at some fountain's side 

 He cools his hright and reeking hide; 

 And thinks how belter off is he ! 

 Thus matchless in his liherty ! 



On meadows green a fellercd slave, 

 He still is proud, sajacions, l.rave ; 

 By him the earth is tilled- the laud 

 Yields generous crops at his command. 

 He leads the advance guard of war ; 

 Brings tidings from all lands a'ar ; 

 Serves faithfully till life is past, 

 And drags vs to the tomb at last! 



The cultivation and use of tea. 



Tea has become an article of such general use, 

 that few persons in our country are ignorant of its 

 color and taste. But many years have not passed, 

 since it was unknown in Europe or Anierica, and 

 some people were so unacquainted with its use, 

 that they at first boiled the tea leaves as they 

 would boil greens. Even now, wlien so much of 

 this article is consumed in the country, many per- 

 sons are ignorant of its culture and the manner of 

 its preparation. 



The tree, or rather shrub, from the leaves of 

 which the beverage called Tea is made, is a native 

 of China and Japan, in which countries alone it is 

 cultivated for use. It is an evergreen, somewhat 

 resembling tlie myrtle in appearance, and grows to 

 a height varying between three and six feet. It is 

 capable of enduring great variations of climate, 

 being cultivated alike in the neighborhood of*Can- 

 ton, where the heat is at times almost insupporta- 

 ble to tlie natives ; and around the walls of Pekin, 

 where the winter is, not unfrequently, as severe as 

 in the north of Europe. 



The best sorts, however, are the production of ii 

 more temperate climate ; the finest teas are said 

 to be grown in the province of Nanking, occupy- 

 ing nearly the middle station between the two e.x- 

 tremes of heat and cold. The greatest portion of 

 what is brought to the Canton market, and sold to 

 the European merchants, is the produce of the hil- 

 ly, but populous and industrious, province of Fo- 

 kien, situated on the seacoast to the north east of 

 Canton. It appears to thrive best in valleys, or on 

 the sloping banks of hills, exposed to the southern 

 sun, and especially on the banks cf rivers or 

 rivulets. 



The first European writer who mentions tea is 

 Giovanni Botero, an eminent Italian author, who 

 published a treatise, about the year 1590, on the 

 magnificence and greatness of cities, lie dues not 

 mention tea by name, but he describes it in such 

 a manner, that it is impossible to mistake it. 

 " The Chinese," he says, " have an herb, out of 

 which they press a delicate juice, wliicli serves 

 them for drink, instead of wine : it also preserves 

 their health, and frees them from all those evils 

 which the iuimoderate use of wine produces amono- 



The tea-plant is propagated from the seed. \ 

 Holes are drilled in the ground at equal distances, 

 and in regular rows ; into each hole the planter , 

 throws as many as six, or even a dozen seeds, not 

 above a fifth part of the seed planted being ex- 

 pected to grow. While coming to maturity, they 

 are carefully watered ; and though, when once out 

 of the ground, they would continue to vegetate 

 without further care, the more industrious cultiva- 

 tors annually ir.anure the ground, and clear the 

 crop fro[n weeds. 



The leaves of the tea-plant are not fit for gath- 

 ering until the third year, at which period they are 

 in their prime, and most plentiful. When about 

 seven years old, the shrub has generally grown to 

 about the height of a man, and its leaves become 

 few and coarse ; it is tlieu generally cut down to 

 the stem, which, in the succeeding summer produ- 

 ces an exuberant crop of fresh shoots and leaves ; 

 this operation, however, is sometimes deferred till 

 the plant is ten years old. 



Tlie process of gathering the tea is one of great 

 nicety and importance'. Each leaf is plucked sep- 

 arately from the stalk ; the hands of the gatherer 

 are kept carefully clean, and, in collecting some 

 of the fine sorts, he hardly ventures to breathe on 

 the plant. At a place called Udsi, in the island 

 of Japan, is a mountain, the climate of which, is 

 supposed to be particularly congenial to the growth 

 of tea, and the whole crop which grows upon it is 

 reserved for the sole use and disposal of the em- 

 peror. A wide and deep ditch round the base of 

 the moutitain prevents all access, except to the ap- 

 pointed guardians of its treasures. The shrubs 

 arc carefully cleansed of dust, and protected from 

 any inclemency of the weather. The laborers who 

 collect the leaves, are obliged, for some weeks 

 previous, to abstain from all gross food, lest their 

 breath or perspiration might injure the flavor ; they 

 wear fine gloves while at work, and during that 

 period bathe two or three times a day. 



