Chap. XVL TEA FROM PONGAMIA GLABRA. 



275 



friends to witness the operation. I told the Chinese 

 what was proposed, and desired them to unpack a 

 sufficient number of implements for the purpose. 

 This was soon done, a little furnace built, and two 

 pans fixed above the fireplaces, exactly as they are 

 seen in the manufactories in China. 



Thus far everything went on well, but where were 

 the tea-leaves to be procured ? There were none in 

 the Calcutta garden, nor in any place nearer than the 

 Himalayas. " How can we make tea without tea- 

 leaves ?" said the astonished Chinamen. I now ex- 

 plained to them that Dr. Falconer and his friends 

 wanted to see the mode of manipulation only, that the 

 article so made was to look at, not to drink, and that 

 they must go out into the garden and try to find a 

 substitute for tea-leaves. This explanation being 

 deemed satisfactory, they went out to examine the 

 trees of the garden. In a short space of time they 

 returned bringing several parcels of leaves, one of 

 which proved to belong to Pongamia glabra, and 

 seemed the most likely to suit the purpose. Orders 

 were now given to some of the natives to collect a 

 large quantity of these leaves and bring them into 

 the room which had been fitted up for the occasion. 



In the mean time the Chinamen had the fires lighted 

 and everything in readiness to commence operations. 

 The leaves were now thrown into the pans and heated 

 for a few minutes, then taken out and rolled, then 

 shaken out thinly on bamboo trays to dry off the super- 

 fluous moisture, and finally thrown again into the pans 

 and tossed about by the hand until perfectly twisted 



T 2 



