CrrAP. VIIL 



GREEN INDIGO. 



163 



tiful blue colour. In this state it is packed in 

 baskets, and exj)osed for sale in all the country 

 towns in this part of China. What its intrinsic 

 value may be when compared with the indigo 

 of commerce, I have no means of ascertaining, but 

 it is largely used in this part of the world, where 

 blue is the most fashionable colour, judging from 

 the dresses of the people. And it is possible that 

 with our knowledge of chemistry a colour of this 

 kind might be greatly improved. After being 

 grown and manufactured as I have described, 

 it is sold at rates varying from 50 to 100 cash 

 a catty, say from 2d, to 4,d. per lb. Some is sold 

 as low as 30 cash, but this is very inferior ; the 

 greater part produced is sold at from 60 to 

 80 cash a catty, and it must be of a very superior 

 quality if 100 cash is paid. Like the Shanghae 

 indigo made from Isatis indigotica, it is called 

 " Tien-ching" by the Chinese. While upon the 

 subject of Chinese dyes, I shall now give some 

 account of the " green in,digo," which has been 

 attracting much notice lately both in India and in 

 Europe. 



A portion of cotton cloth obtained in China by 

 the French manufacturers, being greatly admired 

 on account of the peculiar green of its dye, was 

 submitted to the celebrated chemist M. Persoz. 

 with a request that he would endeavour to ascer- 

 tain the composition of the green colour. The 

 following is a translation of his report upon this 

 subject to the Academy of Sciences : — 



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