370 [Assembly 



Mr. Agniar, Consul General of Brazil, presented samples of 

 tea of Brazil which were distributed among the members of the 

 club, who were requested to try and report as to their qualities. 



Judge Van "Wyck observed that our object is to learn how to 

 grow tea in our own country. That Junius Smith, a gentleman 

 of much travel, great experience and worth, has devoted himself 

 to its introduction, and has successfully established a tea planta- 

 tion at Greenville, in South Carolina. He entertains no doubt 

 of the capabilities of large portions of our country, for the pro- 

 duction of tea to any desired amount, as readily as of any of our 

 common plants. It is said, that the best tea in China is that 

 raised near Pekin, 40^ N., and it is cultivated with success 

 from latitude 22° to latitude 45° north, although the latter is 

 rather too far north for the best tea. Mr. Smith believes that it will 

 flourish here, from latitude 35° to 40° north ; that it loves a 

 temperate climate, and we have it here. Certainly, we ought to 

 raise all we want, and thus save the vast sums of money now paid 

 to others for it. Tea is grown in tropical climates, as in Java, 

 and in Brazil, but I don't know whether the qualities are so 

 good. The raising of the plant with us in any quantity is an 

 easy matter, but preparing the leaves of it for use, so as to pay, 

 here is the difficulty, and this may prove small, on carrying the 

 experiment through. Junius Smith deserves the thanks of his 

 country for his devoting so much time, labor and expense to the 

 great purpose of making tea a crop of this Union. 



Mr. Brown. — The Horticultural Society of London, recently 

 sent Mr. Fortune to examine Oriental Botany, and from his ex- 

 amination of the habitat of tea in the East, my impression is de- 

 cidedly that we possess regions so similar, that there will be no 

 difficulty in successful culture of it here — ^but the great difficul- 

 ty will be the cost of preparing it for commerce. We shall have 

 to simplify and cheapen the process by some means cheaper than 

 human hands — and indeed an unpleasant idea occurs, when we 

 reflect that each leaf of tea has been handled, and by what hands ? 

 in many cases. And in handling it, a very corrosive juice is ex- 

 pressed, which acts upon the hands. Yankee ingenuity must 



