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Title: Tea, its history and mystery
Author: Joseph M. Walsh
Release date: December 4, 2023 [eBook #72306]
Language: English
Original publication: United States: Henry T. Coates & Co, 1892
Credits: Steve Mattern, Gísli Valgeirsson and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TEA, ITS HISTORY AND MYSTERY ***
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TEA
—ITS—
HISTORY AND MYSTERY
—BY—
JOSEPH M. WALSH,
AUTHOR OF
“COFFEE, ITS HISTORY, CLASSIFICATION AND
DESCRIPTION.”
--------------
PHILADELPHIA:
HENRY T. COATES & CO.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1892,
BY
JOSEPH M. WALSH.
-------
_All Rights Reserved._
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PREFATORY.
--------------
Utility, not originality, has been aimed at in the compilation of this
work. The obstacles and difficulties its author had met with in his
endeavors to learn something of the article he was commissioned to sell
when he first entered the Tea trade, the almost total lack of knowledge
displayed by the average dealer in the commodity, allied to the numerous
inquiries for a work containing “all about tea,” first prompted the
undertaking.
The material was collated at intervals, in a fragmentary manner,
covering a period of over twenty years, and arranged amid the many
interruptions incident to an active business life, subjected to constant
revisions, repeated prunings and innumerable corrections, due mainly to
the varying statements and conflicting opinions of admitted authorities
in every branch of the subject. Still, as careful and judicious an
arrangement of the data has been given as possible, a faithful effort
being made to omit nothing that may prove useful, instructive or
profitable to the expert, the dealer or general reader.
Aware that many facts have been omitted, and many errors committed in
its preparation, he still trusts that the pains he has taken to avoid
both have not been in vain, that the former may be few, and the latter
of no great importance. The work was compiled under impulse, not under
inducement, a single line not being intended originally for the market,
and is now being published solely for the benefit of those “whom it may
concern.”
PHILADELPHIA, December, 1892.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTENTS.
--------------
Chapter Page
I. EARLY HISTORY 9-28
II. GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION 29-35
III. BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND FORM 37-49
IV. CULTIVATION AND PREPARATION 51-68
V. CLASSIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION 69-132
VI. ADULTERATION AND DETECTION 133-157
VII. TESTING, BLENDING AND PREPARING 159-204
VIII. CHEMICAL, MEDICAL AND DIETICAL PROPERTIES 205-235
IX. WORLD’S PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION 237-252
X. TEA CULTURE, A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY 253-265
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
(Branch of Tea Plant.)
]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER I.
EARLY HISTORY.
--------------
The history of Tea is intimately bound up with that of China, that is,
so far as the Western world is concerned, its production and consumption
being for centuries confined to that country. But, having within the
past two centuries become known and almost indispensable as an article
of diet in every civilized country of the globe, it cannot but prove
interesting to inquire into the progress, properties and effects of a
commodity which could have induced so large a portion of mankind to
abandon so many other articles of diet in its favor, as well as the
results of its present enormous consumption.
Although now to be found in a wild state in the mountain-ranges of
Assam, and in a state of cultivation through a wide range from India to
Japan, the original country of Tea is not definitely known, but from the
fact of its being in use in China from the earliest times it is commonly
attributed to that country. Yet though claimed to have been known in
China long anterior to the Christian era, and even said to have been
mentioned in the _Sao-Pao_, published 2700 B. C., and also in the _Rye_,
600 B. C., the exact date or manner of its first discovery and use in
that country is still in doubt. One writer claims that the famous herb
was cultivated and classified in China 2000 B. C., almost as completely
as it is to-day, and that it was used as a means of promoting amity
between Eastern monarchs and potentates at this early period. Chin-Nung,
a celebrated scholar and philosopher, who existed long before Confucius,
is claimed to have said of it: “Tea is better than wine, for it leadeth
not to intoxication, neither does it cause a man to say foolish things
and repent thereof in his sober moments. It is better than water, for it
doth not carry disease; neither doth it act as a poison, as doth water
when the wells contain foul and rotten matter,” and Confucius admonishes
his followers to: “Be good and courteous to all, even to the stranger
from other lands. If he say unto thee that he thirsteth give unto him _a
cup of warm Tea_ without money and without price.”
A Chinese legend ascribes its first discovery to one Darma, a
missionary, famed throughout the East for his religious zeal, who, in
order to set an example of piety to his followers, imposed on himself
various privations, among which was that of forswearing sleep. After
some days and nights passed in this austere manner, he was overcome and
involuntarily fell into a deep slumber, on awakening from which he was
so distressed at having violated his vow, and in order to prevent a
repetition of allowing “tired eyelids to rest on tired eyes,” he cut off
the offending portions and flung them to the ground. On returning the
next day, he discovered that they had undergone a strange metamorphosis,
becoming changed into a shrub, the like of which had never been seen
before. Plucking some of the leaves and chewing them he found his
spirits singularly exhilarated, and his former vigor so much restored
that he immediately recommended the newly discovered boon to his
disciples.
Tradition, on the other hand, never at a loss for some marvelous story,
but with more plausibility, claims that the use of Tea was first
discovered accidentally in China by some Buddhist priests, who, unable
to use the brackish water near their temple, steeped in it the leaves of
a shrub, growing in the vicinity, with the intention of correcting its
unpleasant properties. The experiment was so successful that they
informed the inhabitants of their discovery, subsequently cultivating
the plant extensively for that express purpose. While another record
attributes its first discovery about 2737 B. C. to the aforementioned
Chin-Nung, to whom all agricultural and medicinal knowledge is traced in
China. In replenishing a fire made of the branches of the Tea plant,
some of the leaves fell into the vessel in which he was boiling water
for his evening meal. Upon using it he found it to be so exciting and
exhilarating in its effects that he continued to use it; imparting the
knowledge thus gained to others, its use soon spread throughout the
country.
These accounts connected with the first discovery of the Tea plant in
China are purely fabulous, and it is not until we come down to the
fourth century of the Christian era that we can trace any positive
allusion to it by a Chinese writer. But, as the early history of nearly
every other ancient discovery is more or less vitiated by fable, we
ought not to be any more fastidious or less indulgent towards the
marvelous in the discovery of Tea than we are towards that of fire,
iron, glass or coffee. The main facts may be true, though the details be
incorrect; and, though the accidental discovery of fire may not have
been made by Suy-Jin in the manner claimed, yet it probably was
communicated originally by the friction of two sticks. Nor may it be
strictly correct to state that Fuh-he made the accidental discovery of
iron by the burning of wood on brown earth any more than the Phœnicians
discovered the making of glass by burning green wood on sand, yet it is
not improbable that some such accidental processes first led to these
discoveries. Thus, also, considerable allowances are to be deducted from
the scientific discoveries of Chin-Nung in botany, when we read of his
having, in one day, discovered no less than seventy different species of
plants that were poisonous and seventy others that were antidotes
against their baneful effects.
According to some Chinese authorities, the Tea plant was first
introduced into their country from Corea as late as the fourth century
of the present era, from whence it is said to have been carried to Japan
in the ninth. Others again maintaining that it is undoubtedly indigenous
to China, being originally discovered on the hills of those provinces,
where it now grows so abundantly, no date, however, being named. While
the Japanese, to whom the plant is as valuable as it is to the Chinese,
state that both countries obtained it simultaneously from Corea, about
A. D. 828. This latter claim not being sustained by any proof
whatever—Von Siebold, to the contrary—who, relying on the statements of
certain Japanese writers to this effect, argues in support of their
assertions, the improbability of which is unconsciously admitted by Von
Siebold himself when he observes “that in the southern provinces of
Japan the tea plant is abundant on the plains, but as the traveler
advances towards the mountains it disappears,” hence inferring that it
is an exotic. The converse of this theory holding good of China, a like
inference tends to but confirm their claim that with them the plant is
indigenous. That the Japanese did not originally obtain the plant from
Corea but from China is abundantly proven by the Japanese themselves,
many of whom admit that it was first introduced to their country from
China about the middle of the ninth century. In support of this
acknowledgment it is interesting to note, as confirming the Chinese
origin of tea, that there is still standing at Uji, not far from Osaka,
a temple erected on what is said to have been the first tea plantation
established in Japan, sacred to the traditions of the Japanese and in
honor of the Chinese who first introduced the tea plant into the Island
empire. Another more authentic account states that the Tea-seed was
brought to Japan from China by the Buddhist priest Mi-yoye, about the
beginning of the thirteenth century, and first planted in the southern
island of Kiusiu, from whence its cultivation soon spread throughout
that country.
Some English writers go so far as to claim that Assam, in India, is the
original country of tea, from the fact that _a species_ has been
discovered there in a wild state as well as in the slopes of the
Himalaya mountains. But though found in both a wild and cultivated state
in many countries of the East at the present time, all its Western
traditions point to China, and to China _only_, as the _original_
country of Tea, and that the plant is native and indigenous to that
country is indisputably beyond question.
It was not known to the Greeks or Romans in any form; and that it could
not have been known in India in very early times is inferred from the
fact that no reference to the plant or its product is to be found in the
_Sanscrit_. But that the plant and its use, not only as an agreeable and
exhilarating beverage, but as an article of traffic worthy of other
nations, must have been known to the Chinese as early as the first
century of the Christian era, the following extract from an ancient work
entitled the “Periplous of the Erythræan Sea,” may serve to prove. The
author, usually supposed to be Arryan, after describing “a city called
Thinæ,” proceeds to narrate a yearly mercantile journey to the vicinity
of “a certain people called Sesatæi, of short stature, broad faces, and
flat noses”—evidently natives of China—adds “that the articles they
bring for traffic outwardly resemble vine leaves, being wrapped in mats,
which they leave behind them on their departure to their own country in
the interior. From these mats the Thinæ pick out a haulm, called
_petros_, from which they draw the fibre and stalks; spreading out the
leaves, they double and make them up into balls, passing the fibre
through them, in which form they take the name of _Malabathrum_, and
under this name they are brought into India by those who so prepare
them.” Under any interpretation this account sounds like a remote,
obscure and confused story. Still one of the authors of the able
“Historical Account of China,” published in 1836, has ventured to
identify this Malabathrum of the Thinæ with the Tea of the Chinese.
Vossius Vincent and other authors, while admitting the difficulty of
understanding why it should be carried from Arracan to China, and from
China back to India, unhesitatingly assert that Malabathrum was nothing
more than the Betel-leaf, so widely used in the East at the time as a
masticatory. Horace mentions Malabathrum, but only as an ointment. Pliny
refers to it both in that sense and as a medicine. Dioscorides
describing it as a masticatory only. While the author of the “Historical
Account” prefers to consider the passage in the Periplous as a very
clumsy description of a process not intelligently understood by the
describer, but as agreeing far better with the manipulation of Tea than
with that of the Betel-leaf, and his conjecture, unsupported as it is,
merits citation if only for its originality.
The first positive reference to Tea is that by Kieu-lung in the fourth
century, who not only describes the plant, but also the process of
preparing it, of which the following is a free and condensed
translation: “On a slow fire set a tripod, whose color and texture show
its long use, and fill it with clear snow-water. Boil it as long as
would be sufficient to turn cray-fish red, and throw it upon the
delicate leaves of choice Tea. Let it remain as long as the vapor arises
in a cloud and only a thin mist floats on the surface. Then at your ease
drink the precious liquor so prepared, which will chase away the five
causes of sorrow. You can taste and feel, but not describe the state of
repose produced by a beverage thus prepared.” It is again mentioned by
Lo-yu, a learned Chinese, who lived during the dynasty of Tang, in 618,
who became quite enthusiastic in its praise, claiming that “It tempers
the spirits, harmonizes the mind, dispels lassitude and relieves
fatigue, awakens thought and clears the perceptive faculties,” and
according to the _Kiang-moo_, an historical epitome, an impost duty was
levied on Tea as early as 782 by the Emperor Te-Tsing, and continued to
the present day.
McPherson, in his “History of European Commerce with India,” states that
Tea is mentioned as the usual beverage of the Chinese by Solieman, an
Arabian merchant, who wrote an account of his travels in the East about
the year 850. By the close of the ninth century, however, Tea was found
in general use among the Chinese, the tax upon it at that time being a
source of considerable revenue as recorded by Abuzeid-el-Hazen, an
Arabian traveler cited by Renaudot in a translation of his work. There
is also independent evidence furnished by two other Arabian travelers in
a narrative of their wanderings during the latter half of the ninth
century, admitting their statements to be trustworthy as to the general
use of Tea as a beverage among the Chinese at that period. Moorish
travelers appear to have introduced it into Mohammedan countries early
in the tenth century, and other travelers in China in the seventeenth
give most extravagant accounts of its virtues, which appears to have
been in very general use throughout the greater part of Asia at that
time.
Father de Rhodes, a Jesuit missionary, who entered China in 1633, states
that “the use of Tea is common throughout the East, _and begins, I
perceive, to be known in Europe_. It is in all the world to be found
only in two provinces of China, where the gathering of it occupies the
people as the vintage does us.” Adding that he found it in his own case
to be an instantaneous remedy for headache, and when compelled to sit up
all night to hear confessions its use saved him from drowsiness and
fatigue. Adam Olearius, describing the travels of an embassy to Persia
in 1631, says of the Persians: “They are great frequenters of taverns,
called Tzai Chattai, where they drink Thea or Cha, which the Tartars
bring from China, and to which they assign extravagant qualities,
imagining that it alone will keep a man in perfect health, and are sure
to treat all who visit them to this drink at all hours.” These strong
expressions as to the use of Tea, applying as they do to a period not
later than 1640, are sufficient to prove that the ordinary accounts
place the introduction of that beverage as regards Europe, particularly
the Continent, as too late.
INTRODUCTION INTO EUROPE.
The earliest European notice of Tea is that found in a work by Ramusio,
first printed in 1550, though written several years prior to that year.
In it he quotes Hazzi Mohamed in effect, “And these people of Cathay
(China) do say that if these in our parts of the world only knew of Tea,
there is no doubt that our merchants would cease altogether to use
_Ravino Cini_, as they call rhubarb.” Yet no accounts at present
accessible establish the date of its first introduction into Europe, and
it is also a difficult matter to determine to which of the two
nations—Portugal or Holland—the credit of first introducing it belongs.
Some writers claiming that the Dutch East India Company brought Tea to
Amsterdam in 1600, while the Portuguese claim the honor of its first
introduction prior to that year. An indisputable argument in favor of
the latter is the notice given of it by Giovani Maffei in his “History
of India,” published in 1559. “The inhabitants of China, like those of
Japan,” he writes, “extract from an herb called _Chia_ a beverage which
they drink warm, and which is extremely wholesome, being a remedy
against phlegm, languor and a promoter of longevity.” While Giovani
Botero, another Portuguese, in a work published in the same year, states
that “the Chinese have an herb from which they press a delicate juice,
which they use instead of wine, finding it to be a preservative against
these diseases which are produced by the use of wine amongst us.”
Taxiera, also a native of Portugal, states that he saw the dried leaves
of Tea at Malacca some years prior to 1600, and the article is also
mentioned in one of the earliest privileges accorded to the Portuguese
for trading in 1558; yet it was not until nearly a century from the
beginning of that trade that we find the first distinct account from a
European pen of the use of Tea as a beverage.
In a “Dissertation upon Tea, by Thomas Short,” printed in London, in
1730, the author gives the following account of its first introduction
into Europe: “The Dutch East India Company on their second voyage to
China carried thither a good store of Sage and exchanged it with the
Chinese for Tea, receiving three to four pounds of the last for one
pound of the first, by calling it a wonderful European herb possessed of
as many virtues as the Indians could ascribe to their shrub-leaf. But
because they exported not such large quantities of Sage as they imported
of Tea they also bought a great deal of the latter, giving eight- to
tenpence a pound for it in China. And when they first brought it to
Paris they sold it for thirty livres the pound; but thirty years ago the
Chinese sold it at threepence, and never above ninepence a pound at any
time, frequently mixing it with other herbs to increase the quantity.”
Macaulay also states in the history of his embassy to China that “early
in the seventeenth century some Dutch adventurers, seeking for such
objects as might fetch a price in China, and hearing of a general use
there of a beverage produced from a plant of the country, bethought
themselves of trying how far a European plant of supposed great virtues
might also be appreciated by the Chinese; they accordingly introduced to
them the herb Sage, the Dutch accepting in exchange the Chinese Tea,
which they brought back with them to Holland.” These statements but tend
to confirm the Portuguese claim, the efforts of the Dutch to open up
trade with the Chinese in Tea being evidently made many years subsequent
to its introduction by the former; in still further support of which the
following may be noted:—
In 1662 CHARLES II. married the Portuguese princess, Catharine of
Braganza, who, it is said, was very fond of Tea, having been accustomed
to it in her own country. Waller, in a poem celebrating the event,
ascribes its first introduction to her country in the appended lines:—
“Venus her myrtle has—Phœbus her bays;
Tea both excels, which she vouchsafes to praise.
The best of Queens and _best of herbs we owe_
To that proud nation which the way did show.”
The earliest mention made of Tea by an Englishman is that contained in a
letter from a Mr. Wickham, agent of the East India Company at Firando,
Japan, and dated June 27, 1615, to a Mr. Eaton, another officer of the
Company, resident at Macao, China, asking for “a pot of the best Cha.”
How the commission was executed does not appear, but in Mr. Eaton’s
subsequent account of expenditures occurs this item, “Three silver
porringers to drink Tea in.” The first person, however, to advocate the
use of Tea in Europe was Cornelius Bottrekoe, a professor of the Leyden
University, who, in a treatise on “Tea, Coffee and Chocolate,” published
in 1649, strongly pronounces in favor of the former, denying the
possibility of its being injurious even when taken in immoderate
quantities.
Tea was evidently known in England previous to its direct importation
there, small quantities having been brought from Holland as early as
1640, but used only on rare occasions. The earliest mention made of it,
however, is that contained in a copy of the “_Mercurius Politicus_,” at
present in the British Museum, and dated September, 1658, in which
attention is called to “that excellent, and by all Physitians approved,
China drink, called by the Chineans Tcha, by other nations Tay, sold at
the Sultaness Head, a Cophee-house by the Royal Exchange, London.” The
most famous house for Tea at this early period, however, was Garway’s,
more popularly known for upwards of two centuries as “Garraway’s,” being
swept away only a few years ago by the march of improvement. Defoe
refers to it as being “frequented only by people of quality, who had
business in the city and the wealthier citizens”; but later it became
the resort of speculators, and here it was that the numerous schemes
which surrounded and accompanied the “Great South Sea Bubble” had their
centre, and, appropriately enough, “Garraway’s” was also the
headquarters of that most remarkable but disastrous Tea speculation of
1842.
A singular handbill issued by its founder is still extant, being
discovered by accident in a volume of pamphlets found in the British
Museum, where it may still be inspected. Although the document bears no
date, there is ample internal evidence to prove that it must have been
printed about 1660. It is a quaint and extraordinary production,
purporting to be “An exact description of the leaf Tea, made according
to the directions of the most knowing merchants and travelers in those
Eastern countries, by Thomas Garway,” setting forth that:—
“Tea is generally brought from China, growing there on little
shrubs, the branches whereof are garnished with white flowers of
the bigness and fashion of sweetbriar, but smell unlike, and
bearing green leaves of the bigness of myrtle or sumac, which
leaves are gathered every day, the best being gathered by
virgins who are destined for the work, the said leaves being of
such known virtues that those nations famous for antiquity,
knowledge and wisdom do frequently sell it among themselves for
twice its weight in silver. That it hath been used only as a
regalia in high treatments and entertainments, presents being
made thereof to grandees.”
Proceeding at considerable length to enumerate its “virtues,” many of
which are decidedly apocryphal, and attributing to the beverage, among
its other properties, that of—
“Making the body active and lusty, helping the headache,
giddiness and heaviness, removing the difficulty of breathing,
clearing the sight, banishing lassitude, strengthening the
stomach, causing good appetite and digestion, vanishing heavy
dreams, easing the frame, strengthening the memory, and finally
preventing consumption, particularly when drank with milk.”
Many other remarkable properties being credited to this wonderful
“Chinese herb,” the advertiser closes his great encomiums by suggesting—
“That all persons of eminence and quality, gentlemen, and others
who have occasion for tea in the leaf may be supplied. These are
to give notice that the said Thomas hath the same to sell from
sixteen to fifty shillings the pound.”
If the article had possessed but a tithe of the virtues and excellencies
accorded to it by the celebrated Garway it must have been recognized at
the time as the coming boon to man.
Up to 1660 no mention is made of Tea in the English statute books,
although it is cited in an act of the first parliament of the
Restoration of the same year, which imposed a tax of “eightpence on
every _gallon_ made and sold, to be paid by the maker thereof.” This was
subsequently increased to five shillings per pound in the Leaf, which at
the time was stated to be “no small prejudice to the article, as well as
an inconvenience to the drinker.” Ever since that year the duty on Tea
has been one of the hereditary customs of the Crown, though Parliament
has at sundry times, by different acts, fixed divers duties upon it.
Pepys alludes to Tea in his Diary, under date of September 25, 1661, the
entry reading: “I did send for a cup of Tee, a China drink, of which I
never drank before”; and again, in 1667, he further mentions it. “Home,
and there find my wife making of Tee, a drink which Mr. Pelling, the
Potticary, says is good for her cold.” But that it still must have
continued rare, is very evident, as in 1664, it is recorded that the
East India Company made the king what was then considered “a brilliant
present of 2 lbs. of Tea, costing forty shillings,” and two years later
another present of 22 lbs., both parcels being purchased on the
Continent for the purpose.
It was not until 1668 that the East India Company is credited with the
direct importation of Tea into England, which, although chartered in
1600, for the first time considered Tea worthy their attention as an
article of trade. The order sent to their agents in that year was: “for
100 lbs. of the best _Tey_ they could procure to the amount of £25
sterling.” Their instructions must, however, have been considerably
exceeded, as the quantity received was 4,713 lbs., a supply which seems
to have “glutted the market” for several years after. Up to this time no
alarm had been excited that the use of Tea was putting in peril the
stalwarthood of the British race. But in the very year of this large
importation we find Saville writing to his uncle Coventry, in sharp
reproof of certain friends of his “who call for Tea, instead of pipes
and wine,” stigmatizing its use as “a base, unworthy Indian practice,”
and adding, with an audible sigh, “the truth is, all nations are getting
so wicked as to have some of those filthy customs.” Whether from
sympathy of the public with these indignant reprehensions or other
causes, the whole recorded imports for the six following years amounted
to only 410 lbs., the quantities imported continuing small and
consisting exclusively of the finer sorts for several years thereafter.
The first considerable shipment of tea reached London about 1695, from
which year the imports steadily and rapidly increased until the end of
the seventeenth century, when the annual importations averaged 20,000
pounds. In 1703 orders were sent from England to China for 85,000 pounds
of Green Tea and 25,000 pounds of Black, the average price at this
period ranging from 16 to 20 shillings ($4 to $5) per pound. The
Company’s official account of their trade did not commence before 1725,
but according to Milburn’s “Oriental Commerce” the consumption in the
year 1711 had increased to upwards of 142 million pounds, in 1711 to 121
millions, and in 1720 to 238 million pounds. Since which time there has
been nothing in the history of commerce so remarkable as the growth and
development of the trade in Tea, becoming, as it has, one of the most
important articles of foreign production consumed.
For above a century and a half the sole object of the English East India
Company’s trade with China was to furnish Tea for consumption in
England, the Company during that period enjoying a monopoly of the Tea
trade to the exclusion of all other parties. They were bound, however,
“to send orders for Tea from time to time, provide ships for its
transportation, and always to keep at least one year’s supply in their
warehouses,” being also compelled to “bring all Teas to London, and
there offer them at public sale quarterly, and to dispose of them at one
penny per pound advance on the gross cost of importation, the price
being determined by adding their prime cost in China to the expenses of
freight, insurance, interest on capital invested, and other charges.”
But in December, 1680, Thomas Eagle of the “King’s Head,” a noted
coffee-house in St. James, inserted in the _London Gazette_ the
following advertisement, which shows that Tea continued to be imported
independently of the East India Company: “These are to give notice to
persons of quality that a small parcel of most excellent Tea has, by
accident, fallen into the hands of a private person to be sold. But that
none may be disappointed, the lowest price is 30 shillings in the pound,
and not any to be sold under a pound in weight.” The persons of quality
were also requested to bring a convenient box with them to hold it.
The East India Company enjoyed a monopoly of the trade in Tea up to
1834, when, owing to the methods of calculation adopted by the Company,
and the heavier expenses which always attend every department of a trade
monopoly, the prices were greatly enhanced. Much dissatisfaction
prevailing with its management, this system of importing Teas was
abolished, the Company being deprived of its exclusive privileges, and
the Tea trade thrown open to all.
In all probability Tea first reached America from England, which country
began to export in 1711, but it is claimed to have been previously
introduced by some Dutch smugglers, no definite date being given. The
first American ship sailed for China in 1784, two more vessels being
dispatched the following year, bringing back 880,000 pounds of Tea.
During 1786-87, five other ships brought to the United States over
1,000,000 pounds. In 1844, the “Howqua” and “Montauk” were built
expressly for the Tea trade, being the first of the class of vessels
known as “Clippers,” in which speed was sought at the expense of
carrying capacity, and by which the average passage was reduced from
twenty to thirty days for the round trip. The trade in tea was entirely
transacted at Canton until 1842, when the ports of Shanghai, Amoy and
Foochow were opened by the treaty of Nankin, the China tea trade being
mainly conducted at the latter ports. As late as 1850, all vessels
trading in tea carried considerable armament, a necessary precaution
against the pirates who swarmed in the China seas during the first half
of the last century.
The progress of this famous plant has been something like the progress
of Truth, suspected at first, though very palatable to those who had the
courage to taste it, resisted as it encroached, and abused as its use
spread, but establishing its triumph at last in cheering the world, from
palace to cottage, by the resistless effect of time and its own virtues
only; becoming a beverage appreciated by all, as well as an agent of
progress and civilization.
TEA
AND
AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE.
Although Tea may be claimed to be in all its associations eminently
peaceful, growing as it does on the hill-sides of one of the most
peaceful countries in the world, coming to us through the
peace-promoting ways of commerce, until it reaches its ultimate
destination, that centre of peace—the family table—and like peaceful
sleep, “knitting up the raveled sleeve of care,” yet it has been the
occasion of several wars and political problems, the latest of which is
the precipitation of the great Chinese exodus, which at present
threatens such vital results, not only to our own country, but possibly
to the world at large.
It was destined—as in all social and political affairs, the greatest and
most important events are curiously linked with the smallest and most
insignificant—to be the final crisis of the American Revolutionary
movement. Think of it! _The birth of the greatest nation of all time due
to a three-penny tax on tea!_ It was the article chosen above all others
to emphasize the principles that “_all men are born free and equal_,”
and that “_taxation without representation is tyranny_,” and for the
establishment of which principles a war was fought, that when judged by
the law of results, proves to have been the most important and fruitful
recorded on history’s pages. Who, in looking back over the long range of
events conserving to create our now great country, can fail to have his
attention attracted to what has been termed, with a characteristic touch
of American humor, “The Boston Tea Party of 1773”? Who could have then
predicted the marvelous change that a single century of free government
would have wrought? Who could have dreamed that Tea would have proved
such an important factor in such a grand result? What a lesson to
despotic governments! A dreary November evening; a pier crowded with
excited citizens; a few ships in the harbor bearing a hated cargo—hated
not of itself, but for the principles involved; on the decks a mere
handful of young men—a few leaders in Israel—urged on by the fiery
prescience of genius, constituting themselves an advance guard to lead
the people from out the labyrinth of Remonstrance into the wilderness of
Revolution.
It is true that previously other questions had been factors in the
dispute, but a cursory glance at the history of the time will show that
heated debates had been followed by periods of rest, and acts of
violence by renewed loyalty. The “Navigation laws” had caused much
indignation and many protests, but no violence to mention. As early as
1768 the famous “Stamp Act” was passed and repealed. The period
intervening between its passage and repeal gave opportunity for public
opinion to crystallize and shape itself. It sifted out of the people a
modern Demosthenes, gifted with the divine power of draping the graceful
garment of language round the firm body of an IDEA! George III. would
not profit by the example of Cæsar or of Charles, and while North had
avowed his willingness to repeal the tax on all other articles, he
promised the king that “_he would maintain this one tax on Tea to prove
to the Colonists his right to tax_.”
The trade in Tea at this time was a monopoly of the English East India
Company, which just then had acquired an immense political prestige, but
lost heavily by the closing of the American market, the Company’s
warehouses in London remaining full of it, causing their revenue to
decline. North was induced to offer them a measure of relief by
releasing from taxation in England the Tea intended for America, but he
still persisted in maintaining the duty of threepence to be paid in
American ports, and on the 10th of May this farcical scheme of fiscal
readjustment became a law. The Company obtained a license for the
free-duty exportation of their Tea to America in disregard of the advice
of those who knew that the Colonists would not receive it. Four ships
laden with Tea were despatched to the ports of Boston, New York,
Philadelphia and Charleston. The Colonists prepared for their expected
arrival, public meetings being held in Philadelphia and Boston, at which
it was resolved that _the Tea should be sent back to England_, and so
notified the Company’s agents at these ports. The Boston consignees
refused to comply with the popular demand, all persuasion failing to
move them. The matter was then referred to the Committees, who
immediately resolved to use force where reason was not heeded. When the
vessels arrived, a meeting was held in the Old South Church, at which it
was resolved, “_come what will, the Tea should not be landed or the duty
paid_.” Another appeal was made to the Governor, which was also denied!
Upon this announcement Samuel Adams arose, saying, “_This meeting can do
nothing more to save the country_.” The utterance of these words was a
preconcerted signal; the response, an Indian war-whoop from the crowd
outside. A band of young men, not over fifty, disguised as, and styling
themselves, “Mohawks,” rushed down to the wharf where the vessels lay;
the ships were boarded, the Tea chests broken open and emptied into the
river. _From the moment that the first Tea-leaf touched the water the
whole atmosphere surrounding the issues involved changed! In that
instant, with the rapidity of thought, the Colonies vanished and America
arose!_
When the news of these proceedings reached England, it provoked a storm
of anger, not only among the adherents of the government, but also among
the mercantile and manufacturing classes, they having suffered heavy
losses by the stoppage of trade with America. The commercial importance
and parliamentary influence of the East India Company swelled the outcry
of indignation against which they termed the outrage of destroying its
property. All united in the resolve to punish the conduct of Boston for
its rejection of the least onerous one of an import duty on tea. What
followed has been told in song and story—Lexington and Concord, Bunker
Hill, Valley Forge and Yorktown. A new nation sprang into existence,
taking its stand upon the pedestal of “EQUAL RIGHTS FOR ALL,” under a
new government “OF THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER II.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.
--------------
Besides the character of the different varieties of tea and other
information connected with the plant and its product, we have to notice
the different parts of the world in which it is now or may be grown in
the future, as many practical questions of considerable importance are
dependent on the subject.
For upwards of two centuries and a half the world’s supply of tea was
furnished exclusively by China, and it was not until well into the
middle of the nineteenth century that China and Japan were the only two
tea-producing countries in the world, their product reaching the western
markets through the narrowest channels and under the most oppressive
restrictions. Its cultivation however, has in that time been extended to
other countries, most notably into Java, India and Ceylon.
Tea is more or less cultivated for local consumption in all the
provinces of China, except the extreme northern. But to what exact
degree of latitude it is difficult to be precise, as we are without
definite information from those regions, and the vast empire of China
not being sufficiently explored by botanists to warrant the assertion
that the plant is not to be found in other parts of the country, at
least in a wild state. So far, however, it has not been discovered
there, except in a state of cultivation, or as having evidently escaped
from cultivation on roadsides or other out-of-the-way places.
We know that it is cultivated in Tonquin and Yunnan, but only to a
limited extent, the product of these provinces being also of a very
inferior quality. It is grown in Cochin-China and the mountain ranges of
Ava, but only for local consumption, and that, while it is indigenous to
the mountains, separating China from Burmah, it is not cultivated there
for either export or profit, and although claimed by some authorities to
be grown all over the Chinese empire, its cultivation for commercial
purposes is confined to the region lying between the 24th and 35th
degrees of north latitude, the climate between these parallels varying
to a considerable extent, being much warmer in the southern than in the
northern provinces. The districts in which it is chiefly cultivated,
however, and from which it is principally exported, are embraced in the
southwestern provinces of Che-kiang, Fo-kien, Kiang-see, Kiang-nan,
Gan-hwuy Kwang-tung, some little being also produced for export in the
western province of Sze-chuan.
It is cultivated for commercial purposes all over the Japanese islands,
from Kiusiu, in the south, to Niphon, in the extreme north, but the zone
found most favorable to its most profitable production in these islands
is that lying between the 30th and 35th degrees, more especially in the
coast provinces of the interior sea. It is also grown to some extent in
Corea, from which country—although claimed by some to be the original
country of tea—none is ever exported.
In the year 1826 some tea seeds were sent from Japan to Java and planted
as an experiment in the residency of Buitenzorg, where they were found
to succeed so well that tea-culture was immediately commenced on an
extensive scale in the adjoining residencies of Cheribon, Preanger and
Krawang, the number of tea trees in the former district amounting to
over 50,000 in 1833. The several other districts of the island to which
it had been extended, now containing upwards of 20,000,000 trees from
which over 20,000,000 pounds of prepared tea are annually delivered to
commerce, tea-culture forming one of the chief industries of the island
at the present day.
A species of the tea plant has been found growing in a truly wild state
in the mountain ranges of Hindostan, particularly on those bordering on
the Chinese province of Yunnan, from which fact it is claimed by some
writers as probable that these mountains are the original home of tea.
Recent explorations also show that the tea plant is to be found growing
wild in the forests of Assam, Sylhet and the Himalaya hills, as well as
over the great range of mountains extending thence through China to the
Yang-tse river. At an early period the British East India Company, as
the principal trade intermediary between China and Europe, became deeply
interested in the question of tea cultivation in their eastern
possessions, but without much success until in 1840, when the Assam Tea
Company was formed, from which year the successful cultivation of tea in
India has been carried on, the tea districts of that country including
at the present time, in the order of their priority, Assam, Dehradun,
Kumaon, Darjeeling, Cachar, Kangra, Hazarila, Chittagong, Burmah,
Neilgherry and Travancore.
Various efforts were made to introduce tea-culture into Ceylon, under
both Dutch and British rule, no permanent success being attained until
about 1876, when the disastrous effects of the coffee-leaf disease
induced the planters to give more serious attention to tea. Since that
period tea cultivation has developed there with marvelous rapidity,
having every prospect at the present time of taking first rank among
Ceylon productions.
Dr. Abel highly recommends the Cape of Good Hope as furnishing a fitting
soil and climate for the beneficial production of tea, stating that
“there is nothing improbable in a plant that is so widely diffused from
north to south being grown there.” Tea of average quality being now
shipped from Natal to the London market.
Besides Java, India and Ceylon, where tea culture has been introduced
and profitably demonstrated, numerous attempts have and are being made
to colonize the plant in other countries than these of the East, but
beyond the countries above enumerated, the industry has so far never
taken root, for while the cultivated varieties of the tea-plant are
comparatively hardy, possessing an adaptability to climate excelled
alone among plants only by that of wheat, the limits of actual tea
cultivation extend from the 39th degree of north latitude in Japan,
through the tropics to Java, Ceylon, India and China, and while it will
live in the open air in many of the countries into which it has been
introduced and withstand some amount of frost when it receives
sufficient summer heat to harden its root, but comparatively few of
those regions are suited for practical tea-growing.
As far back as 1872, some tea plants were sent from China to the Kew
gardens in England, for the purpose of testing the possibility of its
growth in that country. The attempt, however, ended in failure, the
seeds never germinating, later efforts under more careful training
meeting with the same fate. Considerable success attended its
introduction into the islands of Bourbon and Mauritius, in 1844, the tea
produced being pronounced as “excellent in flavor, but lacking in that
strength and aroma so characteristic of the Chinese variety.”
Its cultivation has been recently attempted in the Philippines by the
Spanish, in Sumatra and Borneo by the Dutch, and by the French in
Cochin-China, nearly all of which experiments so far proving failures,
the only success reported being from the latter country, where the soil
is good and moisture equable. Tea plantations have also been lately
opened up in Malay, Singapore, and other of the Straits settlements by
the English; some teas of fair quality, but insufficient quantity,
having already produced in many of them. Its cultivation forms one of
the industries of the Fiji islands at the present time; the soil and
climate of the latter being found eminently adapted to its successful
propagation, land and labor, the chief difficulties in other countries,
being particularly available there. Extraordinary efforts are now also
being made to introduce the plant into the warmer parts of Australia.
Some ten years ago specimens of the Chinese tea-plant were introduced
into the Azores, where they soon became acclimated, expert Chinese
tea-makers being sent there specially a few years later to teach the
natives how to manipulate the leaves. The industry has made such rapid
progress there that regular shipments of “Madeira tea” are now being
made to the London market, where it is affirmed that in strength and
flavor it closely approaches that of China tea. But while it has been
found to flourish luxuriantly on the hilly parts of St. Helena, the
quantity and quality are insufficient to justify its cultivation for
either profit or export on that island.
The Economic Society of St. Petersburg warmly advocates its cultivation
in the Caucasus, while French and German naturalists declare that there
is no region more suitable for the profitable cultivation of tea than
the shores of the Black Sea, the climate being warm, moist and equable,
and tea of more than average quality have already been produced between
Batoum and Kiel, samples of which were exhibited at the exhibition
recently held in Tiflis, the report on which was so encouraging that the
society ventures the opinion “that in time Russia may compete with China
and India in supplying the Western nations with tea.” Efforts are also
being made to introduce it into southern Italy, but while the soil and
climate of those countries may be found admirably adapted for the
purpose, there is no skilled labor to prepare it properly.
The cultivation of tea was attempted in the warmer parts of Brazil in
1850, some tea of very fair quality being produced in the vicinity of
Rio Janeiro, and while the plant was found to flourish exceedingly well
in the adjoining province of Sao Paolo, the tea when prepared for use
was found to be entirely too bitter and astringent for practical
purposes. The lack of skilled labor and high cost of manufacture
preventing its cultivation for profit, it was inferred that with
everything else in its favor, tea as produced in Brazil would never be
able to compete with that of China even for home consumption.
Some few years since plantations were opened for the cultivation of tea
in Mexico, Guatemala, and in some of the West India islands, but to the
present no reports favorable or otherwise, have been received regarding
its progress in these countries. Still, in the face of all drawbacks,
with the example of the many failures and final success achieved in
India and Ceylon, much may yet be accomplished in Brazil and other South
American countries by intelligent cultivation, modern machinery and
perseverance in solving the problem of growing at least their own tea.
With regard to the efforts to introduce the tea-plant into the United
States, the earliest notice which comes under observation is that
contained in the _Southern Agriculturist_, published in 1828, and in
which it is stated that “the tea-tree grows perfectly in the open air
near Charleston, where it has been raised for the past fifteen years, in
the nursery of M. Noisette. But as imported from China it would cost too
much to prepare for commercial use.” Another historical effort was that
made in 1848, by Dr. James Smith, at Greenville, S. C., but although
commenced with great enthusiasm the plantation never was increased to
any appreciable extent. Neither was it brought to a condition, as far as
can be ascertained, to warrant the formation of any reliable opinion as
to the practicability of tea-culture in this country as an industry.
Nevertheless, the circumstances of its failure are quoted as a proof
that tea cannot be produced for commercial purposes or even for home
consumption in this country. While the truth is that as a test for the
purposes named, the attempt was of no value whatever, and never was so
considered by those conversant with its cultivation or management.
But while the plant barely survives the winter north of Washington, it
has been found to thrive successfully a little south of that district.
