646 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[March i, 1892. 
was, and sent by sea from Batavia to Cheribon ; and 
this idea cansed me to apply for information to the 
controller of customs, when I landed at Cheribon. 
This official, Hoor A. K. J. Kafier, explained to me 
that the landing of Java lea at his port of residence 
had attracted his attention, and that he had insti- 
tuted successful inquiries regarding tlio circumstance. 
I learnt from Heer Koffor that at that time there 
were six tea factories in Cheribon, the chief place in 
the Residency of that name, where Java teaolinfOTior 
quality was so manipulated that it was converted in to 
a superior kind of China tea, and the difference in the 
selling prices of tlio two kinds of tea forms tho cause 
of the extent attained by this industry. 
An import duty of 20 cents per kilo (or about 10 
cents (of a guilder), is levied on tea from China ; 
whilst Java tea is duty free from any port of Nother- 
iands-India to another. 
From tho nature of tho case the Cheribon tea 
alteration at Cheribon is in the hands of tho Chinese. 
Large quantities of tho prepared produce of tho tea 
plantations in tlie West Preanger and Buitonzorg dis- 
tricts, of a quality unsaleable in tho European market, 
finds eager buyers in the Chinamen of Cheribon, who 
transport it to that placo viA Tandjoi^-Priok. This 
product undergoes a manipulation at Cheribon which 
improves it to such an extent that none but good 
tea connoisseurs can distinguish it from the inferior 
■orts of real China tea. 
Heer Kaffer states that tho native population 
forms the largest number of consumers of tins worked- 
np tea, the packing of which is such that when it leaves 
Cheribon ft is impossible to distinguish it from that 
which contains the tea which comes from China. 
For the packing there is an establishment at Chori- 
bon whore the olicsts are made, and another for the 
preparation of the leaden lining, ns well as a 
printing press for tho labels for the separate small 
packages; tho paper in which they are put up comes 
from China, os weil as the gilt thread for tying 
them. Each package holds about the tenth of a 
katti. The chests are packed in bamboo baskets, 
which contain either one chest of 20 kattis, -1 chests 
of 6 kattis, or 8 chests of H kattis each. The iast 
mentioned finds the readiest sale. According to our 
above-mentioned informant tho small chests holding 
2^ kattis are sold at Cheribon for a guilder a 
piece wholesale, and tho larger packages at the 
same rate per katti. For superior qualities the 
price is naturally higher, as the Chinese, by their 
mode of working, obtain tea of variosie qualities. 
The profits of the China tca-altcratien industry 
are so great that the Chinamen in the Residency of 
legal have commenced competition. In a short time 
alieady (our factories have been established in Tegal for 
the conversion of Java tea into so-called China tea. In 
September last when I was on board of the “ Van 
Goens" in TegiU roods, 1 witnessed tlie landing of 
about sixty large packages of tea from Batavia landed 
at Tegal in praus. There is no saying to what ex- 
tent this industry will reach in the Eastern residencies, 
especially when the natives shall bo induced by 
advances of money (tom the Chinese to cultivate tea 
for them. That the large sale of this Java-China 
tea, as I may call it, amongst the population has 
an injurious effect on the public revenue is evident. 
The records of tho Cheribon custom house already 
establish the fact that the import of China ten has 
been of late yearly diminishing. There is nothing 
fraudulent in the circumstance of improving the 
quality of the tea by a peculiar method of prepara- 
tion or re-preparation; the fraud consists in the 
sale of the improved article as the produce of Ching 
as testified by the tickets and labels on the chests and 
packages. The translation of these (from the Chinese) 
which follows hereaffcik, is due to the kisdness of the 
Heer W. F. Groeueveldt. On tho front and back of 
the chests the writing is the same, tho name of the 
seller Chintuhun is inscribed in large letters, and in 
smaller characters stands “fine tea from the Thai 
mountains.” On the top of tho chest the words “fine 
tea, Kimhoiig sort”— being the name given to the sort 
of tea. On each small packet stands the same in 
black tetters and above this inscription is printed in 
led letters “selected first quality” with tho mark of 
the seller. In each chest on the tea lead is placed a 
red paper with a printed notice in black letters of 
which the following is a translation: — 
“The undersigned, Ang Chin Chung, goes himself 
every year to tho renowned Bu-hie mountains* in tho 
early spring for the purpose of selecting fine kinds 
of tea pure and sweet in taste and smell; this tea 
is immediately packed to be sold far and near. 
