252 



TEA DISTRICTS OF CHINA. 



Chap. XIV. 



the whole of the day after we left the little town of 

 She-pa-ky, now led us into a wide and beautiful 

 valley, in the centre of which appeared the town of 

 Pouching-hien. A pretty river, one of the tributaries 

 of the Min, passes by its walls ; a bridge is thrown 

 over it at this point. The suburbs were rather poor 

 in appearance, and indeed the whole place did not 

 strike me as being one of very great importance. It is 

 more like a country market-town than anything else. 

 I believe it is supposed to contain about a hundred 

 and fifty thousand inhabitants. The walls and ram- 

 parts are apparently of a very ancient date ; they 

 are completely overgrown with weeds and straggling 

 bushes, and are surrounded by a canal or moat, as is 

 the case with many other Chinese towns. 



A considerable trade in tea is carried on here. It is 

 packed in baskets and sent across the mountains into 

 Chekiang, from whence it finds its way down the 

 rivers to Hang-chow-foo, Soo-chow-foo, and ISTing-po ; 

 but I believe little, if any, is exported. A consider- 

 able portion is also sent down the river Min to 

 Foo-chow-foo. 



As I had left behind me the great black-tea 

 countries of China, which have been long famed for 

 the production of the best black teas of commerce, 

 this seems a fit opportunity, before proceeding with 

 the narrative of my " adventures," to condense into 

 the next few pages all the information connected 

 with tea which I have gleaned during my journey. 