It bears fruit abundantly on the Pacific coast, where the soil and
climate are especially favorable to the growth of broad-leaved
evergreens, both native and exotic, and will flourish much further north
there than in the Eastern states.
Still the progress of these efforts to grow tea in other countries than
China, Japan and India, must necessarily prove interesting as being
calculated to make the world more independent of these countries for its
supplies. Yet it is an established fact that the finest varieties of tea
are best cultivated in the warmer latitudes and on sites most exposed to
air and sunshine.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER III.
BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND FORM.
--------------
There are few subjects in the vegetable kingdom that have attracted such
a large share of public notice as the tea plant. Much error for a long
time existed regarding its botanical classification, owing to the
jealousy of the Chinese government preventing foreigners from visiting
the districts where tea was cultivated; while the information derived
from the Chinese merchants at the shipping ports, scanty as it was,
could not be depended on with any certainty. So that before proceeding
to discuss the question of the species which yield the teas of commerce
it may be well to notice those which are usually described as distinct
varieties in systematic works.
Tea is differently named in the various provinces of China where it is
grown. In some it is called _Tcha_ or _Cha_, in others _Tha_ or _Thea_,
in Canton _Tscha_, and finally _Tia_ by the inhabitants of Fo-kien, from
whom the first cargoes are said to have been obtained, and so pronounced
in their _patois_ as to give rise to the European name TEA. By botanists
it is termed _Thea_, this last name being adopted by Linnæus for the
sake of its Greek orthography, being exactly that of _Oex_—a goddess—a
coincidence doubtless quite acceptable to those who use and enjoy the
beverage as it deserves.
The species of the genus _Thea_ are few in number, some botanists being
of opinion that even these are of a single kind—_Camillia_—and is by
them classed as _Thea-Camillia_. Others asserting that no relation
whatever exists between these two plants, maintaining that the _Thea_
and _Camillia_ are widely different and of a distinct species. Yet,
though the _Camillia_ bears the same name among the Chinese as _Thea_
and possesses many of its structural characteristics, distinctions are
made between them by many eminent botanists, who hold that they differ
widely and materially and are mostly agreed in the statement that the
true Tea-plant is distinguished from the Camillia in having longer,
narrower, thinner, more serrated and less shiny leaves, and that a
marked difference is also noticeable in the form and contents of the
fruit or pod.
Davis argues that they constitute two _genera_, closely allied but yet
different, the distinctions consisting principally in the fruit or seed.
The seed-vessel of the _Thea_ being a three-lobed capsule, with the
lobes strongly marked, each the size of a currant, containing only a
single round seed, the lobes bursting vertically in the middle when
ripe, exposing the seed. The capsule of the _Camillia_ is triangular in
shape, much larger in size, and though three-celled is but
single-seeded. Bentham and Hooker, who have thoroughly revised the
“_genera plantatum_,” say they can find no good reason by which they can
separate the Tea-plant as a genus distinct from the Camillia, and so
class it as _Thea-Camillia_. While Cambesedes contends that they are
widely separated by several intervening genera, the difference being
entirely in the form of the fruit or pod; and Griffin, who is well
qualified to form a correct opinion, states that, from an examination of
the India Tea-plant and two species of the Camillia taken from the Kyosa
hills, he found no difference whatever. The dehiscence in both plants is
of the same nature, the only noticeable difference really existing being
of a simply specific value. The fruit of the Tea-shrub is three-celled
and three-seeded while that of the Camillia is triangular in form and
single-seeded only.
Linnæus, while recognizing the Tea-plant as belonging to the same family
as the Camillia, Latinizes its Chinese name, classing it as _Thea
Sinensis_, and dividing it into two species—_Thea Viridis_ and _Thea
Bohea_; DeCandolle, while indorsing Linnæus’ classification, adds that
“in the eighteenth century when the shrub which produces tea was little
known Linnæus named the genus Thea Sinensis, but later judged it better
to distinguish two species which he believed at the time to correspond
with the distinctions existing between the Green and Black teas of
commerce.” The latest works on botany, also, make Thea a distinct
genus—_Thea Sinensis_—divided into two species—_Thea Viridis_ and _Thea
Bohea_—these botanical terms having no specific relation to the
varieties known to commerce as Green and Black teas. It having also been
proven that there is but one species comprehending both varieties, the
difference in color and character being due to a variation in the soil,
climate, as well as to different methods of cultivation and curing, from
either or both of which Green or Black tea may be prepared at will
according to the process of manufacture.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
_Thea Sinensis._
(Chinese Tea Plant.)
]
In a wild state is large and bushy, ranging in height from ten to
fifteen feet, often assuming the proportions of a small tree. While in a
state of cultivation its growth is limited by frequent prunings to from
three to five feet, forming a polyandrous, shrub evergreen with bushy
stem and numerous leafy branches. The leaves are alternate, large,
elliptical and obtusely serrated, varied and placed in smooth
short-channeled foot-stalks, the calyx being small, and divided into
five segments. The flowers are white, axilary and slightly fragrant,
often three together in separate pedicils, the corolla having from five
to nine petals, cohering at the base with filaments numerous and
inverted at the base of the corolla. The anthers are large, yellow and
tre-foil, the capsule three-celled and three-seeded; and like all other
plants in a state of cultivation, it has produced marked varieties, two
of which _Thea Viridis_ and _Thea Bohea_ are critically described as
distinct species, distinguished from each other in size, color, form and
texture of the leaves, as well as other peculiarities.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
_a_—Gunpowder. _b_—Young Hyson. _c_—Imperial.
_d_—Hyson. _e_—Twankay.
_Thea Viridis_,
(Green Tea Plant),
]
Is a large, hardy, strong-growing shrub, with spreading branches and
leaves one to two inches long, thin, weavy and almost membraneous,
broadly lanceolate, but irregularly serrated and light-green in color.
The flowers are large, white, solitary and mostly confined to the upper
axil, having five sepals and seven petals, the fruit or pod being
purple, nodding and three-seeded. It thrives without protection in the
open air during winter, and is undoubtedly the species yielding the bulk
of the Green teas of commerce.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
_a_—Firsts. _b_—Seconds. _c_—Thirds. _d_—Fourths.
_Thea Bohea_,
(Black Tea Plant),
]
Is a much smaller variety, with branches stiff, straight and erect, the
leaves are also smaller, flat, oblong and coriaceous, but evenly
serrated and dark-green in color. The flowers or blossoms are usually
two to three, situated at the axils, having from five to seven sepals
and petals, and possessing a slight fragrance. It is more tender and
prolific than the green variety, not standing near as cold a climate,
and yields the Black teas of commerce principally.
Considerable mystery and confusion for a long time existed regarding the
species yielding the varieties known to commerce as Green and Black
teas, many authorities claiming that the former were produced from the
green tea-plant exclusively, and the latter solely from the black tea
variety. While, again, it was erroneously held by others that both were
prepared at will from a single species, the difference in color, flavor
and effect was due entirely to a disparity in soil, climate, age and
process of curing; also, that Green teas were produced from plants
cultivated on the plains or low lands, in a soil enriched with manure,
and Black teas from those grown on hill sides and mountain slopes. Later
and more careful investigation disprove these “opinions,” the eminent
botanical traveler, Robert Fortune, having satisfactorily and definitely
set this much-vexed question at rest by examining the subject on the
spot, finding that in the district of Woo-e-shan, where _Black teas are
principally prepared_, the species _Bohea_ only is grown; and that in
the province of Che-kiang, where _Green teas are exclusively prepared_,
he found the species _Viridis_ alone cultivated. But that the Green and
Black teas of commerce may be produced at will from either or both
species he found to be the case in the province of Fo-kien, where the
black tea-plant only is grown, but that both the commercial varieties
were prepared therefrom at the pleasure of the manufacturer and
according to the demand. Yet while it is admitted now even by the
Chinese themselves, that both varieties may be prepared at will from
either species, it is a popular error to imagine that China produces the
two commercial kinds in all districts, the preparation of the greater
proportion of the respective varieties being carried on in widely
separated districts of the empire, and from the corresponding species of
the tea-plant, different methods being pursued in the process of curing;
from the first stage, Green teas being only distinguished from Black in
such instances by the fact that, the former are not fermented or
torrified as high by excessive heat, or fired as often as the latter.
It was also a commonly received opinion at one time that the distinctive
color of Green teas was imparted to them by being fired in copper pans.
For this belief there is not the slightest foundation in fact, as copper
is never used for the purpose, repeated experiments by unerring tests
having been made, but in not a single case has any trace of the metal
been detected.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
_a_—Pekoe. _b_—Souchong. _c_—Congou. _d_—Souchong-Congou.
_Thea Assamensis_,
(India Tea Plant),
]
Which has lately attracted so much attention, partakes somewhat of the
character of both the foregoing varieties. Some botanists, however,
claim that it is a distinct species, while others who recognize but one
genus, contend that the India plant is but a wild type of the Chinese
variety, and that any difference existing between them is the result of
soil, climate and special culture. Planters on the other hand
distinguish many points of difference between the China and India
tea-plants. The leaf of the latter when full grown measures from three
to five inches in length, while that of the former seldom exceeds three;
again, the leaf of the India species does not harden as quickly during
growth, which is an important consideration in picking. The
inflorescence of the latter also varies from that of the Chinese
variety, its usual state being to have the flower solitary, and situated
in the axils of the leaves, the number varying from one to five. In
general, it is more prolific and matures quicker, which renders it more
profitable, as it affords a greater number of pickings during the
season; but it is still doubtful if it is a true tea. In its
geographical distribution, so far as latitude is concerned, the India
tea-plant approximates most to the Black tea species of China, yet in
its botanical characteristics and general appearance as well as in the
size and texture of its leaves, it approaches nearer to the Green tea
variety.
Two other species described by Loureiro, but unknown to commerce, are
classed as _Thea Cochinchinensis_, found in a wild state in the north of
Cochin-China, where it is also extensively cultivated, but used
medicinally by the natives as a diaphoretic. And _Thea Oleosa_ (oil
tea), grown in the vicinity of Canton, the seeds of which yield an oil
used for illuminating purposes as well as an article of diet by the
inhabitants. In addition to these there are also two doubtful species,
known as _Cankrosa_ and _Candata_, referred to by Wallach, as growing in
Silhet and Nepaul.
SUBSTITUTES IN USE FOR TEA.
Previous to the seventeenth century it had long been the custom in many
countries of Europe to make hot infusions of the leaves of various
plants, most notably those of the _Salvia_ (sage), which had at one time
a high reputation as a “panacæa,” being greatly extolled by the Solieman
school of physic, as a potent factor for the preservation of health, and
it is the custom at the present time in many other countries where it is
difficult or impossible to obtain China tea, to use the seeds or leaves
of other plants as substitutes, the active principle of which, in many
instances, is analagous, and in others identical with it. Among the
former are the leaves of plants destitute of _theine_ (the active
principle of tea), but which possesses some other stimulating
properties, and among the latter the leaves and seeds of other plants
containing that principle, and consequently producing the same exciting
effects, these include Coffee, Cocoa and
_Yerba Maté_—or “Paraguan tea,” a species of _Ilex_, or holly, the
leaves of which yield the same active principle (_theine_)
characteristic of the China tea-plant. So closely does it resemble the
latter in effect that many authorities claim it to be a species of that
shrub, upwards of forty million pounds being annually produced and
consumed in Paraguay and other South American countries.
_Coca Tea_—used extensively in Peru and Bolivia, composed of the dried
leaves of the Coca tree, but though generally chewed, is more frequently
prepared as a tea by the natives. In the infusion it possesses somewhat
similar properties to China tea, and forms an important article of
international trade among the various tribes, not less than thirty
million pounds being annually consumed there.
_Guarana_—or “Brazilian tea,” prepared from the seeds of the guarana by
the inhabitants of the interior of that country, and so rich are they in
_theine_ that they have lately been adopted for the purpose of obtaining
that principle in larger quantities for medicinal purposes.
_Ugni_—or “Chilian tea,” produced from the leaves of that plant, but
though generally used as a medicine, is as often prepared as a beverage.
_Cenopodium_—or “Mexican tea,” made from an infusion of the leaves and
seeds of that plant, but used only as a remedy in the treatment of
asthma and bronchitis by the natives of that country.
_Pimento_—or “Trinidad tea,” prepared from a decoction of the leaves of
the pimento, and is in common use in that and other of the West India
islands both as a beverage and a medicine.
_Bun-fullup_—or “Jungle tea,” found in the Naga range in eastern Assam,
and used by the Singphos in the same manner as the Chinese species and
also as a medicine.
_Khat_—or “African tea,” produced from an extract of the Khola nut, the
active principle of which has recently been ascertained to be identical
with that of the tea of commerce, is much used among the nomad tribes of
Somali, the Soudan and other African countries.
_Cathadules_—or “Arabian tea,” prepared from the leaves of that shrub in
the same manner as ordinary tea, and extensively cultivated there for
that purpose, as much attention being bestowed on it by the natives as
on coffee. The leaves are also chewed, when green, like those of the
Coca in South America, being highly intoxicating in effect, particularly
in the wild state.
_Saxifraga_—or “Siberian tea,” produced from a decoction of the leaves
of that plant, but used only as a beverage in the same manner as those
of China tea.
_Epilobium_—or “Russian tea,” is prepared from the dried leaves of the
common willow, and are also extensively used for mixing with the regular
teas of commerce, commanding as high as four roubles a pound in the
dried state, for that purpose; being also in common use among the poorer
classes of that country as a substitute for China tea.
_Buxifolium_—or “Labrador tea,” is made from an infusion of the leaves
of that plant, and used extensively as a beverage by the natives of that
country and adjoining provinces.
_Appalachian_—or “Pennsylvania tea,” is prepared from an infusion of the
_Punos_ plant found growing in a wild state on the Allegheny mountains,
and used as a beverage as well as for the purpose of imparting heat; and
while very closely resembling the tea-plant of China in its structural
character, of its merits or drinking qualities as a tea nothing definite
has as yet been ascertained.
_Ceanothus_—or “New Jersey tea,” known to the Indians as “pong-pong,” is
prepared from the leaves of Red-root, and was at one time in general use
and very popular among the natives of Virginia and the Carolinas, and
was also extensively used in Revolutionary times as a substitute for
China tea when refusal was made to pay the tax upon the latter.
_Chimonanthus_—or “English tea,” recently obtained from the leaves of
that plant, and used as a substitute for China tea, as well as for
mixing with it. Originally a native of China and Japan, it has been
acclimatized in that country, where it is at present extensively used
alone and as an adulterant.
_Coffee-leaf Tea_—in use in many of the Coffee-growing countries, most
notably in Arabia, Sumatra and the West India islands. It is prepared
from the roasted leaves of the coffee-tree in the same manner as China
tea, the natives of these countries particularly preferring it to any
decoction made from the berries of the latter.
_Strawberry-leaf Tea_—obtained from the leaves of the common strawberry
shrub, carefully dried and cured after the manner of the China plant.
They are prepared and used in Germany particularly as a tea; they yield
a very close imitation of the liquor and flavor of the regular tea of
commerce, so much so that quite an industry has sprung up in their
cultivation and preparation as a substitute for tea in that country. The
celebrated “Faham tea” of the Mauritius being still another remarkable
substitute for the tea of China. But as with many of the foregoing
should be regarded in the light of medicine rather than that of a
regular beverage.
That this characteristic element _Theine_ should be present not only in
the Tea-plant of China and Coffee-plant of Arabia, but also in so many
others widely differing, so remote in situation, and so unlike in
appearance, and from which millions of people in all parts of the world
draw a refreshing and exhilarating beverage, is a striking and beautiful
fact in nature. _Under such a fact there may be more significance than
science has yet elicited._
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CHAPTER IV.
CULTIVATION AND PREPARATION.
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The Chinese, from time immemorial, have been accustomed to raising their
tea on every available space of ground; on barren hill-side, marshy
plain and other patches of land unsuited for other purposes. Most of the
gardens are, however, situated in hilly districts, but in almost all of
them the soil is poor and sandy, varying considerably, even in districts
alike famous for the perfect growth of the plant.
The soil of the gardens situated on the hills is composed chiefly of a
brownish clay, containing large proportions of vegetable matter
intermixed with fragments of slate, quartz and sand-stone, held together
by a calcareous basis of granite. A soil, in fact, very similar to that
which produces pine and scrub-oak, while on the plains it is darker, but
containing a still greater proportion of vegetable matter, enriched by
sewerage but invariably well underdrained by natural declivities. Yet
while many of the gardens are situated on the tops of mountains, among
pine trees in some districts, and along river banks on others, the
Chinese, as a rule, prefer ground that is only moderately elevated, in
sunny sites, everything else being favorable. Many of the latter yield
more abundantly, but the product of the former is invariably the finest
in quality.
With regard to climatic essentials the plant endures a tropical
temperature well, at the same time accommodating itself to the cold of
winter without injury. But when cultivated for commercial uses in such
latitudes the seasons are found too short for its profitable production
there, and while it is successfully grown at zero cold in some
districts, it is nevertheless most lucratively cultivated in climates
where the thermometer rarely falls more than six degrees below the
freezing point. The climate varies to a considerable extent in the
different districts of China where tea is grown, being excessively warm
in the southern, and intensely cold in the northern provinces, snow
being on the ground for days together in the latter or green tea
producing districts. And though it has been proved by experiment that
this variety will bear a greater degree of cold than the black,
considerable snow falls annually in the province of Fo-kien, where Black
teas are grown. The most important climatic consideration, however, is
the amount of rain-fall, a dry climate being altogether unfit for tea
cultivation; a hot, moist or damp one being proved the best. The
rain-fall in the most profitable tea districts ranges from 80 to 100
inches per annum, the more falling in the spring months the better, and
that too must be equally diffused. But where irrigation can be
systematically introduced, this is of less importance.
PLANTING AND PICKING.
Tea is invariably raised from seed, in China, collected in the fall
after the last crop has been gathered and placed in sand to keep them
fresh during the winter months, and sown the following spring in
nurseries. In sowing the seed from six to eight are put in pots about an
inch below the surface, usually four feet apart, and covered with
rice-husks or parched earth. In growing, many of the seeds prove
abortive, scarcely one in five germinating. When the nurslings have
attained a height of from four to six inches they are transplanted to
the beds of the gardens in which they are to grow four to five feet
apart. The plants are never manured in China, nor does it appear to be
customary to prepare the ground for their reception, it being claimed by
many authorities that manure, while it increases the yield, invariably
spoils the flavor of the tea. Chinese growers in general asserting that
teas produced without the aid of manure are always the most fragrant and
aromatic.
The plantations are laid out in the early spring, and being well watered
by the copious rains which fall during this season, the young plants
establish themselves, requiring very little care thereafter. Until they
have attained a height of about 18 inches, the weeds are pulled
regularly, not raked, and the leading shoots pinched to induce them to
become numerous and bushy. When the season is dry they are saturated
with rice-water and the roots covered, and if severely cold they are
protected by a wrapping of straw, rising up in a cluster when the rains
come and become firmly established, after which they require very little
more attention except occasional weeding, until they are three years
old. In some districts the branches are periodically pruned, the
constant abstraction of the foliage having a tendency to reduce the
height and expand laterally making them resemble a collection of plants
rather than single shrubs, the size of the leaves in such cases being
smaller than when the plants are suffered to grow at will, but covering
the branches so thickly as to prevent the hand being thrust through. An
eastern exposure is avoided when near the sea, and care is also taken
not to overshadow them by huge trees or noxious plants, certain notions
prevailing concerning the injurious influence of such trees when growing
too near the tea plants. When the soil is good and the season favorable
the leaves can be picked when the plants are two years old, but if poor
and dry, three years are usually required for them to mature. On the
larger plantations three years are generally allowed before beginning to
gather the first crop or picking. A tea plantation at this age when seen
at a distance resembles a shrubbery of evergreens, the view being very
picturesque, the gardens representing a series of terraces descending to
the plain, and the rich dark-green leaves affording a pleasing contrast
to the strange and oft-times barren scenery with which they are so
frequently surrounded. There is a close analogy between the tea
plantations of China and the vineyards of France, the quality of the tea
varying according to the situation of the sites, the nature of the soil
and their exposure to climatic changes. Thus, there are in China
plantations of tea enjoying reputations equal to those of the best
vineyards of Burgundy, Champagne and Bordeaux.
There are three regular pickings in the course of a year. The first
known as the _Shon-cheun_ or “Early spring,” occurring about the middle
of April or beginning of May, according to the district, the product of
which is termed _Taou-cha_ or “head tea,” a very superior kind,
consisting of the youngest, tenderest, and most delicate leaves and
leaf-buds just expanding. The quantity obtained from this picking is
limited in quantity but simply superb in quality, the very finest teas
known to commerce, being prepared from them. The leaves are selected
with the greatest care and picked with the utmost caution, such pains
being taken to insure its excellence that for weeks before the harvest
commences, the packers, who have been previously trained are prohibited
from eating fish or other food considered unclean, lest by their breath
they should contaminate the leaves, being also compelled to bathe two or
three times daily in the picking season, as well as wear gloves during
the operation.
The second picking, called _Er-chuen_ or “Second spring,” takes place
between the end of May and beginning of June, when the branches are
literally covered with leaves, and yielding what is known in China as
_Tzu-cha_ or “filial tea,” from the fact of its producing the largest
quantity, constituting the most important crop of the season and forming
the principal one exported, but being greatly inferior to the first in
point of quality.
The _San-chuen_, or “third crop,” is gathered in July when the shrubs
are searched for leaves, and the product converted into what is termed
_Wu-kua-cha_ or “tea without aroma,” and though still more inferior to
the preceding ones in quality and quantity, is nevertheless an important
one commercially, forming the bulk of that exported as well as for
blending with and reducing the cost of the preceding crop. A few leaves
of the first picking will support five successive immersions, yielding
five cups of moderately strong tea; the second supplying only two and
the third but one of the same strength to a like quantity.
A fourth picking or rather “gleaning,” termed the _Chiu-lu_ or “Autumn
dew,” is made in the more prolific districts in September and October,
the product of which is known as _Ta-cha_ or “old tea,” but of little
value commercially. The leaves being large, coarse and almost sapless,
are generally retained for home consumption by the poorer Chinese or for
dyeing purposes, and still another grade is sometimes made by chopping
up the stems and twigs of the foregoing with a shears, a practice,
however, much to be condemned. The operation of picking is one of the
greatest nicety, only women and children being employed in its
performance. A small basket is strung by a cord around the neck of each
picker, in such a manner as to leave the hands free, a larger basket
being placed near for general use. The branch is held by one hand while
the leaves are carefully plucked with the other, for, except in the
latter gatherings, no portion of the stem or stalk must be broken off
with the leaves.
The quality of the tea largely depends on the exact time of picking, as
the choicest leaves may be changed into an inferior grade of tea on a
single night if the exact proper time to pick them be neglected. The
practice of picking the young leaf-buds just as they are beginning to
unfold would also prove greatly injurious to the plants, were it not for
the copious rains that fall during the season of picking, causing fresh
leaves to sprout out and elaborate the sap necessary to constitute the
further growth of the shrub. The weather also exerts a great influence
upon the character of the tea, as, for instance, when the rains fall
equably and a bright sun appears after heavy showers, the plants become
thick and flourishing, the leaves bright green in color, elastic in
texture and much richer in flavor. Whereas, when too much falls at one
time, they become mildewed, broken and less flexible and limited,
stunted and sapless when too little falls during the season of growth.
The product of single plants vary so much that it is difficult to
estimate the average quantity. A plant of three years’ growth yielding
only about 8 ounces of green leaves to a picking, equivalent to about 80
pounds per acre, while at five years’ growth the same plant will produce
five times that quantity, but the quality of the tea will not be near so
good. One Chinese authority states that 2 catties, about 2 pounds, of
green leaves are obtained from the more celebrated trees, but that the
average quantity was between 10 taels and 1 cattie, or from 1 pound to
22 ounces annually, adding that a single _mou_ (acre) of land contained
from 300 to 400 plants. From these varying statements it is evident that
no definite amount can be fixed on as an average product per plant, per
acre or per annum. The average collection for each picker is from 14 to
16 pounds of raw leaves per diem, the average wages varying from four to
eight cents per day, according to the skill of the picker.
CURING AND FIRING.
As a general rule in China the small growers do not prepare the tea for
market, simply curing them up to a certain point in which condition they
dispose of it to the merchant or commission man, locally known as
“tea-men,” who send agents into the country and who buy it in small
quantities from the growers and carry it to _hongs_ or warehouses
established at different points in the tea districts. In this
preliminary preparation the leaves when first collected by the grower
are spread out in light layers on straw mats and exposed to the sun
until they are thoroughly withered, when they are gathered up and placed
on bamboo trays and triturated until a large portion of the sap or juice
is pressed out. After this operation they are again exposed to the sun
and then dried in rattan cylinders, separated in the middle by a
partition, covered on top, and underneath of which is a chafing vessel
of ignited charcoal. The leaves when thrown into this concavity are
constantly agitated until the process is completed, finishing the
cultivator’s work, the leaves being delivered to the merchant or factor
in this state. The quantity for a “chop” or shipment being selected
according to the quality of the leaf and the district producing it. The
merchant or factor has them picked over by women and children to remove
the stems and fibre which still remain attached to the young sprouts
before completing its final preparation for the foreign market. The
drying, buying and transporting of the leaves from the gardens to the
hongs occupies considerable time, during most of which the but partially
prepared tea is very much at the mercy of the elements.
Tea leaves, when first picked, possess none of the color, odor or flavor
of the tea of commerce, these properties being developed by the numerous
processes to which they are subjected in the operation of curing and
firing, and for which the Chinese have a long vocabulary of technical
terms. The definition of which, as vouchsafed to the “outside
barbarians,” are intended more to mystify rather than elucidate the art.
The operations of Tea manufacture may, however, be classified in the
following sequence: Evaporating—Fermenting—Sunning—Firing—Rolling; each
process having to be carried to a certain specific point, or if under or
overdone, the leaf is spoiled and the tea correspondingly injured.
The partially withered leaves are packed in small cotton bags, loosely
tied at mouth, and placed in open wooden troughs or boxes perforated at
the sides with numerous holes, in which they are pressed and kneaded by
the feet, to expel all superfluous moisture, the object being to extract
all excess of tannin the principle to which tea owes its bitterness and
astringency. If the leaves be fermented without previously going through
this process, the tea will be too pungent and bitter. The fluid driven
out through the holes is of a greenish, semi-viscid nature, the quantity
expelled from the leaves being considerable. Properly evaporated, the
leaves when pressed in the hand return to their regular shape, the stem
bending double without breaking.
The process of fermentation is accomplished by next emptying the leaves
into bamboo baskets and covering them with cotton or felt mats, to cause
a retention of heat and hasten the fermentive changes. Having been
allowed to stand in this condition, the time requisite for this process,
being learned only by experience, being more rapid in dry, warm weather
than in cool and damp. If the leaves be allowed to remain in a heap
after evaporating, so that heating by natural fermentation should occur,
the tea will be greatly injured. The process is stopped by emptying the
leaves and spreading them out on large mats, exposed to the sun’s rays.
The effect of proper fermentation is to make the tea richer, smoother
and more pleasing in flavor. Tea in this respect being like tobacco,
which if dried over a fire when first cut, becomes so sharp and bitter
as to sting the tongue.
During the process of “sunning” the leaves are tossed up and turned over
repeatedly, so that the whole may be diffused and thoroughly permeated
by the sun. With bright sunshine one hour’s exposure is sufficient,
after which they are ready for the final processes of firing and
curling. One of the results of the sunning process is to evaporate in a
greater degree the properties that produce nervousness or wakefulness in
the tea.
As in the case of its botanical classification, much error and confusion
for a long time existed with regard to the production of the varieties
known to commerce as Green and Black teas. It was claimed at one time
that the former were prepared exclusively from the species botanically
termed _Thea Viridis_, and the latter came from _Thea Bohea_. It was
also stated that the difference in color was due to a variation in the
soil, climate and methods of cultivation, and again that Black teas were
prepared only from plants grown on hilly sites, and Green teas solely
from those cultivated on the plains in a soil enriched by manure. These
botanical names and groundless conjectures have for a long time misled
the public, later and more careful investigation fully disproving such
erroneous impressions. But while it is now admitted that the greater
portion of the respective commercial varieties known as Green and Black
teas are prepared from the corresponding botanical species in their
respective districts, it is more from custom, convenience or demand than
from any other cause. The manufacturers cater to the latter, the workmen
also preferring to make that kind best with which they have the most
experience. Chinese tea men now admitting that both kinds are prepared
at the will or pleasure of the manufacturers in the Black and Green tea
districts. At Canton and other treaty ports in China it is an open
secret that both varieties are prepared from either species according to
the demand, the difference in color being entirely due to the different
methods of preparation from the first stage. In the
PREPARATION OF GREEN TEAS.
When the leaves are brought in from the gardens, they are spread out
thinly on flat bamboo trays, where they are allowed to remain exposed
from one to two hours, in order to evaporate any superfluous moistures,
the time depending much on the state of the weather, after which they
are removed to terraces or verandahs built expressly for the purpose of
firing and curling, and containing from ten to twenty small furnaces
about three feet high, each having at the top a series of shallow pans,
termed _Kuo_, built into brick-work, low in front, but rising gradually
at the sides and back, having a flue beneath and a fireplace at one end.
The pans are heated to a certain degree by a charcoal fire made in the
furnaces underneath. Charcoal being used exclusively for the purpose, as
smoke of any kind would injure the flavor of the tea. A limited quantity
of raw leaves are thrown into the _Kuo_ at a time, rapidly moved about
and shaken up with both hands until they become affected by the heat,
making a cracking noise and give out considerable vapor, the freshest
and juiciest cracking first.
The operators meantime continue to stir them rapidly as possible with
their bare hands until they become too hot to be endured, the object
being to expose them equally to the action of the heat, and at the same
time prevent them from burning or scorching. When the heat becomes too
intense they are lifted rapidly above the _Kuo_ and allowed to fall
gradually to cool them, any burned leaves being instantly removed. After
being allowed to remain in this state from four to five minutes, during
which they become moist and flaccid, they are quickly removed with a
shovel resembling a fan and transferred to a long, low table made of
split bamboo and covered with matting and surrounded by several
_Saihoos_, who divide the leaves among them, each taking as many as he
can hold in his hands, rolling them from left to right with a circular
motion into the form of a ball, which is compressed and rolled upon the
table, to rid them of any excess of sap or moisture, and at the same
time curl or twist the leaves. During this process they are frequently
shaken out and passed from hand to hand with a rapid motion, until they
reach the head workman, who examines them carefully to see if they have
attained the requisite twist, after which they are separated and spread
out in bamboo trays until the remainder have undergone the same process.
A second set of operatives now collect them and turn them over and over,
toss and retoss them in the air to a considerable height, while a third
keeps fanning them in order that they may cool more speedily and retain
their curl longer, those containing the most sap curling quickest,
tightest and retaining it the longer. When the firing and curling
operations are completed, the leaves are again exposed to the action of
the air, so as to admit the passing away of the expressed moisture and
at the same time impart a crisp appearance.
When a sufficient quantity of leaves has been rolled they are again
placed in the _Kuos_, under which a slow but steady charcoal fire has
been kept burning and stirred with a rapid motion by the hands of the
_Saihoo_ until they become thoroughly dried and the green color
permanently fixed, that is, until there is no longer any danger of them
turning black. At this stage the leaves are of a dull-green color,
becoming brighter as they cool, in which state they are termed by the
Chinese _Mao-cha_ or “Cat tea.” The next and last process consists of
winnowing or passing the leaves through sieves of varying sizes to free
them from stems, dust and other extraneous matter, and separate them
into the different kinds of Green Tea known to commerce. After which
they are again refired, the coarser leaves once and the finer grades
three to four times in order to bring out the color more fully and make
them retain their curl longer. In the
PREPARATION OF BLACK TEAS.
The leaves undergo the same process of evaporation and fermentation as
with the green, but for a much longer period. They are spread out thinly
on large mats and allowed to lie in this condition for at least
twenty-four hours, after which they are gathered up and thrown in the
air and allowed to fall back again in order to separate them. They are
next turned and returned for a considerable time, being slightly beaten
or patted with the hands meantime until they become soft and pliable,
when they are again heaped and allowed to lay in this state for about an
hour, and when examined, at the end of this time they are found to have
undergone a slight change, becoming darker in color, moist and flaccid
in texture and emitting a sweet, fragrant odor. At this stage they are
placed in the _Kuos_ and fired for about five minutes, rolled on bamboo
tables and shaken out thinly on sieves placed outside the “hong” and
exposed to the oxidizing action of the atmosphere for about three hours,
during which the operatives are employed in going over the sieves,
turning and separating the leaves from each other.
After the leaves have lost considerable sap and become correspondingly
reduced in size they are next removed into the factory and placed a
second time in the pans for three or four minutes, rolled as before and
put into tubular bamboo baskets, narrow in the middle and wide at both
ends, and suspended over charcoal fires for from five to six minutes,
during which they are carefully stirred and watched until they begin to
assume a dark color, the operations of heating and twisting being
repeated from three to four times, the heat being gradually reduced at
each operation, and during which the operators make holes with their
hands through the centre of the leaves in order to equally diffuse the
heat and give vent to any smoke or vapor from the charcoal. They are
then covered up, placed aside until they become perfectly dry and their
black color firmly established, improving in appearance as they cool.
When there is no longer any danger of their becoming green, the final
processes of sifting, sorting and grading is performed at the
convenience of the workmen.
With four _Kuos_ and six _Saihoos_ only from 400 to 500 pounds of
prepared tea can be cured in a single day, it requiring 400 pounds of
raw leaves to produce 100 pounds of cured tea. The leaves of the earlier
pickings being smaller, more tender and juicy, the yield is
correspondingly less, the leaves containing the most sap curling
quickest, tightest and retaining it longer.
It may here be observed in regard to the preparation of Green and Black
teas that the leaves intended for conversion into the latter variety are
allowed to lie exposed to the action of the sun and air for a
considerably longer time than those of the former, that they are raked
and tossed about until they become more soft and pliant, and that they
are allowed to ferment longer before firing. And, again, that after
firing and curling they are exposed to the oxydizing influence of the
atmosphere in a moist state for hours previous to being fired a second
time and finally dried in baskets over a slow fire. While the leaves
intended for Green teas are immediately fired and curled after being
picked, and dried as quickly as possible after the rolling process has
been completed. The differences in the methods of preparation are
therefore most marked, and satisfactorily accounts for the difference in
their color, flavor and aroma, as well as for the effects—nervousness
and wakefulness—produced in some constitutions by Green teas, due to the
greater amount of sap contained in the leaves.
But, for the at one time commonly-received opinion that the distinctive
color of Green teas was imparted by curing in copper pans, there is not
the slightest foundation in fact, since copper is never used for the
purpose, repeated experiments by unerring tests having failed to find a
single trace of that metal in any Green teas.
Later investigations proving that the hue of Green teas is due as much
to their manipulation as to the degree of heat at which they are fired.
It has been found that at equal temperatures the leaves of both will
turn black if allowed to lie as long before or during firing, the green
color being retained only by the excessive motion, the latter tending to
accelerate the power of evaporation of the juices, and which is further
augmented by incessant fanning.
GRADING AND PACKING.
The final grading of Green teas also differs from that of Black, there
being two distinct styles or “makes” of the tea—rolled and twisted. They
are first separated and then sifted, in which operation four sieves are
used, two to separate the small from the large round or rolled leaves,
and two for the curled or twisted. After being sorted or separated they
are again fired into deeper pans at a much higher temperature, and
winnowed while hot in large circular bamboo trays, to free them from any
remaining chaff or dust, the choicer grades being hand-picked previous
to being sent to the _Twa-tu-tia_ (Tea market), which is held in the
nearest town or village to the district of production. The inferior
grades are generally disposed of in an unassorted condition to the
native factors or foreign merchants, who afterwards sort, grade and pack
them for export.
The grading or classing of Black teas for their first market is
performed differently in the different districts. The most common
custom, however, is to sort the dried leaves at the hongs, according to
their size, style and quality, by collecting them in heaps or large
layers, and rake them down so as to mix them well together and make them
uniform in grade and average cost; the leaves being more often the
product of different plantations, and even districts. The product of
each plantation is brought by coolies in cotton bags or bamboo baskets
to the tea market, and when disposed of are removed to the “Go-downs,”
or warehouses, situated in the adjacent villages, where the teas of a
district are stored until they are disposed of to the native factors or
foreign agents, who travel through the country in the interest of
commission houses or merchants at the treaty ports, and by whom they are
again fired, graded and winnowed to free them from any remaining
impurities. When the orders are filled the teas are transported across
the country on the shoulders of coolies, or sent down by river or canal
in “junks” to the shipping ports, the time occupied in transit varying
according to means, being usually from six to eight weeks.
Previous to being packed for export in the lead-lined chests in which
they are received in this country, the teas are again subjected to a
still further firing, with the object of totally evaporating any
moisture they may have absorbed in transit from the interior or by
laying exposed in the storehouses, as well as to better fit them for the
long sea voyage, after which the tea is weighed in “catties,” and placed
in the chests, the packer pressing it down with his hands. When another
cattie is put in he steps on top, places his hands behind his back and
throwing his head forward goes through a sort of a tread-mill dance,
until the leaves are tightly compressed into the smallest possible
compass. More tea is then put in and pressed down in the same manner
until the chest is filled, when the leaden lid is put on and soldered,
the chest being nailed, clamped, matted and rattaned later, numerous
hands, men and women, being employed in its final packing.
Before matting a Chinese character termed a “Chop-mark” is placed on the
side of each chest, ostensibly to denote the packer or picking, but
although the same “crop” or brand is received year after year from the
same shipper it does not necessarily follow that the grade or quality
will be the same or even equal to that of the preceding ones.
The term “chop” in Chinese means contract, and does not, as is claimed,
refer to the crop or picking of any particular garden or season. In
trade it is applied to a quantity of tea frequently composed of the
product of different gardens, or piens (localities) and even districts
averaged or made uniform in the piens of the Twa-tu-tia by the factors
before forwarding to the shipping ports. When a sufficient quantity of a
certain specified grade has been secured from several growers to make up
a chop, it is carried to a warehouse in the adjacent village, where it
is all mixed together, averaged, refired and packed for the foreign
market. The quantity for a chop being selected according to the quality
of the leaf and the district producing it, and considering how chops are
made up—a few piculs from several gardens, often widely apart, they are
wonderfully uniform in grade. Still, although year after year the same
“chops” are received from the same shippers, it does not follow that the
chops of one year or season will be as fine as those of the preceding or
of equal quality. It being by no means an unusual practice for the
packers in the interior to leave the chests unmarked until they reach
the shipper, who, knowing the chops must be in demand at that particular
season in the consuming countries, supplies them to order, or, at least,
not to use one of bad repute.
The average cost of medium to fine grades of tea is 40 taels (about $20)
per picul (133⅓ pounds) laid down at the port of shipment is as follows
at the present time: The refiring, packing, leading, chests, matting and
rattaning varying from $3 to $4 per picul more.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER V.
CLASSIFICATION
AND
DESCRIPTION.
--------------
Tea as it occurs in commerce is the dried leaves of the tea-plant, and
is generically classified as Green and Black, under which names it is
best known to the public. Commercially, they are classed as China,
Japan, India, Ceylon, and Java teas, but are again divided into numerous
varieties and grades, having terms derived from the districts and
localities of production, or indicative of age, form, or quality, from
the delicate product of the young leaf-bud up to that of the large, old,
and fully expanded leaf. These numerous appellations which distinguish
the commercial qualities of tea being almost entirely of Chinese origin.
CHINA TEAS.
