Sept,  i,  1892. | 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
i57 
“MIXING”  INDIAN  TEA. 
Adulteration  was  once  called  by  Mr.  John  Brigl.t 
“a  form  of  competition,”  and  a necessary  concomi- 
tant of  English  trace.  We  are  familiar  with  the 
chicory  mixture,  which  some  people  prtfer  to  pure 
coffee  ; but  the  articles  that  are  tampeied  with  to  the 
retailer  are  legion.  The  adulteration  of  tea  has  long 
been  suspected,  and  in  some  cases  the  Inland  Revenue 
aualysts  uave.found  English  sloe-leaves  in  Indian  tea, 
suggesting  a distribution  an  I confusion  of  plants  that 
would  puzzle  Linnsens  himself,  The  newest  ingre- 
dient, however,  calls  up  mixed  feelings.  England  has 
hitherto  got  all  its  tea  from  abroad;  but  dow,  ac- 
cording 10  a mtdical  contemporary,  it  is  to  have  native 
tea.  "Some  of  the  Kent  people,”  it  declares,”  “ have 
made  up  their  mind  that  hops,  which  make  such 
capital  Deer,  will  make  equally  exoeilent  tea.  They 
are  hard  at  work  now  elaborating  a process  of  con- 
vening hops  into  fresh  tea-  eaves.  The  object  of 
this  is  noa  merely  to  givo  ns  an  entirely  new  tea, 
but  to  furuish  us  with  au  article  which  will 
alter  both  the  flavour  and  the  quality  of  the  teas 
we  have  now  in  use.  Hop  tea  alone  is  not  parti- 
cularly agreeable  to  the  unsophisticated  palate,  but 
nei  her  is  beer  or  stout ; and  yet  the  majority  of 
English  people  gradually  aoquire  a very  keen  relish 
for  weil-brewed  beer.  Why  should  they  not  also 
learn  to  appreciate  the  flavour  of  hop  tea?  If  used 
alone,  the  taste  of  the  iuiusion  could  easily  be 
modified  by  the  addition  of  cream,  or  sugar,  or 
other  substance.  But  the  idea  of  the  Kent  bep- 
growers  seems  to  be  to  use  the  hop  as  a qualifier 
and  improver  of  the  common  Iuoian  and  Ghina 
teas.  A Maidstone  correspondent  declares  that  this 
new  outlet  for  Kentish  produoe  is  well-known  in  the 
District. 
The  hops  are  brought  from  the  farmers,  green  as 
they  are  picked.  They  are  then  laid  for  a few  hours 
to  wither,  atter  which  they  are  put  under  a ro  ling 
apparatus,  which  in  half-au-hour  makes  them  look 
like  tea  leaves  both  in  shape  and  colour.  Afterwards 
they  are  passed  through  an  Indn-.n  drying  machine. 
They  are  tLen  sent  to  London  where  they  are  mixed 
with  Indian  and  Ceylon  teas,  and  retailed  at  two- 
aud-sixp. nee  a pound.  As  the  buyers  give  the 
farmers  from  fourpence  to  sixpence  a pound  for 
the  green  hops  the  margin  of  profit  is  respectable. 
Hop  tea  is  a novelty  that  appeals  alike  to  the 
toper  and  the  teetotaller.  Tea,  the  produce  of 
the  Chinese  or  Indian  plant,  has  been  denouuced 
as  a beverage  by  some  medical  men.  It  is  said  to 
affeot  tlie  nerves,  to  I jure  the  digestion,  to  destroy 
the  coats  of  the  stomaoh,  and  to  give  many  men 
and  woman  sleepless  rnghts.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  has  formed  part  of  the  Lares  and  Penates  of  Eng- 
lishwomen lor  many  generations.  The  man  who  always 
comes  home  to  tea  has  been  held  np  to  admiration,  in 
strikmg  oontrasi  to  the  degraded  being  who  preferred 
his  boon  companions  at  the  public-home  to  the  plea- 
sant presenoe  of  his  wife  pouring  out  “ the  cup 
that  cheeis,  but  does  not  inebriate.”  Will  hop 
tea  suffice  to  draw  the  husband  to  the  hearth  again  ? 
Will  he  consider  it  a kind  of  beer  and  relish  it  accord- 
ingly ? It  is  said,  and  we  believe  with  truth,  that 
the  makers  of  all  the  temperance  drinks  infuse  into 
them  a small  percentage  of  alcohol,  just  to  give 'hem 
a relish.  Ltop-leaves  are  not  alonhol,  but  they  will  give 
to  the  homely  onp  of  tea  a quality  that  baa  hitherto 
never  belonged  to  it.  Whatever  tea  is,  bad  or  good, 
it  does  not  tend  to  repose.  It  makes  many  people 
over-wakefnl,  and  is  taken  in  gigantic  doses  by  yonng 
students  reading  for  examinations.  Hops,  however, 
are  distinctly  Darcotic.  The  soporific  effeot  of  a hop- 
pillow  is  an  artiole  of  faith  with  many  persons  ; it 
was  said  to  have  given  George  III.  sleep  when  all 
drugs  failed.  Now,  will  the  hop  tea  from  Kent 
be  really  a soothing  beverage?  At  present  no 
substitute  for  a cup  of  tea  has  been  discovered, 
and  its  utility  for  afternoon  gatherings  bas  given  it 
a new  vogue.  Still,  dooto'B  object  to  its  after 
effeot  on  weak  nerves,  although  they  admit  its 
relieving  and  refreshing  results  for  the  time.  Perhaps 
the  bop  tea,  or  tea  made  from  a mixture  of  the  Kentish 
and  Indian  plants,  will  combine  the  refreshment  of  the 
one  heib  with  the  sleep-giving  effect  of  the  other. 