“Now there ore shameless follows (schaamtoloozo 
kerols), who actuated by an Unwarrantable thirst for 
aiii have counterfeited my marks, and have thus 
eceivod the public. 
“ I therefore req^uost my honored customers to be 
f ileased to note that I have, to provide against this, 
lad a red mark printed obliquely across each packet — 
this is the true packing — and it is found as described, 
there cun be no mistake. Bpring of 1886. 
“Respectful notification by the seller.” 
The Chinese of Cheribon attributo, what to their 
taste is, the inferiority of tho Java tea first to its pre- 
paration by means of machinery, and secondly to 
the absence of perfume, because the flowers which 
serve in China are not made use of. If they could 
obtain the fresh tea leaves, they would bo in a 
position to moke a still closer approach to the real 
China tea, than they can do by working up already 
prepared tea. Thereioro some of them have entered 
into contracts with certain tea plantations in the 
Sumedang districts for tho supply of fresh loaf or 
leaves partially prepared to be delivered at Cberibon. 
Lately the following circumstance was mentioned 
to me: — 
As is well-known the tea bush has to bo pruned, 
when the branches become too long, the prunings 
serve to make manure, and locally have no other 
value. A Chinaman of Tegal, however, made a bid to 
a tea planter of the Buitonzorg district of 2} cents 
for the prunings of each tree with tho object of 
transporting the leaves to Tegal. I do not know what 
preparation such tea leaves were to undergo at 
Cheribon or Tegal. 
The Heer Kaffer describes the process to which the 
prepared tea is subjected as follows : — 
As soon ns the tea arrives and is unpacked a portion 
of it is mixed with flowers, after which the mixture is 
covered over with blankets or gunny bags for one 
night in such a way as to exclude the outer air. 
The proportion of flowers to the ten is from 5 to 
10 litres of flowers to 1 hectolitre of ton. Those quai» 
titles mixed togeiher ore just sufficient to till n 
drying basket. Tho day after tho flowers have 
been mixed with the tea the whole is dried together. 
The drying basket in which the further preparation 
is effected, is of interwoven bamboo, and has the form 
of two truncated cones, the smaller sections being 
joined together, so that the upper portion is 
of tho same size as tho base, gradually narrow- 
ing from top and bottom to the middle. The 
basket is divided into two equal portions by a 
partition forming a sieve. Tho upper portion is 
of sufficient capacity to hold the mixtime above- 
mentioned, whimt the lower portion remains empty. 
The whole is placed over a charcoal fire made on the 
floor, and covered with a thick layer of ashes, so 
that only a moderate warmth radiates, sufficient how- 
ever to dry the tea thoroughly. The more slowly 
the drying is effected, the better tho quality of the 
produce obtained. This drying lasts from 3 
to 6 hours. Simultaneously witn^ the ^ drying of 
tile mixture of tea and flowers in this manner, 
a similar process is carried on with another portion 
of the same lot of tea, that has not boon mixed 
with flowers, and with which the upper divisions of 
three drying baskets of similar size are filled. 
On tho completion of tho drying process which 
occupies the same time for aU four portions, the 
baskets are taken off tho fire, and the contents ct 
the three last mentioned are intimately mixed with 
those of tho first, from which last the flowers 
have been, for the most port, carefully removed. 
The tea is then ready for packing. The flow/?® 
used in this mode of preparation, are tti* 
» Tho so-called Bohoa mountains in the Frov iuoa 
of Hokkicu (China)- 