Tea and China are almost synonymous terms. It is indisputably the “Land
of tea.” Its cultivation forms the chief industry of that country, and
has been the largest contributor to the revenue of the government for
centuries, its export being the principal feature of all her foreign
dealings. The welfare of the inhabitants of her fairest provinces depend
on its production. It has been in universal use among them from time
immemorial, forming not only the regular beverage of the people, but
also administering to the luxury of the epicure. They drink it at all
times and under all circumstances from early morning until late at
night, in sickness or in health, working or playing, traveling or
resting, all business being transacted there between two cups of tea. In
brief, it is the natural beverage of the country constituting what wine
is to the French, beer to the German and ale to the English, and but
without which no Chinese family could live or thrive.
Considering all this, the claim under the circumstances that any other
country is the “home of tea,” as is attempted at the present time by
some English writers, is about as futile and absurd as the endeavor to
substitute Americus for Columbus, or Bacon for Shakespeare. And not only
is China the original home of tea, but in addition, _China Tea is the
only true tea, surpassing that of all other countries in every property
and quality constituting and distinguishing tea, and possessing certain
distinctive characteristics peculiar to and contained in no other
variety grown or known_. Yet while grown to a greater or less extent all
over that vast empire, its cultivation for commercial purposes appears
to be chiefly confined to the eastern provinces of Che-kiang, Kiang-see,
Gan-hwuy and Fo-kien, some little also being produced for export in the
western province of Sze-chuan.
China Green Teas
are produced principally in the provinces of Che-kiang, Gan-hwuy and
Kiang-see, and are known to trade as Sunglos, Moyunes, Hychows, Fychows,
Tienkes, Tayshings, Pingsueys, Cantons, and Country green teas, district
terms and grading in the order named. These varieties being again
subdivided into Gunpowders, Imperials, Hysons, Young Hysons,
Hyson-Pekoes, and Hyson-Skin—appellations denoting age, size, style, or
form of make.
=Sunglo=—Famous in China at one time as the district where Green teas
were first produced, and which were for centuries the finest grown in
that country. Latterly, however, it has greatly declined as a
tea-producing district, the quality also degenerating at the same time,
much of that now sold as “true Sunglo” being only so in name. They are
what is known to trade as “Hill” or high-district tea, natural green in
color, exceedingly well made and prepared, yielding a rich,
straw-colored liquor, clear and sparkling in the cup, fragrant and
aromatic in flavor. The infused leaf is small, symmetrical and uniform
to a high degree, in fact almost perfect in shape, an invariable
indication of youthfulness, fineness and tenderness.
=Mo-Yuen=—Known to trade as “Moyune,” now produces the bulk of the best
Green teas received from China. Grown principally on the plains or
lowlands adjacent to Sunglo from which fact they are sometimes termed
“Garden teas” in contradistinction to the upland or “hill teas,” and to
which they are inferior in make, liquor, and flavor. They are of three
kinds—“Nankin,” “Pakeong,” and “Oochaine”—so named from the “_piens_” or
localities in which they are raised.
=Nankin Moyune=—Is the most valuable, intrinsically and commercially,
being superior to the others in make, color, draw and drink. The dried
leaf is firmly rolled or curled according to “make,” rich, natural green
in color, and extremely uniform in general appearance. The infusion of
the finer grades is light golden in tint, brisk, and pungent in body,
and possessing a flavor peculiar to itself, technically termed “toasty.”
It is deceptive in drink owing to its light color in the cup, the body
being full and heavy, the infused leaf is small, but regular and
well-shaped and of a light-green hue.
=Pakeong=—Differs from Nankin in many respects, though grown in the same
district. The dry leaf is larger and more open, being what is termed
“loosely made,” duller in color and not as highly fired. The finer
grades, however, yield a rich, ripe liquor, comparatively light in color
and delicate in flavor, but lacking in that “toastiness” for which the
former are so much admired.
=Oochaine=—Is a small leaf tea, generally darker in color, heavier in
body and more pungent in flavor, but owing to its small size and
imperfect preparation not as well appreciated as it deserves.
=Hy-chows=—Though raised in the adjoining district to Moyune are
nevertheless much inferior to them in both leaf and liquor. The dry
leaf, while firmly made and regular in form, silvery-green in color and
considered attractive in appearance, is still very deceptive and lacking
in cup qualities. The infusion, although darker in color and fairly
pungent, is light in body and devoid of fragrance, the infused leaf
being dark, coarse and irregular.
=Fy-chows=—Are bold and rough in general appearance, dull in color, dark
and heavy in liquor, and somewhat astringent in flavor, and on the whole
an undesirable sort.
=Tien-kes=—While large and coarse in make are pleasing in the hand,
being chiefly sold on style, as they will not stand the cup test in
comparison with Moyunes. The liquor is dark and thick, astringent and
frequently “smoky” in flavor, due to the high firing in the effort to
make them roll or curl tighter.
=Tai-pings=—Like Tien-kes, look well in the hand, being fairly well-made
and stylish-looking, but of a leaden-blue hue, the result of the
“facing” or coloring-matter used in their preparation in order to
enhance their appearance. The infusion is dark and muddy in the cup,
flat and frequently “earthy” in taste, the infused leaf being large,
coarse, dark and irregular.
=Pingsueys=—Termed by the Chinese _Mien-pan-cha_ or “Bastard tea,”
possess no intrinsic value really as a tea, many experts contending that
they are not even allied to the tea plant, but prepared from the leaves
of some shrub remotely resembling it. The dry leaf is very stylish and
firmly made, but of a leaden-blue color and “greasy” in appearance,
gypsum and Prussian blue being extensively used in their manipulation.
The liquor is dark and heavy, bitterly astringent and “brassy” or
metallic in flavor, while the infused leaf is large, coarse and
irregular in shape, dark-brown in color, and recognizable from its
dissimilarity to the true tea-leaf.
=Canton=—Called by the Chinese _Tchaw-cha_ or “Lie-tea,” is another
spurious variety, manufactured in that city from “spent” or exhausted
tea leaves, that is, from leaves once used and from which the vital
properties have been extracted. They are made by first grinding and
mixing them with a gluey compound to make them adhere, and then rolled
into the form of Imperials and Gunpowders, as they cannot be curled or
twisted, after which they are artificially colored or faced with a
preparation of Prussian blue, kaolin and turmeric. They are smoothly
rolled and leaden-blue in color, having a peculiar greasy external
appearance in the hand, due to the mineral matter used in their
preparation. They do not possess a single physiological property of tea,
yielding only a greenish viscid substance, dark and muddy in color, the
so-called leaves disintegrating and settling in a pasty consistency at
the bottom of the cup, the liquor being devoid of every semblance of
tea.
=Country Greens=—Are uncultivated teas gathered in outlying districts,
rough and uncouth in appearance, bitter and astringent in liquor, wild
or “grassy” in flavor. The leaves when unfurled are exceedingly large,
rough and uncouth in the cups, having every appearance of a wild or
uncultivated tea-leaf.
Sub-Varieties of Green Teas.
=Gunpowder=—Termed by the Chinese _Choo-cha_ or “Pearl tea,” so named
from its small, round and “shotty” form. It is generally prepared from
the smallest and youngest leaves of the tea plant, its quality
corresponding to the picking and district of growth. The product of
first crop is sometimes known as “Pinhead,” from its extremely small,
globular and granulated appearance. That prepared from the second crop
is larger and not as hard rolled, while the third and fourth pickings
are respectively still larger and more irregular in form, but, while
darker and heavier in liquor, they are not near as delicate or fragrant
in flavor.
=Imperial=—Derives its trade name from being the make or style of tea
used in the Imperial household and the wealthier Chinese. That exported
is prepared from the larger and older leaves of the respective pickings
and rolled in the same manner as the former, from which fact it is
sometimes called “Big Gunpowder” and “Pea-leaf.” But while larger and
bolder in make it possesses much the same drawing and drinking
qualities, excepting that it is heavier and darker in liquor and not as
delicate or aromatic in flavor.
The true Imperial tea, known in China as “Flower tea,” not because it is
prepared from the flower or blossom of the tea-plant, as is erroneously
supposed, but from its being considered the “perfection of tea.” This
variety is never exported owing to its limited production and being also
very lightly fired in curing, it is very susceptible to moisture, the
damp of a sea voyage tending to greatly impair its delicate properties.
=Young Hyson=—Is a corruption of the Chinese term, _Yu-he-tsien_ or
“Early spring,” from being picked early in the season. In make the
leaves of the finer grades are extremely small, firmly, if not
artistically twisted, and almost wiry in texture, being prepared from
the youngest and tenderest leaves just expanding. The leaves of the
later pickings are correspondingly larger and looser in make and
appearance, and relatively inferior in drawing and drinking qualities to
the earlier pickings.
=Hyson=—Known to the Chinese as _He-tsien_, “Flourishing spring,” from
being gathered in the full spring-time is a large, loosely-curled leaf,
prepared from the older leaves of the respective pickings which cannot
from their size and lack of succulence be either rolled or curled. They
bear the same relation to Young Hysons that Imperials do to Gunpowder,
and preserving the same characteristics in a relatively minor degree.
=Hyson-Pekoe=—Called by the Chinese “_Loung-tsien_”, literally
“Tea-of-the-wells-of-the-Dragon,” a term used to describe an exceedingly
rare, peculiar and expensive variety of green tea, which, owing to its
extreme tenderness and delicacy and very light firing is never exported.
It has a small, evenly-curled leaf, rich, natural green in color, with
whitish, downy or silvery ends. The infusion is of a pale or
light-golden yellow tinge, clear and sparkling as champagne in the cups
and possessing what the connoisseur would term a simply exquisite aroma
or “bouquet.”
=Hyson-Skin=—Termed by the Chinese _Twankay_ or “Refuse tea,” is
composed of the largest and oldest leaves, screenings or “Fannings” of
the foregoing varieties, that cannot, owing to their coarse or broken
condition, be rolled or curled. It is large, loose and flat in
appearance, varying in color, liquor and flavor according to the grade
from which it is separated in screening. Many of them, however, draw and
drink exceedingly well, making very useful teas for blending purposes.
China Black Teas
comprise Oolongs, Congous, Souchongs and Scented teas, and are
principally produced in the south-eastern provinces of Fo-kien and
Kiang-nan.
Oolong Teas.
The term Oolong is derived from the Chinese word _Ou-loung_, signifying
“Green dragon,” and is applied to a variety of tea having a small
greenish-yellow leaf permeating through it. They are divided into six
different kinds—Amoys, Foochows, Formosas, Ankois, Saryune, Padrae and
Pekoe-Oolong teas, possessing as many distinct flavors and characters
caused by the variations in soil, climate and mode of preparation.
=Amoy Oolongs=—Are divided into Kokews, Mohea and Ningyong from the
localities where grown, and differ much in size, style and character.
=Kokew=—Is a large, dark, coarse-leaf tea, rough and unsightly in the
hand, but pungent and “grippy” in the cup. The poorer grades possess a
wild or “herby” flavor—a quality, strange to say, appreciated by some
few tea-drinkers, but strongly objected to by the majority of consumers.
=Mohea=—Is a large, light and somewhat “chaffy” leaf tea, light-colored
and light-bodied in the cup, but withal smooth and pleasant in flavor.
But, although lacking in strength, it is a serviceable tea for blending
purposes, particularly in combination with a heavy Congou or Assam, in
the proportion of one of the latter to four parts Mohea, being too thin
when used alone.
=Ningyongs=—Are light in weight, greenish-yellow in color and
stylish-looking in the hand, though not well made or twisted. They are
also very pleasing in the cup, possessing a sort of “hickory-nut” flavor
for which they are much admired, but are thin in body and lacking in
“snap.” It is contended by some experts that if this variety were
converted into a green tea it would rank with a light drawing Moyune in
drinking qualities.
Amoy at one time was the greatest Tea mart in the world, exporting as
much as 500,000 half-chests per annum, but which has now fallen to less
than 50,000, due in part to careless cultivation and indifferent curing.
The lower grades are stemmy, dusty and frequently adulterated with
spurious or exhausted leaves. Many of the finer grades, however, still
turn out splendidly in the cup, rivalling the lower grades of Foochow
and Formosa, being frequently faced and sold for the latter when these
grades are scarce or high. It does not require an expert, however, to
detect the substitution, as they are totally devoid of the fragrant and
“nosey” flavor that so distinguish the latter.
=Foochow Oolongs=—Are produced in the province of Fo-kien, and are,
without exception, the truest and finest variety of the genus tea grown
in any country, China not excepted. They are usually put up in “chops,”
quantities bearing the brand or chop-mark of the grower or packer, which
are again divided. “Lines,” termed in trade, “Firsts,” “Seconds,”
“Thirds,” “Fourths,” and sometimes “Fifths,” denoting the various
pickings and grading in the order named.
The dried leaf of the “Firsts” or finer grades is black and almost
“silky” in texture, exceedingly well twisted and crispy, but not
brittle, yielding rather than breaking when pressed in the hand. While
the infusion is dark-golden in color, rich, round and full bodied, very
mellow and fragrant in flavor, the infused leaf medium in size, very
regular in form and of a rich brown color.
The “Seconds” are somewhat larger in leaf, looser in make, not being
quite as finely or evenly twisted but possessing excellent “cup
qualities,” being the favorite with consumers who prefer full body, to
delicate flavor. The “Thirds” are still looser in make, bolder in style
and darker in liquor, heavier in body, and though not near as high or
fragrant in flavor are, nevertheless useful and serviceable,
particularly when they are composed of what is known as “high district
teas.”
The “Fourths and Fifths,” when there are any, are correspondingly
inferior in quality, the dried leaf of the latter being especially
large, coarse and rough in appearance, brittle and chaffy in the hand,
and frequently dusty or stemmy, dark in draw but thin in body, lacking
in flavor, deteriorating rapidly after infusion, and devoid of the high
character that so distinguishes the former grades of this variety. The
principal “chops” now known to trade comprise the “Tong-mow,”
“Tong-lee,” “Tong-shing,” “Chun-fah,” “Chun-fat,” “Sun-kee,”
“Cheong-kee,” “Com-we” and “Com-wo-kut chops.”
=Formosa Oolongs=—Also known to trade as “Tam-suis,” from being shipped
from that port, are unique in leaf, and flavor differing widely in
character, possessing a rich, natural bouquet entirely unknown to any
other variety. The dried leaf is dark greenish-yellow in color, evenly
and artistically curled, crisp and “crapy” in texture, small, shapely,
uniform, and green when infused, generally “tipped” with a brownish
edge, the result of fermentation. The liquor is bright, clear, and
golden in the cup, body round and mellow, ripe and rich and aromatic in
flavor. A really choice Formosa tea when drawn will fill a room with a
delightful aroma peculiar to itself, difficult to describe, but
variously pronounced as “jessamine,” “cowslip” or “primrose” odor, but
still totally unlike that of any other plant or flower in the vegetable
kingdom, having a “Formosa flavor” pure and simple, attributed to the
soil, and absorbed by the plants during growth, and to preserve which it
has to be continually cultivated in new places. Unlike other varieties
the later pickings of Formosa teas are heavier and stronger than the
earlier gatherings; though sweet and fragrant, are light-bodied and
evanescent. The medium and lower grades are dark-brown in color,
somewhat rough in style, not being as well cured or curled as the finer
sorts. The infusion is also darker in draw, fuller in body, but not near
as fragrant or aromatic in flavor, the finer grades improving as it
cools, the former deteriorating under the same circumstances and
revealing a slightly “herby” taste.
Formosa Oolongs are cultivated by native farmers who have small gardens,
some of whom do not raise over one hundred pounds at a picking, but have
from three to five pickings in a season. Unlike other varieties, the
first picking of Formosa is the poorest, the second crop being better
and the last or autumn crop is best of all. This inversion is due to
climatic causes, the island being visited with heavy rains during
August, after which the warm weather of September causes the plant to
grow luxuriantly, filling the leaf with sap, added to which the moisture
of the atmosphere causes the leaves to ferment quickly during the
process of curing, allowing the manufacturers to cure the leaf without
exposing it to the sun. The great strength of the leaf enables the
manufacturer to fire the leaves longer; the longer they are fired the
longer they will keep, the third crop, or “Autumn teas,” that have been
well-fired improving with time after exposure to the air, the action of
the atmosphere bringing out the fragrance of the tea, the toasty flavor
at the same time disappearing.
=Ankoi-Oolongs=—Are a doubtful species of the genus tea, said to be
prepared from the leaves of a shrub closely resembling yet widely
distinct in structure and character from those of the true plant, found
growing in a wild state on the range of mountains known as the Anke
hills, separating the district of Amoy from Foochow. The leaf, in a
dried state, is rough, coarse and reddish-brown in color, poorly curled
and ragged in general appearance. In the infusion it is dark-brown,
large and irregular in form, notably dissimilar from that of a genuine
tea-leaf in all respects, while the liquor is dark-red, oily or
“earthy,” and bitterly astringent to the taste, qualities contracted
from the presence of oxides in the soil in which they grow.
Intrinsically, this variety possesses no value really as tea, bearing
the same relation to Oolongs that Pingsueys do to Green teas, and
although known to the Chinese as “Bastard tea,” it is extensively used
by them in the reduction of Amoys, to which it imparts a wild, rank or
weedy flavor readily detected in the cup.
=Padrae-Oolong=—Is a scarce sort prepared in the Bohea district from a
species that is unsuited for conversion into plain Oolong. The leaf is
long, black, flattish, but finely made, after the manner of a Souchong,
and closely approximating to the latter in color, liquor and flavor.
They are chiefly exported to the Russian market, where they are much
esteemed for their unique but superb drinking qualities.
=Pekoe-Oolongs=—Are what is known to trade as a “Made tea,” that is,
prepared from leaves which, from their nature or quality, cannot be
converted into an Oolong or Green tea, or from leaves spoiled by
imperfect fermentation, smoke or fire in curing, flavored or scented
with Pekoe in order to disguise or conceal their defects. The dried leaf
is generally long, flat and very black, being over-fired, while the
liquor is dark-wine color, sharp, pungent, but burnt to the taste, and
approaching to that of Tienke green in flavor.
=Saryune=—Is a bold, dark-leaved variety, rather loosely made and
curled. The liquor is heavy, dark, rich and pungent, brisk, but somewhat
burnt in flavor, the result of too high firing. The infused leaf is
medium in size, regular in form, dark-brown in color, with darker edges,
approximating to that of a Congou leaf in color and style.
CONGOU, SOUCHONG AND SCENTED TEAS,
known to trade in this country as “English Breakfast teas,” from having
at one time formed the staple shipment to that country, are produced in
the province of Kiang-see, and are a distinct variety, differing in
color, liquor and flavor from the Oolong sorts. They are cultivated
chiefly on the _Bou-iu_ (Bohea) mountains, in the district of
Woo-e-shan, which, though very sterile in some parts, are literally
covered with tea plantations. More of these varieties are produced than
of all others combined, the product of the Pa-ta-shan range being
classed among the finest grown.
CONGOU TEAS.
The term Congou is a corruption of the Chinese term _Kowng-foo_, meaning
“laborious” or “assiduous sort,” more time and labor being expended on
their manipulation than on the other varieties, and are commercially
divided into Kaisows or “Red-leaf” and Monings or “Black-leaf Congou
teas.”
KAISOW
OR
RED-LEAF CONGOUS
include Chingwos, Seumoo, Suey-kut, Sin-chune, Saryune, Cheong-soo,
Cheong-lok, Cheong-syke, So-how, Yung-how, Wang-hung and Yung-tong
Congou teas.
=Chingwos=—Are the finest of all the red-leaf sorts, particularly when
the crop is good; the dry leaf is well curled or twisted, keeping well
up to a certain point and improving as it matures. The lower grades,
however, deteriorate very rapidly, and in proportion to the openness or
looseness of the leaf on arrival. Its special feature is its delicate
and, to a degree, fragrant flavor which it imparts to other teas in
combination, provided the other teas are not too strong and coarse. The
liquor is not, as a rule, very dark, but reddish in hue, and possessing
a round, mellow flavor, for which it is more esteemed than for its body
or color in the cup.
=Seumoo=—Is a long, bold, somewhat rough-leaved tea, dark-red in color
and “coarse” in flavor. The finer grades are, however, fairly thick and
strong in liquor, many of them although round and full are frequently
dull and flavorless, but combining well with strong Assams. Seumoos make
an excellent base when combined with the latter, the pungency of the
Assam imparting the briskness and body which it lacks when used alone.
=Suey-kut=—Is a brisk but mostly burnt variety, being as a rule, too
highly fired. The dry leaf of the first pickings is evenly twisted,
black and stylish in the hand, its strength and flavor is but average,
and quality generally only fair in the cup. The commoner grades, though
usually well-made and pleasing in appearance, are frequently stemmy or
dusty.
=Sin-chune=—Is neither a large or greatly valued sort, the dry leaf
being loose in make, mixed and ragged in appearance, and objectionably
dusty, while the liquor is hard and dry to dullness, lacking both in
flavor and aroma.
=Saryune=—Is the reddest of the Red-leaf teas, and while one of the most
serviceable of this variety, is not a fine sort by any means, though
often ripe and juicy. The liquor is almost invariably strong and brisk,
but burnt in flavor, the result of too high firing, and with the
exception of a few of the finer grades the leaf is rarely well curled,
being generally open, red and rough in appearance, the second and third
crops being usually very dusty or stemmy.
=Cheong-soo=—Is a scarce sort, varying in quantity and quality from year
to year, but quite a desirable one, particularly when the crop is good;
but fine Cheong-soos are rarely seen in this market.
=Cheong-lok=—Is a tea of negative character, the liquor possessing
little or no strength and the leaf having a rough, red, unsightly
appearance in the hand.
=Cheong-syke=—Is also best described by negatives, the dry leaf being
dark-brown and coarse, the liquor lacking the strength of Sin-chune and
the briskness of Saryune.
=So-how=—Is small and well made in leaf, dark, but rich in liquor, and
smooth and mellow in flavor for this variety of tea.
=Yung-how=—Closely approaches Suey-kut in appearance, drawing and
drinking qualities, but is less burnt in taste and rather stronger, and
more flavory in the infusion.
=Wang-hung and Yung-tong=—Are both high-fired, brisk, but burnt
varieties, dark-red in leaf and liquor, and not, as a general rule,
either useful or valuable sorts to the dealer.
MONING
OR
BLACK-LEAF CONGOUS
comprise Ning-chows, Oonfas, Oopacks, Oonams, Kin-tucks, Kee-muns,
Kiu-kiangs, Panyong, Hapyong, Paklin and Paklums, and constitute the
true Black teas of China.
=Ning-chow=—Is a small, evenly-curled leaf, greyish-black in color and
very stylish in general appearance, the finer grades being
“Pekoe-tipped” and flavored. The infusion is dark red or wine-colored
but delicate and aromatic, more so than that of any tea of this variety,
while the infused leaf is small, tender, symmetrical and of a bright
brown or reddish tendency. The lower grades are fairly thick and strong,
making a useful tea for the retailer, as they keep well and combine
advantageously with most other varieties, less regular and uniform,
browner and given to “choppiness” and dust. The liquor, though of good
color, is not as clear and bright, the infused leaf being more markedly
red than that of the former sorts. The medium and lower grades are
fairly thick in the cup; but have a tendency to become overripe, and
while not keeping, still blend well with a pungent Assam or light-bodied
Oolong tea.
=Oonfa=—While not as finely twisted or as handsome as Ning-chow, is
still the next most important of the Black-leaf Congous. The dried leaf
of the finer grades is bold in make, yielding a dark, heavy liquor,
lacking in fragrance, but proving a desirable sort where body and
strength is required. The medium grades are rough and open, the liquor,
though mostly strong, is often “tarry,” and frequently sour when kept
too long, while the lower grades are thin in body and coarse in flavor,
having nothing to recommend them but their leaf, which is generally free
from dust.
=Oopack=—Grown on the banks of the Yang Tse, a little above Hankow, is a
“crapy” black leaf tea, evenly curled, but somewhat bold in style. When
freshly fired they are flavory and aromatic, but become dull and
“brassy” as the firing wears off, for which reason it is not a good tea
to keep. If used quick, however, it blends well with broken Assam, when
thick and heavy, the commoner grades being fairly smooth and sweet in
the cup, though coarse and rough in the hand.
=Oonams=—Are a class of tea somewhat resembling Oopacks in style and
draw, but preferable to the latter approximating closer to Ning-chow in
flavor. The dry-leaf is also more evenly twisted, smaller and greyer and
the infusion fuller and stronger.
=Kin-tuck=—Is comparatively a new variety, but is rapidly becoming one
of the most important of the Congou sorts, the quality of the choicer
grades being especially good, rivalling the finest Ning-chows,
particularly when the crop is good.
=Kee-mun=—Is another of the newest descriptions of China Congou teas,
possessing many of the characteristics of Kin-tuck, to which it is
closely allied. The dried leaf varies considerably in style and
appearance, some lots having an evenly-curled and handsome leaf, while
others again are brownish and irregular; some of the earlier pickings
possess a peculiar flavor termed “chocolate,” for which they are much
prized.
=Kiu-kiang=—Comes from Hohow, one of the most northern of the Moning
districts, the quality of the finest first pickings being simply superb.
The dry leaf, is black, uniform and free from dust, while the infused
leaf is bright-brown and very regular; but, with all these advantages,
they are lacking in strength or “snap” and consequently are not of such
value as their character on first appearance would seem to indicate.
They deteriorate very rapidly, more so than any other of this variety,
and while the medium grades are a little fuller in body, from the
highest to the lowest the same want of strength is found.
=Panyong=—Is an exceedingly black, “silky” and stylish leaf tea, rich,
strong and mellow in the cup. The finer grades corresponding in value
and quality with those of the same grades of Ning-chow, for which kind
it may be freely substituted in any emergency.
=Hapyongs=—Are medium in size, fairly made and pleasing in the hand,
heavy, dark, smooth and fragrant in the cup. While the infused leaf is
dark, regular and uniform, it is liable to be coarse and dark.
=Paklin=—Is a large and important variety, not very dissimilar to
Ning-chow, but lacking in that roundness and delicacy in the cup, for
which the latter is so highly valued. The dry-leaf of the finer grades
is smaller, more evenly twisted, and blacker than that of any other
grown in China. The infused leaf is bright-red, regular and tender; the
liquor is dark-red, and though lacking in fulness the general cup
qualities of the infusion is of a very superior order.
=Paklum=—While fuller and rounder in body than Paklin, yields a sweet
and pleasant liquor, but is inferior to that of the latter variety in
flavor and aroma. The dried leaf is also very black, fairly made and
often “tippy” in the hand.
Some Congou teas are also produced in other districts of China, being
known to trade as Amoy, Ankoi, Qui-fa, Padrae, Pekoe and Canton Congou
teas.
=Amoy Congou=—Known to trade also as “Swat-how,” is invariably burnt in
flavor, but when the crop is good, is brisk and strong in the cup. The
dry-leaf being coarse and loosely folded, they deteriorate very rapidly,
becoming wild or “weedy” in flavor as they mature.
=Qui-fa=—Is a “tarry” tea, allied to Amoy, but more evenly curled and
blacker in color. The liquor is strong and brisk, and not quite as rank
or bitter as that of the former. The infused leaf is very coarse and
irregular in form, often broken and very dark in color.
=Ankoi Congou=—The difference between Ankoi and Amoy Congou is not very
wide, the former being ranker, if anything. They are generally rougher
in make, dull-black in color, thick and muddy in the cup, bitter and
astringent in flavor, more particularly the commoner grades, which are
in addition broken, stemmy and dusty.
=Padrae-Congou=—Is a strong, high-fired tea, large in leaf, black and
“crispy” in style, and useful only for its great strength and pungency
in the cup. The lower grades are frequently “soapy” or “mousey” in
flavor, and invariably dusty.
=Pekoe-Congou=—Approximates closest to Chingwo in make and general
appearance, but are more artistically twisted and darker in color and
“Pekoe-tipped,” the flavor being sacrificed to style and finish. The
infused leaf is medium sized, regularly formed and reddish in color,
while the liquor is fairly rich, fragrant and pekoe-flavored to a high
degree.
=Canton Congous=—Are principally manufactured teas, being composed of
exhausted leaves, refired and faced with plumbago, or other
coloring-matter, and do not contain the semblance of tea in the cup.
=Campoi=—A corruption of the Chinese term _Chien-pei_, or “Kampoey,”
meaning “selected for firing;” is a particular variety of Congou,
smaller in leaf, darker in color and much better curled, but not as dark
in the infusion. It possesses a more delicate flavor, is not as strong
in body, and being limited in quantity, but little is ever exported.
=Bohea=—Is a term applied in China to a sort composed of old, broken and
inferior leaves, and the refuse of the Congou kinds. It was formerly
largely exported to England, but is now retained chiefly for home
consumption, from its cheapness, by the poorer Chinese.
NEW DISTRICT CONGOUS
comprise “Hoyunes,” “Tayshans,” “Cantons,” “Macaos,” and many others new
to commerce. The finer Hoyunes are a brownish-grey leaf tea, varying in
length and curl, the finer grades of which are round and pungent,
yielding a deep-red liquor and bright-brown infused leaf. The lower
grades, however, are rough and irregular in make, brownish in color and
dull and harsh in flavor. Tayshans and Macaos are among the newest makes
of Congous lately introduced, the former being prepared in imitation of
Moning and the latter of a Kaisow. Many of the new makes, while flavory,
are lacking in strength; others again are strong almost to rankness.
“Ho-how” is the commonest of these descriptions of Congous, the leaf
being large and ragged and form “earthy,” and may be termed the
“Pingsuey” of this variety. There is still another called “Kut-oan,”
recently prepared as an experiment from the leaf of a Green tea plant
grown in the Nankin district and said to be equal in every respect to
the finest Kaisow in leaf, liquor and flavor.
SOUCHONG TEAS
are among the finest and richest of the Black tea sorts, being known to
the Chinese as _Saou-cheong_, “Little,” or “scarce sort,” and are
limited in supply. They are chiefly prepared from the youngest leaves of
the earliest pickings, gathered only in the finest weather, and dried in
the shade to protect them from the direct rays of the sun. The dry leaf
is longer but thinner than that of the Congou sorts; folded rather than
curled or twisted, but possessing somewhat similar drinking qualities.
They are classed in trade as Lapsing, Tong-quam, Padrae, Pekoe, Oolong,
and Canton Souchongs.
=Lapsing=—Prepared in the district of Foochow, is also known to trade as
“Foochow-Souchong,” is a large, handsome, crapy leaf, finely made and
lightly fired, possessing a rich, wine-colored liquor with fragrant
flavor, entirely peculiar to itself, described as “tarry flavor,” which
when not too pronounced adds rather than detracts from its worth. The
product of the later pickings are of less strength and flavor, but are
still very smooth and pleasant in liquor and flavor, and generally
shipped to the Russian market, where they are held in high esteem for
their intrinsic qualities.
=Oolong-Souchong=—Is another variety of the foregoing, prepared from the
leaves of a plant that cannot well be made into either sort, the
greatest care being taken in its manipulation. It is stylish in leaf,
closely approximating to Foochow Oolong in the dried state, very clear,
rich and translucent in the infusion, but though light in weight and
color is yet very deceptive, being full of snap and sparkle, fragrant
and aromatic.
=Tong-quam=—Is a long, flat, black-leaf Souchong tea carefully folded,
but little understood by the general trade, owing to the liquor
possessing nearly the same flavor and pungency as that of a Red-leaf
Congou, usually more round and fuller, the dry leaf being slightly
bolder and blacker in appearance.
=Padrae-Souchong=—Is a jet-black leaf, small and “crapy” in texture,
usually prepared from the youngest and tenderest leaves of the Congou
order, and which it closely resembles in general character and flavor.
The dry leaf is, however, much smaller, flatter and darker, but greatly
excelling them in the delicacy and fragrance of the infusion.
=Pekoe-Souchong=—Is prepared from the leaves that have developed too
much to be converted into the former kind, which is small in size. The
dry leaf is medium-sized, very black and moderately “tipped” at the ends
with a whitish-downy substance termed “pekoe.” In liquor they are
strong, dark, pungent and fragrant in flavor and aroma.
=Canton Souchongs=—Are prepared from old and exhausted leaves collected
in a careless manner, exposed in the sun to dry, and packed in baskets
until they reach that city, where they are refired, colored and scented
in order to disguise their bitter, rank and astringent properties.
SCENTED TEAS
form a special class of the Chinese product comprising Capers, Pekoes
and Pouchong teas, being known to trade as Foochows, Cantons and Macaos.
=Caper=—Known to the Chinese as He-choo-cha, “Black pearl,” or
Gunpowder, from its small, round or spherical appearance, resembling
capers. It is prepared from the largest but most succulent leaves of the
first pickings, and cured by a series of brisk firings and rollings,
after which it is placed in moulds, in order to make it retain its
globular shape. The dried leaf is small, round and “shotty” in
appearance, reddish-black in color, glossy and highly scented. The
infusion is wine-colored, piquant and aromatic, possessing what is
technically termed a rich “bouquet,” the infused leaf, when uncurled,
being very symmetrical in form and dark-brown in color.
=Pekoes=—From the Chinese _Pai-ho_, or _Pak-ho_, signifying “white
down,” is applied to a variety of tea having a whitish downy or
“silvery” tip at the end of the leaves. It is usually prepared from the
youngest and tenderest leaf-buds first expanding, and was at one time
claimed to be composed of the flower or blossom of the tea plant, hence
its French name, “_fleur de thé_,” an error long since corrected, as the
tea blossom possesses none of the properties of the leaf, though
frequently used for scenting purposes.
=Orange-Pekoe=—Recognized by its long, flat, even and artistically
folded leaf, jet-black color, and yellowish downy tips at the ends. It
is highly scented, yielding a rich wine-colored liquor, piquant, pungent
and aromatic in the cup, the infused leaf being small, bright and
closely resembling that of choicest Oolong variety.
=Flowery-Pekoe=—Is a smaller but more evenly folded leaf, greenish-black
or olive-colored, with ends ornamented by whitish, “velvety” tips, being
also very highly scented. The infusion is lighter in color and body but
piquant and aromatic in flavor, the infused leaf small, dark and
perfectly formed.
=Hung-muey=—Is still another variety of Pekoe rarely exported, having a
plain black leaf lightly tipped and lightly scented, and yielding an
infusion dark in color, thin in body, but very fragrant and aromatic in
flavor.
=Pouchong=—Derives its trade name from _Paou-cheong_, meaning “wrapped
sort.” The leaf is rough and bold in style, dull-black in color and
peculiar in scent. The latter being imparted by the admixture of the
seeds of the _Lan-hoa_, or Chulan flower, the finer grades of which are
deep red, rich and pleasing, but the lower ones are often abominable.
=Pouchong-Pekoe=—Is usually prepared from the undeveloped leaves or just
expanding buds of the tea plant, and is a small, glossy-black leaf with
yellowish-golden tips, yielding an intensely rich liquor very piquant
and highly aromatic in flavor.
=Padrae-Pouchong=—Is a medium-sized leaf, exceedingly black in color and
well folded. The liquor is dark, full, round and aromatic in flavor, but
light and thin in body.
=Canton Scented Teas=—Known to trade as _Congee_—“Lic” or “made teas,”
to a large extent being purchased in the natural state, converted into
Capers and Pekoes at will, and doctored or scented up to a certain
standard by contract. They are much higher scented than Foochows, but
lacking in the properties of true tea, less pungent in liquor and devoid
of character or flavor.
=Macao Scented Teas=—Known also as “New district,” are closely allied to
Cantons in make, appearance and character of scent. The dry leaf is
somewhat larger and darker in color, the flavor being dull and peculiar
in the infusion.
The fragrance of Scented teas is not, as is generally supposed, natural
to them, but imparted by the admixture of the flowers, blossoms, leaves,
or oils extracted from the seeds or roots of other plants, such as the
Orange, Jessamine, Chlorantus, Gardenia, and Oleo-fragrans. The leaves
and blossoms of the Iris, Curcunia, and oil of Bixa orelana being also
extensively used. In some districts the scenting material is added to
the tea during the firing process, and afterwards separated by sifting.
It is, however, more generally introduced into the tea after it is
prepared and ready for packing; one pound of leaves or blossoms being
the usual proportion to each hundred pounds of tea. They are spread over
the top of the tea in the chest and allowed to remain for at least a
day, or until it becomes strongly impregnated by absorbing their
moisture, and then removed, the duration depending on the character of
the scenting employed, the scent increasing after the tea is packed for
export. But though scenting in general is supposed to be confined to the
choicer grades of tea it is as often applied to the inferior sorts, with
the object of disguising or concealing their defective or damaged
condition, and imparting a pleasant odor, a much larger quantity being
used in the latter. The scenting greatly modifies and improves the
flavor, however, without adding any pernicious or deleterious substance
to the tea.
Consumers not accustomed to using these varieties erroneously imagine,
from the dark color of the leaf and liquor, that they are much stronger
and more exciting than that of the Oolong or Green tea sorts. While the
contrary is the case, it requiring one-third more leaf of corresponding
quality to yield an infusion of equal strength than of Oolong or Green
tea sorts. The “smoky” and “tarry” flavors possessed by many of them,
and for which this variety is so remarkable, is due in a great measure
to the use of ill-made charcoal in firing and the use of soft woods
containing tar or pitch, such as fir and pine, in its preparation. The
worst feature about which is that this “smokiness” and “tarriness” does
not develop until long after the teas have left China, and are offered
for sale. It is also a noticeable fact that certain waters serve to
bring out these peculiarities more prominently than others, American
waters in particular.
OTHER CHINESE VARIETIES.
Besides these numerous ordinary teas of commerce, there are several
other varieties cultivated in China, but principally for home
consumption and rarely if ever exported, among which may be mentioned:—
=Suen-cha=—Or “Sweet tea,” made from the leaves of a slender shrub
growing in the western province of Sze-chuan, and peculiar only to that
section. The leaf is large, thick and odorless in the green or natural
state, but when cured exhales a rare and peculiar odor, and possesses a
sweet, liquorice-like taste in the infusion, not altogether pleasant.
=Peh-Yuen-cha=—Or “White cloud tea,” prepared from another rare species
of the tea shrub found near the summit of Mount Ombei in the same
province and most dissimilar in character and flavor from that of the
regular teas of commerce. It yields an aromatic infusion, peculiar but
palatable, and is chiefly used by pilgrims and travelers in that
country.
=Mandarin Tea=—Is still another rare variety, seldom if ever exported,
its use being confined to the Mandarins and aristocracy of China. The
leaf is exceeding small, dark, crisp and tender, lightly fired and
highly scented, commanding as high as fifteen dollars per pound in the
home market.
=Brick Tea=—Is composed of the old leaves, stems, siftings and sweepings
of the Chinese tea hongs, ground fine, moistened and compressed into
shapes somewhat larger than regular building bricks. It has nothing to
recommend it as a tea, being sold chiefly to the Mongols, Tartars and
other tribes of Central Asia, among whom it also serves as a currency.
=Tablet Tea=—Is a “new make” of tea recently introduced in China,
appearing for the first time in the trade returns last year. It is
prepared by machinery from the best quality of tea-dust, formed by
pressure alone into small cakes in the form of tablets perfectly hard
and solid, resembling chocolate in make and appearance. It is not, like
“brick tea,” moistened by steam before being compressed, and the flavor
is not in any way impaired by the process of manufacture. One of the
chief advantages claimed for this form of tea is that, being subjected
to heavy hydraulic pressure, all the cells are broken and the properties
of the tea are more easily and completely extracted by the boiling
water, thus effecting a considerable saving in the quantity required for
a given amount of the beverage. Its principal market is Russia, which
took from China last year over 500,000 pounds in the form of tablets.
=Medicine Tea=—Is prepared from the coarse leaves and stems of the
ordinary tea plant, ground and mixed with medicinal herbs, packed in
bundles and used for medicinal purposes among Asiatic tribes.
