VISIT TO CANTON. 



197 



than 23,892 tea-plants, upwards of 300 chesnut- 

 trees, and a large quantity of other things of great 

 value in India, now growing on the Himalayas, 

 were the results of this year's labours. The rice- 

 paper plant {Aralia papyrifera) presented to me 

 by J. C. Bowring, Esq., of Hongkong, was also 

 introduced to India, and is now a remarkable 

 object of great interest in the Calcutta gardens. 



When the various consignments had been de- 

 spatched, I went up to Canton for a few days 

 before proceeding again to the north, in order if 

 possible to get some reliable information as to the 

 mode of scenting tea, which is only understood 

 and practised at this port with teas destined for 

 the foreign markets. I had been making inquiries 

 for some time past, both of foreigners and Chinese, 

 about this curious process carried on so extensively 

 at Canton ; but the answers and descriptions I re- 

 ceived to my questions were so unsatisfactory, that 

 I gave up all hopes of understanding the process 

 until I had an opportunity of seeing and judging 

 for myself. When I reached Canton I was in- 

 formed the whole process might be seen any day 

 at that season in full operation in a tea-factory on 

 the island of Honan. Messrs. Walkinshaw and 

 Thorburn, two gentlemen well acquainted with 

 the various kinds of teas sent annually to Europe 

 and America, consented to accompany me to this 

 factory, and we took with us the Chinese merchant 

 to whom the place belonged. I was thus placed 

 in a most favourable condition for obtaining a 



p 2 



