312 that's it 



a dullish green colour, but become brighter 

 afterwards. 



The most particular part of the operation 

 has now been finished, and the tea may be put 

 aside until a larger quantity has been made. 

 The second part of the process consists in win- 

 noicing and passing the 

 tea through sieves, 17, 

 of different sizes, in 

 order to get rid of the 

 dust and other impuri- 

 ties, and to divide the 

 tea into the different 

 kinds known as twan- 

 kay, hyson-skin, hy- 

 son, young hyson, gun- 

 powder, &c. Daring 

 this process it is re- 

 fired— the coarse kinds 

 once, and the finer 

 sorts three or four 

 times. By this time 

 the colour has come 

 out more fully, and the 

 leaves of the finer kinds 

 cr ' are of a dull bluish 



BdU green. 

 For Black Tea.— When the leaves are brought 

 in from the plantations, 18, they are spread out 

 upon large bamboo mats or trays, and are 

 allowed to lie in this state for a considerable 

 time. If they are brought in at night they lie 

 until next morning. 



The leaves are next gathered up by the 

 workmen with both hands, thrown into the air, 

 and allowed to separate and fall down again. 

 They are tossed about in this manner, and 

 slightly beaten or patted with the hands, for a 

 considerable space of time. At length, when 

 they become soft and flaccid, they are thrown 

 in heaps, and allowed to lie in this state for about 

 an hour, or perhaps a little longer. When exa- 

 mined at the end of this time, they appear to 

 have undergone a slight change in colour, are 

 soft and moist, and emit a fragrant smell. 



The rolling process now commences. Several 

 men take their stations at the rolling table, 19, 

 and divide the leaves amongst them. Each 

 takes as many as he can press with his hands, 

 and makes them up in the form of a ball. 

 This is rolled upon the rattan -worked table, and 

 greatly compressed, the object being to get rid 

 sf a portion of the sap and moisture, and at 



the same time to twist the leaves. These balls 

 of leaves are frequently shaken out, and passed 

 from hand to in 

 hand until they ' L J 



reach the head 

 workman, who 

 examines them 

 carefully to see 

 if they have 

 taken the re- 

 quisite twist. 

 When he is sa- 

 tisfied of this, 

 the leaves are 

 removed from 

 the rolling- 

 table, and 

 shaken out 

 upon flat trays, 

 until the re- 

 maining por- 

 tions have un- 

 dergone the 

 same process. 

 In no case are 



8G2. 



they allowed to lie long in this state, and some- 

 times they are taken at once to the roasting- 

 pan. 



The next part of the process is exactly the 

 same as in the manipulation of green tea. 

 The leaves are thrown into an iron pan, where 

 they are roasted for about five minutes, and 

 then rolled upon the rattan-table. 



After being rolled, the leaves are shaken out 

 thinly on sieves, and exposed to the air out of 

 doors. A framework for this purpose, made 

 of bamboo, is generally seen in front of all the 

 cottages among the tea hills. The leaves are 

 allowed to remain in this condition for about 

 three hours : during this time the workmen 

 are employed in going over the sieves in rota- 

 tion, turning the leaves, and separating them 

 from each other. A fine dry day, when the 

 sun is not too bright, seems to be preferred for 

 this part of the operation. 



The leaves having now lost a large portion of 

 their moisture, and having become considerably 

 reduced in size, are removed into the factory. 

 They are pufc a second time into the roasting- 

 pan for three or four minutes, and taken out 

 and rolled as before. 



The charcoal fires are now got ready. A 

 tubular basket, narrow at the middle and wide 

 at both ends, is placed over the fire. A sieve is 

 dropped into this tube, and covered with leaves, 

 which are shaken on it to about an inch in 

 thickness After five or six minutes, during 

 which time they are carefully watched, they 

 are removed from the fire, and rolled a third 

 time. As the balls of leaves come from the 

 hands of the rollers, they are placed in a heap 

 until the whole have been rolled. They are 

 again shaken on the sieves as before, and set 

 over the fire for a little while longer. Some- 

 times the last operation, namely, heating and 

 rolling, is repeated a fourth time ; the leaves 

 have now assumed a dark colour. 



When the whole have been gone over in this 

 manner, they *re placed thickly in the baskets t 

 which are again set over the charcOal fire. 

 The workman now makes a hole with his hand 

 through the centre of the leaves, to allow vent 

 to any smoke or vapour which may rise from 

 the charcoal, as well as to let up the heat, 