=Log-tea=—Is also prepared from the ordinary teas of commerce. It is a
very inferior grade, prepared from the stalks, packed in the shape of
logs, weighing from 8 to 10 pounds, and wrapped in the leaves of the
bambusa, and packed in this manner from motives of economy and freight.
The total production of tea in China is unknown, and can at best be only
roughly estimated, and while we have no certain means of ascertaining
the quantity consumed in that country itself, fair conclusion may be
drawn from the data at hand. Taking the population at 400 millions and
considering that the use of tea is universal among its inhabitants, an
average of five pounds _per capita_ would not be an overestimate, making
a total of two billion pounds alone for home consumption. Again
averaging the product at 100 pounds of cured tea per acre and the total
area under tea cultivation at 20 million acres, if, therefore, we admit
the home consumption of tea in China to be two billion pounds, we cannot
but be surprised at the relatively small quantity which is exported from
that country. According to the latest statistics, we find that the total
exports to all countries from China does not exceed 200 million pounds,
which is less than one-tenth of the total production of that country.
JAPAN TEAS.
Tea is grown for commercial purposes all over the Japanese islands, from
Kiusiu in the south to Niphon in the north, but both in quantity and
quality of their product the central provinces of Hondo are the finest,
particularly that produced in the districts on the coast provinces of
the interior sea. The tea soil of Japan is described as slate
atmospherically dissolved with gypsum and phosphoric acid, produced by
manuring. The system of cultivation and methods of preparation do not
differ materially from those of the Chinese, the first picking, which is
the best, occurring about the beginning of May, the second a month
later, the third is often, however, omitted altogether, in order not to
injure the plants. In Japan the raw leaves are generally sold to the
exporters, by whom they are prepared and converted into the several
descriptions known to commerce.
When a sufficient quantity has been accumulated they are carried to the
hong or “drying house” and first placed in large bamboo baskets, in
which they are subjected to a steam bath for about a minute, after which
process they are spread out in the open air to cool and dry thoroughly,
previous to being fired and curled. Only about five pounds of the leaves
are put in the pans at a time for manipulation, the process being
identical with that of China, with the exception that they are finally
dried in bamboo baskets suspended over the furnaces by cords from the
ceiling for about fifteen minutes. During this time they are gently
agitated by the hands of the operators in order to diffuse the heat and
more thoroughly dry them. They are then removed by a dextrous motion
with fan-like scoops and tossed in the air to free them from dust and
stems, and afterwards picked over by women and children before packing
in the lead-lined chests for export.
In color, flavor and character, Japan teas are totally distinct from any
and all other varieties, the finer grades being exceedingly delicate,
rich and peculiar to themselves. They yield a light-colored liquor, very
fragrant in flavor, but apt to deceive the casual drinker, as after
continued use they are found to possess greater strength and pungency
than most China teas, their effect on the nervous system being very soon
perceptible. They are classed commercially as Yama-shiro, Uji, Kioto,
Yedo, Eisyie, Suringar, Hatchoji, Nagahama, Nagasaki, Tosia and Bancha,
grading in value in the order named, and converted into Pan-fired,
Sun-dried, Basket-fired, Nibs and Siftings, with occasionally small lots
of Pekoe, Congou, Oolong, Imperial, Gunpowder and Young Hyson makes.
=Pan-fired=—The finer grades have a long, well-curled, natural green
leaf, presenting an unbroken appearance, sinking immediately to the
bottom of the cup on infusion, uncurling rapidly and showing more or
less perfect leaves in the infused state. It yields a clear, bright
liquor, which remains unchanged in color and flavor until cold. The
flavor is delicate and fragrant in odor somewhat like that of new-mown
hay. The medium grades are correspondingly rougher in make, darker in
liquor and duller in flavor, while the commoner ones are coarse and
unsightly in style, varying from a greenish to a mottled blue in color,
and possessing a “brassy” or metallic taste, due to the cosmetic or
artificial coloring-matter used in their preparation.
=Sun-dried=—As the name implies, are steamed and dried in the sun before
firing, in order to fix their color permanently. The leaf is
olive-green, well fired, compactly curled and “toasty” in the cup, owing
to their thorough fermentation before firing, and although not as well
appreciated as the Pan-fired, are much superior in drinking properties,
their extra fermentation destroying the “grassy” flavor so
characteristic of many Japans. The lower grades range from a yellowish
to a dull-green, indifferently rolled and often “fishy” in flavor, said
to be contracted from the use of fish manure in the coast districts.
=Basket-fired=—So named from being cured by the “basket process,” and in
contradistinction to those fired in pans. The finer grades are long,
dark and exceedingly well twisted or curled, entirely free from stems,
dust and other extraneous matter, clear and bright in liquor, and mellow
or “mealy” in flavor, the latter quality making them a very valuable
sort for blending purposes. The commoner grades are rough, and uncouth
in style, brownish-black in color, thick and heavy in liquor, but
lacking in “grip” and flavor.
=Kumo=—Or “Spider-leg” Japan, is in reality only a finer grade of
basket-fired; long, narrow, black, and “wirey” in leaf, and elastic in
texture. It is of the Pekoe order in make, but still retaining all the
properties of liquor and flavor of a Japan tea pure and simple.
=Nibs=—Are composed of the refuse of the foregoing kinds, bearing the
same relation to Japans that Twankays do to Green teas, many of them
drawing and drinking exceedingly well, according to the grade separated
from.
Up to 1856 China tea was the only tea used in the United States, but
during that year a small quantity of Japan teas, consisting of about 50
half-chests, was first received in this country. Being found pure and
free from coloring-matter, it soon became very popular with consumers, a
large number of whom had been prejudiced against China green teas at the
time, under the impression that they were more or less artificially
colored. The demand steadily increased, 400 half-chests were imported
the following year, which was increased to 1,100 chests in 1859. About
1860 the Japanese changed their mode of curing, adopting that of the
Chinese as applied to Green teas, with the result of altering the color
from a dark to a light green, and of imparting a high “toasty” or malty
flavor, in lieu of the uncooked or “grassy” taste which characterized
the first importations, since which period and change they have
continued to grow in popular favor. But the supply of Japan teas being
at one time greatly in excess of the demand and the price declining in
many instances below the cost of production, in connection with the fact
that the teas as originally prepared were used only in the American
market, induced the Japanese to convert their surplus leaf into other
varieties, such as Pekoes, Congous, Oolongs, Imperials, Gunpowders, and
Young Hysons, in imitation of the Chinese “makes,” with the futile
expectation of popularizing them in England and other countries, where,
heretofore, only very small quantities were consumed. With this
intention Chinese skilled labor was imported into the tea districts to
aid them in the experiment of preparing these makes of teas. The result
proved most unsatisfactory as was anticipated at the time by experts and
others interested in the project, only very small quantities of the
respective kinds being produced occasionally. It is predicted, however,
that all the different descriptions now received from other countries
will be eventually prepared in Japan, in evidence of which a tea
rivalling the finest Formosa in general character is now produced in the
Hondo district from a variety of the Japan plant.
=Japan Pekoe=—Is a long, dark-green, flat leaf tea, usually “tipped,”
but as often not, approaching to that of the India variety in style and
appearance. But while looking remarkably well in the hand and up to
standard in drink, being smooth in liquor and “malty” in flavor, as a
general rule it is through overfiring lacking in the scent and aroma of
the China and even India prototype.
=Japan Congou=—Approximates in many of its leading features to that of
the India species, the cured leaf possessing similar properties to many
of the finer grades of the latter. The infusion is brighter in color but
thinner in body, and more acidulous in flavor, and the reverse of
palatable, owing to its imperfect fermentation and high or overfiring.
=Japan Oolongs=—Although cured in identically the same manner as the
China variety, resemble them only in general contour. The leaf is darker
in color but finer in make, approaching more to the Souchong order. The
infusion is also darker in draw, but very “toasty,” that is, “burnt” in
flavor, owing to too high firing, retaining all the original
peculiarities of a regular Japan tea.
=Japan Imperials, Gunpowders and Young Hysons=—Differ only from the
ordinary Japan teas in form, make and color. Being prepared from the
same leaf, they naturally possess the same general characteristics and
cup qualities; the demand not justifying, they are not produced in any
appreciable quantities.
The production of tea in Japan is constantly increasing and its quality
improving, a wider area being devoted to its cultivation each year,
largely superseding sericulture in many districts. The total area now
under cultivation amounts to nearly 42,000 _Cho_, or about 100,000
acres. The total annual product is estimated at 100,000,000 pounds, a
gain of over 30,000,000 as compared with 1890, of which 40,000,000
pounds, or 44 per cent. of the total production was consumed in the
United States during the fiscal year of 1891. The American taste for
Japan teas continues to grow in proportion, particularly in the
Northwestern and Pacific States, their consumption in this country
nearly doubling that of Oolongs and Congous combined, and trebling that
of Green teas of all makes. This too, notwithstanding the fact that only
a very small proportion of really choice Japan teas are ever exported,
rarely exceeding one per cent. of the entire crop, being principally
retained for home consumption.
INDIA TEAS.
One of the most remarkable circumstances in connection with the
development of the Tea trade is the rapid increase in the production and
consumption of India Teas. Almost unknown to commerce thirty years ago,
they are fast becoming an important factor in the business, particularly
in the English and colonial markets, India being already of such
importance to them as a source of tea supply that it is only a question
of a very short time when the tea consumers of these countries will no
longer regard China as a tea-growing country indispensable to them.
As far as can be ascertained, the first announcement of the discovery of
the tea-plant in India was made in 1833, but owing to imperfect
specimens being sent to botanists for inspection, it was not at the time
considered a true species. It was fully demonstrated, however, in 1835,
when a plant with perfect leaves, flowers and seeds was obtained which
proved on analysis to be a species of the genus tea allied to, but not
identical with that of China; Burmese and Chinese experts, to whom the
specimens were submitted, concurring in the statement. The report being
favorable, an experimental plantation was immediately established under
government auspices with results not known. The first plantation for its
cultivation on a commercial scale was formed in Lukhimpore in 1836, from
which the first samples were received in 1839, and the first sales made
in 1840. But, owing to the unfavorable reports given on the first
samples of the tea prepared from the India leaf, it was rejected by the
London brokers. The propriety of introducing the China species was next
suggested by some planters, and tons of seed were at once imported from
that country, large estates being formed from the plants raised from it.
Many of the plantations were finally composed of hybrids or crosses
between the China and India species, which is now claimed to have been
an error, as the nearer each variety approaches to the indigenous the
higher its excellence.
The tea-producing districts of India are widely scattered, the
largest—Assam—being situated in the extreme northeast of the country
bordering on the Burmese Empire, the others being located on the
northwestern boundary of Nepaul and the Punjaub, while Central India
appears to be entirely devoid of tea gardens up to the present. There
are numerous plantations, however, scattered over the southwestern
provinces of the peninsula, most notably in Wynaad, Neilgherry and
Travancore. In India, tea is grown on extensive estates, often
comprising thousands of acres, situated principally in the alluvial
valleys of large rivers, or formed on land reclaimed from primeval
jungle, possessing all the richness of virgin soil and cultivated either
by the individual owners or the agents of companies commanding
considerable capital. Every detail of cultivation and preparation is
conducted under close and careful European supervisors. The plants are
raised from seed sown in nurseries until they are about 18 inches high,
when they are transplanted to the rows in the gardens in which they are
to grow, the closest attention being paid to weeding and irrigating. The
young trees are carefully pruned periodically and reduced to a bushy
form, until they are from two to three years old, when the first picking
commences, the exact time for picking being determined by the overseer.
The leaves are removed in such a manner as to cause no subsequent injury
to the plants, by which care the India planter is enabled to obtain from
twelve to sixteen pickings in a single season, the Chinese grower being
limited to three or four at the utmost.
Each separate picking in India is termed a “Flush,” a number of flushes
constituting a “Break” or “Chop,” as in China, which is rarely more than
100 chests and frequently as low as 20, but generally uniform in grade.
There is another remarkable feature about India teas; it is that while
the first, second and third pickings of all other teas are respectively
inferior to each other there is nothing in the India pickings to denote
their relationship to any crop or gathering. The number of pickings from
the India plant also varies considerably according to the soil,
situation, garden and season. When all these conditions are favorable,
the plantation will yield as many as sixteen “flushes,” while ordinarily
and often under the most unfavorable conditions five to six are obtained
in a single season.
There is no radical difference between the Chinese and Indian methods of
preparation up to what is termed the “Rolling process;” it being
performed in the latter country very lightly and only by a minimum of
pressure by machinery. Each day’s collection is immediately “withered”
until thoroughly evaporated, when they are as promptly cured and fired.
The processes of fermenting and firing are not as detailed or complete
as in China, the India planter aiming to secure the component properties
of a _strong tea_ at the expense of _flavor_ and keeping qualities. In
India the tea is generally prepared from the young shoots, two leaves
only being picked at a time and “withered” in the open air without any
extraneous aid, much, however, depending on the skill and knowledge of
the operators in arresting the process at the exact moment. When the
proper point is reached they are immediately removed to a “drying” room,
and laid out on trays until the excessive moisture has been dissipated,
this process being hastened by occasional blasts of hot air driven
through by a machine. When sufficient moisture has been extracted they
are placed in a heavy rolling machine and tossed about until all the
cellular tissues are broken, when they begin to curl up tightly, as if
by the action of the hand, after which they are placed in heaps on
tables for some hours to allow them to ferment; the color, meanwhile,
changing from green to a dark bronze during the process.
In the process of “firing” the leaves are spread out in a series of
wire-gauze trays, placed in layers in a hot-air machine, known as a
“Sirocco,” from the fact that the current of vapor arising from it is
suggestive of the hot winds of the desert, and in which the temperature
averages some 300 degrees. These screens are operated either in a
lateral or rotary direction also by steam, the tea being thoroughly
fired in from twenty to twenty-five minutes, and separated into the
different grades at the same time. But on some plantations the tea is
afterwards bulked in large tin-lined cases until a considerable quantity
is accumulated, when it is again lightly fired, the operations of
sorting and grading being again performed by machinery previous to being
packed in the teak-wood chests, in which it is finally shipped. The
curing and firing of tea by hot air and machinery in India is fast
superseding the primitive arrangements and charcoal processes so long in
use in China. Yet though much more rapid and effective in its work, and
certain not to taint the leaves in any manner, it is still an open
question whether the older and slower methods of curing in pans over
charcoal fires is not after all the better one. That the teas are not
properly cured or thoroughly fired by this over-hasty method is
evidenced by the fact that India teas in general are noted for their
great excess of tannin and peculiar raw, “grassy,” uncooked or herby
flavor. But labor and fuel-saving machinery are effecting such economy
in the cultivation and preparation of tea in India as to yearly reduce
the cost of its production. So many improvements for drying, rolling,
firing and sorting are annually being recorded that it is difficult even
to estimate at what figure it may be produced there in the future.
India teas comprise Assams, Cachars, Darjeelings, Deradoons, Kumaons,
Dooars, Chittagongs, Juligoories, Rangworths and Neilgherries, district
terms, ranking in the order named, and are converted into Pekoes,
Souchongs, Pekoe-Souchongs, Congous, Broken-leaf and Fannings. In make,
style, color, flavor, and general appearance, India teas resemble most
the Congou sorts of China, but many of them being produced from a
combination of the China and India plants are hybrid in character,
differing essentially from either originals. Most of them possess a
sharp, acrid taste, not to be found in any other variety, and a peculiar
flavor rarely liked by consumers, unless when tempered with the softer
and more mellow China growths, and to neutralize which peculiarity it is
at all times necessary to use only the best India grades. In make they
are in general longer and narrower in leaf, darker in color, more
shapely, better curled or twisted, and finer in texture than the
corresponding Chinese varieties.
=Assams=—Are greyish-black in color, the leaf of the finer grades being
“Pekoe-tipped” and evenly curled. The liquor is unusually strong and
pungent, in addition to being thick and heavy in body. The infused leaf
dark-brown, with a reddish tinge, and almost perfect in form.
=Cachars=—Are blacker in color, but not as well curled or even in
appearance. The liquor is softer and occasionally “fruity,” approaching
a burnt flavor, while the infused leaf is larger, darker and not as
finely shaped.
=Darjeeling=—Is a hybrid variety, produced from a cross between the
China and India species, and partaking somewhat of the character of
both. It is still blacker in the dry leaf, but on an average not as
finely curled, and while full in body is not as pungent or flavory in
the cup. The infused leaf is more bright, tender, shapely and “salmony”
red in color.
=Kangras=—As a rule are dark and symmetrical in leaf, light in liquor,
but delicate and aromatic in flavor. The infused leaf is reddish-brown
in color, with dark or burnt edges, but perfect in shape and form.
=Deradoon=—Is a high-fired tea, loosely made and deteriorating rapidly,
becoming sour on exposure to the air. Occasionally the flavor is
“earthy,” analagous to that of Ankoi Oolong, for which reason they are
not much sought after.
=Kumaon=—Is generally converted into Green teas, including Imperials,
Gunpowders, and Hysons, all being prepared from the same leaf. The chief
difference lies in their make and color, as they still retain all the
characteristics of liquor and flavor of India teas.
=Chittagongs=—Are strong, thick and heavy in the cup; “nutty” in flavor
and considered good, useful teas for blending purposes, from their great
strength and positive character, for which qualities they are always in
good demand.
=Dooars=—Approximate to Cachars in color, make and general appearance,
strong, but rough in liquor, pungent and pleasing in flavor, a valuable
tea for blending, imparting tone and character to any combination in
which they may be used.
=Neilgherry=—Is a very inferior sort, bearing the same relation to India
teas that Ankois do to Oolongs and Pingsueys to Green teas. The leaf in
general is black, coarse, “tippy,” rough and unsightly in the hand,
while the liquor is thin, muddy and rank or “weedy” in flavor.
=Travancore=—Is a “new district” tea, which, like all new teas, is large
and coarse in leaf, heavy and dark in liquor, and strong and wild or
“grassy” in flavor.
=Juligoorie and Rangworths=—Are bold in style, rather rough in make, but
regular and well developed. The liquor is thick and rich in color, rough
or “rasping” in flavor, but occasionally smooth and “toasty,” while the
infused leaves are bright and well formed as a rule.
SUB-VARIETIES OF INDIA TEA.
=India Pekoes=—Are ordinarily of a greyish-black hue, with a fair
sprinkling of grayish-yellow tips, downy in appearance, while the liquor
is very strong, brisk and pungent, varying in quality and flavor
according to the district of production.
=Orange-Pekoe=—Is a small, evenly-curled leaf, having a yellowish or
golden “tip” at the ends. In liquor and flavor it approximates close to
plain Pekoe, being devoid of scent, that many growers make no
distinction between them.
=Flowery-Pekoe=—Is not picked from the plant, but separated from the
other grades, only the buds and youngest leaves being selected. The
cured leaf is small, uniform and tender, silvery-green in color,
although highly-fired, pale but strong in liquor, approaching that of a
Moyune Green in flavor, being very deceptive in strength and
astringency. The infused leaf is symmetrical in form, small and
light-green in color, approaching that of a Foochow Oolong in appearance
in the cup.
=Souchong=—Forms the bulk of the India product and may be classed as the
“Standard grade;” the qualifications for being comprehended under this
rating are its even, straight, slightly curled leaf, dark color, stylish
appearance and greater quantity. Yet while its liquor does not possess
the deep strength and pungency of the Pekoe sorts, it is generally full
and round in body and mellow or “malty” in flavor.
=Pekoe-Souchong=—Is a term applied to Pekoe leaves devoid of tips, as
well as to Souchong containing a fair sprinkling of tipped leaves. But,
as a general rule, it is an unassorted tea, composed principally of the
larger and coarser leaves of both Pekoe and Souchong that will not pass
through the sieves, and possessing in the cup the distinctive properties
of the combination.
=India Congou=—Is a tea of the Souchong order too large to be made into
that kind or a smaller leaf unevenly prepared. In liquor and flavor it
is much the same as Souchong, but is not always as heavy, strong or
mellow in flavor.
=Broken-leaf=—As its name implies, is composed of a mixture of the
various kinds broken in manipulation, and is a term of great
comprehensiveness, as it may include all the lower grades or approach
the choicest kinds in character and value. It varies in color from brown
to blackish, its strength being seldom great, though the flavor of the
finer grades is, in general, good; that of the commoner ones being poor,
thin and coarse.
=India Bohea=—Consists chiefly of the old and coarser leaves which do
not attain a desirable black color in firing, being devoid of sap. The
leaf is generally brown, sometimes yellowish in color, the liquor
possessing scarcely any strength, usually coarse and rough in flavor,
and never of much value at any time.
=Fannings=—Are composed of the refuse, much broken leaves and dust of
all the preceding kinds, and bear the same relation to India teas that
Twankays do to Green and Nibs to Japan teas.
=Namuna=—In Hindostanee literally means “Sample,” being accidentally
applied to a class of India tea, possessing great strength and high,
peculiar flavor not confined to any particular district or plantation.
The dry leaf may have the regular grayish-black hue, or be of a
greenish-black color, the green leaves being intermixed and distinct
from the black ones. It invariably yields a pale, corn-yellow colored
liquor, resembling that of Oolong, heavier and stronger than ordinary
Pekoe, and in flavor like a Moyune, yet distinct from the former and not
as pungent as the latter. Frequently, however, it is intermingled with a
nasty black leaf, the flavor of which is destroyed by over-firing, the
green leaves being due to deficient or under-firing.
There are many serious objections to the general use of India teas, one
of which is the great excess of _tannin_ (tannic acid) which they
contain, ranging from 13 to 18 per cent. in this variety, and to which
property tea owes its astringency, constipating effect on the bowels and
the ink-black color which it imparts to water containing salts of iron.
In England a crusade is being preached against their use by medical
authorities on this account, the marked increase in dyspeptic and
nervous diseases in that country being attributed to their general
consumption there. Some experts argue that by a shorter
infusion—sufficiently long to extract the theine with less of the
tannin—this serious defect may be eventually remedied. Such, however, is
not the case, as experiments made with it at three and five minute
infusions have still shown an excess of tannin, in addition to that of
making the liquor raw, herby, and entirely unsatisfactory in flavor. The
same time-tests resulting in favor of both China and Japan teas, and
which, judging by the bitterness and astringency, the amount of tannin
yielded by India teas in a five-minute draw is incredible. While China
teas, under the same conditions, possesses little or no trace of tannic
acid, or offending the most sensitive palate or constitution, but on the
contrary being both pleasing and refreshing to the most sensitive
natures. Another distinct and dubious feature of India teas is the
formation of a gummy or oily film which settles on top of the infusion
when drawn, and claimed to be very injurious to the nervous system and
digestive organs. When first infused this substance is scarcely
discernible, but just as soon as the liquor begins to cool this opaque
coating forms and develops on top. It is of an oily, creamy or gummy
nature, forming a thin layer of a dull, whitish-brown color, more dense
than the liquor and changing to a darker shade as it cools. Its nature
or effect has not yet been definitely determined, but sufficient is
known to prove that it is particularly unwholesome, for their selection
is also more difficult than that of any other variety owing to their
well-known tendency to early decay, becoming sour and rancid on short
exposure to the oxydizing influences of the atmosphere, the greatest
caution having to be exercised in avoiding those that will not keep for
any length of time owing to this most objectionable peculiarity, losing
flavor quicker and decaying faster than any other kinds, not even
excepting low-grade Japans. This loss of flavor and rapid decay is
greater in some sorts than in others, the grades most easily affected in
this manner being the highly-fired, light-flavored and open-leaf makes.
The demand for India teas in this country is only limited, owing to the
present taste of consumers, and there appears little hope of any
increase in the future. What little is sold being used chiefly for
blending with the softer and more mellow-flavored teas of China; the
India grades supplying the absent quality of strength to the latter.
Strenuous efforts have and are being made to introduce them, but so far
with indifferent success. The character of the liquor after the infusion
is so entirely foreign in body, color, flavor and aroma from that of the
China and Japan sorts to which the people have been accustomed, and
which appears to be an inherited taste, so deeply is it set, that little
or no progress can be made in these attempts. The great strength,
pungency and pronounced flavor of the choicer grades rendering them
valuable only for blending purposes. Still it is difficult to
overestimate the importance of India as a source of tea supply. Twenty
years ago it furnished only about 10,000,000 pounds to the world’s
supply, but so rapidly has its production increased that the crop for
1892 is estimated at 110,000,000 pounds. Its consumption in England is
annually increasing, the total deliverance for that year being
103,000,000 pounds as against 99,000,000 pounds for 1890, while for 1889
the increase was upwards of 12,000,000 pounds over that of 1888. These
enormous strides in the consumption of India teas in England is only
equalled by that of Ceylon teas, the British public demanding strong,
dark liquoring teas irrespective of flavor, aroma or effect.
CEYLON TEAS.
The tea-plant, though claimed to have been first introduced into Ceylon
by the English, who, on principle, “claim everything,” was originally
carried by the Dutch from China to that island as early as 1800,
notwithstanding that Percival maintains that it was first discovered
there in a wild state. But while it is admitted that a species known as
_Matara_ was found in some parts of the island, later investigation
proved that it had no relation whatever to that of the regular teas of
commerce. Tennant, in 1842, was the first Englishman to speak of Ceylon
as a possible tea-growing country, but the highly profitable cultivation
of coffee at that time attracted so much public attention that the
article which has since proved to be the real wealth of the island was
heedlessly overlooked, so that it is not too much to say that the
present high position of Ceylon as a tea-producing country has been to a
great extent entirely due to accident, it being only after the outbreak
of the coffee-pest in 1870 that tea was first looked upon as a possible
source of profit. When utter ruin seemed the only fate of the planters,
it was suggested that they turn their attention to the cultivation of
tea. A commission was duly appointed to visit the tea districts of
India, and report upon the desirability of introducing the tea-plant
into Ceylon. Very tardily, indeed, at first did the planters come to
regard the experiment in the light of a paying speculation, for old
habits and prejudices were strong, inducing them to cling with
persistency to the hope that the coffee-plague would ultimately
disappear, and it was only as a last resource that they decided to turn
their attention to tea-culture on that island. The first plantation was
started with plants received from China; the result, however, proved a
financial failure, the first tea produced therefrom costing $25 per
pound. Other spasmodic efforts were made later, until it was finally
admitted that tea-culture could be made a success on the island, when a
rush was made for estates for tea-growing purposes. The progress made
was small at the beginning, many of those who planted tea doing so under
the conviction that the industry would not pay, abandoning the scheme
almost at the outset.
Ceylon eventually began its career as a tea-growing country under the
most favorable circumstances; all the mythical hallucinations about tea
cultivation having been removed, the disastrous experience of India
saving Ceylon from falling into any serious error at the outset. Several
India planters settled on the island, bringing with them a knowledge of
its proper cultivation and preparation, so that when these facts are
taken into consideration, the success which has attended its cultivation
in Ceylon is not so much to be wondered at. The island also possessed
other advantages over India in that it suffers less from drought, the
rains are more regular and equable, there being scarcely a month in the
year without at least some rain, and apart from the adaptability of its
soil and climate, it has cheaper labor and superior facilities for
forwarding the tea to the shipping ports, all important factors in its
cultivation for profit. The tea-producing districts of the island are
very compact, having Kandy as its chief centre and extending well into
the southwestern provinces touching the coast toward the west. The
southwestern section of the island is considered a perfect tea-growing
district, soil is good, the climate hot and moist, and the plant can be
cultivated at almost any elevation, several plantations there being
situated as high as 6,000 feet above sea-level. But although the crops
are fairly healthy at this altitude, it is admitted that the plantations
lower down are best adapted for the production of the finer grades. The
first successful garden was established in 1870 in the now celebrated
Loocandura estate, with plants brought from Calcutta, and coolies
skilled in its cultivation and manipulation. Tea of particularly good
quality was produced from the beginning, samples of which were sent to
London and highly spoken of by dealers there. Since that time tea
cultivation in Ceylon has made steady progress if not rapid strides.
The plant chiefly grown in Ceylon is a hybrid—the _Manipur_ or
indigenous tea of Manipari (India)—is also extensively planted there,
being equally hardy and suitable to the soil of the island, which is of
a light, sandy nature, thickly intermixed with iron-sandstone, this
mineral being peculiarly attractive to the tea-plant. The methods of
cultivation and preparation are similar in every respect to those in
vogue in India. The land is carefully drained and weeded, the trees are
not allowed to grow too high, being reduced to a bushy form and picked
when they are from two to three years old, according to site and
elevation, and the tea prepared from the tender shoots only, caution
being exercised not to injure the plants or future flushes checked.
Picking the leaf is carried on all the year round in Ceylon, except
during pruning time, when the plants do not “flush” for two months, with
which exception they flush every week, from each shoot of which the two
top-leaves with the young shoot and half the third or coarser leaf are
only plucked at a time. At 4 o’clock each evening the day’s “picking” is
carried to the factory and the leaves laid out on the “withering” mats,
which are stretched one above the other from poles or racks until the
next morning, when the leaf is sufficiently evaporated, being rendered
soft, pliable, and easy to roll by that time. The next process, that of
“Rolling,” is one to which special attention is paid, as it is mainly to
this system that the quality of the tea depends. The previously withered
leaves are put into the roller, which is operated by hand or steam
power, 100 pounds at a time placed in an upper box of the machine and
pressed down with weights on the table or lower portion of the machine.
The box containing the pressed tea travels with a circular motion round
the table, by which the leaves are pressed, twisted and rolled as they
come in contact with the small battens fitted into the centre of the
table. After an hour the pressure is increased until at the finish it is
from four to five hundred pounds on the leaves, the juice thus expressed
being carefully collected and poured back into the roller every now and
again until it is all absorbed by the crushed and twisted mass of
leaves. When the rolling process is finished, the leaves are then placed
on trays holding from 20 to 25 pounds, covered with a wet cloth and
allowed to ferment from two to four hours according to the weather, or
until they become a bright-copper color, when they are again rolled from
a half to an hour according to fancy, after which they are ready for
firing.
The “Sirocco machine” for firing tea-leaves by hot air has also
superseded the pan or “Charcoal process” in Ceylon. The leaves having
been laid out on wire-gauze trays, they are passed through this
“hot-air” machine, in which they become thoroughly fired Tea in from
twenty to twenty-five minutes, after which it is placed in sieves, which
are worked either in a lateral or revolving direction by the aid of
steam or manual power, and the different grades are sifted out, the
larger and coarser leaves which do not pass through the sieves falling
into a “cutter,” where they are cut to a uniform size. On estates where
they bulk the Tea, in Ceylon, the result of the day’s work is placed in
enormous air-tight lead-lined chests, where it remains until a
sufficient quantity to form a “Break” or “Chop” is accumulated, which is
generally once per week. The chest is then opened from the bottom and
the tea bulked, after which it is lightly fired again and packed into
the teak-wood chests for shipment. Light iron chests, coated inside and
out with lead, and a lid to screw on, are now being extensively used by
many estates for the better shipment of teas in both India and Ceylon.
Ceylon teas derive their trade names from the estates or plantations on
which they are grown, being classed commercially as “Loocanduris,”
“Matagalas,” “Ruan-wallas,” “Kanda-loyas,” “Semba-watties,” “Windsor
Forests,” “Narangallas,” “Rakuwana,” “Madulsuma” and “Kandapole,” the
finest being produced in the districts of Dunbula and Dolosbagie. Like
India teas, they are principally converted into Pekoes, Souchongs,
Pekoe-Souchongs, Congous, Broken-leaf, and Fannings. Their strength and
flavor, like those of their India prototypes, varying greatly in quality
in accordance with the elevation at which they are grown, their
uniformity also varying from year to year as in the India districts.
Some of the better grades resemble Cachars and Darjeelings, being full
and strong in liquor, but frequently “toasty” or burnt in flavor, while
the lower grades are decidedly inferior to the corresponding China
grades in flavor and fragrance. A feature about the later shipments most
to be regretted is that the planters appear to be making the same
mistake that the Chinese and Japanese have made, that of sacrificing
quality to quantity in their eagerness to get rich too fast.
=Ceylon-Pekoes=—Are of three kinds, “Plain,” “Silver,” and “Golden-tip”
Pekoes. The former is a small, plain black-leaf tea, lightly “tipped”
and finely made. The liquor is bright and fairly heavy in body and
fragrant so far as this term applies to this variety, but is not adapted
to the American taste.
=Silver-tip Pekoe=—Is a long, whitish-downy leaf almost “satiny” in
texture, with silvery tips at the ends. The liquor is dark-yellow or
golden, bright and sparkling in the cup, delicate and fragrant in
flavor, but very much overrated in commercial value and intrinsic merit.
=Golden-tip Pekoe=—Is smaller in make, darker in color, “silky” in
texture, and literally ablaze with rich yellow or orange tips. The
infusion is much darker and heavier in body, of a deep wine color, fresh
and piquant in taste, and much appreciated by those who prefer this
variety.
=Ceylon Souchong=—Is rather large and bold in style for this “make” of
tea, but is nevertheless heavy and round in body, rich and mellow in
flavor, and, taken altogether, a pleasing and palatable tea for all
practical purposes.
=Pekoe-Souchong=—Is chiefly composed of the larger and coarser leaves
that will not pass through the sieves, but which, falling into the
“cutter” in sifting, are cut up into an even and uniform size. It is
medium in size, “choppy” in appearance, ripe and rich in liquor, fairly
brisk and “malty” in flavor.
=Ceylon Congous=—Are open, rough and coarse in style, dark in liquor,
heavy in body, but fairly brisk and pungent in flavor, making, on the
whole, a serviceable tea for blending with Chinese Congous or Oolongs of
the lower grades.
=“Bhud” Tea=—Is a term applied to a small golden-yellow leaf Ceylon Tea,
claimed to be composed of the buds of the plant just expanding, but is
in reality prepared from the smallest and yellowest leaves of the
ordinary “Golden-tip Pekoe,” and though sometimes commanding a
fabulously high and inflated price, out of all reason with its intrinsic
value as a tea, and which is only done for advertising purposes—being in
reality no better in either drawing or drinking qualities.
=Broken Leaf=—Like those of the India variety, are composed of the
large, old and mutilated leaves separated in sifting from all or either
of the foregoing kinds, drawing and drinking in ratio to the variety
obtained from.
=Fannings=—Also, like their Indian prototype, are prepared from the
screenings and refuse of leaves of the respective kinds, but are poor
teas to handle as a rule.
As late as 1873 there were only 255 acres under tea cultivation in
Ceylon, the total area at present time reaching as high as 150,000
acres, with an average yield of 1,000 pounds per acre, figures which go
to show the marvelous strides the island has made in the industry in a
comparatively few years, large tracts being still taken up for the
purpose. The total product in 1888 was 23,000,000 pounds, as against
13,000,000 pounds for the previous year, an increase of 10,000,000
pounds in a single year, a record never even approached in the history
of the tea trade. And, when it is taken into consideration that it is
only a few years since tea cultivation was practically commenced on that
island, it is obvious that the future of its product must be very bright
indeed. It is already predicted by planters and others interested that
the tea export of Ceylon will eventually rival, if not exceed, that of
India itself. The average cost of Tea to the Ceylon producers is about
6½ pence (13 cents) per pound, some of the lowland estates putting their
teas f. o. b. in Colombo at even less than this figure.
Nearly all the India and Ceylon teas go into consumption in England and
her possessions, the bulk of her China purchases being re-exported. The
English merchants invariably favoring the products of their own colonies
to the prejudice of those of other countries, discriminating against
them, irrespective of merit or value, in this particular instance
compelling their customers, in a measure, to use these dubious varieties
of the genus tea. But for presumption and audacity in their claims of
superiority the India and Ceylon tea growers and dealers are far and
away ahead of all competition. The so-called great favor with which
India and Ceylon teas are said to be regarded by British consumers being
due in a great measure to the energy and persistency with which the
trade has been pushed, the teas being literally _forced_ on the public
by the Government as well as by the English growers and dealers, in
addition to the strong ties of relationship connecting the planters with
the mother country. There is not the slightest doubt but that the check
which the consumption of China teas appears to have sustained in England
is entirely due to these causes. But already there is a growing and
positive revulsion of taste in many sections of that country in favor of
the purer China teas, owing to their truer character, greater delicacy
and richness of flavor.
The chief and only advantages that India and Ceylon teas possess over
those of China and Japan are their great strength and thickness in the
cup, which are due mainly to the modern methods of fermentation and
firing by steam and machinery. China and Japan teas excel them in flavor
and aroma, occupying in regard to them a position analogous to that of
French wines, in comparison with those of other countries. The product
of the latter may be stronger and heavier in body, but for richness of
flavor and delicacy of aroma—essential qualities in both wine and
tea—the French grape and China tea-leaf stand alone and unrivalled for
their intrinsic merits, as well as for their being the only true teas,
in all that constitutes tea. Broadly stated, the predominant features of
India and Ceylon teas are _body_ and _strength_, those of China and
Japan _flavor_ and _aroma_.
There is also this difference between them, that while a given quantity
of India and Ceylon teas will yield a larger amount of a darker-colored
liquor and stronger in flavor than that of a similar quantity of China
and Japan, they still lack the richness and delicacy of the latter, if
not indeed the properties of a true tea altogether. Again, as to how
much liquor an equal quantity of the former will yield in comparison
with a similar weight of the latter, is another mooted question. As far
as quantity, color and body are concerned, it must be admitted that
India and Ceylon teas are once and a half greater. But in flavor and
aroma, the essential qualities that constitute and are most appreciated
in tea, China and Japan teas far excel them. Thus if one pound of China
or Japan teas yields five gallons of extract of a certain weight,
strength and color, one pound of India or Ceylon will produce seven and
a half gallons of a similar beverage, but will be devoid of that
fragrant flavor and rich aroma so characteristic of the China and Japan
product. The value of tea, intrinsically and commercially, depending
principally upon the character and flavor of the infusion, as well as
the aroma imparted to it by the volatile oil.
Ceylon, like India teas, will not keep as long or as well as either
China or Japan, becoming sour and rancid by exposure in a few months,
defects attributed to the method of curing, but in reality inherent in
them. Again the latter contain a larger percentage of the active
principle (_theine_) and less of the astringent property (_tannin_), and
are consequently less injurious and more refreshing. The great excess of
the latter property in both India and Ceylon teas accounting for their
dark color, and harsh, pungent taste in the infusion, as well as being
the unsuspected cause of the indigestion and nervousness among those who
use them to any extent. So that in view of the strenuous efforts now
made to introduce India and Ceylon teas into the American market, it may
be well to here caution consumers against their injurious and
deleterious effects on the human system, such injury being caused, not
alone by the excess of tannin, but also by the sap or juice of the
natural leaf not being sufficiently expressed before the leaves are
fired by proper fermentation. It being claimed by physicians and others
that to the fixed and general use of these teas in England is
attributable the great increase of heart-burn, flatulency, nervousness
and dyspepsia among the people of that country.
Against the dubious and questionable advantages of body and strength so
loudly vaunted in India and Ceylon teas, China and Japan possess
others—greater and more important ones—among which are that the
tea-grower in the latter countries working his own land in smaller
quantities brings greater care and more industry to the task. Again in
the methods of curing and firing the leaf, the latter have also the
advantage of superiority, as it is now generally admitted by experts and
others interested in the business that though the “Sirocco” or hot-air
process may be more rapid in its work and certain not to taint the
leaves in any way, it is yet open to doubt whether the older, slower,
and more natural method of firing in pans over charcoal fires is not the
better, more thorough and effective in its results than the new and
artificial one. The Chinese and Japanese have been curing and firing
teas by that method for centuries, and they surely ought to be the best
judges by this time. To sum up, India and Ceylon may produce _stronger_
and more _powerful_ teas if that can be called a recommendation, but for
_smoothness of liquor, richness and delicacy of flavor_, such as are
essential to every-day, universal consumption, the China tea-leaf and
French grape stand and will continue to stand unrivalled. India and
Ceylon may claim to be the teas of to-day, but it remains to be seen
whether that day be long or short, as in my humble opinion, without
laying any claim to the prophetic, the teas of the future as in the past
will be China and Japan teas.
