Chap. XIII. 
POUCIIING-HIEN. 
215 
many of the lower hills. Whether it be owing to the 
poorness of the soil, or to an inferior mode of manipula- 
tion, I cannot say ; but Pouching teas are not valued 
so highly in the market as those of Woo-e-shan. There 
is no doubt that the plant is the same variety in both 
districts. 
Our road, which had wound amongst hills during 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 inhabit- 
ants. The walls and ramparts 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 Ning-po ; but 
I believe little, if any, is exported. A considerable 
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 produc- 