Perhaps  a lady,  coming  late  from  the  ball,  will  take 
her  enp  of  tea  os  a sleeping  draught,  and  fiud  in  it  not 
only  refreshment,  but  repose.  It  may  be  said  that 
wearers  of  the  blue  ribbon  will  object  to  this  artful 
adulteration,  and  demand  their  Oriental  beverage  pure 
and  free  from  Kentish  admixture.  The  question  of 
intoxicants,  however,  is  not  ut  all  raised.  Hops  mixed 
with  malt  and  fermented  constitute  one  of  the  ingredi- 
ents of  be<.r  ; but  hop-leaves  are  iu  themselves  as 
harmless  as  grapes,  which,  befoie  they  are  made  into 
wiue,  may  be  consumed  by  the  strictest  teetotaller. 
There  is,  however,  one  consideration  not  yet  men- 
tioned. Hop  tea  may,  or  may  not,  be  an  improvement 
on  the  Oriental  drink,  but  why  should  it  not  be  opeuly 
sold  as  such  ? When  we  ask  for  butter  we  do 
not  like  to  get  margarine.  Chicory  in  our  coffeo 
must  be  proclaimed.  Publicans  are  punished  for 
“ craftily  qualifying  ” their  spirits  and  ales.  If 
a thing  is  sold  as  all  wool  or  all  silk  it  should 
not  bo  in  part  alpaca  or  cotton.  Why  then, 
should  Indian  or  China  tea  be  sold  at  two-and-six- 
pence,  if  it  is  half  made  np  of  Kentish  hops  pur- 
chased at  sixpence  a pound  ? Are  English  tea 
merchants  bent  cn  doing  good  by  stealth — bringing 
sleep  to  weary  eyelids — and  would  they  blush  to  find 
it  fame?  Perhaps  the  Inland  Revenue  will  look  to  it. 
The  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer  levies  a duty  on 
tea,  but  if  the  merchant  sells  as  tea  what  is  half 
hops  from  Kent  the  revenue  will  suffer  in  proportion. 
It  is  curious  that  the  revelations  on  this  subject 
always  indicate  that  the  hop-leaves  are  mixed  with 
the  Indian,  not  with  the  Chinese,  plant.  The  ex- 
planation may  be  the  superior  strength  of  the  Indian 
herb  ; also  that  as  far  as  adnlteration  is  concerned, 
the  Chinese  are  masters  of  it,  and  leave  nothing  to 
be  done  by  English  impostors.  Perhaps  our  medical 
men  will  kindly  tell  us  what  would  be  the  effect  of 
hop  tea  largely  taken.  Would  it  be  a beverage  to 
Eoothe  as  well  as  to  refresh  ? As  to  information 
from  those  engaged  in  the  English  trade  we  cannot 
expect  it.  They  will  all  deny  tee  soft  impeachment ; 
for  though  hop-leaves  are  undoubtedly  despatched 
from  Kent  to  be  mixed  with  Indiau  tea-leaves  in 
London,  their  exact  destination  is  a mystery  which 
no  detective  has  yet  founl  out.  Drinkers  of  Indian 
tea  should  probe  the  mystery,  for  they  may  all  be  taking 
hop  tea  without  being  any  the  wiser.  Indian  tea 
has  had  many  enemies  to  contend  against,  and  it 
will  be  straDge,  indeed,  if  the  latest  is  to  be  the 
Kentish  farmer. — Englishman. 
HIGH  RANGE,  NORTH  TRAVANCORE. 
(Fbom  ova  own  Cohresfondent.) 
June  23rd,  1892. 
The  prooeedings  of  the  Tiavancore  Planters'  Asso- 
ciation for  the  year  1891-92  has  only  just  reeohed  us. 
It  is  a reoord  of  much  useful  work  done,  and  con- 
tains a great  deal  of  interesting  information.  The 
Travanoore  Government  have  been  liberal  in  grant- 
ing money  for  roads,  and  R18.000  has  been  sanctioned 
for  18  miles  of  roads  connecting  different  estates 
with  each  other,  and  with  the  main  road.  The  Sircar 
is  taking  steps  for  getting  abandoned  estates  back 
into  their  own  hands,  by  imposing  a tax  on  land, 
which  in  case  of  non-payment  will  be  attaobed  in 
satisfaction  of  arrears. 
It  seems  a great  pity  that  the  proposals  of  the 
South  Mysore  Association  with  regard  to  combination 
among  planters  seems  to  have  fallen  through  alto- 
gether. Who  was  it  that  refused  support?  Every- 
one to  whom  one  talks  seems  eager  to  see  combi- 
nation effected,  and  yet  we  are  to'-d  the  eoheme  falls 
through  for  want  of  support.  The  question  of  the 
registration  of  maistries  seems  likely  to  be  allowed 
to  slide  in  the  same  way.  At  present,  as  far  as  I 
can  gather,  we  are  to  wait  until  we  can  see  the 
result  of  a similar  measure  which  is  in  foroe  in 
Mysore.  At  the  end  of  February,  there  was  a balance 
in  hand  of  R464-6-0,  whioh  is  better  than  last  yea* 
