268 Dr. Cantor on the Flora and Fauna of Chusan* 



millet), Polygonum, of which several species are cultivated, 

 one of them for the sake of the blue dye it yields, Job's-tears 

 (Coix Lachryma), and maize. Of vegetables, Convolvulus Ba- 

 tatas (sweet potatoe) seems to be the greatest favourite with 

 the Chinese ; also Solatium Melongena (brinjol), Chenopodiwm 

 (spinach), Nelumbium, Cucurbita maxima (pumpkin), water- 

 melons, ginger, and turnips. Of fruit-trees, apples, pears, 

 quinces, peaches, walnuts, grapes and citrons. Although both 

 fruit and vegetables thrive remarkably well, they are of a 

 very inferior description ; rice, the staff of life, has engrossed 

 all the care of the Chinese agriculturist, who looks upon all 

 other objects of cultivation as secondary. There seems how- 

 ever to be every reason to believe that most European sorts 

 of grain, vegetables and fruit would succeed at Chusan. 



To the former vegetable productions are to be added, TJiea 

 sinensis, Stillingia sebifera,ElceococcusVernicia, and Nicotiana. 

 Tea is grown exclusively for the consumption of the inhabi- 

 tants, and most of the houses and farms have either small 

 plots allotted to the shrub, or it is planted in hedges or on the 

 fine stone walls with which the houses are commonly sur- 

 rounded. The shrub was in flower in July, had ripe fruit at 

 the end of September, and flowered again at the commence- 

 ment of November. The tea at Chusan when seen in leaves 

 was even by judges considered to be of the black kind, but 

 when made into infusion its colour and flavour were those of 

 the green kind. On my inquiries from the farmers whether 

 they made black and green tea indiscriminately from the same 

 shrub, I was invariably told they gathered the leaves and pre- 

 pared them, such as they were, without paying any further 

 attention. The fact is, they are evidently not initiated in the 

 secrets of the manufacturing districts, and their tea is of such 

 inferior quality that it cannot form an article of commerce. A 

 gentleman of one of the commercial firms in Macao, who vi- 

 sited Chusan during our first occupation, informed me that 

 with great trouble he had contrived to collect some ninety 

 pounds of tea on the island, for which he paid a price far be- 

 yond its value, solely with a view to encourage the inhabitants 

 to establish commercial intercourse. 



The fresh leaf is coarse and nearly inches in length. 

 The capsules either contain a single seed, and their outline is 

 then circular ; or two seeds, which make the outline resemble 

 the Arabic character of number 8 ; or seldom three, in which 

 case the outline acquires a blunt triangular shape. 



Stillingia sebifera is cultivated to a considerable extent for 

 the sake of the tallow-like matter which covers the ripe fruit. 