JAVA TEAS.
Tea culture was introduced to the Island of Java in 1826, the seeds and
plants being obtained from Japan for the purpose. The plants having
thrived beyond expectation, a plantation of 800 trees was formed the
following year in the residency of Buitenzorg, although samples of tea
grown elsewhere on the island were shown at an exhibition held in
Amsterdam in 1828. Another plantation was subsequently established in
the district of Carvet in Preanger, from which its cultivation later
extended to Krawang and other residencies in the island. So successful
was the progress made that in 1833 the number of trees in the latter
residency was returned at more than 500,000. Up to 1842 tea was
cultivated in Java exclusively for Government account and under the
immediate supervision of its own officials, nearly 14,000,000 trees
being in bearing there that year. But the number of laborers required
for its cultivation and manipulation becoming so large, the supervision
so difficult, and the results so unsatisfactory, the Government was
eventually compelled to relinquish many of its plantations to private
parties, contracting at the same time to purchase their product at a
fixed price. This change proved beneficial, resulting in a still further
extension and improvement in its culture; the contracts with the
Government being entirely annulled after seven years’ trial, and the
industry being left to private energy and capital, without control or
interference, it soon developed to large proportions.
In Java the best teas are grown at an elevation ranging from 3,000 to
4,000 feet above sea-level, the finest being produced on the mountain
slopes, in the residencies of Preanger, Bagelen and Banjœmas. Nothing
could be more attractive than the plantations situated on these ranges,
each containing from 70,000 to 100,000 plants in perennial bloom and
giving employment to from twenty-five to thirty families of native
laborers. The methods of cultivation and preparation are much the same
as in Japan, though latterly the India system is being largely adopted,
both Black and Green teas being prepared at will from the leaf of the
same plants. The seeds are first sown in nurseries, from which the young
plants, when old enough, are set out in line, at a uniform distance of
four feet from each other. The trees are never allowed to exceed two and
a half feet in height, and are much more prolific than either the China
or India species, the leaves being picked from them all the year round.
They are known to commerce under the appellations of “Preangers,”
“Krawangs,” “Cheribons,” “Bagelens” and “Banjœmas” teas, and usually
converted into Pekoe, Souchong, Pekoe-Souchong, Congous, Oolongs and
Imperials, Broken-leaf and Siftings after the India and Ceylon manner.
The leaves for the different “makes” are sorted during picking and
graded according to size, the smallest and tenderest being converted
into Pekoe, the medium size into Souchongs, and the largest and oldest
into Congous, Oolongs, Imperials and Broken-leaf teas.
=Java Pekoe=—Is a small, jet-black leaf, lightly tipped with yellowish
ends. The liquor is extremely dark, almost black in color, heavy and
thick in body, bitter and astringent in flavor, and entirely unsuited to
the average taste.
=Java Souchongs=—Are composed of the older and coarser leaves of the
tea-plant. They are bold in style, black in color, dark in draw, thick
in body, and exceedingly strong in flavor, too much so to use alone.
=Pekoe-Souchongs=—Comprise the older and coarser leaves of the
respective pickings, considered too large for conversion into Pekoe and
too small for Souchong, possessing the same characteristics in draw and
drink of both the latter varieties.
=Java Congous=—Are large, rough, loosely made teas, dark in liquor,
heavy in body, and strong to rankness in flavor, on the whole a most
undesirable sort for any purpose, becoming rancid and sour when kept too
long.
=Java Oolongs=—Are Java tea pure and simple, made in imitation of China
Oolongs, but possessing nothing of the properties or characteristics of
the latter, only the name.
=Java Green Teas=—Include Imperial Hysons and Young Hysons, but are only
so in name, as they still possess all the peculiarities of Java tea in
draw and drinking qualities.
Java teas in general are particularly small in leaf, dull-black in
color, but exceedingly well made and handsome in appearance, almost
perfect in style, approximating more to Indias in make, color and
character, but do not keep well, becoming rank and sour on brief
exposure to the atmosphere. The liquor of all of them is also deficient
in strength and flavor, being devoid of any pronounced fragrance or
distinctive aroma, defects attributable in a great measure to faulty and
imperfect manufacture, as well as to the fact that they are picked from
the plants the year round and allowed no resting or recuperating period.
The annual product averages about 15,000,000 pounds, packed in large
wooden cases weighing from 100 to 120 pounds, and shipped principally to
Holland, Germany and England, only small lots occasionally being
received in this country.
At the present time the cultivation of tea is mainly confined to the
province of Preanger, in the western part of the island, the industry
being in the hands of experienced planters, who spare no pains to
increase the product and quality of the article. Notwithstanding their
care, however, they cannot congratulate themselves on the profits
resulting therefrom, the price continuing to fall, the planters being
forced to expend their utmost energies to save their plantations from
ruin, this being not only the case with recent enterprises, but also
with the older plantations that have been flourishing for many years. In
addition to decline in price, the Java tea plantations have been ravaged
by an insect known as the _Theluis_ (tea louse), which each year
destroys in value hundreds of thousands of florins, but at the same time
there is noticeable a distinct improvement in the quality of the tea
produced there. Until very recently they were only used in Europe when
mixed with China teas on account of the excessive quantity of tannin
which they contain, and known tendency to rapid decay, the improvement
in quality now rendering that process needless, the introduction of
Assam plants enabling the planters to compete with India and Ceylon.
OTHER VARIETIES OF TEA.
=African Teas=—It is expected that both India and Ceylon will doubtless
have in the near future a formidable rival to their tea industry in
South Africa, where promising tea gardens have been extensively laid out
by planters from India, with seeds and plants obtained from Ceylon. The
soil and climate of the region around Natal particularly are very
similar to those of Southern India, and especially favorable to the
successful and profitable production of the tea plant. Recent reports
pronounce the venture a complete success, the product in 1892 amounting
to over 20,000 pounds of tea, although introduced only three years prior
and grading in quality with the average teas of Ceylon and India. It is
predicted that in a few years South Africa will not only rival but excel
the latter countries not only in the quantity but also in the quality of
their product.
=Singapore Tea=—Tea plantations have been recently formed in the
districts of Johore and Seragoon, from seeds and plants imported from
India, but as yet are only in an experimental stage. Samples already
received are large in leaf, coarse in make, coal black in color, an
effort being made to imitate Oolongs in style. The infusion is dark red,
heavy, strong and somewhat astringent in flavor.
=Perak Tea=—Recently an invoice consisting of some eighty half chests of
tea grown in the Straits settlements was shipped to London. The general
quality was so favorably commented on by the brokers and dealers there
that it found a ready sale at full prices for its kind.
=Fiji Tea=—Is another new addition to the constantly increasing teas of
commerce. It is produced from plants imported from India and assorted
into Pekoes, Congous and Souchongs, grading with and approximating to
Java teas in style, color and character.
=Caravan Tea=—Is simply a fine Lapsing or Padrae Souchong, put up in
Hankow for the Russian market, and transported overland by caravan
through Bokhara and Central Asia to Moscow and Petersburg.
=Russian Tea=—Grown in the district of Transcaucasia, consists largely
of the leaves of a shrub possessing the botanical name of _Vacinium
staphylos_, which when infused yields a decoction having some
resemblance to the ordinary teas of commerce, but is acrid and
nauseating in flavor. They are generally prepared for the express
purpose of mixing with inferior China tea, and also with exhausted
leaves, that is, tea once used, dried and rolled again.
=American Tea=—Samples of tea grown in South Carolina have lately been
received in the New York market and tested there by experts, who
pronounce them only fair in quality, and ranking them with the India,
Ceylon and teas of that character.
=Hop Tea=—Is a species of tea now being prepared from common hops in the
Kent district in England, prepared and cured by the “Sirocco” process,
after the manner of India tea, and used chiefly to blend with the
ordinary teas of commerce, the combination resembling a mixture of
Virginia smoking tobacco and a rough-leaved Assam tea. It is claimed to
be healthy and wholesome, from the fact that the _lapulin_ of the hops
counteracts or neutralizes the excess of _tannin_ contained in the India
teas, but nearly doubles it in price.
PARAGUAYAN TEA.
=Yerba Maté=, or “Paraguayan tea,” which although not entering into
general use or commerce, is yet deserving of notice in this work from
its extensive consumption among the inhabitants of South America. It is
prepared from the leaves and stems of the _Ilex_, a species of holly
found growing in a wild state in that country. In size and appearance it
closely resembles an orange tree, having a whitish bark and leafy,
tufted boughs, with leaves four inches long when full grown, dark-green
in color, thick, glossy and crenate at the edges, pale on the lower
surface and containing the same active principle, _Theine_, so
characteristic of China tea. The flowers or blossoms are small and
white, hanging in clusters at the angles of the leaves, the fruit or
berries being red, smooth and similar to those of the common holly. So
closely does it approach the tea of China in effect, that many
authorities claim it to be a species of that plant, yielding a liquor
similar in many respects. But while not containing as much volatile oil
as the latter, owing to the primitive manner in which it is prepared, it
nevertheless yields a most agreeable and refreshing beverage, enjoyed by
many and forming the staple drink of millions of the inhabitants of
Paraguay and other South American countries.
Expeditions to collect and prepare it start annually from the capital to
the _Yerbales_ or groves in the interior, taking extra mules and
bullocks to bring the dried leaves back. On reaching the forests
_Tatacuas_ or camps are formed by clearing the ground and beating it
down with heavy mallets until it is sufficiently hard and level for the
purpose. The leaf in the natural state is from four to five inches long,
thick, leathery, glossy and serrated at the edges, and is prepared for
use in a network made from raw-hide straps stretched on posts,
underneath which wood fires are kindled. The leaves and stems, as they
are collected, are placed on these nets and scorched, care being taken
only that they do not ignite or burn too much—in which state they
closely resemble senna. When sufficiently scorched they are ground, in
some instances, into a coarse powder in a rude wooden mill, weighed and
packed for export in large bullock hides, holding from 200 to 250 pounds
each and left to dry and tighten in the sun for a few days, becoming
meanwhile as hard and impervious as stone. This method of curing is very
defective, as the stems and other extraneous matter imparts a “woody”
flavor to the infusion which is otherwise very agreeable and refreshing.
It is prepared for use in a kind of filter or perforated bowl called
_Maté_, from which it derives its trade name. The infusion is yellowish
in color, almost syrupy in body, possessing an “herby” or weedy flavor,
bitterish in taste, much disliked at first by those unaccustomed to its
use, but nevertheless pleasant, wholesome and refreshing, pleasanter
still when cold, and while approaching in its chemical composition to
the regular teas of commerce it does not cause the wakefulness or
nervousness attributed to the latter.
In the smaller towns and rural districts of South America it is regarded
as a regular form of diet, and not, like ordinary tea, a mere
accompaniment to the meal, being looked upon as a necessary, as well as
a luxury, by the inhabitants, and is the first thing offered a visitor
when entering a house, the table being rarely without it. The _gaucho_
of the plains will travel for weeks asking no better fare than a little
dried beef, washed down with copious drafts of _Maté_, the Indian
carriers subsisting for days together on it alone, in short, being to
them what the tea of China is to its inhabitants, essential and
indispensable. The Government has a monopoly of its sale, a heavy duty
being imposed on its exportation, forming the principal source of its
revenue. The popular method of preparing it in Paraguay is to mix large
proportions of raw sugar with a decoction made from the powder or leaves
until a thick syrup is produced, when it is ready for drinking, the
nourishing properties attributed to the infusion by the natives, it is
contended, being due, in a great measure, to the excess of saccharine
matter. It ranges in price from four to eight cents per pound in the
prepared state, one pound yielding as much as twenty quarts of the
infusion of moderate strength. It is difficult to get at any reliable
returns for the entire traffic in this commodity, the production being
carried on in such a crude and desultory manner, extending, as it does,
over a vast area of wild country, the official returns furnishing only
an approximate estimate of its trade and consumption. The total
production may, however, be computed at 1,500,000 arobas, equivalent to
about 40,000,000 pounds per annum, the total consumption averaging
thirteen pounds _per capita_ to the population, as against two pounds of
coffee and one-fourth pound of China tea. Its use is confined chiefly to
Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentine, Peru, Chili and Brazil. Its consumption in
Paraguay and Argentine alone is over 35,000,000 pounds per annum, as
against 5,000,000 pounds of coffee. Surprising as this large quantity
may appear at first sight, it is explained by the fact that _Maté_
constitutes the only vegetable nourishment of many classes in these
communities, forming, as it does, the chief dietic beverage of over
20,000,000 of people in South America alone. Yet it is singular, to say
the least, that its consumption should be so great in such large
coffee-producing countries, and which export annually over half the
world’s supply of that commodity. Strong efforts are being made at the
present time to open up a trade in it in Europe, particularly in France,
where the cafés now advertise it among their regular beverages, and
shops devoted to its exclusive sale also recommend it. But whether these
efforts will succeed remains to be proven, considering the enormous
increase in the production of so many other teas and their established
consumption.
TRADE GRADINGS OF TEA.
A Standard Invoice of Green tea contains a number of “Lines,” made up as
follows: Gunpowder, No. 1 and 2 and 3; Imperial, No. 1, 2 and 3; Young
Hyson, No. 1, 2 and 3. There being rarely more than two lines of Hyson,
and never more than one of Twankay.
A “Chop” of Oolongs comprises four, sometimes five, “Lines” termed
“Firsts,” “Seconds,” “Thirds,” “Fourths” and “Fifths,” when any, which
are again subdivided into “Brackets” or “Numbers,” ranging from one to
ten but similar in grade.
An Invoice of “English Breakfast teas” includes a quantity of Capers,
Pekoes, Congou and Souchong teas, graded and classed according to the
district of production, by which terms they are best known to trade.
A Standard Invoice of Japans embrace some Pan-fired, Sun-dried and
Basket-fired teas with occasionally other makes, also ranking according
to the different districts.
A “Break” or “chop” of India or Ceylon include Pekoes, Congous,
Pekoe-Souchongs, Broken-leaf and Fannings, and are best known to trade
by their plantation names and district appellations.
The term “Muster” means Sample-package or chest, the name on top of
label the vessel, route or “chop,” the initials in centre those of the
importer. The names at bottom such as “Tong-mow,” “Tong-lee,” grower or
packer, and the Chinese character on inside of package. “Chop mark,”
denoting the “chop” or picking, which cannot always be relied on, as
shippers are apt to put on that which has the best reputation, or which
happens to be most in demand the season of shipping.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER VI.
ADULTERATION
AND
DETECTION.
--------------
The Teas of commerce are subject to four principal descriptions of
sophistication—“Facing” or Coloring with deleterious compounds, in order
to enhance their appearance;—Substituting with spent, partially-used or
exhausted leaves to increase their bulk and reduce the cost;—Mixing or
blending with spurious or foreign leaves, and—Sanding or adulterating
with a variety of mineral matter, chiefly iron or steel filings, to add
to the weight. Each trade has its own special form of adulteration, and
as in the milk business the most prevalent sophistications are watering
and skimming, so in the Tea-trade the besetting malpractice is coloring
and mixing with or substitution of partially-exhausted tea leaves, so
that the main efforts of experts and tea-analysts should be directed
more to this form of adulteration. The other forms have received some
attention from chemists and others interested in the article, but not to
the extent which the importance of the subject merits. But it is against
the two former most common and dangerous forms of adulteration that the
principal efforts of tea-analysts and inspectors should more
particularly be directed; and, while considerable of this nefarious and
positively injurious work is done in the countries of importation, by
far the greater portion is perpetrated in the countries of production.
For consummate skill in the “tricks of trade,” the Chinese as a people
have long been proverbial. “They are a self-ended people,” says an old
writer, “having the same reputation in Asia that the Jews have in
Europe.” Yet there are strong reasons for stating that many dealers in
our own and other tea-drinking countries have become expert imitators of
their methods, especially in the minor forms of coloring, mixing,
repacking and refacing. The sophistications in our own country being
chiefly confined to the admixture of damaged, stained and tainted teas
with sound, pure or high-grade goods, with the object of concealing or
disguising their defects, and the substitution of one variety for
another by repacking and relabeling. The latter form being practiced to
a much greater extent than most people imagine, giving rise to a special
branch of business in nearly all of the larger cities.
“FACED” OR COLORED TEAS.
Of the various forms of adulteration practiced in China and Japan
artificial coloring or “facing” is perhaps the most prevalent and
glaring. The material used for the purpose is usually composed of
Prussian blue, gypsum, indigo, turmeric, and more frequently, China
clay, a whitish iridescent powder, resembling mica, variously composed,
but generally consisting of _kaolin_ (soapstone), and sulphate of lime.
While that in use in Japan is not known, its composition being a secret,
known only to the manufacturers, but is evidently a preparation of
gypsum and kaolin, the Japanese contending that it is a vegetable
compound pure and simple. That kaolin is used in its preparation can
hardly be denied, as kaolin contains sulphur, and many of the lower
grades of Japan teas are found on infusion to possess a slightly
sulphurous odor. It has been proved, however, whatever its nature, to be
less harmful and injurious than the Chinese compound, and used only in
the manipulation and sophistication of the lower or commoner grades of
tea in that country.
The process of coloring or facing Green teas is performed by placing a
portion of Prussian blue in a porcelain bowl, not unlike a chemist’s
mortar, and pulverizing it into a fine powder, a small quantity of
gypsum being meanwhile burned over a charcoal fire, to soften it, after
which it is ground fine. The two substances are next mixed together, in
the proportions of one part blue to four parts gypsum, both making in
combination a light-blue preparation, in which state it is applied to
the leaves during the last process of firing, about five minutes prior
to removal from the pans, the time being regulated by a burning joss
stick. The Saihoo taking a handful of the compound, scatters it over the
leaves while in the pans, other operators tossing and turning the leaves
around rapidly with their hands meantime in order that it may equally
diffuse among them. One ounce of coloring-matter will face fifteen
pounds of leaves, imparting to them a dull leaden-blue hue, and “glossy”
or greasy appearance, readily detected in the hand. In many districts,
most notably in Ningpo and Canton, turmeric, kaolin, and China clay are
more extensively employed for the purpose. This almost transparent form
of adulteration is readily detected in the following manner:—
(1) When the tea is heavily coated it may be easily recognized by its
dull leaden-blue color and greasy appearance in the hand, or by placing
a small quantity of the leaves on a piece of glass or smooth table, on
removing them the coloring-matter will be found adhering to the hands,
glass or table, and its nature, whether Prussian blue, turmeric, kaolin
or indigo, readily determined with the aid of a microscope. (2) When
only lightly colored or suspected, place a sample of the leaves in a cup
or wine-glass and pour on briskly boiling water and stir well for two or
three minutes, then strain well through a thin muslin cloth. The
coloring-matter, if any, will be found adhering to the cloth, that
passing through, sticking to the sides, or forming a sediment at the
bottom of the vessel into which it is strained. If these deposits be
treated with a preparation of chlorine, or a solution of chloride of
lime, and turn white, the coloring substance used is indigo. But if
treated with a little potash, and it becomes brown, it will prove to be
Prussian blue, the application of a little sulphuric acid having the
effect of turning it blue again.
What are known to trade as “Canton Green teas” are made from tea-dust
and exhausted leaves ground up fine and aglutinized with a preparation
of gum, glue or other starchy substance to unite and hold them together
and then artificially colored or glazed. This fabrication is readily
detected by crushing the so-called leaves between the fingers or rubbing
them between the hands, upon which they leave a yellowish-brown stain,
greasy in nature. Or by powdering a small quantity of the alleged leaves
and treating the dust with a dilution of sulphuric acid it becomes very
much discolored, and if it assumes a leaden-blue color on the
application of caustic potash it is colored with Prussian blue. Again,
place a small quantity of the leaves in a cup or glass and pour on
boiling water, they will immediately begin to disintegrate and form a
thick, gluey deposit at the bottom of the vessel. By treating this
precipitate with a little iodine the mass will become separated and
dissolve into its original dust.
FOREIGN OR SPURIOUS LEAVES IN TEA.
Another reprehensible form of adulteration is the substitution or
admixture of foreign or spurious leaves obtained from other plants,
which resemble in structure but differ widely in character from the true
tea-leaf, such as those of the willow, plum or ash. Millions of pounds
of these leaves are annually picked, cured and colored in the same
manner as tea in China, and used for the purpose of increasing the bulk
and reducing the cost, while in England, particularly, the leaves of the
birch, elm, willow, chestnut, poplar and hawthorne have been extensively
used for the same purpose. The coloring material used in the latter
country differs from that used in China and Japan being still more
dangerous and injurious to health. This form of adulteration, however,
is trivial when compared with the former one, but, nevertheless, the
expert and analyst are frequently called upon to deal with it to a much
greater extent than most people imagine.
Such foreign leaves in tea may be best detected by their botanical
character or by the absence of the special structural marks which
distinguish the genuine tea-leaf from that of all other leaves in the
vegetable kingdom, for while the true leaf bears a strong resemblance to
that of the willow, ash and plum, it varies, however, in size form and
structure. The border of the true tea-leaf is more regularly serrated,
the serration stopping just short of the stalk, and the venations are
very characteristic, the veins running out from the mid-rib almost
parallel to one another, but altering their course before the border of
the leaf is reached, and turning so as to leave a bare space just within
the border of the leaf. So that in making an examination of a sample of
tea for the purpose of ascertaining whether these distinctive
characteristics are present in the leaves under treatment, it will be
found convenient to pour hot water on them so as to soften, uncurl and
spread them out more easily, as otherwise considerable difficulty will
be experienced owing to the brittleness of the tea-leaves in the dry
state.
TRUE TEA-LEAVES.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: CHINESE TEA-LEAF.]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: JAPANESE TEA-LEAF.]
The leaf of China Green tea is much broader than that of Black in
proportion to its length, but not so thick, and somewhat accuminate or
curled at the apex, that of Black being elliptical, oblong and flat in
shape, long and pointed, that of Green being much shorter and rounder in
form.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: INDIA TEA-LEAF.]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: CEYLON HYBRID TEA-LEAF.]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: JAVA TEA-LEAF.]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration: SKELETON OF GENUINE TEA-LEAF.]
But in order to better detect the presence of spurious leaves in tea a
keener knowledge of the botanical formation of the true tea-leaf is
requisite, for which purpose the use of a microscope will be found an
invaluable aid. Tea-leaves in general construction bear a strong
resemblance to those of the willow and many other plants of the kind,
vary widely in size and form, being much smaller, more deeply serrated,
and ending more regularly just short of the stalk. The venations are
very characteristic, the veins running out from the middle rib, almost
parallel with each other, altering their course before reaching the
extremities, and turning so as to leave a bare space within the border.
When infused and unfolded it is of a bright-green color, the loopings
together of the principal veinings in the true leaf being very
characteristic. While the spurious leaf is either of a greenish-yellow
or reddish-brown color, and irregular in form under the same conditions
or when deprived of its cosmetics.
To still better distinguish between them treat a sample of the suspected
tea as in making an ordinary infusion to soften and expand the leaves,
then separate and uncurl them and lay flat on a piece of glass or other
smooth surface for comparison with the genuine leaf. Next see that they
agree in description and formation, but more especially in the venations
and serrations. Or soak the leaves in hot water, and carefully unroll
and closely examine their formation and structure and then compare
closely. The epidermis of the lower surface of the true leaf can be with
a little caution detached in small portions with a sharp razor, and then
analyze the frame or skeleton of the leaf in a little water or
glycerine, under a microscope, comparing the venations and serrations
with those of the genuine tea-leaf. Still another simple and inexpensive
test is to boil a few of the suspected leaves for a minute or two on a
watch glass, with a little distilled water, and add an equal portion of
burnt magnesia, treating the whole until it is reduced to a large-sized
drop. If no crystalline sublimate is obtained therefrom by the operation
the leaves cannot be those of genuine tea.
Chemically an examination of the ash of tea-leaves also affords some
criteria which may also be utilized for the purpose of identifying the
true tea-leaf. For instance, in common kinds of wood, such as oak, deal
and pine, the proportion of ash is a few-tenths per cent. of the whole,
and by taking wood in its ordinary air-dried condition it contains some
20 to 30 per cent. of moisture. Leaves, on the other hand, contain 10,
20 and even 30 times as much mineral matter, there being doubtless a
connection between this abundance of mineral matter and the active
chemical changes which take place in the leaves during the growth of the
plant. In tea-leaves, therefore, as in leaves in general, the ash
amounts to a considerable percentage, usually averaging about 6 per
cent., so that a chemical examination of the ash forms an important part
of the analysis of tea. The proportion of ash in all teas is tolerably
constant, genuine tea rarely yielding so little as 5 and never exceeding
6 per cent. of ash on incineration. Therefore, to determine the amount
of ash, weigh a small quantity of the tea in its ordinary commercial
state and burn it in a platinum crucible and then re-weigh the resultant
ash; by observing a few simple precautions very constant and accurate
results are attainable by this method. The crucible should be clean and
bright, the lid fitting precisely; an iron triangle, covered with a
tobacco pipe may be employed to support the crucible during ignition.
The operation is then commenced by igniting the empty crucible, and
allowing it to cool, being placed for that purpose on a piece of
porcelain or iron, immediately weighing the crucible on becoming cold.
Next place one or two grams of tea in the crucible, weighing both
together, and ignite over a spirit lamp or good gas-burner, stirring the
contents with a platinum wire for a few minutes. When ignition is
complete the crucible is covered with the lid, let cool again and
immediately weighed a second time. If there is any doubt as to the
completeness of the ignition, the crucible must be again ignited, and if
there is no difference in weight, the ignition is thereby proved
finished. As is obvious, in order to obtain accurate results it is
indispensable that the crucible should be in the same condition when it
is weighed empty and when weighed with the ash, and this is insured by
the preliminary ignition and rapid re-weighing, as above described.
The following determinations of the percentages of ash in spurious
leaves most used in the adulteration of tea, dried after the manner of
tea, may serve to illustrate, the leaves being gathered towards the end
of August:—
Kind of Leaf. Per cent. of Ash.
Ash, 9.40
Plum, 9.90
Willow, 9.34
To these may be appended the determinations of Paraguay tea at 28 and
the ordinary tea of commerce at 5.92 per cent.; while in Peligot’s
analysis the average proportions of ash in true tea-leaves is given as
follows:—
Kind of Leaf. Per cent. of Ash.
China Tea, 5.5
Japan “ 5.5
Java “ 5.3
India “ 6.06
Ceylon “ 6.06
Proving, as has been mentioned, that genuine tea-leaves as brought
direct from the producing countries, or such as is a fair commercial
article, does not yield less than 5, or sensibly more than 6 per cent.
of ash on incineration. When the ash much exceeds 6 per cent. the first
question to be considered is whether it is accidental or if the high
yield of ash would be maintained if a larger quantity of the sample were
incinerated. The composition of the ash of genuine tea-leaves has also
been carefully studied, yielding on analysis the following
constituents:—
Constituents. Per cent.
Soda, 0.65
Lime, 4.24
Potash, 39.22
Silica, 4.35
Chlorine, 0.81
Magnesia, 6.47
Oxide of iron, 4.38
Carbonic acid, 24.30
Sulphuric acid, A trace
Phosphoric acid, 14.55
Protoxide of manganese, 1.63
——————
Total, 100.00
This analysis is especially important, inasmuch as the tea which
furnished the ash was of guaranteed purity, so that no question of the
possibility of its sophistication could arise. On examining this
analysis it will be observed that tea-ash contains a quantity of iron,
also some manganese, the presence of manganese being so marked in
tea-ash that on subsequent treatment of the ash with water a deep-green
solution of manganate is obtained. Owing to this presence of manganese
in tea-ash it also invariably evolves chlorine very perceptibly when it
is treated with hydrochloric acid.
If the analysis of the tea-ash is referred to it will be noted that more
than one-half of it should be soluble in water, so that for all
practical purposes a complete analysis is not requisite, a determination
of the ratio of _soluble_ to _insoluble_ parts of the ash being
sufficient. Such a determination is made by boiling the ash several
times with a little water, filtering and washing the residue in the
filter, drying the precipitate, igniting and weighing it. The weight of
the insoluble part of the ash may then be subtracted from the weight of
the entire ash, in which manner both the percentage of the soluble and
insoluble ash will be conveniently arrived at, in which case the
following determination of the percentage of “soluble” and “insoluble
ash” in 100 parts of spurious leaves and pure tea when completely dried
will be of interest here:—
Kind of Leaf. Soluble Ash. Insoluble Ash.
Ash, 3.19 7.48
Plum, 5.66 4.24
Willow, 4.16 5.18
Teas of commerce, 3.55 2.47
Proving that in spurious leaves the ratio of soluble or insoluble ash is
very different from what it is in genuine tea-leaves, and that an ash of
such composition cannot be very soluble in water.
Peligot has also pointed out that tea leaves differ from other leaves by
their extraordinary richness in nitrogen, the prepared leaf being by the
process of curing rendered still more nitrogenous than the raw or spent
leaves, the former averaging, according to his experiments, 6 per cent.
of nitrogenous matter, and the latter 4.37, so that if the tea-leaf be
unique in containing such a high percentage of nitrogen, it is obvious
that a determination of nitrogen in tea may also be useful as a method
of identification.
The tea-extract also yields a comparatively large quantity of ammonia
when it is boiled with potash or permanganate of potash, and it is
probable that this characteristic may also prove very valuable in the
testing of tea. A solution containing about 10 per cent. of solid
potash, free from ammonia and nitrogenous matter is required for the
purpose, and easily obtained. So that a deficiency of theine, a
deficiency of nitrogen, and a deficiency of ammonia are all indicative
of the presence of foreign leaves in tea.
SPENT OR EXHAUSTED LEAVES IN TEA
Are principally used in the adulteration of Black teas, and is effected
by adding or substituting leaves that have been at least once used, and
from which all the vital properties have been extracted. The Chinese
being inveterate tea-drinkers, large quantities of these leaves are
always to be had for the purpose, they are re-dried and subjected to a
treatment of gypsum or terra-japonica, in order to make them retain
their curl, and then glazed or “faced” with a preparation composed of
either graphite or silica to enhance their appearance in the hand; a
decoction obtained from catechu or logwood being next added to impart a
tea-like color to the liquor when infused. This vile compound is known
to the Chinese as “Bastard tea,” and is rarely sold alone, being used
principally for mixing or blending with pure teas.
The presence of spent or exhausted leaves in either Green or Black tea
is best determined by estimating the amount of tannin contained in the
liquor after infusion, and for which experiment various tests are in
use. A large proportion of the tea-extract is found to consist of tannin
(tannic acid), there being much more in Green than in Black tea, the
larger portion of that originally existing in the latter being
dissipated by the extra fermentation to which this variety is subjected
in curing and firing. Green teas contain on an average about 15 per
cent. of tannin, Black teas never exceeding 10 per cent. This rate,
however, varies considerably from different causes, such as age,
quality, soil and climatic condition of the districts of growth, the
main average being 12 and 9 per cent. respectively in pure teas. Spent
or exhausted leaves, on the other hand, contain only 2 per cent. on an
average at the highest estimate, a difference of 7 to 10 per cent. of
tannin, as will be observed, in favor of pure teas.
For the purpose of estimating the percentage of tannin contained in tea,
the simplest method is to make an infusion of the leaves and pour it
into a cup or glass and add to it a small quantity of a standard
solution of plumbic acetate. The acetate will cause the tannin to form a
precipitate, which must be removed and weighed in a small scale fitted
for the purpose; then by taking the nominal percentage of tannin
contained in pure teas at 12 in Green and 10 in Black and 2 per cent. in
Spent or exhausted leaves, the difference will be the percentage of
adulteration, the extent being indicated by the lessened proportion of
tannin in the same ratio. The presence of Catechu (soluble salts of
iron) is best ascertained by making an ordinary infusion of the leaves,
allowing the liquor to cool and pouring it into a cup or glass. Next add
a preparation of neutral plumbic acid and separate the precipitate
formed by the introduction of the chemical by filtration, and adding a
little argentic nitrate to the filtrate. If catechu be present the
residue will turn a dark-brown, the liquid meanwhile acquiring a deep
yellow hue, while under the same conditions the liquor of pure tea will
remain unaffected. But if the cosmetic be extensively employed, a weak
solution of ferric-chloride will cause the precipitate to turn
light-green or it may be detected under the microscope if heavily
coated.
Spent and spurious leaves may also be readily detected by the “ash
test,” through the following deductions: Pure teas, as shown above,
contain from 5 to 6 per cent. of ash on incineration, 2 per cent. of
this being soluble in boiling water; any increase of these parts is a
certain indication of the presence of foreign or exhausted leaves in the
sample treated. The percentage of ash contained in spent leaves, ranging
from 10 to 30, and in spurious leaves from 40 to 50, in many instances,
while the residue of teas adulterated with mineral matter have been
known to reach as high as 75 to 80 per cent. of the incinerated sample.
The presence of logwood is best exposed by the addition of a few drops
of sulphuric acid to an infusion made with the leaves in the ordinary
way. If any of the dye be present this acid will cause the liquid to
turn a deep red, but if the tea be uncolored the liquor will remain
entirely unaffected. Graphite being visible to the naked eye is easily
distinguished by its characteristic glossy nature, or can be separated
by treating the leaves with boiling water in the usual manner and
evaporating the infusion. The substance, if present, will form a deposit
at the bottom of the vessel or will be found adhering to its sides if
used in large quantities. While Silica is readily recognized by the
increased amount of ash insoluble in the water obtained by calcimining a
sample of the tea so adulterated, as above described.
SAND AND MINERAL MATTER IN TEAS
Is frequently introduced into tea with the object of adding weight, and
is best detected by the “ash-test.” As formerly stated, the leaves of
genuine tea, or tea of fair commercial value, yield from 5 to 6 per
cent. of ash or mineral matter on incineration, 2 per cent. of which is
again soluble in water. This rate is fairly constant, and ranges from 5
in Black teas to 6 per cent. in pure Green, rarely yielding as low as 5
in the former and never exceeding 6 in the latter, while many of the
teas of commerce are found to yield from 13 to 20 per cent. of ash on
incineration. Such teas are unmistakably sophisticated, and will be
found, on analysis, to contain sand or other mineral matter in their
composition.
To determine the amount of mineral matter contained in teas so
adulterated, proceed as in the case of spurious and spent leaves, which
analysis may be again confirmed by a determination of the ratio of
soluble to insoluble matter contained in the ash. The result is obtained
by boiling the ash in a little water and filtering the precipitate,
drying, burning, weighing and subtracting the residue or insoluble
matter from the original weight of the ash. By this process both the
soluble and insoluble parts are ascertained, and if the sample be pure,
but 3 to 3½ per cent. of insoluble will remain, any increase of these
figures clearly denoting adulteration to that extent.
Where the burning of the leaves is inconvenient, the following operation
may be substituted: Weigh a sample of the suspected tea and boil with
about ten times its weight of water in a porcelain dish or beaker. This
boiling will wash the sand off the leaves and sink to the bottom, the
leaves floating in the liquid. When the liquid has cooled sufficiently,
the leaves may be removed with the hand, the liquid and sand being
poured into a filter. The sand is then washed, dried and ignited in a
platinum plate and weighed, in which manner the amount of sand yielded
by 50 or 100 grams of tea may be actually weighed and ascertained. On
examining the analysis it will be found that tea-ash contains a quantity
of iron and some manganese, the presence of the latter being so marked
in tea-ash, that on subsequent treatment of the ash with water a deep
green solution of the manganate is obtained. Owing to the presence of
this chemical, tea-ash also evolves chlorine very perceptibly,
particularly when treated with hydrochloric acid. If the sample of tea
treated yield _only_ the normal percentage of ash at the same time
contains a considerable quantity of silica, such a combination would
afford the strongest evidence of adulteration. This will be apparent
from the fact that tea-ash is an essential part of the tea, and if a
part of the tea-ash be absent, the sample must have been deprived of at
least the corresponding quantity of tea. Spent leaves contain less ash
than genuine tea, the average being about 3.06 of ash in 100 parts of
dried spent leaves, and when the ash is deficient, the explanation is
that the genuine tea has been more or less replaced by spent or
exhausted leaves. But for all practical purposes a complete analysis of
tea-ash is not necessary, a determination of the ratio of soluble to
insoluble portions of the ash answering the purpose as well. Such a
determination is made by boiling the ash several times with a little
water, filtering and washing the precipitate in the filter, drying,
igniting and weighing it. The weight of the insoluble part of the ash
may then be subtracted from the original quantity, in which manner the
percentage of soluble and insoluble ash is obtained.
Peligot has also pointed out that tea-leaves differ from the leaves of
other plants by their extraordinary richness in nitrogen, the percentage
averaging 4.37 per cent. in the raw leaf of the former, and ranging from
5.10 to 6.60 per cent. in the dried state. In the preparation of the
fresh leaves for market a quantity of juice is expressed from them, the
increase of nitrogen in the prepared leaf being accounted for on the
supposition that this juice is not as rich in nitrogen as that still
remaining in the leaf, and if the prepared leaf be unique in containing
this high percentage of nitrogen, it is obvious that a determination of
nitrogen in tea may prove useful as a method of identification.
IRON AND STEEL FILINGS IN TEA
Are best detected by pulverizing a sample of the suspected tea and
spreading the powder on a piece of glass or plate, and applying a magnet
to the dust. If a quantity of the particles gravitate and adhere to it,
the tea is undoubtedly adulterated in this form. While fabrications and
sophistications in general may be best exposed by treating an infusion
of the leaves with a watery solution of sulphuretted hydrogen or a weak
solution of ammonia. Under the first treatment the liquor of pure teas
will retain its natural color, but will assume a light-blue tint under
the latter.
Another simpler method for those who may not have the chemicals or
appliances convenient is to place a small quantity of tea-leaves in a
wine-glass or goblet, pour on cold water, and stir or shake well for a
few minutes. The tea, if pure, will only slightly color the water, but
if adulterated, a dark-colored liquor is quickly yielded, which if
boiled and let stand until cold will, if spurious, become bitter and
almost transparent as it cools, while pure tea under the same conditions
assumes a darker color and pleasing flavor. The latter changes arise
from the tannin (a natural property in tea) of which artificial tea is
entirely devoid and adulterated teas in proportion. Mineral adulterants,
however, must be dealt with by the ash-test, which is unerring, spurious
leaves by their botanical character and structural marks, deficiency of
tannin being invariably an indication of spent or exhausted leaves.
The part of the tea which we really use being that which passes into the
infusion, in other words—the Extract of tea—it is natural to look to
this extract as affording the directest evidence of the quality and
genuineness of a sample of tea. The extract may be regarded both
quantitatively and qualitatively, and from the former point of view we
are led to the tea-assay or determination of the weight of the
tea-extract which a given weight of tea is capable of yielding.
In Peligot’s analyses we find the following determinations of the
tea-extract—the author being quite alive to the importance of such a
test:—
GREEN TEAS.
Part soluble in boiling water.
┌─────────────┴─────────────┐
Variety. Dried Leaf. Ordinary Conditions.
Imperial, 43.1 39.6
Gunpowder, 50.2 49.9
BLACK TEAS.
