216 
NATORE 
[Fuly 14, 1870 
younger ones gathered from the tops of the plants. The 
lower qualities of this tea are almost all coloured artifi- 
cially, and many contain no perfect or whole leaf at all, 
but are made up of broken tea-leaves ; 4s. 6d. per Ib. 
may be considered a fair price for a good quality Gun- 
powder tea. In Hyson the leaf is longer than Gunpowder ; 
it is mostly composed of the true leaf, but is very fre- 
quently artificially coloured. 
Oolong is really a green tea, but with so black an 
appearance that its colour is only developed by putting it 
in hot water. It is artificially scented, and is used for 
mixing with other kinds of tea. 
The cultivation of tea in Assam has sent several good 
kinds into our markets, the Cohgou, Souchong, and 
Flowery Pekoe of these plantations being, as hitherto 
imported, all genuine teas. We regret, however, to see 
that in the course of the past few weeks a quantity of 
artificially coloured green tea has been imported from the 
Indian plantations. Many of the Assam teas have a fine 
malty flavour, which is so much esteemed that it is fre- 
quently imitated and imparted to other teas in London. 
A great deal that has been said and written for many 
years past on the subject of adulteration of food we are 
bound to admit as truth, but, on the other hand, there has 
Fic. 1.—Tea (Thea chinensis, L.) 
been some exaggeration. With regard to tea, the great 
demand amongst all classes has led to a very keen com- 
petition, not only amongst retail dealers, but also amongst 
importers themselves. The system of mixing inferior 
articles with those of better quality must not be wholly 
laid to the charge of the British tradesman or merchant, 
for the natives of the several countries producing the 
various commercial products, practise a great amount of 
deception. The importation of several chests of such 
rubbish as the “fine Moning Congou,” about which so 
- much talk was made a few weeks since, as well as the 
numerous cargoes of “tea-dust,” a sample of which is 
now before us, composed of small fragments of various 
kinds of vegetable matter and other substances, with little 
or no tea, are proofs that others than the retail dealers 
are the most culpable. We are ashamed to own that in 
many instances this system of deception has been taught 
the natives by our own countrymen; but such is not 
always the case, and other articles besides tea, as we 
shall have occasion to show in the course of these papers, 
are equally subject to native adulteration. A system of 
manufacture of spurious tea, called “ Lie Tea,” is openly 
known to exist in China, and was at one time profitably 
carried on in England. It consisted in converting the 
leaves of numerous plants into imitation tea for the 
purposes of adulteration, Though teas of varied 
qualities are imported from China, those of the very 
finest kinds seldom leave the country, except a small 
quantity which is carried overland to Russia, where 
they sell for as much as 50s. per lb., and the same 
price is even paid by the princes and mandarins of 
China in the very country where the tea is produced. It 
is said that these fine teas would deteriorate in quality in 
such a journey as that from China to England, A fine 
variety of Assam tea called Flowery Pekoe, is now chiefly 
imported for the Russian trade, very little of it being 
sold in this country. It is worth about 7s. 6d. per lb., 
consequently there is little demand for it. Though the 
Russians boast, and with good reason, of the quality of 
their tea, a vast quantity of rubbish is sent to that country 
from China for consumption by the poorer classes. This 
is known as Brick Tea, and is frequently made up of the 
sweepings of the manufactories and warehouses mixed with 
bullock’s blood and other refuse, and compressed into 
hard cakes or bricks ; for use ithas to be boiled. In some 
parts of India the natives use a similar kind of brick tea, 
making, instead of a clear infusion, a thick kind of drink 
more like soup. 
Fic, 2.—Leaf of the Tea Plant—natural size ot a full-grown leaf. 
Tea contains an active principle called “ theine” and 
a volatile oil, it also contains about fifteen per cent. of 
gluten or nutritive matter, and about twenty-five per cent. 
of tannin or astringent matter. The effect of theine upon 
the human system is to excite the brain to greater activity, 
but whether or not it soothes the vascular system by pre- 
venting the rapid waste of the body, is a point upon 
which physiologists are not quite agreed. Theine, how- 
ever, if taken in excessive quantities produces tremblings, 
irritability, and wandering thoughts, it has been recom- 
mended that when these symptoms show themselves, 
cocoa should be used as a beverage for a few days. The 
volatile oil is narcotic and intoxicating ; it is to this oil 
that the flavour and odour of tea are due, it is of course 
present in larger quantities in new teas than in old, there- 
fore the fresher the teas are the fuller is their flavour 
and odour, consequently no kind of tea improves by 
being kept exposed to the air or even in paper, so that 
tea weighed at the time of purchase should be preferred 
to that sold in packets, the buyers of such tea having to 
risk the length of time it has been packed ; and, more- 
over, the teas themselves are usually of an inferior 
description. 
