No. 149.] 365 



France consumes annually less than any other nation, still in 

 1846, 



Prance consumed about . ., 255,000 pounds 



Germany, 2,100,000 " 



Holland, 3,300,000 " 



Russia, 6,600,000 



a 



United States, 10,100,000 " 



British America and West Indies, . . 1 ,600,000 " 



Australia, 256,000 " 



British India, 1 ,100,000 " 



Great Britain, 50,000,000 " 



75,311,000 lbs. 



This vast amount of tea is imported into tiie several countries 

 named, chiefly from China. Still it is cultivated in other coun- 

 tries, and has been for very many years ; and as far back as 1793, 

 Lord Macartney obtained tea plants from China, and had tliem 

 planted in Bengal. And to some extent tea has been obtained in 

 India, particularly in the Nepaul country, where not only the 

 climate but the soil lias been found particularly favorable. 



Mr. Royle in his " Illustrations of the Natural History of the 

 Hiniala and Casliraere," has published much collected informa- 

 tion respecting the tea plant, and upon the conditions wliich re- 

 late to the vegetation and cultivatioU of these plants in China ; 

 and finally, Mr. Royle came to the conclusion, that tlie Himala 

 country enjoyed the proper climate, elevation, soil and latitude 

 to grow the tea plant to great perfection. 



Assam is a hilly country, with a fine temperate climate, 

 suitable to tea culture. Java, Rio Janeiro, and Brazil, have like- 

 wise tea plantations within their' boundaries ; and the only draw- 

 back thus far, appears to be the high price of human labor in tlie 

 diiferent countries that have attempted its culture. If notwith- 

 standing all these difficulties, our countrj^men undertake its cul- 

 tivation, between the 34th and 36th degrees of latitude, which 

 climate is admirably ada])ted to its requirements, it will not be 

 long before some ingenious eastern man will invent a machine 

 for gathering, drying, and curling, at a mere nominal cost. 



