238 



TEA DISTRICTS OF CHINA. Chap. XIII. 



hills, and such ground is very plentiful on Woo-e- 

 shan. 



Having been all day toiling amongst the hills, I 

 retired to rest at an early hour. Sing-Hoo told me 

 afterwards that he never closed his eyes during the 

 night. It seems he did not like the appearance of 

 the ill-looking priest ; and having a strong prejudice 

 against the Fokien men, he imagined an attempt 

 might be made to rob or perhaps murder us during 

 the night. No such fears disturbed my rest. I slept 

 soundly until morning dawned, and when I awoke 

 felt quite refreshed, and equal to the fatigues of 

 another day. Calling for some water to be brought 

 me, I indulged in a good wash, a luxury which I 

 could only enjoy once in twenty-four hours. 



During my stay here I met a number of tea- mer- 

 chants from Tsong-gan-hien, who had come up to buy 

 tea from the priests. These men took up their quar- 

 ters in the temples, or rather in the priests' houses 

 adjoining, until they had completed their purchases. 

 Coolies were then sent for, and the tea was conveyed 

 to Tsong-gan-hien, there to be prepared and packed 

 for the foreign markets. 



On the morning of the third day, having seen all 

 that was most interesting in this part of the hills, I 

 determined to change my quarters. As soon as 

 breakfast was over I gave the old priest a present 

 for his kindness, which, although small, seemed to 

 raise me not a little in his esteem. The chair-bearers 

 were then summoned, and we left the hospitable roof 

 of the Buddhist priests to explore more distant parts 