China, 42.8 39.0
Japan, 45.8 41.5
India, 45.4 41.7
Java, 35.2 32.7
Ceylon, 44.4 39.8
These results being arrived at by the employment of a valid but rather
inconvenient method of weighing out ten grams of tea-leaves and boiling
them with water as long as anything is dissolved out of them, and
afterwards drying up the exhausted leaves, first at a low temperature
and then at a higher one, finally weighing the exhausted leaves. The
loss in weight is the weight of the tea-extract, care being taken to
weigh the original tea and the exhausted tea-leaves in the same state of
dryness. The results, as will be observed, are stated both in the dried
tea and in the tea in its ordinary commercial condition. But, instead of
weighing the tea-leaves before and after extraction and taking the
difference in weight as the weight of the extract there is a more
convenient process—that of evaporating down the extract itself to
dryness and weighing _it_. The drying up of the exhausted leaves and the
getting them into the same hygroscopic condition as the original tea
presenting considerable practical difficulties.
The evaporation of the infusion to dryness and the weighing of the dry
extract is also a tedious process in its unmodified state. But if a
given quantity of tea be boiled with successive portions of water no
more tea-extract is yielded than if the same tea be boiled once with a
large quantity of water, but whether the infusion is kept for a length
of time just at the boiling-point or whether it be made to boil
vigorously makes some difference in the result, brisk-boiling extracting
about one-tenth more than slow boiling, so that if the boiling be very
vigorous half an hour’s boiling is just as effective as an hour’s slow
boiling.
Founded on these observations an assay of the tea-extract may be made by
the following simple process: Put ten grams of tea into a pint flask and
pour on about two-thirds of distilled water accurately measured, a cork
and bent tube is then adapted to the mouth of the flask and a connection
made with a condenser. The contents of the flask are next heated and
made to boil strongly. That having been done the boiling is stopped and
the flask and condenser disconnected and the distillate poured back into
the flask and the decoction of tea observed closely. If quite clear
fifty grams are weighed out and evaporated to dryness in a water-bath
and weighed till constant. If the decoction be not quite clear by this
time it is to be filtered hot; the first small filtrate is best thrown
away and the filtrate collected, weighed, and dried in the water-bath
until the residual tea-extract becomes quite constant. Having performed
the operation in the manner directed, the weight of the tea-extract
actually weighed will be the weight of the extract yielded by one gram
of the sample to be assayed.
But in coming to a decision as to the genuineness of a sample of tea of
which an analysis has been made by this method, it is of importance to
remember that genuine tea is subject to considerable variation in
composition. The quality and condition of the leaf at the time of
gathering and the different treatments which it undergoes in the process
of manufacture, or whether the tea is Black or Green, cause the
composition to exhibit a wide range of variation. Taking the percentage
of the extract as a basis from which to start, that in genuine tea being
from 32 up to 50 per cent. in its ordinary commercial condition. Such
being the case, it is obvious that a determination of the percentage of
extract will not enable the expert or analyst to say whether the sample
of tea be of a lower or higher grade of pure tea, or whether it is
composed of a high grade of genuine tea and a portion of exhausted
leaves. In a general way, however, this question is not of vital
importance to the analyst, as a solution may be arrived at from a
determination of the soluble ash, which would be found rather deficient
on incineration. For although tea may be exceptionally rich in extract,
and although there are difficulties in the way of deciding whether a
given sample of tea consists of average quality or of fine tea mixed
with spent tea, there are no such difficulties in recognizing the case
of tea of average grade, mixed with a considerable quantity of exhausted
leaves, as it is assumed in this formula that the soluble ash in genuine
tea is 3.6 per cent. and that in spent tea only 0.3 per cent. But in
using this formula it must be understood that the results are only rough
approximations, judgment and discrimination being required to determine
by it.
Tea-extract yields a comparatively large quantity of ammonia when it is
boiled with potash and permanganate of potash, and it is probable that
this character may prove very valuable also in testing the purity of
tea, for which purpose a solution containing about 10 per cent. of solid
potash, free from ammonia and nitrogenous matter, is required and easily
obtained. Ten grams of this solution of potash is put into a small
flask-retort, working in an oil-bath and connected with a small
condenser; the whole apparatus to be carefully freed from the last
traces of ammonia, which is best accomplished by distilling the water
through it, after which from 5 to 10 parts of the tea infusion are
poured into the retort, which is then corked up and heated in an
oil-bath to 150 C. Having been maintained for a short time at this
temperature it is then lifted out of the bath and some pure water poured
into the retort, which is again to be heated in the oil-bath. More than
half of the water is then distilled over and in this manner the “free
ammonia” is obtained from the distillate. When this has been
accomplished some of the potash and permanganate solution is added to
the contents of the retort and distilled so as to yield a distillate
containing “albuminoid ammonia,” the result being as follows in pure
teas:—
Free ammonia, 0.28 milligrams.
Albuminoid ammonia, 0.43 “
—————
Total, 0.71 milligrams.
While the extract from a sample of spurious leaves yielded of
Free ammonia, 0.20 milligrams.
Albuminoid ammonia, 0.295 “
—————
Total, 0.495 milligrams.
This experiment is made with the greatest ease, and will also be found
valuable by brokers and others interested in tea for testing the
strength of the tea-infusion. As has already been observed, tea is also
remarkably rich in nitrogen, so much so that a determination of nitrogen
may be resorted to as a means of identification. With this object it is
best to take a sample of tea, first mixing it up well and powder it in a
mortar. Of this tea-powder some 0.3 grams should be accurately weighed
out. This is then to be mixed with some 50 grams of oxide of copper,
which has been first oxidized without the employment of nitric acid, and
which shortly before using had been ignited and allowed to cool. A
combustion-tube of hard German glass, closed at one end and perfectly
clean, is next charged as follows: At the closed end a layer, some three
to four inches in length, of a mixture of dry bi-carbonate of soda and
fused bi-chromate of potash is placed, the mixture being intended to
give out carbonic acid. Next to this compound place two inches of oxide
of copper, then the mixture of tea and oxide of copper, then more oxide
of copper and some clean metallic copper on top, then a perforated cork
and exit tube, which dips under the mercury, and place the
combustion-tube in an appropriate furnace to heat. By heating the layer
of carbonate of soda and bi-chromate of potash, carbonic acid is caused
to traverse the tube and expel the air from it. This having been done
the tube is next heated gradually from before so as to burn up the tea,
the gases being collected over the mercury. At the end of the operation
the carbonic acid is once more made to traverse the tube by again
heating the mixture at the back, all the nitrogen being driven from the
tube and collected. Finally the carbonic acid is absorbed by means of
the potash and, the residual nitrogen gas is measured with well-known
precautions. This gas should also be tested for bin-oxide of nitrogen by
means of oxygen and pyro-galate of potash, any bin-oxide of nitrogen gas
to be measured and allowed for in the test.
Among the most common forms of adulteration practiced by dealers in this
country is that of substituting old and valueless Young Hysons for
Japans or mixing them together the better to disguise the fraud. The
mixing or blending of old, stale, weedy or smoky Congous with Oolongs,
particularly when such teas become a drug on the market. The reduction
of Moyunes by the addition of Pingsueys in the proportions of half and
half and then refacing them as “True Moyunes.” The refacing of Ningyongs
and other Amoys as Formosas being still another form, for which at the
present low prices of the commodity there is not the slightest occasion.
The most recent “trick” of the tea trade being that of mixing Japan Nibs
with Twankays and Hysons, the latter, I regret to add, being now
extensively adopted by at one time reputable houses.
Some law should be passed in this country to ensure the public against
the possibility of purchasing spurious and adulterated teas as in
Russia, where the dealers are compelled to sell their teas under
government labels placed on the packages by experts appointed by the
Government for that particular purpose and who work under official
inspectors, the expense of examining and labeling being defrayed out of
the revenue realized from the sale of the labels to the dealers. To such
an extent was the nefarious practice carried on in that country that the
adoption of this system became imperative in order to restore the
confidence of the public in the genuineness of the tea offered for sale,
with the result of having materially checked the traffic in spurious and
adulterated teas in that country.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER VII.
TESTING, BLENDING
AND
PREPARING.
--------------
There is no article handled by the grocer which engages more of his
time, demands greater attention, or has a more important bearing upon
the success of his business than Tea. In many respects it stands ahead
of all other commodities in commanding and maintaining patronage, also
in that it is expected to attract and retain trade for other articles,
and at the same time yield a larger margin of profit. As gain is the
fundamental object of business, and as Tea plays such an essential part
in determining this profit, we may be excused if, considering the
article from a purely practical standpoint, we urge the relation which
it bears to the success of the dealer in it, and who, as a rule,
experience more difficulty in the selection of Tea than in any other
article he trades in. The cause is obvious, being due to the numerous
varieties and almost innumerable grades, characters and flavors with
which he is confronted, and to be selected from, taken in connection
with the diversity of tastes and preferences to be catered to, it
requiring no ordinary skill or knowledge to make the proper selection
under these circumstances to suit patrons. The acquisition of such
knowledge, for all practical purposes, is not, however, quite as
difficult as many may suppose, as it can be fairly obtained by a little
study, a few simple and inexpensive experiments and repeated trials to
familiarize oneself with the leading characteristics and values of the
different varieties, grades and flavors of the teas best adapted to each
particular class or section of the country.
Teas have two values—an _Intrinsic_ or real value, and a _Commercial_ or
market value; quality, strength and flavor constituting the first, the
latter being more often based on style, appearance, supply and
fluctuations in price. So that in their selection for commercial
purposes four leading features are to be considered—Leaf, Style, Liquor
and Flavor. The drawing and drinking qualities of the tea in the cup are
paramount to the style and appearance of the leaf in the hand, as many
teas, though rough-looking and coarse in “make” or style, draw and drink
well in the infusion. There are five principal methods of testing the
merits of a tea:—
=By Style or Appearance.=—Which, though not invariably an indication of
merit, has still considerable to do with the value and quality of a tea.
Choice teas of all kinds are however, handsomely made and stylish in
appearance, that is, compactly if not artistically curled, twisted,
folded or rolled, according to its make, and all teas being small and
fine in proportion to their youth and tenderness, the ripest and most
“sappy” curling up tightest and retaining their form longest,
consequently the younger and fresher the leaves the richer, more juicy
and succulent the tea. If it be Green tea of the Imperial or Gunpowder
order the leaf is hard-rolled and “shotty,” regular in make, bright
natural green in color, very uniform and pleasing in general appearance.
But if of the Hyson or Young Hyson sorts, the leaf will be well and
evenly curled or twisted, the latter being almost “wirey” in texture and
of the same hue as the former. If Black, of the Oolong or Congou
variety, the leaf will be finely made, “silky” or “crapy” in texture and
varying in size from small to medium, artistically twisted and
attractive to the eye. Old and inferior teas, on the other hand, will be
large, rough and loosely rolled or curled, in proportion to their age,
quality and picking, and being partially or entirely devoid of “sap” or
succulence, they are correspondingly thin, coarse or flavorless in the
infused state.
=By Feeling.=—Judging a sample of tea by feeling is applicable more to
the curled, twisted or rolled sorts, such as Oolongs, Congous, Souchongs
and Hyson teas. If the leaves of a tea of these makes, so tested, be
really choice they will be found smooth, crisp and elastic in the hand,
and capable of resisting a gentle but firm pressure, yielding rather
than snapping or breaking under it. But if old and “sapless,” they will
be found rough and “chaffy” to the touch, very brittle, cracking easily
and crumbling under the same conditions, making much dust.
=By Smelling.=—By blowing or breathing hard upon a sample of tea and
then quickly catching the odor emitted from it a fair estimate of its
general character and value may be arrived at. To judge by this method,
however, an acquaintance with the distinctive flavors and peculiarities
of the various sorts and grades will be first necessary. This knowledge
is best acquired by adopting as a type or “standard” a sample of the tea
to be matched and educating this sense to its flavor and aroma. It is
not for a moment claimed that this test will be at all times accurate or
reliable, and only a general estimate can be formed, especially if
suffering from a cold, in which case its true character or value cannot
be even approximated. Again, many teas that may be “new and nosey” in
the hand will be “thin and flat” in the cup, the “flashy” or evanescent
flavor passing off rapidly on infusion.
=By Masticating.=—A close and almost accurate estimate of the character
and value of a tea can be formed by chewing a few of the leaves. With
this method a good tea may be recognized by the ready manner in which
the leaves almost dissolve in the mouth on slight mastication, becoming
quickly reduced to a “pasty” consistency if young, tender and succulent,
the “sap” or juice yielded will be abundant, pungent and pleasing to the
taste. If of the Green or Japan variety the residue will be of a bright,
natural-green color on removal, rich olive-green if Oolong, of a rich
reddish-brown tint if Congou and dark-red if India or Ceylon. But if
composed of old, inferior, spent or spurious leaves they will be found
difficult to masticate, being dry, “chippy,” sapless and tough in
texture, yielding little or no juice according to its age and
inferiority. Whatever little is expressed being “wild,” “weedy,”
“woody,” “herby,” “mousey,” “grassy” or “metallic” and bitterly
astringent to the taste, the residue being dark in color, coarse or
granulated on removal. This test should not be resorted to only on
extreme occasions, as a too frequent chewing of tea-leaves, owing to the
tannin in their composition, severely affects the nervous system and
ultimately the digestive organs.
=By Infusing or Drawing=—Is unquestionably the most reliable and
satisfactory method of testing or appraising tea, being the one adopted
by all brokers, experts and dealers as the most conclusive and least
injurious to the system. For this purpose a number of small porcelain
cups, scales and half-dime weight is requisite, together with a
perfectly clean kettle and freshly distilled or filtered water, briskly
boiled. Take the weight of the half-dime of leaves and mark the cups to
correspond with the samples under examination, then pour on the briskly
boiling water and allow it to draw from three to five minutes by the
watch, first seeing that the cups are thoroughly clean and dry, or,
better still, heated or rinsed with boiling water before weighing or
putting in the tea, as cups used for drawing other sorts of tea will
impart the flavor of those previously tested to the last if not properly
washed and dried before using again; also see that the water is
_briskly_ boiling before pouring it on the leaves, as water not properly
boiling will cause the leaves to float. If large cups are used the
quantity of leaves should be increased proportionately, say to that of a
dime in weight for an ordinary tea-cup. It is customary with some
brokers and tea-testers to cover the cups with a lid or saucer during
infusion, but this precaution is not absolutely necessary; still it has
its benefits, as it prevents the vapor and aroma from escaping, both
valuable factors in the exact testing of tea. The water used should be
as soft and pure as can be obtained; boiled briskly and used _only_ at
the boiling point. That is, it must boil, but not overboil, for if it be
allowed to do so for even a few minutes it will not extract the full
strength and flavor of the leaves. Expert tea-testers are most
particular in this respect, watching their kettles so that the water may
be used the minute it boils, and if any water remains in the kettle it
is poured off and refilled with fresh water before using again, as the
effect of using water that has been boiled a second time is the same as
that of water which has been overboiled. In testing teas by infusing or
drawing five important points are to be considered: Body, Color,
Strength, Flavor and Aroma of the Liquor, the tea combining these
qualities in the highest degree proving, of course, the best. On
removing the lids, if used, inhale the vapor slowly, noting its aroma at
the same time; next stir the leaves gently with a spoon for a few
minutes, and smell them occasionally, also noting their odor; by which
time the tea will be cool enough to taste. Before doing so, however,
observe the color of the liquor—an important factor in tea—a rich straw,
golden or corn-yellow colored liquor, generally, if not invariably,
indicating a tea of fine quality, except it be of the Congou, India or
Ceylon variety. Next, taste the tea by sipping it so as to strike the
palate, but do not swallow, as it kills the taste, and noting its body,
flavor, strength and pungency while so doing, comparing it with the tea
required or to be “matched.”
But while a clear, bright, sparkling liquor denotes a fine tea it does
not always determine its body or strength, as many light-liquored teas
are full and round in body, pungent and “snappy;” others again, though
dark and heavy in liquor, are yet devoid of strength and flavor, the
liquor of old and inferior teas being invariably dark, thick or “muddy”
in color, and lacking in briskness and flavor. After an opinion has been
formed of the liquor in all its relations, next examine the infused
leaves with regard to their size, color, form, texture and condition, as
all these points have an indirect bearing on the age, quality, character
and value of the tea under examination. The infused leaves of fine, pure
teas range from small to medium in size, perfect or nearly so in shape,
regular and symmetrical in form, uniform and unbroken in appearance.
While the infused leaf of low-grade and adulterated teas is large and
dark-red or brown in color, broken, irregular and different in size,
form and color from the true tea-leaf. The smaller, brighter and more
symmetrical the infused leaf, the higher the grade, and consequently the
greater the value of the tea, that of fine Oolongs being olive-green,
with slightly brown or “burnt” edges, Congous and Souchongs rich
reddish-brown, India and Ceylons, “salmony-red.” Scented teas possessing
a small olive-green infused leaf. In Green teas those yielding a bright,
sparkling, “amber”-colored liquor, with small or medium infused leaf and
presenting an unbroken and uniform appearance are the best; the same
rules that govern in the selection of Green teas also applying to
Japans.
The value of tea commercially, depends principally upon the character
and flavor of the infusion and also on the aroma imparted to it by the
volatile oil, which is not generally estimated by chemists owing to the
imperfect methods of obtaining it and the difficulty attending the
operation. But commercially the value of a tea is based on the amount of
“extract” it yields as well as on the quantity of theine and tannin
contained therein. Tea-testers and experts on the other hand take no
account of theine, which is almost tasteless, but which is at the same
time physiologically the most important constituent of tea. And so far
as total extract is concerned Congou teas are inferior in quantity to
Oolongs, Greens and Japans, while the latter in turn yield a larger
percentage of theine than either India or Ceylons, notwithstanding that
it is claimed that they yield less. Yet it must be admitted that a
deeper color is imparted to the infusion by India and Ceylon teas, and
that they are also of greater strength than China and Japan teas, in
fullness (not delicacy) of flavor, the former claim is not borne out by
either analysis or testing. There is also no uniform relation existing
between the chemical composition of teas and their commercial value, as
the percentage of extract determined by a half-hour’s boiling of the
leaves in 100 parts of distilled water bears in China and Japan teas
particularly a more uniform relation to the price, although the total
extract obtained by exhausting the leaf is very irregular. This result
is also quite in accord with the fact that the finer and more valuable
qualities of all teas are to be found only in the youngest and tenderest
leaves, the decline from the finer to the lower grades in the amount of
theine dissolved being also noteworthy as showing the power to yield
nearly all their theine, the latter doing so only to a limited extent
under the same treatment. But although these results show the difference
in the drawing qualities of all the various kinds of tea, yet they are
not sufficiently uniform to make such analysis the basis for calculating
the price of tea. It is evident, however, that the volatile or essential
oil—to which tea owes it flavor and aroma—plays a more important part
than any of the other constituents in determining the commercial value
of tea. Again, it must be noted the strength and flavor of the infusion
is as much due to the character of the water used in drawing as to any
other cause, the quantity of tannin extracted by soft water being
greater than that obtained by the use of hard.
The taste for tea being an acquired and not a natural one, it
necessarily follows that persons who have been accustomed to a certain
variety or flavor in tea, want that particular kind and will be
dissatisfied if any other is given them. Consumers of wine have their
fancies, so have users of ale or beer—one prefers a dry, another a sweet
wine—one a mild and another a bitter beer. This being the case, it
becomes essential to the success of the tea-dealer to study and learn
what variety of tea or what particular flavor his customers have been
accustomed to before attempting to cater to it. This is a question
somewhat difficult to answer, as not only is there a wide difference of
taste in tea in the different parts of the country, but in every large
town or city alone the varieties and flavors in demand are so numerous
and various that most dealers are compelled to mark out a distinct line
for themselves. In the larger cities this is the most successful course
to pursue, particularly if the kind and quality of the tea be kept
regular and uniform the year round, as it secures the return again and
again of the same customers for that particular tea, and thus keeps a
business always steady and progressive. Even away from the larger cities
it is well to follow this course, but while at first it may be found
advisable to keep close to the established tea-taste of the section, a
gradual change may be found good policy, as a dealer can by a little
effort educate his trade in time to a particular variety or flavor of
tea, for after all is said, and as remarked before, the taste for a
certain tea is only an acquired one. He may, for instance, be selling a
heavy-bodied Amoy or dark-leaved Foochow Oolong and suddenly change off
to a fine Formosa. In such a case his trade would be very apt to find
fault at first, notwithstanding that the latter may be choicer and more
expensive than the former, but by ignoring the complaints at the
beginning and continuing to insist upon their taking it, eventually
succeed in educating them to acquire a taste for it. Still the
importance of retaining and maintaining the quality and flavor to which
his customers are longest accustomed cannot be overestimated, for no
dealer can afford to jeopardize his business or can expect success if
his teas one month consist of fine flavored teas, the next month of
heavy and dull and the third of a sharp and pungent kind. To maintain
this necessary regularity, must be admitted, is difficult, as no two
consecutive importations of tea are exactly alike although selected from
the same picking or chosen from those grown in the same district the
variations may still be so wide as to cause dissatisfaction among
consumers. Therefore it becomes essential to the success of the dealer
to pay particular attention to the quality of his tea, as there is no
article he deals in which will attract trade or retain it longer than
good tea, a fine tea creating more comment in a town or neighborhood
than any other article used at table and if customers once lose
confidence in either the ability or honesty of the dealer they will be
repelled rather than attracted, it being next to impossible to get them
back again. So that it does not pay a dealer to make any mistake in the
selection of his teas, such mistake proving fatal to drawing or holding
trade. Poor teas will drive more customers away in a week than can be
made in a year; it is therefore much better and more profitable in the
long run to sell only good teas at a smaller margin of profit than to
sell poor teas at a larger one. Many dealers make use of the argument,
“I bought this tea so much cheaper and my customers do not appear to
notice the difference; they do not complain.” This may be true, but it
is delusive, as people seldom complain; they go elsewhere and get better
value. Every community becomes accustomed to drinking a particular
description of tea and is quick to discover any change in the character
and flavor of any tea that may be substituted for it, thereby becoming
dissatisfied notwithstanding that even a higher-priced tea, of different
character, may be given them. For this reason the dealer will do well to
keep as close to the grade and variety in use there and as nearly
uniform as possible at all times maintaining a “standard.” To do this
effectually it will be necessary for him to study and learn as near as
he can the particular grade and flavor his trade prefers, which is best
accomplished by first trying them with various kinds until he has found
that which is best suited to a majority of his customers; having
succeeded in this, let him stick to that particular kind. Again, as any
one variety will not suit all tastes, he can next endeavor to find a tea
adapted to the minority by the same method, reserving and keeping these
two or more kinds as the case may be. It is much easier to describe what
teas to avoid than those to select or what may be best adapted to a
particular section, as good tea of all kinds will sell at any time.
Again, some sections of the country possess great advantages over others
in the testing and preparation of tea for use, as, wherever the water is
soft and pure, much better results are obtained from the infusion by a
given quantity of leaves, owing to the fact that such water dissolves
more rapidly and extracts a larger amount of the _theine_ than hard or
muddy water. The coarse as well as fine properties of the tea are also
“brought out” more prominently by the action of the former, it being for
this reason that “high-fired,” “toasty” and “tarry” teas so much in
favor in some sections will not sell at all in others where the water is
soft as a rule, and why China Congous are best appreciated in sections
where the water is soft, as the natural delicacy of their unique
“fruity” flavor is best extracted by that kind of water and to a greater
extent than is the flavor of most other varieties.
The distinctive flavors which characterize the different varieties of
tea may be summed up in a single technical term—Amoys are “nutty,”
Foochows are “mellow,” Formosas are “fragrant,” Green teas are
“pungent,” Pekoes are “piquant,” Congous are “fruity,” Souchongs are
“tarry,” Japans are “mealy,” Scented teas are “aromatic,” Indias are
“malty,” Ceylons are “toasty” and Javas are “sour.” Oolongs of an
“herby,” “weedy” or “wild” flavor should be avoided, as they are
principally mixed with Ankois. Pingsueys, Cantons and all doctored Green
teas should be tabooed altogether; if cheap Green teas must be had,
procure a low-grade Moyune regardless of its appearance, as it will give
better satisfaction than the finest of the foregoing. Japans of a
“fishy,” “grassy” or “metallic” flavor should also be shunned, as they
will be found dear at almost any price. Congous of a “woody,” “mousey”
or “smoky” flavor and too “tarry” Souchongs are also good teas to leave
alone, while Canton and Macao Scented teas should never find a place in
the dealer’s stock. Low-grade India, Ceylon and Javas are either “raw,”
“uncooked,” “baked,” “burnt” or “sour” in flavor, and decay very rapidly
being unfit for use after a few weeks’ exposure. In brief, do not handle
any old, raw, grassy, weedy, woody, smoky, fishy or brassy flavored teas
under any circumstances. There is no satisfaction in them to the
consumer and no profit in them to the dealer. Keep good teas only and
get your price. It pays best in the end.
A tea-dealer with any desire to extend or even retain his trade should
no more attempt to sell poor, inferior, unclean or damaged tea than a
butcher to endeavor to sell tainted meat or a baker to give his
customers sour bread. The offense may not at first seem so
objectionable, but the verdict of the public will be the same in each
case, and the practical manner in which his customers will manifest this
opinion will be to let such dealer severely alone. Good clean teas can
nearly always be purchased for a few cents per pound above the price of
the “trash” now offered in the American market and masquerading under
the name of tea, being nothing more or less than a gross libel on the
“fascinating beverage.” By this mistaken policy of trying to save three
or four cents, the seed is not only sown for the future ruin of the
dealer himself, but it also produces the effect of disgusting the public
and casting discredit on tea as an article of food. While, on the other
hand, if the dealer make a comparatively small but necessary sacrifice
for the sake of future gain by selling _Tea that is tea_ and be content
with a fair and legitimate profit, satisfaction will be given to his
customers, trade fostered and the consumption of this now most important
food auxiliary increased at least two-fold in this country.
“Standard Chop,” or “celebrated district” teas, should always be
selected when possible, and “first-crop” for high-grade teas, as
first-crop teas are invariably superior (except in the case of Formosas)
to the later pickings in flavor, aroma and keeping properties, due to
the larger amount of theine and volatile oil which they contain, and
possessing every quality except weight for which tea is valued or
appreciated. To do this it will be necessary for the dealer to ascertain
which “chop” is the best and which district has yielded the best picking
during the current season, thereby making quality as well as quantity
the test of excellence. For, as with wheat and other crops, the tea crop
also varies according to the season and curing; some years being highly
successful in one district while it may be a comparative failure in
another. The “Tong-lees” may be heavy and flavory this year, thin and
flavorless the next; while the “Tong-mows,” or some other “chop,”
inferior in leaf and liquor last season may possess all the most
desirable qualities this. Green teas, Japans, Congous, Souchongs, India,
Ceylons and all varieties of tea being equally subject to these
variations So that the advantages to be derived from a careful selection
of the best “chop” and “district” teas of the season, with but slight
consideration, will be manifest to the intelligent dealer in tea.
The tastes of communities differing so widely in the various sections of
the country, the dealer must study and learn the particular variety and
flavor best adapted to the locality or town in which he is doing
business, as a tea that may give general satisfaction in one section may
not suit at all in another. But generally in mining, milling or
manufacturing districts or among working classes in cities, heavy-bodied
Amoys and dark-leaved Foo-chous will be found the most popular. The
taste for China and Japan teas in this country is undoubtedly an
inherited one, but irrespective of this cause they are for the vast
majority of tea-drinkers peculiarly the most suitable and best adapted,
being softer, milder, richer, more mellow and wholesome than either the
India or Ceylon growths, and it is only a cultivated and refined taste
that can appreciate them at their true worth. In a community composed
principally of Irish, English or Scotch, thick “fruity” Congous,
heavy-bodied “tarry” Souchongs, Capers, Pekoes, India and Ceylon teas or
combinations formed from these varieties will prove the most
satisfactory. While Green teas are most in demand in the Southern
States. Oolongs in the Eastern and Middle, Foochows and Formosas being
chiefly sold in the larger seaboard cities, Amoys in the principal
manufacturing districts, Japans in the Pacific and Northwestern, India,
Ceylons and teas of the Congou order, in Irish, English and other
foreign settlements.
All teas after ripening have a tendency to decay, some teas not keeping
as well as others, there being a great difference in the time that some
will keep before the deterioration becomes pronounced in comparison with
that of others. And tea also possessing an natural aptitude to become
impregnated with the odor of any high or foul-smelling article near
which it may be placed, care should be taken to keep it away from such
commodities as fish, soap, coal-oil, molasses and spices, as it quickly
absorbs all pungent odors. Yet I have known of teas that were imported
with or stored in close proximity to wine, oranges, lemons and even
camphor to be improved in flavor, more particularly when very lightly
tainted by such odors. Still teas should be kept as much as possible
from the light and air, particularly in damp or humid weather, as the
oxydizing influences of the atmosphere has a more or less deleterious
effect upon them. They should never be sold out of freshly-painted bins
or newly-japanned tea-caddies, being much better, at all times, to deal
them out of the original packages, replacing the lead and lid when
through. The most successful tea-dealers I have met invariably sell them
in this manner. Do not keep your teas too close to a fire or stove, a
dry, cool atmosphere of moderate temperature is always best.
The tea-market fluctuating considerably in the course of the year, it
will be necessary for the dealer to understand something of the law of
supply and demand, which affects the fluctuation to a considerable
extent, before he can make profitable purchases. The dealer who is best
“posted” in his business makes the best business man, so that the
tea-dealer who not only understands the article he is dealing in, but
whose knowledge and discrimination enable him “to buy the right tea at
the right time” possesses advantages over his competitors, the value of
which can hardly be overestimated. Each season, on the “first arrivals,”
high prices are paid, and if there be a brisk demand those full prices
are continued for some time, after which follows a dull, drooping or
listless market, from which but little satisfaction can be obtained; but
should the demand on arrival be light, through dealers holding off for
better terms, the prices rapidly decline to a more reasonable level, it
then becomes comparatively steady. When this is the case the decline
occurs about the middle of September, and dealers will do well to take
advantage of the choice selections of teas that arrive during the months
of October and November. For the better buying of teas at this time it
will also be found necessary to note the supply very closely, as during
heavy shipments the market is nearly always easier, while, when the
arrivals are light, the tea-market is higher. These points are deserving
the special attention of the successful tea-dealer.
For some years past a new development of the tea trade has, to the
surprise of the older wholesale and retail dealers, assumed a good deal
of prominence, for if the advertisement columns of newspapers, startling
placards at railroad stations and on fences form any criterion, the
public are taking a liking to teas put up in pound and half-pound
packages under fancy names—the latter having no relation whatever to any
country, district or locality where the teas are grown. That the public
should, to a certain extent, buy anything persistently forced upon its
attention is perhaps possible, but tea put up in tin, lead or paper
packets would seem a somewhat hopeless direction in which to attempt to
draw the public taste. Tea in bulk, in the original lead-lined chests,
undoubtedly keeps better, as it preserves the strength, flavor and aroma
of the tea longer than when exposed to the oxydizing influence of the
atmosphere, particularly in this climate, so that during transference
into the tin, paper or unseasoned lead packet, ornamented with a “showy”
label which the more gorgeous the more apt it is to communicate a taste
of the ink, paint, glue or material in which it is packed to the tea
they are intended to adorn. Again, these packets, labels and labor add
as much as five to eight cents to the cost of the tea, together with the
expense of flaunting them before the eyes of the public, which must be
simply enormous. The public generally are ignorant in such matters, and
the legitimate dealer might look with amused surprise on the apparent
demand for packet teas if it were not that an increasing number of
dealers are adopting the new system. Engaged as most of the grocers are
in trying to stop the plague of all sorts of proprietary goods which
yield them so little profit and make them the servants only of the
manufacturers and proprietors, it is astonishing, to say the least, that
other dealers should be found who are adopting the same system with tea.
A grocer cannot manufacture spices or sugar, grow wine, distil whisky or
brew beer, but _he can, as generations of grocers have done before him,
sell good tea out of an honest tea-chest,—or caddy—and make a
respectable living, if not money, out of it for himself and not for
others, while serving the public well at the same time_. Surely, the
attitude of the grocers on this question should not be one of doubt, as
they have it in their power to make it clear to the public that _they
can sell cheaper, better and fresher teas of their own, and with a far
better guarantee of the source of supply named or adhered to than if a
paper or metallic packet with a fancy label, however attractive, is
trusted to_. Again, there can be no valid reason why every grocer, if he
sees fit, should not put his own teas up and offer them under his own
name and brand upon it, if his patrons should desire, a fancy and costly
packet with no other advantages attaching to it.
TEA-BLENDING AS A FINE ART.
Comparatively little is known of the art or principle of mixing or
blending of teas in this country, American dealers and consumers alike
being averse to the practice, regarding it as about on a parity with
other methods of sophistication. Such objections are entirely erroneous,
as it is an acknowledged principle that a combination of different
varieties of wheat make better flour, the same being true of coffees and
other articles of diet. So that the practice of blending teas, if
properly understood and skillfully performed, would prove a more
satisfactory and profitable one to both consumer and dealer. The object
is not, as the public may imagine, to lower the quality or reduce the
cost to the dealer, but simply to produce better tea and obtain a finer
and more desirable flavor than that yielded by any single variety, one
giving better satisfaction to the consumer at a more moderate price and
at the same time allowing a larger margin of profit to the dealer. As an
illustration, a dealer may be selling a tea possessing a suitable
flavor, but be lacking in body or light in liquor, whereas, by adding to
it one or two other teas possessing these qualities the defect is
rectified and a full-flavored heavy-bodied tea is produced and the two
latter also improved. It follows then that by the judicious blending or
mixing of three to five teas, differing in variety and grade, a more
uniform and pleasing tea, heavier in body, richer in liquor and flavor
can be obtained by this principle at a more moderate cost.
The idea of blending teas originally arose from the experience
incidentally gained that a beverage more pleasing, satisfactory and less
costly, could be produced from a number of different varieties and
grades judiciously and scientifically combined, than could otherwise be
obtained from any single sort when used alone. No sooner was this
experience confirmed than “mixing” or blending of teas was generally
resorted to by many of those who had the dispensing of the article to
the public. Some dealers had marked success in this branch of the
business, while others again who attempted it failed completely in their
efforts to produce any satisfactory results, the end accomplished being,
instead of an improvement, an injury to the quality and value of the tea
combined, often to such an extent that ordinary plain teas would have
pleased better at less labor and cost. The cause of this failure was due
alone to the want of that necessary training and experience which would
enable the dealer to understand the characteristics and affinities of
both the teas which are improved and those which are deteriorated by
blending together. The knowledge and skill required for this particular
branch of the tea business is only attained in perfection by numerous
tests and constant experiments which are performed by mixing from two to
five or more samples of tea, differing in variety, character and
quality, alternately changing, altering and substituting them until the
dealer has succeeded in producing a tea unique in character, the body,
flavor and aroma of which will prove more pleasing and satisfactory to a
majority of his patrons, at a more moderate cost, identified with
himself and differing in every respect from that of any tea offered by
his competitors. And after he has succeeded in his efforts he must be
careful to keep it as uniform as possible, never allowing even his
employees to know of what teas his combination is formed. By following
these precautions he becomes noted for keeping a tea that cannot be
secured elsewhere and one which, after his customers become once
educated to that especial flavor, will not be satisfied with any other.
“The world moves” and the American tea dealer should move with it, as
time and experience has proved beyond dispute that skilful and judicious
Tea-blending will be found to amply repay the study and labor bestowed
on it. The chief and only difficulty existing in the art lays in first
finding a combination that will please a majority of your customers. The
primary object and fundamental principle should be to obtain in a
consolidated form, harmony, strength, pungency, flavor and piquancy and
at the same time to effect these results with the smallest possible
outlay. To accomplish these results three important points must be
carefully studied: First, to learn the taste of your customers; second,
to ascertain what teas combine best to suit this taste; third, to find
out to what extent the component parts of a once adopted and
satisfactory blend may be varied in case of difficulty to secure the
same kind of teas for future use. These results can be best secured only
by proper selecting, weighing, regulating and arranging the
proportionate quantities and different qualities in such a manner as to
obtain the best results at the smallest possible outlay. So that before
proceeding to produce a specific blend or mixture the dealer must
consider well the descriptions which will combine satisfactorily and
these that will not unite harmoniously, as teas that are not improved
are certain to be deteriorated by blending.
The chief art in successful tea-blending is to combine body, strength
and some particular and distinct flavor in one, so as to please the
majority of that portion of the public for whom the tea is prepared, and
at the same time so arrange its constituent parts in such a manner that
this desirable result may be obtained at the smallest possible outlay.
To satisfactorily accomplish this object the dealer must first learn to
understand thoroughly the taste of those for whom the tea is intended,
and secondly, to study what teas will combine best to please their
taste, as well as to know how far the component parts of the blend can
be varied without seriously affecting its regularity so that advantage
may be taken of the cheapness of any special variety or grade of tea.
The importance of retaining the uniformity of a blend, when once a
satisfactory combination has been discovered, must also not be
overlooked. Other combinations may be as good, or better, their
component parts skilfully arranged and properly mixed, but unless one
standard blend is decided on, and then sedulously maintained, fault will
be found and customers go elsewhere. This difficulty is best avoided by
paying proper attention to the selection of the teas constituting the
blend, having each sample matched as close as possible before
purchasing, as well as by not changing more than one of the teas
composing the blend at a time when it is the intention to alter the
character of the tea. When a large number of teas are used in the
formation of a blend, the alteration of any—provided that a particular
one is fairly matched—will effect but a comparatively slight variation
in its general character. But, if more than one change is to be made let
it be done by degrees, for, if the changes in the various teas forming
the blend are made gradually, few, if any, will detect the alteration.
The proper Blending of tea is an art that cannot be correctly taught in
books or easily learned, it must be acquired by study, experiment and
experience alone. Like all other knowledge there is “no royal road to
it” the dealer must endeavor to learn himself, to understand the
flavors, characters and affinities of the teas that will be either
improved or deteriorated by combination, as no absolute rule can be
substituted for the practical knowledge so acquired. In the proper
blending of teas it is essential also that all combinations should be
judiciously and thoroughly mixed together, the leaves of the component
parts being selected with due regard to size, color and uniformity and
broken as little as possible so that all may harmonize well together. It
is a serious mistake to imagine that the successful or profitable
blending of tea consists solely of an indiscriminate or injudicious
heaping together carelessly and indifferently of two or more varieties
of tea in one homogeneous mass without the least regard to quantities,
qualities, affinities, affiliations or assimilations of leaf, liquor,
character or flavor of the component parts. On the contrary, the art
consists in combining the two or more different varieties or grades of
tea forming the combination in an intelligent, judicious and scientific
manner so as to yield an unique and particular tea of uniform quality,
strength, flavor and pungency at a given price, pleasing and
satisfactory to the greatest number and maintaining its standard at all
times and under all circumstances.
But while it is admitted that it is next to impossible to understand
tea-blending thoroughly without an apprenticeship to the business and
that the combinations that may be formed from it are almost
kaleidoscopic in their range, requiring a separate work. Still, even a
novice need not spoil good tea by injudicious mixing, as a little study
and a few simple rules carefully followed, although they cannot be
substituted for years of experience in such a difficult branch, will
prevent any serious error and ensure a fair measure of success. It must
be understood at the outset that all combinations of tea, as a rule,
must depend upon the character, flavor and grade of the tea most in
demand in the section or neighborhood of the dealer, that particular
variety forming the base or foundation of the blends prepared, that is,
it must dominate the combination. To illustrate, if Oolongs be most in
demand, the blend must be composed of from one-half to two-thirds
Oolong, and so on with Congous, Greens, Japans or India sorts, as the
case may be. Before proceeding to describe any particular blends it will
be necessary to name the descriptions of tea that will not combine
satisfactorily, as well as those which will amalgamate most harmoniously
with each other. The former are described first, because _teas not
improved are certain to be deteriorated by blending_. One of the first
and fundamental rules in tea-blending is not to allow unclean or tainted
tea, even in small quantities, to be introduced into any combination,
which rule should be as rigidly adhered to in the low-priced blends as
well in the higher grades, so that all “weedy,” “herby” and “wild”
flavored Oolongs should be eschewed in blending.
