141 
said to go w Yünnan Fu, and there to be made up into balls as big as a 
man’s head, for the Court at Peking. The next quality is called “ pai 
chien " or “hsi ch‘a,” and is sent in small quantities to many parts of 
the empire, where very high prices are paid for 
he tea m ald at Ssü-mao is for the most part of the second 
ee a ie. “san ch‘a.” During the season, which extends from 
to Bebtiuibef, the leaf frr ‘the lower levels is picked, rolled, 
dried, and sent to Ssü-mao, packed on the backs of oxen; there it is 
sorted out into heaps according to quality. The manufacture of the 
leaf into the familiar cake of P*u-érh tea, well known all over West 
China, goes on all the year round. I saw the process, which is very 
Spring Thunder." A large round iron boiler, of the well known eene 
pattern, is covered by a wooden barrel, held in position by a 
stone, so that a vigorous jet of steam issues from a single vent ac the 
top. N à 
that the tea is permeated by steam. ter about a minute the vessel is 
removed and the tea poured into a cotton bag, the ends of which are 
wound round and squeezed into a Jump in the middle of the cake. The 
tion in the centre. ‘The cake is then placed in a rack to cool. When 
cold the bag is removed, and the cake is in the condition of the P‘u-érh 
tea of commerce.  * ame process is said to be followed at the hills. 
In mi e of the particular tea of which I watched the manufacture, 
the aeo of Ssü-mao tea, that goes to Ssü-ch*uan, four description 
i lea d 
take up a conspicuous position on the € = the cake, while the 
coarsest sort was carefully billeted in the ce No. 1 was “ pai- 
chien; " Nos. 2 and 3 were from the smaller hills i in the n PEDE 
of I-bang and I-wu, called * so-pien " (what is at the side); and No. 4 
came from the plain of Me-khong, and was probably wild tea, from 
which the coarsest leaves had been sorted. 
It will surprise no one acquainted with China that the rule that the 
best tea is to be made up at the hills is very badly observed. What 
rule is not? In fact, the merchant Thunder, managing partner of the 
ew Spring Thunder House, told me that No. 1 was from I-wu. The 
eems to come from one place or to be of one quality. T ily way 
to get an idea of the trade is to make very broad TRAE epei "Take en 
in this way P*u-érh tea may be divided into five classes, viz. :— 
1 
vi 
. The finest tea, called ** mao-chien,” “ ya ch‘a,” &c. This is mad 
in small quantities at ed rus and I could get neither reliable liara 
as to price nor specim 
2. Tea of good qüatity called “hsi chía," t of which there is a 
large export to other provinces through Y ünn n F u, especially to Ssü- 
ch'uan. The tea or. which I watched the manufacture, as pie 
3. s Ping lao,” this is * so-pien" tea, just as ; it is ied without 
being sorted. Sent to I-hsi or Western Yünnan (Ta-li Fu, Yung- 
chang Fu, &c.) (specimen sent to In dia). 
4. Inferior tea, made chiefly at Ssü-mao, and consumed in the province 
of Yünnan. 
