TEA. 



85 



and the tea may be put aside until a larger quantity has been made. 

 The second part of the process consists in winnowing and passing 

 the tea through sieves of different sizes, in order to get rid of the 

 dust and other impurities, and to divide the tea into the different 

 kinds known as twankay, hyson skin, hyson, young hyson, gun- 

 powder, &c. During this process it is refired, 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 are of a dull 

 bluish green. 



It will be observed, then, with reference to green tea — 1st, that the 

 leaves are roasted almost immediately after they are gathered ; and 

 2nd, that they are dried off quickly after the rolling process. 



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

 tions 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 beat 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 examined at the end of this time, they appear to have under- 

 gone 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 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 table, 

 worked and greatly compressed, the object being to get rid of 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 hand until they reach the head workman, who examines them 

 carefully to see if they have taken the requisite twist. When he is 

 satisfied of this, the leaves are removed from the rolling table and 

 shaken out upon flat trays, until the remaining portions have under- 

 gone the same process. In no case are they allowed to lie long in 

 this state, and sometimes they are taken at once to the roasting pan. 



The next part of the process is exactly the same as in the manipu- 

 lation 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 geuerally seen in front of all the cottages amongst 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 rotation, 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 