In this country, where the taste for Oolong and Japan teas appear to be
an inherited one, and where there is every prospect of their continuing
to be the favorite teas with American consumers for all time to come,
the best results are to be obtained from combinations formed of these
varieties. Ripe, juicy and succulent “first crop” Foochows make the best
foundation for all blends in this country. First-crop Formosas losing
their fragrance almost as rapidly as Japans. Third-crop, or
“Autumn-leaf” Formosas that have been well-fired, and which, unlike most
other varieties, improve rather than deteriorate with time, becoming
more “mellow” for at least the first year after arrival, rank next for
this purpose, the action of the atmosphere in exposure bringing out
their fragrance more fully, and at the same time causing their
high-toast or burnt flavor to disappear. Bold-leaf, sweet-drawing Amoys;
dark-leaved, full-liquoring Foochows, and large-leaf “nosey” Formosas
and thick, sweet, “fruity” Congous make the best foundation for all tea
blends, and for the purpose of imparting a rich fragrance to any
combination a choice or “pekoed” Formosa will be found the most
desirable and valuable, its high character and great piquancy being
possessed by no other variety grown. A small quantity of a really choice
or even tolerably good Formosa tea will penetrate and dominate a blend,
making itself felt and tasting through it. Its value consisting in its
delicate “cow-slip” aroma and great piquancy, mellowing the liquor and
giving a rich “bouquet” to the infusion. It is also a tea that when once
tea-drinkers become educated or attached to its matchless qualities are
ever after hard to please with any other.
Low-grade and artificially-colored Pan-fired Japans, owing to their
usually “brassy” or “fishy” flavor, and well-known tendency to early
decay, which has a highly detrimental effect on the other teas should be
avoided, while new, “mealy,” Basket-fired Japans are especially adapted
for all Black tea blends, as they impart a peculiarly rich color and
tone to the liquor and a very pleasing mellowness to the flavor of the
combination, but should never form the base of the blend. “Old,”
“musty,” “mousey,” or “smoky” Congous, too “high-fired” and excessively
“tarry” Souchongs should also be avoided altogether, as they invariably
detract from or destroy the flavor and aroma of the finer kinds used in
the blend, their deleterious effects being felt through the entire
combination, and all “dusty” and “stemmy” teas in particular, for while
some tea-drinkers will bear with a small quantity of these most
objectionable features in tea, the vast majority will protest, as it is
next to impossible to prevent dust and stems from finding their way into
the tea-cup.
The appended formulas are not given with the intention of laying down
any fixed or positive rules, but simply as suggesting a code that may be
useful to those who are compelled to blend tea without ever having an
opportunity of thoroughly mastering the art. Only two to five varieties,
at current prices, are used, in order to illustrate the principle more
simply, as more complex combinations should not be attempted until the
dealer has acquired that practical knowledge attained only by experiment
and experience.
SPECIMEN BLACK TEA BLENDS.
=1. (Low-priced)=—Suitable for restaurant and general trade where a
cheap, heavy-bodied and strong-flavored tea is the main consideration.
Base 10 pounds Amoy Oolong at 20 cents, 2 pounds Oonfa or other
dark-leaved Congou at 20 cents. Average cost 20 cents. In the Oolong
forming this blend a little coarseness may be tolerated, but “herby” and
“weedy” teas must be avoided, as what strength is needed is supplied by
the Congou, which must be free from any suspicion of oldness. The color
of the leaf, however, must be black, so as to harmonize with that of the
Oolong. If not sufficiently pungent, the addition of 1 pound low-priced
Assam will supply that defect.
=2. (Medium)=—Base 10 pound Foochow Oolong at 25 cents, 2 pounds
basket-fired Japan at 25 cents and 1 pound Ning-chow Congou. Average
cost 25 cents. This will be found a popular tea in a mining or
manufacturing district where a smooth-flavored substantial tea is
required, or 10 pounds Ningyong Oolong at about 20 cents, 2 pounds
Congou at 24 cents and 1 pound Assam at 24 cents may be tried if the
former should not prove entirely satisfactory. This combination makes a
heavy-bodied, dark-colored “grippy” tea; one that will stand a second
drawing and still be strong and flavory. The Ningyong used in this
combination should be light, clean and as sweet-drawing as can be had at
the price and the Congou as “high-toasted” as possible, and if the Assam
be “pekoed” so much the better.
=3. (Medium to Fine)=—Is a tea that has been found to give almost
universal satisfaction in a district composed of a working class who
appreciate smoothness and richness to weight or strength, and is formed
as follows: 10 pounds fine dark-leaved Foochow Oolong at 30, 2 pounds
Basket-fired Japan at 25 and 1 pound Moning Congou at 25 cents. Average
cost 29 cents. Or where Oolongs are most in demand 10 pounds Foochow, 10
pounds Formosa and 5 pounds Basket-fired to mellow or tone the
combination may be substituted, 5 pounds of a true Moyune Young Hyson to
replace the Japan when a Green tea is preferred in the blend, or, better
still, added to it. The Foochow in this combination while possessing a
full body is yet lacking in aroma which is imparted by the Formosa, the
Japan supplying the mellowness and Young Hyson the requisite pungency.
=4. (Fine to Choice)=—A Blend like the following will be found to give
universal satisfaction in any locality, being full, strong, round,
smooth and fragrant, one entirely foreign in flavor and aroma to that of
any single tea in common use: Base 10 pounds choice “third crop” Formosa
at 35 cents, 1 pound fine Ning-chow Congou at 30 cents and 1 pound
Yamashiro Basket-fired Japan at 30 cents, for which an equal quantity of
Nankin Imperial may be substituted when it becomes necessary to vary the
combination, or, better still, added to it if a Green tea is desired in
it by the customer.
=5. (Choice)=—Is a combination that will yield a most pleasing tea to
suit a mercantile or professional trade having been fully tested and
proved popular among these classes in Philadelphia and vicinity.
Foundation: 10 pounds “first chop” high-district Foochow Oolong at 40
cents, 10 pounds choice “pekoe-tipped” Formosa at 40 cents and 5 pounds
“Spring-picked” Basket-fired about same figures. A blend composed of
these three varieties cannot be approached in drawing and drinking
qualities by that of any single tea costing 60 cents.
SPECIMEN GREEN TEA BLENDS.
The combinations to be made from Green teas are not many, being limited
in range.
=6. (Low-Priced)=—A heavy drawing, thick-liquored full-flavored tea can
be prepared from a combination of equal parts of a cheap but clean,
sweet-drawing Moyune Hyson or Twankay and Japan Nibs, when a cheap
all-Green tea is required, as both these teas drink much better in
conjunction than when either is used alone, the Japan mellowing and
otherwise enriching the China tea.
=7. (Medium)=—Base 20 pounds fair Foochow, 5 pounds Moyune Young Hyson,
and 5 pounds Sun-dried Japan, make a unique and popular blend in some
sections where the taste for Young Hysons is still extant, but where
Imperials are preferred, the best results are obtained by a mixing of ⅓
Imperial to ⅔ Foochow or other Oolong.
=8. (Choice)=—Pan and Sun-dried Japans, in equal quantities, always
combine well with Hysons and Imperials, imparting a clearness and
briskness to the liquor, but in the blending of green teas only true
Moyunes should be employed, as Cantons, Pingsueys and all
artificially-colored Green teas invariably injure and detract from the
combination in which they may be introduced, no matter how fine the base
and other constituent parts of the blend may be. Whenever low-priced
Green teas are to be used select a cheap, clean sweet-drawing Moyune
Imperial, Hyson, or even Twankay; they will give better results than the
better-made and higher-priced doubtful sorts.
SPECIMEN SCENTED TEA BLENDS.
One of the greatest delusions indulged in by the novice in blending is
that by using large and disproportionate quantities of Scented teas in
old, inferior or damaged teas, under the erroneous impression that no
matter how thin, flat, tainted or otherwise defective they may be it
will “bring it up” and improve the flavor. No greater mistake in
blending could be made, for while it is admitted that a small quantity
of either Orange or Flowery Pekoe will add to the value and flavor of a
clean, sweet Congou, but if used too freely makes it thin. Scented teas
of any kind cannot overpower, neutralize or even modify the flavor of
inferior or tainted teas, but, on the contrary, will make them more so,
particularly if Cantons or Macaos be used. In this variety the best
combinations are always to be produced from teas of the Congou and
Souchong sorts, though not infrequently they combine well with Oolongs
in very moderate quantities.
=9. (Low-Priced)=—Is a favorite blend in Scented tea localities,
particularly when the water is hard or cloudy. To 10 pounds Saryune
Congou add 1 pound Amoy Foochow and 1 pound Orange Pekoe. The fullness
and smoothness of Saryune is unequalled for blending by that of any
other low-priced Congous, but must be selected with care, as they are
sometimes sour, often rank and frequently dusty. For those preferring an
Oolong a cheap Saryune Oolong is best substituted for the Congou in
Scented blends, the affinity being stronger and more natural. Another
good blend intended for the same trade may be made from a combination of
equal proportions of a cheap but clean and free liquoring Black-leaf
Congou, Broken-leaf Assam and a Scented Caper—Foochow if the price
should permit.
=10. (Medium to Choice)=—Foundation: 10 pounds Padrae Congou or Oolong,
2 pounds thick “fruity” Kiu-kiang or delicate Kintuck and 1 pound
Foochow Orange or Flowery Pekoe make a fragrant and aromatic tea in
affiliation, the three flavors assimilating as if governed by the law of
gravitation. This will be found a tea combining strength and delicacy at
the same time and well appreciated, as the chief difficulty in tea
blending is the production of these two qualities in the same tea at the
same time.
INDO-CHINA TEA BLENDS.
The selection of India teas for blending is more difficult than that of
either China or Japan, most India teas possessing a sharp, acrid or
“baked” flavor not found in the former kinds and the natural result of
excess of tannin and artificial curing. These “peculiarities” consumers
in this country greatly dislike, and to such an extent that is only when
the finest grades are used that they can be neutralized, disguised or
well-tempered with the heavier bodied China sorts that they will use
them at all. For an “all-India blend” the best plan is to mix three or
four different district kinds together in equal quantities—a strong,
heavy Assam, a brisk and pungent Cachar, a soft and juicy Deradoon and
high-flavored Kangra or Darjeeling; the latter will impart a distinctive
tone to the entire combination. But fairly excellent results may also be
obtained from a blend composed of equal parts of Cachar and Darjeeling
alone.
=11. (Low-Priced)=—Is produced from proportionate quantities of a
heavy-drawing Broken-leaf Assam or Darjeeling Oonfa Congou and Cachar
Souchong, the whole making a rough-looking but full-bodied, strong and
“grippy” tea.
=12. (Medium)=—Prepared from ½ Darjeeling Souchong, ½ Kee-mun or
Ningchow Congou and ¼ Paklin. Its predominant feature will be delicacy,
though not sufficiently so to please a general trade, the Paklin
detracting from the body, but imparting a rich, deep color to the whole.
=13. (Choice)=—Is a good combination certain to be appreciated by lovers
of the India and Scented varieties, is made from ½ of a brisk, pungent
Assam Souchong, ¼ Ningchow or fruity Kintuck and ⅛ Foochow Caper. The
Ningchow should be grey-leaf and as heavy as can be procured, but
without being coarse or “tarry,” and the Assam as pungent as can be
obtained at the time.
SOME ENGLISH BLENDS.
Blended teas are the rule in England, where the skillful mixing of tea
has become an art, very little, if any tea being sold to consumers that
is not mixed or blended in some manner, every dealer, both wholesale and
retail being identified with or noted for some particular flavored tea.
Many of the blends sold in London, although differing widely in
character, are most skilfully and scientifically combined, the greatest
care being taken that no tea is introduced which might act detrimentally
upon any other tea in the blend. The majority of these blends are
markedly distinct, almost opposite, the chief features of one being a
rough, strong, but ripe Saryune Congou, that of another being an
even-leafed, delicate-flavored Chingwo, the base of a third being a
plain Ningchow or fruity Oonfa, to which is added an Assam Pekoe or
Souchong to increase its thickness and pungency as well as give tone to
the mixture, together with a small quantity of low-priced Kaisow to
reduce its cost. But however great the divergence in the blends,
whenever knowledge and judgment have been brought to bear on the subject
success has followed in its wake, and although the most of the
combinations are exceedingly popular there is still ample room for the
introduction of others as well as for improvements upon those that are
at present in use.
=14.= The following is a very popular London blend, and will be duly
appreciated among English residents generally: 3 pounds Kaisow Congou, 2
pounds Souchong, 2 pounds Assam, 1 pound Pekoe and 1 pound Foochow
Oolong. The foundation of this combination as will be observed, is
composed of China Congous, the Souchong enriching, the Assam giving
sharpness and pungency, the Oolong softening and mellowing and the Pekoe
imparting aroma and piquancy to the entire.
=15.= Another English blend, cheaper, and consequently not as
satisfactory, is composed as follows: 6 pounds Ningchow, 6 pounds Oonfa
and 5 pounds Cachar or Darjeeling Congous, 5 pounds Oolong, 1 pound
Caper and 1 pound Pekoe. The Congous forming the base of this blend
being lacking in strength, an extra quantity of Cachar is required to
“bring them up,” while the equal quantity of Oolong softens and the
Scented teas give a tone to the high-toasty flavor of the India.
In Blending teas scoops or guessing should not be relied on, but scales
and weights always used in measuring. If it is worth the time and
trouble to test a number of teas so that the most suitable may be
selected, it certainly must be worth a little more of each to weigh and
arrange the proportions in the best and most advantageous manner, and
not risk the success of the combination by a rough conjecture at the
various quantities composing it. The advantage of correctly weighing tea
for blending is not surpassed by that of selecting it in the first
place, and a blend should never, under any circumstances, have its cost
reduced by the introduction of a tea coarser or rougher in leaf than
that of the majority of the kinds composing the mixture. Low-priced teas
when used for this purpose should be clean, plain and sweet, as a tea of
more pronounced character will stamp its own impression on the other
teas instead of its being lost among them, its coarse features standing
out prominently, while the superior qualities of the finer grades will
be, if not entirely obliterated, so marred as to be unrecognizable.
Whereas, if the blend is so arranged that the most powerful tea is also
the highest grade in it, the effect is that all the other teas are
elevated to its level. Teas should on no account be ever blended in wet
or damp weather, as they have a natural susceptibility for absorbing
moisture and all surrounding odors. After blending, they should be
immediately replaced in the original lead-lined package and covered, or
in tightly-covered cans, to exclude the air and protect them from the
weather, and then allowed to stand from a week to ten days in order to
let them assimilate and unite their opposite qualities.
VARIOUS METHODS OF PREPARING FOR USE.
In China, where tea has been in use from time immemorial, and where it
not only forms the regular beverage of the people but also administers
to the luxury of the epicure, it is generally prepared in the cup. The
tea service consists of large porcelain cups which fit into a silver
base, a smaller cup and cover, the leaves being placed in the large cup
which is filled with boiling water and also covered. In about two
minutes when the tea is drawn it is decanted from the large to the
smaller cups, the cover being used to strain off the tea, after which it
is drank without the addition of either sugar or milk. Another shorter
method is to first put a small quantity of leaves in a cup and place a
perforated silver-lid on top to keep them down, _briskly_ boiling water
is then poured on and the cups covered with a saucer to prevent the
aroma from escaping. The tea is then allowed to brew or “draw” in this
manner from eight to ten minutes, after which the infusion is drank from
the original cup. By these simple processes only the more volatile and
stimulating properties of the leaves are extracted the tannin or
astringent principle being retained in the leaves and an immeasurably
much finer beverage produced than by any other known method.
The Mandarins and wealthier Chinese prepare it in a small hollow ball
made of either gold or silver, about the size of a walnut, suspended
from a finger-ring by a slender chain of the same material four to five
inches long. This “tea-ball” is divided in the middle, the halves being
hinged and perforated with innumerable holes, but is often made like a
globular sieve of gold or silver wire connected in the same manner. The
halves are filled with tea-leaves and then clasped tight and suspended
by the ring and chain from one of the fingers of the right hand into a
porcelain cup of freshly boiling water and gently moved to and fro or up
and down until the water is colored to the desired height, the strength
of the infusion thus prepared depending much on the length of time the
tea-ball is agitated in the cup, making it strong or weak as may be
required. The Chinese invariably make the infusion with rain or spring
water heated to a high degree, the ebullition lasting only a few minutes
and poured on the leaves just as soon as the bubbles appear on top of
the water.
* * * * *
The Japanese, to whom tea is as valuable as it is to the Chinese, first
reduce the leaves to a fine powder by grinding them in a small hand-mill
made for the purpose, and then mix it with hot water to the consistency
of a thin pulp, in which form it is sipped, not drank, particularly by
the aristocracy and richer people, being made and served to visitors in
the following manner: The tea-table, with the powdered tea enclosed in a
box, is set before the company and the cups filled with boiling water as
much of the powder as would cover the point of a knife put into each
cup, which is then stirred and mixed with a curious denticulated
instrument until the liquor foams, in which state it is served to the
company, and sipped while warm. Customarily they strain the liquid
before drinking, but frequently the tea and pulverized leaves are drank
together in the same manner that the Turks and other Orientals use
coffee.
* * * * *
In Cashmere a beverage called “Cha Tulch” is prepared from tea by
boiling the leaves in a tin-lined copper pot to a strong, dark
decoction, and while boiling briskly _phule_ (red potash), anise-seed
and a little salt is added, after which it is poured into a kettle and
finally served in porcelain tea-cups. It is also prepared there in a
vessel termed a _Chajos_—kettle and tea-pot combined—and poured direct
into the cups, but is used only after meals, more particularly after the
morning repast. The morning meal, consisting of this decoction and some
plain biscuit served hot. Another preparation, known as “churned tea,”
made in a similar manner, but afterwards regularly churned like milk, is
highly prized among them, being used exclusively for entertaining
visitors. And there is no doubt that the Cashmere ladies talk scandal,
vent their grievances and discuss their bonnets and their babies over
this peculiar beverage in the same manner as do their more civilized
sisters in America at their “five o’clock teas.”
* * * * *
Vumah cha or “Cream tea” is the favorite form in Turkestan in the
preparation of which only Black tea is used, but is a much stronger
decoction than that ordinarily made. The leaves are boiled in a copper
pot and the color heightened by lifting spoonfuls up and letting them
fall back again into the vessel while boiling, cream being added to it
meantime and bread soaked in it, after which it is eaten. Another
preparation termed Seen cha or “bitter tea” is made from Green tea
infused in the regular way, but drawn for a shorter time, as the lighter
the color the higher it is valued.
* * * * *
The Persians boil the leaves in a pot or kettle until the water assumes
a blackish color and bitter taste, after which they add fennel,
anise-seed, cloves and sugar to it, while the Hindoos and Cingalese
simply put the leaves in seething water and use the liquor only without
the addition of any other ingredient. In Chinese-Tartary tea is prepared
in the customary manner as with us, but the liquor and leaves are
swallowed together. The Mongols generally add milk, but make a much
stronger decoction and use only the infusion, while the Bokharis use
only Black tea mixed with camel’s milk or suet, breaking up their bread
in it, always carrying a bag of it with them when traveling, giving it
to their innkeepers to brew as they need it.
* * * * *
In Siam when the water is well boiled they pour it on the leaves which
have been put in an earthen pot proportional to the quantity they intend
to make, the ordinary amount being as much as they can take up with the
finger and thumb to a pint of water. They cover the pot until the leaves
have sunk to the bottom and then serve it up in china dishes to be drank
as hot as can be endured without sugar or milk.
* * * * *
A preparation called _Shamma_ or “residue” is made from the spent or
exhausted leaves—that is, leaves once used—in Beloochistan, and chewed
like the pan or betel-leaf is in India and the coca in South America,
and is claimed to have the same exhilarating effect in enabling them to
stand fatigue and long journeys.
* * * * *
Tea is prepared for use in Thibet by first grinding the leaves and
mixing them with bullock’s blood. This compound is then pressed into the
form of bricks, dried by a fire-heat and wrapped in sheepskin until
required for use, in which form it also serves as a currency throughout
Central Asia. A kind of “bouillon” or soup is made from them by boiling
in water and adding salt flour, oil, tallow or camel’s milk.
* * * * *
Among the Arabs tea is prepared by first placing a large kettle over a
wood fire to heat and then filling it with water, the leaves being
meantime mixed with salt and thrown into the water as it heats. When it
approaches the boiling point they are rapidly stewed and lifted with a
large ladle until the liquid becomes dark brown, when it is poured into
another vessel, the kettle being cleaned meanwhile and a paste composed
of meal and butter put in to fry in it. The tea infusion with cream
added is then poured on the whole, ladled as before, after which the
mass is removed and set aside to cool. In this condition it is ladled
into wooden mugs and served up, the decoction thus prepared forming both
meat and drink, satisfying hunger and thirst at the same time.
* * * * *
Tea in Morocco is regarded as a “course meal” the tea-pot or kettle is
first filled with Green tea, sugar and water in such proportion as to
make a thick syrup, which is used without the addition of milk or cream,
but frequently add spearmint, wormwood, verbena, citron, and on great
occasions ambergris. It is usually drank while seated cross-legged on
soft carpets, spread on the floor around a costly tray with small feet
raising it a few inches from the floor, furnished with glasses in place
of cups, nothing else being taken at the meal. An infusion made of tea
and tansy is also a favorite beverage with the people of Morocco which
is highly aromatic and tonic in its effect, and claimed by them to be a
remedy for debility.
* * * * *
In Switzerland it is customary to mix cinnamon with the leaves before
making the infusion, and brew both together at the same time in the
usual manner. While in France and other continental countries brandy,
wine, or other liquor is generally added to the beverage before
drinking.
* * * * *
The Russians, who are a nation of tea-drinkers, and who are close enough
to the Chinese to have received some knowledge of their methods of
preparing tea for use, are very particular in using fresh-boiled water.
They prepare it in the same manner as with us, sliced lemon being
invariably added to the infusion before using, which wonderfully
improves the flavor, making a delicious beverage. Sugar or milk are
seldom added, but in cold weather a kind of liquor called “Vodki” is
substituted for the lemon, the latter making it a potent drink, sending
a glow all over the body. The vessels used by Russians in making tea
consists of a small china tea-pot and a “Samovar” invariably, but the
tea is not brewed or “drawn” in this vessel as is generally supposed, it
being simply the utensil in which the water is boiled, taking the place
and serving the same purpose as our tea-kettle. It is usually of brass,
though often of other metal, urn-like in shape, but, unlike an ordinary
urn, having an inner compartment or cylinder running through the middle,
in which is placed burning charcoal for heating the water to an extreme
temperature on the principle of a tubular boiler. The charcoal is not
lighted until the Samovar is placed on the table, the water being drawn
on to the tea as required, the tea being first put in a porcelain or
earthenware tea-pot and filled from the Samovar; the first water is
poured off the tea as soon as it is put on, being used merely to carry
off the dust. A second water is then used for drawing the tea,
sufficient to make a strong infusion, being poured on at once, after
which the tea-pot is covered, an ample “cosy” being fitted over it to
keep the tea warm and prevent the aroma from escaping, and is then
allowed to draw from four to five minutes. Sufficient of this beverage
is poured into each cup or _glass_ and a slice of lemon added, as tea is
drank chiefly from glasses set in metal frames in Russia, and the glass
refilled with boiling water from the Samovar.
* * * * *
It is strange that nothing is ever done in this country by dealers to
attempt to educate or enlighten their customers how to properly prepare
their tea, study the water or preserve its aromatic properties after
purchasing, seeing, as they must, how little the art is understood in
this country particularly. Good tea can be kept intact, like good wine,
for years with considerable advantage to both dealer and consumer alike,
and there is no valid reason why consumers of tea should not be as
particular and fastidious as buyers of wine. But to obtain good tea in
the first place the consumer should purchase only the best, it requiring
much less of the finer grades to make a good infusion—purchasing only
from the most reputable dealers, those who know or study to understand
their business. As a nation, the American people want the best of
everything, or, as they characteristically express it, “the best is good
enough for them,” and they intend to have it if money can purchase it.
But of what avail is the best—tea for instance—if it be not prepared
properly or in such a manner as to develop and secure its more delicate,
subtle, volatile, refreshing and exhilarating properties. A country that
expends annually upwards of sixteen millions of dollars on this
commodity alone ought to devote a little more time and trouble in
studying the best methods of preparing it and in extracting its most
desirable and fragrant qualities.
Tea may be made depressing and injurious, or exhilarating and wholesome,
according to the manner in which it is treated and prepared for use.
Many who imagine that a high, dark-colored liquor indicates strength,
boil the leaves, while others, again, spoil the tea by putting the
leaves into the boiling water, some people putting the leaves in cold
water and then placing the vessel over the fire to boil, prolonged
infusion being still another serious mistake. All of these methods
produce the same evil results—that of extracting an increased amount of
the tannic acid—thereby destroying the flavor of the tea by giving it a
bitter and astringent taste as well as imparting an almost ink-black
color to the infusion.
The falsely economical custom of filling the tea-pot a second time
without removing the exhausted leaves is another error in the making of
tea, as the theine which is only soluble in fresh-boiled water, is
wholly extracted in the first drawing and cannot for this reason be
present in the second, the latter being merely a decoction composed
chiefly of tannin. To avoid this error a sufficient quantity of tea
should be made in the first drawing or fresh leaves supplied as needed.
And still another reprehensible practice is that of adding fresh leaves
to those that have already been used once, it being utterly impossible
to add either to the strength or flavor of tea by putting more leaves in
the tea-pot after the first drawing, for the reason that _tea-water_
will not extract the active principle—theine—from the dry leaves of
fresh tea; _only fresh boiling water will do this_. The use of tea-water
simply increases the amount of tannin, darkens the color, destroys the
flavor and only adds to the quantity of leaves already in the pot
without in the least affecting the active principle, so that if it be
necessary to increase the strength of the tea prepared, draw some fresh
leaves in a separate vessel and add the liquor to that already made.
Tea being an _infusion_, not a _decoction_, it should be _brewed_, not
_stewed_, the object being to extract as much of the _theine_ or
refreshing principle and as little of the _tannin_ or astringent
property as possible, without, at the same time, either boiling or
overdrawing. So that in the proper preparation of tea for use, the aim
and object should be to extract as little of the _tannin_ as possible
and as much of the _theine_ and _volatile_ oil as can be conveniently
extracted without permitting the infusion to boil, to obtain which most
desirable result the following general rules are recommended: Put the
requisite quantity of leaves in a covered china or earthenware
vessel—avoid tin or metal of any kind, even silver—then pour on fresh,
_briskly_-boiling water and let stand where it will keep _hot_ without
boiling from seven to ten minutes according to the variety of tea used.
In this time, while the tea is _drawing_, only the refreshing and
stimulating principles (theine and volatile) are extracted from the
leaves. Boiling or prolonged infusion dissolves and brings out the
astringent principle (tannin) which injures the nerves and impairs
digestion, for which reason no tea that has been either boiled or
overdrawn is fit to drink. When tea has been boiled or overdrawn it can
be readily detected by the exceedingly dark color of the liquor, as well
as by its bitter and astringent flavor.
To insure a really good “cup of tea” the kettle must be filled with
_fresh_ water—if distilled the better—and boiled for about three
minutes; there will be a sparkle about tea made with fresh-boiled water
that it cannot receive from flat, hot water, which has been boiled long
or repeatedly. For moderate strength it requires one heaping teaspoonful
of good tea to each half-pint of boiling water or an ordinary tea-cup
half-full to a quart of water will make a sufficiently strong infusion
for five persons. No metal vessel, not even one of silver, is fit to
make tea in, nothing being better adapted for the purpose than the
old-fashioned tea-pot of heavy, glazed, brown earthenware, covered with
a tea-cosy—a tufted cushion, cap-shaped, which envelopes the tea-pot,
keeping the tea warm and the aroma from escaping. This vessel must be
first “scalded” and set on the range to dry and keep hot, after which
the tea is put in and allowed to heat for a few minutes before the
boiling water is poured on the leaves, and the infusion allowed to draw
or “brew” from five to ten minutes according to the variety of tea under
treatment.
India and Ceylon teas are usually “drawn” in five minutes, longer
infusion, owing to their great excess of tannin, making them still more
bitter and astringent than they naturally are under ordinary conditions.
The addition of extra quantities of milk and sugar, however, greatly
modifies their great strength, sharp pungency and pronounced flavor.
China Green and Japan teas require from six to eight minutes to “draw”
thoroughly, while China Oolongs are best at from eight to ten. China
Congous yielding lower percentages of tannin than most other varieties,
the time allowed should be longer than ten minutes if a full yield of
their best properties should be desired. They will also be found more
suitable to temperaments to which teas containing larger quantities of
tannin are found injurious or objectionable. China teas in general do
not require much milk or sugar, while Japans are more pleasing and
palatable without the addition of either.
Everything should be clean, the water fresh and the tea drawn at a
specific heat, to insure which requires a brisk fire or gas heat, and
different treatment according to the season of the year. Care should be
taken that the water boils, it being much better to let it boil for a
few minutes than use it under the boiling point. In winter the vessel
should be made hot and the leaves heated in it before the water is
poured on, for about a minute, while in summer the tea-pot need not be
heated or the water poured on while boiling, but should be allowed to
cease for a few seconds, more or less, according to the heat of the day.
It is also a needless operation to pour a small quantity of water on the
tea for a preliminary drawing, as is frequently done. Always fill the
tea-pot, or pour in at once the quantity required, but for the more
temperate seasons a modification of these methods may be adopted. The
longest time that any tea should be allowed to steep is from five to ten
minutes. As soon as it has been steeped this length of time, at the
outside, it should be served. Even if it is allowed to remain on the
stove a few minutes after this time it will be ruined.
The character of the water used greatly influences the liquor and flavor
of the tea. Soft water should always be used when available, it being
next to impossible to make good tea with hard water. Excess of lime in
the water also deteriorates the infusion, the last difficulty may,
however, be remedied by the judicious use of carbonate of soda, as much
as would cover the face of a dime being sufficient for an ordinary
drawing of tea.
Tea being an extremely delicate and sensitive article, it should be
protected from all foul and foreign flavors, its susceptibility to the
odors of other articles being a source of danger and deterioration, as
it readily absorbs the smell of coffee, cocoa, spices, meats, fish and
other commodities of pronounced flavor. Even when securely packed in the
lead-lined chests in which it is received from the producing countries,
the change from the glowing heat of Eastern skies to our atmosphere
deprives it of much of its pleasing fragrance. For this reason the
complaints so frequently made would not arise if always kept in places
free from contagion or stored in a dry, warm temperature and not exposed
to atmospheric influences.
BEVERAGES PREPARED FROM TEA.
=Iced Tea=—Put the requisite quantity of leaves in an earthen vessel and
pour on briskly boiling water until the vessel is nearly full, and let
it infuse or draw from two to three minutes; in no case permit it to
boil, as boiling or long infusion extracts the tannin and imparts to it,
even the best tea, a disagreeable, herby or astringent taste. When
infusion is complete, strain the liquor out of the tea-pot into a jar,
demijohn or other covered receptacle, and place it in a cool place for a
few hours, or until wanted, then serve in a cup or goblet, adding some
cracked ice and a slice or two of lemon. A fine grade of Chinese Congou
or Souchong is best adapted for this purpose. Choice Oolong is also
good, but Japan tea should never be used, as it is not pleasing when
iced to a well-regulated palate. Fine Imperials and Young Hysons are
also excellent for those whose nerves can stand Green tea, the first
two, however, are best of all, having an especially agreeable flavor
when iced. Plenty of ice is needed, which should be _cracked_, not
_crushed_, and the lemon cut in quarters, the juice being squeezed out
and the pulp scraped into the tea. The rind should never be used, as the
oil contained in it imparts to the beverage a bitterish taste; use
neither milk or sugar unless you are compelled to from habit. It is the
bitter flavors of the tea and lemon together that is required to allay
the parched feeling of the palate and throat.
=Extract of Tea=—In hot weather an infusion of tea-leaves made in cold
water is much superior to that made in hot or boiling, for the reason
that the aroma will not be dissipated. An extract made in this manner
may be bottled, and if placed in a moderate temperature will keep for
any reasonable time until required for use. When serving, fill the glass
with cracked ice, put some sugar on top of it, add a slice or two of
lemon and then pour on the extract thus made; the result will be a
nectar fit for the gods.
=Essence of Tea=—Is produced from the leaves by distillation in the form
of a dark-colored fluid, of which one or two spoonfuls added to boiling
water will make an excellent cup of tea in a very short time. When
prepared in a tea-pot, the water should be put in first and the
requisite quantity of essence added afterwards; the flavor will be
pronounced, coming out remarkably well in the liquor. This essence, when
pure and properly made, will keep for any length of time in any climate
on land or sea.
=New Beverages=—An effervescent wine may be produced from tea by forcing
carbonic acid gas into the plain liquor as ordinarily prepared, and
another beverage is produced by the introduction of an effervescing wine
to the liquor only. While a pleasing drink is also prepared by treating
the ordinary infusion with a little yeast and sugar, a tea-wine being
produced from it differing in color and flavor according to the
proportions in which the constituents are combined. Still another being
evolved from this by the addition of a little alcohol to the compound. A
drink called Rohrer or “tea spirit” is again produced by adding either
whisky or brandy to the plain infusion when fresh made.
=Paraguayan Tea=—Is prepared in a filter or perforated bowl, known as a
Maté, heated with warm water. A thin layer of sugar is first put in and
a layer of leaves laid on top, another layer of sugar being added, the
leaves being sandwiched between. The vessel is next filled with boiling
water, which is allowed to percolate through the leaves and sugar.
Before serving it is again sweetened with sugar until it becomes almost
syrupy in substance, and frequently flavored with cinnamon, orange or
lemon juice. Goat’s milk is often used instead of water, when thus
prepared the infusion becomes ambrosial, approaching to that of
“Chocolate Italienne” or nectar in flavor, becoming still more palatable
when cold, but if allowed to stand too long exposed to the influence of
the atmosphere it gets muddy and sours quickly.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER VIII.
CHEMICAL, MEDICAL
AND
DIETICAL PROPERTIES.
--------------
Tea in chemistry is a complex mixture of a variety of substances,
including _Theine_, _Tannin_, _Dextrine_, _Glucose_, _Gum_ and an
essential oil known as _Volatile_, which, together with a portion of the
ash, pass into the solution when tea is infused. Being a leaf it also
contains some woody fibre, the quantity of which as determined by
Mulder, ranges from 17.1 in Green to 28.3 per cent. in Black teas.
According to Peligot, whose admirable investigation of tea ranks as a
chemical classic, it also contains a large quantity of legumen, a
nitrogenous substance, sometimes termed vegetable _Caseine_, the
percentage of which, as given by Peligot, is about 15 per cent. in tea
in its usual commercial state. The woody fibre, legumen, some tannin
_coloring-matter_ and a certain quantity of the ash make up mainly the
portion of the leaf which is not soluble in boiling water. In its
commercial state tea is not subject to much irregularity in a
hygrometric condition, there being only about 8 per cent. of moisture in
it, which may fall to 6 or rise to 10 per cent. from outside causes.
Tea has been analyzed by many other chemists, but owing to a difference
in the variety, character, quality, age, color and methods of
preparation of the specimens submitted, the results have been as varied.
The average composition in parts range as follows:—
Chemical Constituents. Quantities.
Theine, 3
Tannin, 25
Volatile Oil, 1
Albuminoids, 15
Mineral Matter, 6
Gum and Glucose, 21
Vegetable Fibre, 20
Fatty Substances, 4
Water of Absorption, 5
———
Total, 100
=Theine=—Is the alkaloid of tea and is the substance to which it owes
its refreshing and stimulating properties. It is a crystallizable
matter, soluble in water, very bitter to the taste and characteristic
alike of both tea and coffee, being to these beverages what quinine is
to bark, and with the base of cocoa which has recently received the name
of “theobromine,” it is also closely related. It is further remarkable
as occurring in many other plants dissimilar in structure and character,
grown in remote countries, but yet selected by the inhabitants on
account of their yielding a slightly exciting and refreshing beverage,
and to the presence of which the peculiar physiological action of tea on
the animal economy is attributed. It was first discovered under the name
of _Caffeine_ by Runge, who originally found it in Coffee, and later by
Oudry, who extracted an identical substance from tea, to which he gave
the name of _Theine_. Strickler subsequently produced it from cocoa,
naming it _Theobromine_. These bodies are evidently related to uric acid
as like it, when exposed to the action of nitric acid and ammonia they
yield a purple coloring matter, technically termed murioxide.
Theine is a substance which crystallizes very beautifully, forming
white, silk-like crystals containing an atom of water of
crystallization, the specific gravity of which is 1.23 at 1°C., and the
9 water of crystallization is not altogether evaporated by a temperature
of 150°. As deposited from aqueous solutions it still contains an atom
of water, but as deposited from solutions in alcohol or ether, or when
sublimed it is anhydrous. It is much more soluble in hot than cold water
or in alcohol or ether, and according to Peligot, one part of theine
dissolves in 300 parts ether or in 93 parts water at ordinary
temperatures. It is a base of the same class as aniline and urea, that
is to say, it will combine with acids yielding crystalline compounds,
but never neutralizing an acid. With chloride of platinum, chloride of
gold and corrosive sublimate, the hydrochlorate of theine enters into
combination, forming a double salt with each. As will be manifest from
its formula—C_{8}—H_{10}—N_{4}O_{2}—theine is one of the most highly
nitrogenous substances known to chemists, and connected with this high
percentage of nitrogen (almost double that formed in any other
albuminous substance) is its property of yielding an abundance of
cyanides when fused with soda lime, which property distinguishes it from
a number of organic bases, such as piperine, morphine, quinine and
cinchonine. With the base of cocoa—which has received the name of
theobromine—theine is also closely related, being nothing more than
methylated theobromine. Strecker having produced it from theobromine by
acting upon a silver derivative with iodide of methyl, in a sealed tube
heated at 100°. Theine exists in tea, not in the free state, but in the
form of tannate of tea, which appears to be dissolved by the excess of
tannic acid contained by the tea leaf, and so it happens that the theine
makes its appearance in the infusion instead of remaining in the
exhausted leaves. The proportion of theine in tea has been variously
given by different chemists. Mulder finding 0.43 per cent. in Green tea
and 0.46 in Black, while Stenhouse found 1.05 and 1.27 in Green and
Black respectively. Peligot found 2.34 and 3.0, and Zoller, whose
research is comparatively recent, found 3.94 per cent. of theine in
India tea. But it would be a mistake to regard these varying results as
showing that the quantity of theine in tea is variable, as they serve
only to illustrate the difficulties which stand in the way of a
quantitative extraction of the theine, and the imperfection of the
earlier methods. In Peligot’s paper, these difficulties are referred to,
and by making an attempt to extract the theine from a sample of tea the
chemist acquires a sense of the truth of them. The experiments of the
latter, however, being of great interest to chemists merits a somewhat
detailed description. He began by determining the total amount of
nitrogen contained in the dried leaves of different kinds of China tea
at 110°, finding 6.15 per cent. in 100 parts of Oolong, 6.58 in Congou,
and 6.30 in Green tea, while from one sample of India he extracted only
5.10 per cent., proportions six times greater than had been heretofore
obtained by any previous analysis. Next testing every soluble substance
for nitrogenous matter, he proceeded by successive eliminations to
ascertain the quantity of theine in 27 other different samples and found
that Green teas contained on an average 10 per cent. of water, and Black
only 8 per cent., and also that the latter contained about 43.2 of
matter soluble in boiling water while the former averaged as high as
47.1, and that this soluble matter yielded only 4.35 of nitrogen in
Black teas, and 4.70 per cent. in Green. It remaining to be determined
whether this large percentage of nitrogen was wholly due to the theine
or in part to some other principle, he next found that the precipitate
with sub-acetate of lead contained no apparent quantity, and then
testing the theine by a modification of Mulder’s process obtained from
Green tea an average of 2.48 per cent., and from a mixture of Green and
Black 2.70. But greatly as these quantities exceed those of all other
chemists, they were still unable to account for the whole amount of
nitrogen found in the infusion, so by adding mere acetate of lead and
ammonia, separating them by filtration, and passing through it a current
of sulphuretted hydrogen to precipitate the lead, and evaporating the
liquid with a gentle heat he obtained an abundant supply of crystals of
theine. This supply he still further increased by re-evaporation until
the whole amounted to 3.48 per cent. of the entire. There still
remaining a syrup containing some theine it was precipitated with tannic
acid, the result being added to that already crystallized it yielded a
total of 5.84 from Green tea in the natural state and 6.21 in the dried
leaf. These experiments being further continued by boiling the exhausted
leaves with potash, it showed a presence of caseine to the extent of 28
per cent. of the mass, the proportion of the latter substance in the raw
leaf being only 14 to 15.