Notwithstanding the tediousness of such an op- 

 eration, a laborer can frequently collect from four 

 to ten, or even fifteen pounds a day. Three or 

 four of these gatherings take place during the sea- 

 son; viz: towards the end of Ftbru-iry or begin- 

 ning of March; in April or May; towards the mid- 

 dle of June ; and in August. From the first gath- 

 ering, which consists of the very young and tender 

 leaves only, the most valuable teas are manufac- 

 tured ; viz : the green tea called Gunpowder, and 

 the black tea called Pekoe. 



The produce of the first gatliering is also de- 

 niminated in China, Imperial tea, probably because 

 where the shrub is not cultivated with a view to 

 supplying the demands of the Canton market, it is 

 reserved, either in obedience to the law, or on ac- 

 count of its superior value, for the consumption of 

 the emperoi's court. From tlie second and third 

 crops, are manufactured the green teas called in 

 our shops Hyson and Imperial, and the black teas 

 denominated the Souchong and Cougou. The 

 light and inferior leaves separated from the Hyson 

 by winnowing, form a tea called the Hyson-skin, 

 much in demand by the Americans, who arc also 

 the largest general purchasers of green tea!-. On 

 the other hand, some of the choicest and tenderest 

 leaves of the second gathering, are frequently mix- 

 ed with those of the first. From the fourth crop is 

 manufactured the coarsest species of black tea 

 called Bohea ; and this crop is mixed with an infe- 

 rior tea, grown in a district called Woping, near 



Canton ; together with such tea as remains unsold j 

 in the market of the last season. 



Owing to the minute division of land in China, i 

 there can be kvr, if any, large tea growers ; the ' 

 plantations are small, and the business of them 

 carried on by the owner and his own family, who 

 carry the produce of each picking Immediately to 

 market, where it is disposed of to a class of per- ' 

 sons whose business it is to collect, and dry the ] 

 leaves, ready for the Canton tea-merchants. — Par- j 

 ley's Magazine. j 



A TRUE STORY. 

 There lived some years ago, in the town of 

 — , in Connecticut, a man who was much ad 



dieted to the practice of converting his neighbor's j 

 property to his own use and benefit without ' if 

 or ' and.' The clergyman of the town suspecting ! 

 him of making loo free with his hay, had one night '■. 

 concealed himself in his barn with a dark latern. 1 

 The thief soon appeared and tying up a large bun- ; 

 die, had just left the premises, when the Reverend : 

 owner, instead of bawling out ' You scoundrel you! ' 

 what do you mean by stealing my hay !' disengag- 

 ed the candle from the lantern and dexterously ap- 

 plied it to the cohibustible load. The bundle was; 

 soon in a light blaze, and the unlucky fellow, sus- ; 

 pecting he was pursued by some person with a! 

 light, laid his feet to the ground with uncommon; 

 agility. But it was in vain to escape the pursuing , 

 fire. Thi; blaze increasing brighter as he ran, 1 

 seemed to his terrified imagination to come nearer; 

 till venturing to look around to discover the ex- i 

 tent of his danger, he perceived to his astonish- 1 

 ment, that tlie stolen hay was on fire. How it , 

 came so, puzzled him not a little. But the con- 

 scious guilt assisted his natural credulity, he set-; 

 tied down upon the conclusion that the fire wasi 

 sent from heaven to admonish him of his transgres- 

 sion. Full of this alarming notion he gave him-) 

 self no rest until he had gone to the parson, andl 

 made confession of his crime, and related the' 

 warning from heaven. The Reverend gentleman 

 humored his credulity, under the idea that it might.] 

 reform his life. He was not mistaken ; for the! 

 blazing luiy made so deep an impression on the j 

 fellow's mind, that from henceforth he forsook hiss 

 evil coursej became a valuable member of society,' 

 and was united to the flock of the judicious cler.' 

 gyman who had assisted so inaterially in his refor-j 

 mation. He finally died an honest man, in the firm i 

 belief of the interposition of providence insetting fire' 

 to the stolen hay. The parson kept the secret till' 

 the poor man was laid in the dust, but then evenj 

 the clerical tongue could no longer resist the de-j^ 

 sire 'of commutiicating so serious an incident. ; 



Not bad. — A blacksmith brought up his son,/ 

 to whom he .was very severe, to his trade. Tha; 

 urchin was a most audacious dog. One day the; 

 old gentleman was attempting to harden a cold i 

 chisel which he had made of foreign steel, but h6;! 

 could not succeed. " Horsewhip it, father," eK- < 

 claimed the young one ; " if that will not harden it, J 

 I don't know what wilt." ■ 



THE KEW fc;^■GLA^D FARMF.R ;i 



Is puldished every Wednesday Evening, at S3 per cnnuw i 

 payable at the end of the year — but those who pay within > 

 sixty days from the time of subscribing are entitled to a c'.e- 

 ductionof 59 cents. 



