84 



TEA. 



the willow, and are gathered during the spring and early summer. 

 The annual average yield of a tea plant is about twenty ounces, and 

 too much rain affects the quality as well as the amount. The plants 

 live from twenty to thirty years, and, when old, are frequently cut 

 down, and a young shrub grafted into the old stock. Quicker returns 

 are thus obtained, but the plant does not last so long. The leaves 

 are first exposed in a cool, dry place for a day or two, then rolled into 

 a ball on a table of bamboo slats, and dried in the sun. The rolling 

 is to extract a portion of the juice of the leaves. After they have 

 been dried in the sun, they are put into an egg-shaped iron pan over 

 a charcoal fire, and incessantly stirred until a certain point of dryness 

 is reached. The operator stirs with his hands, thrusting them in all 

 portions of the pan, and practice enables him to dry the leaves almost 

 exactly alike. The raiser superintends this process, and then brings 

 his tea in bamboo baskets to the tea merchant, who adjudges its 

 quality, and buys it at prices ranging from 15 dollars to 20 dollars 

 per picul, of 133^ lbs. The merchant mixes his purchases toge- 

 ther in a large reservoir, and at his convenience weighs out a number 

 of pounds of tea leaves; women and children spread them upon a 

 large stage, and separate the leaves into grades according to quality. 

 The tea stalks are the lowest grade, and the sorters are paid by the 

 number of ounces of stalks they bring in. Children earn from 2d. to 

 6d a day ; the very best workers rarely earn as much as 6cZ. a day. 

 Europeans could hardly live upon such wages, and until other nations 

 can raise tea for 6(i. a pound they cannot compete with China in its 

 production. 



After the sorting each grade is packed by itself in chests or 

 bamboo baskets, the first for exportation and the latter for home con- 

 sumption. It is ordered by importers abroad through a tea-taster, 

 who receives a high salary. 



For Green Tea. — When the leaves are brought in from the planta- 

 tions they are spread out thinly on flat bamboo trays, in order to dry 

 off any superfluous moisture. They remain for a very short time 

 exposed in this manner, generally from one to two hours; this, 

 however, depends much upon the state of the weather. 



In the meantime the roasting pans have been heated with a brisk 

 wood fire. A portion of leaves is now thrown into each pan, and 

 rapidly moved about and shaken up with both hands. They are 

 immediately affected by the heat, begin to make a crackling noise, 

 and become quite moist and flaccid, while at the same time they give 

 out a considerable portion of vapour. They remain in this state for 

 four or five minutes, and are then drawn quickly out and placed upon 

 the rolling table. 



Having been thrown again into the pan, a slow and steady charcoal 

 fii'e is kept up, and the leaves are kept in rapid motion by the hands 

 of workmen. Sometimes they are thrown upon the rattan table and 

 rolled a second time. In about an hour or an hour and a half the 

 leaves are well dried and their colour has become fixed — that is, 

 there is no longer any danger of their becoming black. They are of 

 a dullish green colour, but become brighter afterwards. 



The most particular part of the operation has now been finished, 