Theine is extracted from tea by boiling a quantity of the leaves in a
considerably larger quantity of distilled water and the liquor squeezed
out of the leaves which are to be boiled with a fresh quantity of water
and again subjected to pressure, the process being repeated a third
time. The several portions of the infusion expressed from the leaves are
put in the same vessel, mixed together thoroughly and treated with an
excess of acetate of lead and ammonia, which precipitates the tannin and
coloring matter. The liquor is next filtered and the filtrate evaporated
down to a small bulk, first over a naked flame and afterwards in a water
bath, and on being allowed to cool the solution will deposit crude
theine which is removed by filtration, and the filtration nearly dried
up in the water bath, and the residue boiled with alcohol, which
dissolves the theine out of it. From this hot alcoholic solution theine
crystallizes on cooling, a final purification being effected by
crystallization from ether and decolorizing with animal charcoal. A
simpler but less effective method is to place the dust of finely
powdered tea-leaves, or an evaporated watery extract on a watch glass
and cover it with a paper cone and hold it over a spirit lamp or gas jet
the vapor arising from the glass condenses on the interior of the cone
and forms small crystals of theine. Concentrated sulphuric acid
dissolves theine in the cold without the production of color, but if the
alkaloid be treated with nitric acid evaporated to dryness, and the
reddish-yellow residue moistened with a little ammonia it turns a
splendid purple color. Again, if a solution of theine be evaporated with
chlorine on a watch glass a reddish-brown residue is obtained, which if
again treated with the vapor of ammonia it becomes a deep violet of
which the chief precipitants will be phosphoric acid, iodine and
platinum, forming a yellow and brown precipitate respectively.
Theine having no odor and only a slightly bitter taste it obviously has
very little to do with the flavor of tea. It is, however, considered a
very valuable constituent on account of the large percentage of nitrogen
which it contains and to which is attributed the peculiar physiological
action of tea on the animal economy, but what changes it undergoes in
the human system has not yet been determined. When oxydized artificially
it decomposes into methleamic (hydrocyanic) acid, a nitrogenous compound
closely allied to caseine or gluten, and as hot water extracts but very
little of this substance a large amount of it is wasted in the ordinary
infusion, which might otherwise be saved by the addition of a little
carbonate of soda to the water in preparing it.
=Tannin=—A large portion of the Tea-extract consists of tannin (tannic
acid of a peculiar kind), there being much more in Green teas than in
Black, ranging from 13 to 20 per cent. in the former, and 8 to 12 per
cent. in the latter, but averaging 12 and 9.50 per cent. respectively,
the difference being due to the fact that part of the tannin originally
existing in the raw-leaf is destroyed during the process of fermentation
to which Black teas are subjected in manipulation. It is a powerful
astringent principle, puckering up the mouth when chewed, and to which
tea owes its bitterness when overdrawn or boiled, constipating effect on
the bowels, and the inky-black color which it imparts to water
containing salts-of-iron. But whether it contributes in any degree to
the exhilarating, satisfying or narcotic action of the tea has not yet
been determined. Johnston thinks it probable that it does exert some
such effect from the fact that a species of tannin is found in the
Betel-nut, which when chewed produces a mild form of intoxication, but
as to whether this property assists or retards digestion is still an
unsettled question, the old maxim, “what is one man’s meat is another
man’s poison,” being particularly true of this substance. Many persons
finding that the use of tea while eating, or immediately after eating,
has a soothing effect on their system, while the same persons after
drinking coffee, under like circumstances, get nervous, and cannot
digest their food properly. As there is no tannin in coffee, it stands
to reason that the substance must have some influence on the digestive
organs.
For the estimation of tannin in tea various processes are in use, a
tritration by means of a standard solution of gelatine, which depends
upon the well-known property possessed by gelatine of forming insoluble
compounds with tannin being the most effective, but tedious and
difficult. A much more simple and promising method consists in
tritrating by means of a standard solution of lead, the point of
saturation being indicated by the red color struck by an ammoniacal
solution of ferricyanide of potassium, one drop of this solution being
capable of coloring one milligram of tannin dissolved in 100 parts of
water, the exact strength of the solution of lead being ascertained with
a standard solution of tannin. In using the solution of lead, 10 drops
of it are first diluted with 9 times its volume in water, and the tea
infusion dropped into it from a graduated burette until the indicator
strikes a red with the drop of the indicator. The infusion of tea is
made by boiling 2 grains of the leaves in water and afterwards diluting
it to 250, it being understood that the smaller the quantity of this
infusion required to saturate the 10 parts of the lead solution, the
higher the percentage of tannin in the sample of tea treated. This test
is specially applicable for ascertaining whether Black tea in particular
has been mixed with spent leaves. By taking the normal percentage of
tannin in pure Black tea at 10 and the percentage of tannin in spent tea
as 2, the difference is the extent of adulteration.
There is a great variability in the amount of tannin contained in the
different varieties of tea, varying in quantity according to the country
of production, kind, quality, and state of growth when picked. In six
samples of China Oolong teas recently tested, the percentage of tannin
extracted, after an infusion of thirty minutes, averaged only 7.44, an
almost similar result being obtained from an examination of the finest
Congou-China Green teas, ranging from 11.87 to 14.11 per cent., some
Japan samples under the same conditions yielding on an average from 8 to
10. While with a sample of the finest Assam (India) a percentage of
17.73 of tannin by actual weight was extracted after an infusion of only
fifteen minutes, two samples of India and Ceylon giving respectively
18.91 and 15.26, proving conclusively that India and Ceylon teas are
much more heavily weighted with tannin than China and Japan teas. The
percentage of tannin in the extract is also quite irregular, according
to the quality of the tea, the ratio of tannin to the extract varying
quite uniformly with the value of the tea, the percentage falling and
rising with the percentage of the extract and cost of the tea.
=Volatile Oil=—Is the principle which imparts to tea its peculiar flavor
and aroma, and upon the amount contained in the dried leaves depends the
strength and pungency of the infusion. It is present only in very small
quantities, but is, nevertheless, very potent in its effects, the
proportions ranging, according to Mulder, from 0.6 per cent. in Black
tea to 0.80 in Green, but averaging 0.75 in all good teas. It is found
by distilling the tea with water, is lighter in body than water,
citron-yellow in color, resinifying on exposure, solidifying with cold,
and exerting a powerfully exciting or stimulating effect on the system.
But there being no chemical analysis of this constituent extant, its
exact effect on the human system is difficult to define. By some
authorities it is claimed to produce wakefulness, acting, it is said, in
the same manner as _digitalis_ (fox-glove) which, when taken in
overdoses, causes anxiety and inability to sleep. It is a well-known
fact that Green teas produce these effects, while Black does not, the
excessive fermentation to which the latter are subjected in the process
of curing, dissipating the volatile oil to a greater extent, or, more
properly, altering its general character not only in effect but also in
flavor.
=Gum or Gluten=—If it is necessary to estimate the quantity of gum or
gluten in tea, as sometimes happens, evaporate an aqueous decoction of
the leaves to an extract, and treat the residue with methylated spirit,
filter and wash off with hot water, after which evaporate the solution
to dryness, next weighing and burning it to an ash and deduct the
mineral residue from the original weight of the leaves. Tea extract also
yields a large quantity of ammonia when boiled with potash, and it is
probable that this character may prove valuable also in testing the
genuineness of tea. Tea leaves under an extraordinary amount of ammonia,
when submitted to this test, are found to be remarkably rich in
nitrogen, the determination of which is also a means of identification.
It may also be here remarked that when tea-leaves have been exhausted by
infusion, alcohol is still capable of extracting a considerable amount
of soluble matter. This alcohol extract, when infused in boiling water,
furnishes a liquor which smells and tastes strongly of tea, which, were
it not for the expense of the solvent and trouble attending its
separation, could no doubt be profitably employed. A fixed oil composed
of equal parts of oleine and stearine, serving many purposes, medicinal,
illuminating and others, is extracted from the seeds of the tea-plant in
many parts of China and Tartary. The other substances extracted from the
tea-leaf consists principally of those which, in various proportions,
enter into the composition of all plants and include a modification of
constituents analagous to sugar, fat, salts, starch and water. The
fibre, tannin, legumen coloring matter and a certain quantity of ash
making up mainly the portion of the leaf insoluble in boiling water.
MEDICINAL EFFECTS.
The virtues of tea as a medicine have been extolled from the time of its
earliest use as a beverage in China. Chin-nung, a celebrated scholar and
philosopher, who existed long before Confucius, and to whom its first
discovery is attributed, is claimed to have said of it: “Tea is better
than wine, for it leadeth not to intoxication; it is better than water,
for it doth not carry disease, neither doth it act as a poison when the
wells contain foul and rotten matter;” and Lo-yu, another learned
Chinese who lived during the dynasty of Tang, declared that “Tea tempers
the spirits, harmonizes the mind, dispels lassitude, relieves fatigue,
awakens thought, prevents drowsiness, refreshes the body and clears the
perceptive faculties,” while the Emperor Kieu-lung advised all his
subjects to “Drink this precious liquor at their ease, as it will chase
away the five causes of sorrow. You can taste and feel, but not describe
the calm state of repose produced by it.” Again, Ten Rhyne, a botanist
and chemist to the Emperor of Japan, in a work published about 1730,
states that “Tea purifies the blood, drives away frightful dreams,
dispels malignant vapors from the brain, mitigates dizziness, dries up
rheum in the eyes, corrects humors, regulates the liver, modifies the
spleen, restrains sleep, restricts drowsiness, expels lassitude, is good
in dropsy, makes the body lively, cheers the heart and drives away
fear.” But of its sanitary effects after its first introduction into
Europe there was for a long period much consternation existing, being
preposterously praised by some writers as an incentive to virtue, and as
unjustly condemned by others as productive of numerous diseases, more
particularly that of causing an increase of nervous complaints, which it
would perhaps be more just to attribute to the more complicated state of
modern social customs arising from an augmented population and advance
in luxurious living, in connection with the more frequent infringement
of the natural laws, especially that of turning night into day, and not
seldom day into night, as is the too common practice of the votaries of
fashion, together with the abuse of stimulants, tobacco and other
narcotics.
Its assailants, however, were not very distinguished, but have been
quite emphatic in their condemnation. Jonas Hanway, a man whose follies
may well be pardoned for his virtues, being, perhaps, the most
conspicuous of them. “He looked abroad upon the world, and perceiving
that many things went wrong with it, and others no longer presented the
same attractive appearance, he remembered them to have had in his youth,
he laid to the charge of tea all the evils and disenchantments that
oppressed his spirits.” “Men,” he says, “seem to have lost their stature
and comeliness and women their beauty, and what Shakespeare had asserted
to the concealment of love in this age is more frequently occasioned by
the use of tea.” The champions of our “wholesome sage,” who contended
that “it was far superior to the boasted Indian shrub,” were but a few
of the host who attacked tea as “an innovation pregnant with danger to
the health and good morals of the people.” Others, again, although
resolute for its banishment from the tea-caddy, were yet willing to
accord it a place in the medicine chest. To such complaints echoes were
not wanting, the tea-drinkers, in a short time, having it all their own
way.
Lettson was the first medical writer who attempted to give the public a
reasonable and scientific account of tea, but even his fears of its
abuse ran away with his judgment. The poet who commends “the cup that
cheers, but not inebriates,” must have been startled if Lettson’s
pamphlet ever fell into his hands, at the assertion “that the growth of
this pernicious custom (drunkenness) is often owing to the weakness and
debility of the system brought on by the daily habit of drinking tea,”
and that “the trembling hand seeks relief in some cordial in order to
refresh and excite again the enfeebled system, whereby such persons fall
into the habit of intemperance.” Here assuredly the exception must have
been taken for the rule, that tea may be so abused as to create a
craving for alcoholic stimulants is unquestionable, but that at any
period of its history its abuse has been so general as to become the
main cause of intoxication may be safely denied. On the contrary, it was
for a long time looked upon as the great means by which intemperance was
to have been banished from society. Again, if there be any truth in this
charge, why is it that the Chinese and Japanese, who are the greatest
and most inveterate tea-consumers in the world for centuries, using it
in season and out, are yet the most temperate? It is, however, admitted
that the tremblings and other nervous effects produced by tea on brokers
and professional testers, liquor is too frequently resorted to as an
offset, and that by the practice of some tea drinkers of the absurd and
dangerous Russian and English customs of adding vodki, gin or other
alcoholic stimulant to the “cup of tea,” a habit is oftentimes acquired
which can never afterwards be relinquished. Neither is it true, as
alleged by Lettson, that the use of tea has been the cause of the
increase of nervous and kindred complaints in colleges and seminaries.
Still, his advice is sound when he states that “tea ought by no means to
be the common drink of boarding schools, and when allowed, in
moderation, the pupils should at the same time be informed that the
constant or too frequent use of tea would be injurious to their health
and constitutions. As whatever tends to impair the nerve power and
ultimately the digestive organs, in strumuous children particularly,
should be by all means avoided.” But if a diminution of the number of
inflammatory diseases be one of the consequences of the increased
consumption of tea, which is now generally conceded, it is very much in
favor of its use, as however distracting nervous diseases may be, they
are by no means so fatal as those of an inflammatory nature, more
particularly as the former can be almost immediately remedied by
relinquishing the use of tea or by simply omitting it from the breakfast
for a time, at which meal it is certainly less proper to be used.
The medicinal uses of tea, however, are not many, neither does its
chemical analysis shed much light on its action on the human economy, a
correct estimate of its particular action thereon having so far not been
ascertained. So that before attempting any such estimate it will be
necessary to consider that many of its attributed ill-effects may be due
as much to the spurious leaves of other plants so frequently mixed with
genuine tea-leaves for adulteration purposes, as well as to the
deleterious compounds so often used in coloring, for the results of
which pure tea is held responsible. The most dispassionate inquirers,
however, regard it as a narcotic, the stimulating period of which is
most conspicuous and of the longest duration, the active ingredient,
theine, being an alkaloid identical with the caffeine of coffee, the
medical action of the tea infusion upon the system is the result of the
several effects of this alkaloid formed by combination of the theine,
tannin, volatile oil, and the hot water. Of these elements theine
probably plays the most important part, and like all other potent
alkaloids theine is a powerful modifier of the nerve functions,
increasing the action of the skin and cooling the body by lessening the
force of the circulation, but does not cause any congestion of the
mucous membrane, particularly in that of the bowels. In answer to the
question whether _theine_ produces nervousness and wakefulness, reliable
authorities answer: No! But that, on the contrary, the effect of theine
upon the human system is a calming and soothing one, producing a sense
of repose and supplying to the body that which is lost by fatigue.
The experiments made with tea on a number of animals for the purpose of
ascertaining its effects on the nervous and muscular apparatus give
varying results, the most important being that of lessening the amount
of nitrogenous excreta, notably that of the urine, which means to
diminish the rate at which nitrogenous substances are oxydized within
the body, such action being probably due to the volatile oil, as Lehman
found the same oil in roasted coffee to produce the same action in his
experiments. There being a substance in the flesh or muscles of all
animals known as _kreatine_, the chemical properties of which are
analogous to those of _theine_, and it is now generally accepted that
these substances are most agreeable to the human system as food which
most nearly resemble the compound that form the tissues and muscles of
the body, while those act as poison whose composition is most different
from that of the tissues and muscles on which the life of the body
depends. Scientists who have made this subject a special study, inform
us that the substance known as kreatine is diminished by overwork and
fatigue, and that, therefore, as _theine_ and _kreatine_ are chemically
about one and the same property, the theory is accepted that the theine
in tea supplies best that which is lost to the system by the wear and
tear of life, the property termed _caffeine_ in coffee being identical
with both, serving the same purpose. While Liebig suggests that theine
contributes to the formation of _taurine_, a compound peculiar to bile,
and Lehman found that its administration is followed by a slight
augmentation of urea. It has also been proven that _theine_ and
_quinine_ are similar in nature, and that on analysis these substances
are shown to contain the same proportions of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen
and hydrogen, and, as is well known, quinine is about the only remedy
used in intermittent and malarial fevers and ague. These facts being
settled beyond dispute, it can be readily understood why it is that tea
is so soothing and beneficial to those who may feel feverish, tired or
debilitated. And while it is not claimed that tea alone will cure fever
and ague, it certainly acts as a preventative.
In the early stages of fever it is found very valuable when given in the
form of a cold infusion, it being not only considered an excellent
diluent at the commencement, but also when administered in the form of
“a tincture,” prepared by macerating the leaves in proof spirit and
adding a teaspoonful of the mixture to a small cup of water. This
preparation is given to the patient at short intervals during the night,
after the acute symptoms have subsided, and is often of great benefit
during the latter stages. For this purpose, in hospitals and other
institutions, the leaves which have been used once for the regular
infusion, may be macerated in alcohol and a tincture of sufficient
strength obtained at a cheap and economical rate. In a peculiar state of
the brain, termed “sthenic excitement,” a condition clearly bordering on
inflammation, more especially when produced by alcoholic stimulants,
intense study or long-continued application of the mind to any
particular subject or literary research, an infusion made from Green tea
will quickly act as a salutary remedy. While, on the contrary, in
periods of diminished excitement, a morbid vigilance and increased
nervous disturbance is certain to follow its use, much better results
being produced by small quantities repeated than by large ones in such
cases.
In cases of poisoning by arsenic and antimony, fatal results have been
prevented by the prompt administration of a strong infusion of tea, its
power as an antidote in such cases depending on the tannin decomposing
the poisonous substances. While it is nearly as valuable an antidote to
poisoning by opium as coffee, it is, however, only useful in combatting
the secondary symptoms, and should never be administered in such cases
until the stomach pump or other means have removed the opium from the
stomach. In some forms of heart disease, tea proves a useful sedative,
while in others it is positively injurious. Many cases of severe nervous
headache are instantly relieved by a cup of strong Green tea taken
without the addition of either milk or sugar, but should be only
occasionally resorted to in such cases, it being much better to avoid
the cause.
The almost total absence of gouty and calculous diseases in China and
Japan is claimed to be attributable to the constant and inveterate use
of tea by the inhabitants of these countries, in confirmation of which
Prout says: “Persons of a gouty or rheumatic nature, and, more
especially, those prone to calculous diseases, will find tea the least
objectionable article of common drink, but should use it without the
addition of sugar and only very little milk. When the water is hard, the
addition of a small quantity of carbonate of soda will improve the
flavor of the tea at the same time, rendering it a more proper beverage
for persons so affected, but should not be taken by them for at least
four hours after any solid meal, the addition of the alkali serving to
increase the action of the skin as well as to augment its cooling and
refreshing properties in the fullest degree.”
Dr. Smith alleges that “tea promotes all vital actions, the action of
the skin particularly being increased and that of the bowels lessened,
the kidney secretions are also affected, and the urine, perhaps,
somewhat diminished, the latter being uncertain.” Other recent
authorities agreeing that the direct effect of tea upon the human system
is to increase the assimilation of food, both of the heat-giving and
flesh-forming kinds, and that with an abundance of food it promotes
nutrition, while in the absence of sufficient food it increases the
waste of the tissues and body generally. An infusion of cold tea has
been known to check violent retching and vomiting, while a very hot one
will prove beneficial in severe attacks of colic and diarrhœa, having a
specific action on the kidneys and urine. An application of infused tea
leaves will subdue inflammation of the eyes produced by cold or other
causes, but should be applied only and allowed to remain over night; and
people who travel much will find a supply of tea a valuable
accompaniment, as it is found to improve the taste and counteract the
effects of the most brackish water, proving efficient also in preventing
the dysenteric and diarrhetic results produced by the frequent and
extreme changes of drinking waters. It is for the purpose of qualifying
the water expressly that tea is so generally used in China, as very
little good drinking water is to be met with in any part of that
country.
With brain-workers it has always been a favorite beverage, the subdued
irascibility, the refreshed spirits, and the renewed energies which the
student so often owes to it, have been the theme of many an accomplished
pen. Yet it is impossible to speak too strongly against the not uncommon
habit frequently adopted by ardent students when prosecuting their
studies far into the night, to resist the claims of nature for repose,
and keep off the natural sleepiness by repeated libations of tea. That
it answers the purpose for the time being cannot be denied, but the
object is often attained at a fearful price, the persistent adoption of
such a practice being certain to lead to the utter destruction of the
health and vigor of both body and mind. Less injury in such cases will
result from the use of coffee, there being this difference between the
morbid states of the nervous system produced by coffee and that
resulting from tea. The effect of the former generally subsides or
disappears entirely on relinquishing its use, while that caused by tea
is more permanent and often incapable of being ever eradicated.
That tea does not suit all temperaments, constitutions and all ages is
no valid argument against its general use. That it is less adapted to
children than adults is admitted; indeed, for very young children it is
entirely improper, producing in them, like all narcotics, a morbid state
of the brain and nervous system in general. It is also unsuited to those
of an irritable temperament as well as for those of a leuco-phlegmatic
constitution, such persons illy bearing much liquid of any kind,
particularly in the evening, prospering best on a dry diet at all times,
and to which young children especially should be strictly confined.
Briefly it may be summed up that tea is best suited to persons in
health, the plethoric and sanguine, and upon which principle it is the
proper diet at the beginning of fevers and all inflammatory complaints.
Besides the more obvious effects with which all who use it are familiar,
tea saves food by lessening the waste of the body, thus nourishing the
muscular system while it excites the nervous to increased activity, for
which reason old and infirm persons derive more benefit and personal
comfort from its use than from any corresponding beverage. To the
question “does tea produce nervousness?” the answer is “in moderation,
emphatically No!” One to two cups of tea prepared moderately strong,
even when taken two to three times per day will not make any one
nervous, but when drunk to excess it undoubtedly will. Tea-testers and
experts who are tasting it all the time, day in and day out, for the
purpose of valuing it, are frequently made nervous by it, soon recover
by a little abstinence. Tea, like liquor and drugs, when taken in
moderate quantities, produce one effect, but when used in large and
immoderate quantities produce just the contrary result. China and Japan
teas, containing more theine and less tannin, are consequently less
hurtful and more refreshing than India and Ceylon teas, which contain
nearly double the quantity of tannin, the astringent property to which
India and Ceylon teas owe the harsh, bitter taste so often complained of
in them, and which is undoubtedly the unsuspected cause of the
indigestion and nervousness produced by their use.
DIETICAL PROPERTIES.
That the universal employment of tea has displaced many other kinds of
food is certain, and regarding its dietical properties much has been
written for and against. While some physicians have praised its value as
an article of food, on account of the large proportion of nitrogen which
it contains, others have as strenuously maintained that it is
non-nutritious, and does not serve as a substitute for food, and that
the only beneficial properties it contains are due to the milk and sugar
added in its use. So that in considering the nourishing effects of tea,
the nutriment contained in the milk and sugar certainly must not be
overlooked, neither must the powerful influence of the heat of the
steaming draught be forgotten. According to the chemical classification
of food, the “flesh formers” contained in tea of average quality is
about 18, and the “heat givers” 72 per cent., water and “mineral matter”
being divided between the residue, the several constituents as they are
found in one pound of good tea being as follows:—
FLESH FORMERS.
Constituents. Quantities, in one pound of good Tea.
oz. grs.
Theine, 0. 210
Caseine, 2. 175
Volatile Oil, 0. 52
Fat, 0. 280
Gum, 2. 385
HEAT GIVERS.
Sugar, 0. 211
Fibre, 3. 87
Tannin, 4. 87
Water, 0. 350
Mineral, 0. 350
—— ——
Total, 15 oz. 267 grs.
The use of _theine_ as an article of diet has not so far been
satisfactorily determined; but that it is a question of no mean interest
is obvious when we consider that it is found to exist in so many plants,
differing widely in their botanical origin and yet all instinctively
used for the same purpose, by remotely situated nations, for the
production of useful, agreeable and refreshing beverages.
By taking the normal temperature of the human body at 98°, it follows
that where food is taken into the stomach of a lower temperature than
that of the body it must necessarily abstract heat from the stomach and
surrounding tissues, so that where the practice of taking cold food
becomes habitual depression occurs and the stomach is consequently
disordered, and the system must make good this heat lost in raising the
temperature of cold food or else suffer. The body demanding food when in
an exhausted state, cold food or drink makes an immediate drain upon the
system for heat before it can supply material for producing combustion,
and the body is thereby taxed to supply heat at a time when it is least
fitted for it. It is natural, therefore, that there should be a craving
for warm food, and as liquid food is deficient in heat-giving matter,
the use of cold drink is more injurious than that of cold food. From
other experiments it appears that the introduction into the stomach of
three or four grains of _theine_, which is the quantity contained in the
third of an ounce of good tea, has the remarkable effect of diminishing
the daily waste or disintegration of the bodily tissues which may be
measured by the quantity of solid constituents contained in the many
secretions, and if such waste be lessened the necessity for food to
repair that waste will obviously be decreased in corresponding
proportions. In other words, says Professor Johnstone, “by the
consumption of a certain quantity of tea daily the health and strength
of the body will be maintained to an equal degree upon a smaller supply
of ordinary food.” Tea, therefore, saves food; stands to a certain
extent in place of food, while at the same time it soothes the body and
enlivens the mind. While tea, according to Dr. Sigmond, “has in most
instances been substituted for spirituous liquors, and the consequence
has been a general improvement in the health and morals of the people,
the time, strength, and vigor of the human body being increased by its
use. It imparts greater capability of enduring fatigue, and renders the
mind more susceptible of the innocent and intellectual pleasures of
life, as well as of acquiring useful knowledge more readily, being not
only a stimulant to the mental faculties but also the most beneficial
drink to those engaged in any laborious or fatiguing work.” Dr. Jackson
testifying “that a breakfast of tea and bread alone is much more
strengthening than one of beefsteak and porter.”
In his admirable work on hygiene Dr. Parker remarks that “tea possesses
a decidedly stimulating and restorative action on the human system, no
depression whatever following its use, the pulse being a little
quickened, and the amount of pulmonary carbonic acid accordingly
increased.” From this experiment he regards “tea as a most useful
article of diet for soldiers, the hot infusion being potent against heat
and cold, and more useful still in great fatigue in tropical countries
by its great purifying effect on brackish and stagnant water.” Adding
that “tea is so light, easily carried and so readily prepared, that it
should form the drink, _par excellence_, of the soldier in service or on
the march, above all its power of lessening the susceptibility to
malarial and other influences.” And Admiral Inglefield is quoted as
strongly recommending the use of tea to Arctic travelers and explorers,
as seamen who surveyed with him in the polar regions after an experience
of one day’s rum drinking came to the conclusion that tea was more
beneficial to them while undergoing the severe work and intense cold.
Under the infirmities of advancing age, especially when the digestive
powers become enfeebled and the size and weight of the body begin
perceptibly to diminish, the value of tea in checking the rapid waste of
tissue is particularly observable, and persons, when very much fatigued,
will be sooner refreshed by drinking a cup of moderately strong, good
tea, than by drinking wine or spirits of any kind. In allaying or
satisfying severe thirst, no beverage will be found as efficacious as a
draught of cold tea.
Lettson furnishes a calculation, partly his own and partly from other
sources, in which he endeavors to prove how much is, in his view,
unnecessarily expended by the poor for tea. But the observations of
Liebig, if correct, and in all probability they are, offer a
satisfactory explanation of the cause of the partiality of the poorer
classes, not alone for tea, but for tea of an expensive and therefore
superior quality. “We shall never certainly,” he says, “be able to
discover how people were led to the use of hot infusions of the leaves
of a certain shrub (tea) or a decoction of certain roasted seeds
(coffee); some cause there must be which would explain how the practice
has become a necessary of life to whole nations.” But it is still more
remarkable that the beneficial effects of both plants on the health must
be ascribed to one and the same substance, the presence of which in two
vegetables belonging to natural families, the product of different
quarters of the globe, could hardly have presented itself to the boldest
imagination, recent research having shown in such a manner as to exclude
all doubt that the _caffeine_ of coffee and the _theine_ of tea are in
all respects identical. And without entering into the medical action of
this principle, it will surely appear a most startling fact, even if we
deny its influence on the process of secretion, that this substance,
with the addition of oxygen and the elements of water, can yield
_taurine_, the nitrogenous compound peculiar to bile. So that if an
infusion of tea contain no more than 1-10 of a grain of theine, and
contributes, as has been shown, to the formation of bile, the action,
even of a such a small quantity, cannot be looked upon as a nullity.
Neither can it be deemed that in the case of non-atomized food or a
deficiency of the exercise required to cause a change of matter in the
tissues, and thus to yield the nitrogenized product which enters into
the composition of bile, the health may be benefited by the use of
compounds essential to the production of this important element of
respiration. In a chemical sense, and it is this sense alone that theine
is in virtue of its composition better adapted to this purpose than all
other nitrogenized vegetable principles yet discovered. To better prove
how the action of tea may be explained, we must call to mind that the
chief constituents of the bile contain only 3.8 per cent. of nitrogen,
of which only one-half belongs to the _taurine_. Bile contains in its
natural state water and solid matter in the proportion of 90 parts of
the former to 10 parts of the latter, and if, we suppose, these 10 parts
of solid matter to be cholenic acid with 5.87 per cent. of nitrogen,
then 100 parts of bile must contain 0.171 of nitrogen in the form of
taurine, which quantity is contained in .06 parts of theine, or, in
other words, 272 grains of theine can give to an ounce of bile the
quantity of nitrogen it contains in the form of taurine. The action of
the compound in ordinary circumstances is not obvious, but that it
unquestionably exists and exerts itself in both tea and coffee is proven
by the fact that both were originally met with among nations whose diet
was chiefly vegetable. These facts clearly show in what manner tea
proves to the poor a substitute for animal food, and why it is that
females, literary persons and others of sedentary habits or occupation,
who take but little exercise, manifest such a partiality for tea, and
also explain why the numerous attempts made to substitute other articles
in its place have so signally failed.
TEA AS A STIMULANT.
“Life without stimulants would be a dreary waste,” remarks some modern
philosopher, which, if true, the moderate use of good tea, properly
prepared and not too strong, will be found less harmful than the
habitual resort to alcoholic liquors. The impression so long existing
that vinous or alcoholic beverages best excite the brain and cause it to
produce more or better work is rapidly being exploded, healthier and
more beneficial stimulants usurping their place. But while the claims
made in favor of the “wine cup” must be admitted, it cannot for a moment
be denied that as excellent literary work has been accomplished under
the influence of tea, in our own times, particularly when the poet, the
essayist, the historian, the statesman and the journalist no longer work
under the baneful influence of spirituous stimulants. Mantegaza, an
Italian physiologist of high repute, who has given the action of tea and
other stimulants careful study, confirms this claim by placing tea above
all other stimulants, his enthusiasm for it being almost unbounded,
crediting it with “the power of dispelling weariness and lessening the
annoyances of life, classing it as the greatest friend to the man of
letters by enabling him to work without fatigue, and to society as an
aid to conversation, rendering it more easy and pleasant, reviving the
drooping intellectual activity and the best stimulus to exertion, and
finally pronouncing it to be one of the greatest blessings of Providence
to man.”
Tea was Johnson’s only stimulant, he loved it as much as Porson loved
gin, drinking it all times and under all circumstances, in bed and out,
with his friends and alone, more particularly while compiling his famous
dictionary. Boswell drank cup after cup, as if it had been the
“Heliconian spring.” While Hazlitt, like Johnson, was a prodigious
tea-drinker, Shelley’s favorite beverage was water, but at the same time
tea was always grateful to him. Bulwer’s breakfast was generally
composed of dry toast and cold tea, and De Quincy states that he
invariably drank tea from eight o’clock at night until four in the
morning, when engaged in his literary labors, and knew whereof he spoke
when he named tea “the beverage of the intellectual.” Kent usually had a
cup of tea and a pipe of tobacco, on which he worked eight hours at a
stretch, and Motley, the historian tells us that he “usually rose at
seven, and with the aid of a cup of tea only, wrote until eleven.” And
Victor Hugo, as a general rule, used tea freely, but fortifying it with
a little brandy. Turning from literature to politics, we find that
Palmerston resorted to tea during the midnight sessions of Parliament.
Cobden declaring “the more work he had to do the more tea he drank,” and
Gladstone himself confesses to drinking large quantities of tea between
midnight and morning during the prolonged parliamentary sittings, while
Clemenceau, the leader of the French Radicals, admits himself to be “an
intemperate tea-drinker” during the firey discussions of debate.
In moderation, tea is pre-eminently the beverage of the twilight hour,
when tired humanity seeks repose after a day of wearying labor. Then the
hot infusion with its alluring aroma refreshing and stimulating,
increasing the respiration, elevating the pulse, softening the temper,
producing tranquility in mind and body, and creating a sense of repose
peculiarly grateful to those who have been taxed and tormented by the
rush and routine of business cares and vexations. What a promoter of
sociability, what home comforts does it not suggest, as, when Cowper, on
a winter’s evening, draws a cheerful picture of the crackling fire, the
curtained windows, the hissing urn and “the cup that cheers?” When,
however, tea drinking ceases to be the amusement of the leisure moment
or resorted to in too large quantities or strong infusions as a means of
stimulating the flagging energies to accomplish the allotted task,
whatever it might be, then distinct danger commences. A breakdown is
liable to ensue in more than one way, as not infrequently the stimulus
which tea in time fails to give is sought in alcoholic or other liquors,
and the atonic dyspepsia which the astringent decoction produced, by
overdrawing induces, helps to drive the victim to seek temporary relief
in spirits chloral or the morphine habit, which is established with
extraordinary rapidity. For it is a truth that as long as a person uses
stimulants simply for their taste he is comparatively safe, but as soon
as he begins to drink them for effect he is running into great danger.
This may be stating the case too forcibly for stimulants, but if this
rule was more closely adhered to we should have fewer cases of educated
people falling into the habit of secret intemperance or morphomania.
TEA AND THE POETS.
The subdued irascibility, the refreshed spirits, and the renewed
energies which the student and the poet so often owed to tea has been
the theme of many an accomplished pen, eminent writers of all times and
all countries considering it no indignity to extol the virtues of this
precious and fascinating beverage. What Bacchanalian and hunting songs,
cavalier and sea songs, rhapsodies and laudations of other subjects have
been to our literature, such was tea to the writers, poets, artists and
musicians of China and Japan, theirs being confined to the simple
subject—Tea. Each plantation was supposed to possess its own peculiar
virtues and excellences, not unlike the vineyards of the Rhine, the
Rhone and the Moselle, each had its poet to sing its praises in running
rhymes. One Chinese bard, who seemingly was an Anacreon in his way,
magnifying the product of the Woo-e-shan mountains in terms literally
translated as follows:—
“One ounce does all disorders cure.
With two your troubles will be fewer,
Three to the bones more vigor give,
With four forever you will live
As young as on your day of birth,
A true immortal on the earth.”
However hyperbolical this testimony may be considered, it at least
serves to show the high estimation in which the plant was held in China.
The first literary eulogist to espouse the cause of the new drink in
Europe was Edmund Waller, reciting how he became first induced to taste
it. In a poem containing several references to the leaf occurs the
following pregnant allusion to tea:—
“The muses friend doth our fancy aid,
Repress these vapors which the head invade,
Keeping that palace of the soul serene.”
That Queen Anne ranked among its votaries is manifest from Pope’s
celebrated couplet:—
“Though great Anna, whom the realms obey,
Doth sometimes counsel take and—sometimes Tea.”
Johnson did not make verses in its honor, but he has drawn his own
portrait as “a hardened and shameless tea drinker, who for twenty years
diluted his meals with an infusion of this fascinating plant, whose
kettle had scarcely time to cool, who with tea amused the evening, with
tea solaced the night, and with tea welcomed the morning.” While Brady,
in his well-known metrical version of the psalms, thus illustrates its
advantages:—
“Over our tea conversations we employ,
Where with delight instructions we enjoy,
Quaffing without waste of time or wealth
_The soverign drink of pleasure and of health_.”
Cooper’s praise of the beverage has been sadly hackneyed, nevertheless,
as the Laureate of the tea table, his lines are worthy of reproduction
here:—
“While the bubbling and loud hissing urn
Throws up a steaming column, and the cup
_That cheers, but not inebriates_, wait on each,
So let us welcome peaceful evening in.”
That Coleridge, in his younger days, must have liked tea is inferred
from the following stanza:—
“Though all unknown to Greek and Roman song,
The paler Hyson and the dark Souchong,
Which Kieu-lung, imperial poet praised
So high that cent, per cent. its price was raised.”
Gray eulogizing it:—
“Through all the room
From flowing tea exhales a fragrant fume.”
Byron, in his latter years, became an enthusiast on the use of tea,
averring that he “Must have recourse to black Bohea,” still later
pronouncing Green tea to be the “Chinese nymph of tears.” And in
addition to the praises sung to it by English-speaking poets and
essayists, its virtues have also been sounded by Herricken and Francius
in Greek verse, by Pecklin, in Latin epigraphs, by Pierre Pettit, in a
poem of five hundred lines, as well as by a German versifier, who
celebrated, in a fashion of his own, “The burial and happy resurrection
of tea.” In opposition to the “country parson,” who calls tea “a
nerveless and vaporous liquid,” and Balzac, who describes it as an
“insipid and depressing beverage,” the author of “Eothen” records his
testimony to “the cheering, soothing influence of the steaming cup that
Orientals and Europeans alike enjoy.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER IX.
WORLD’S PRODUCTION
AND
CONSUMPTION.
--------------
The first direct importation of tea into England was in 1669, and
consisted of but “100 pounds of the best tea that could be procured.” In
1678 this order was increased to 4,713 pounds, which appears to have
“glutted the market;” the following six years the total importations
amounting to only 410 pounds during that entire period. How little was
it possible from these figures to have foreseen that tea would one day
become one of the most important articles of foreign productions
consumed.
Up to 1864 China and Japan were practically the only countries producing
teas for commercial purposes. In that year India first entered the list
as an exporter of tea, being subsequently followed by Java and Ceylon.
In 1864, when India first entered the list of tea-producing countries,
China furnished fully 97 per cent. of the world’s supply and India only
3, the latter increasing at such a marvelous rate that it now furnishes
57, China declining to 43 per cent. of the total.
TABLE 1.
ESTIMATED TEA PRODUCTION OF THE WORLD.
Countries. Production Exportation
(Pounds). (Pounds).
China, 1,000,000,000 300,000,000
Japan, 100,000,000 50,000,000
India, 100,000,000 95,000,000
Ceylon, 50,000,000 40,000,000
Java, 20,000,000 10,000,000
Singapore, 20,000 10,000
Fiji Islands, 30,000 20,000
South Africa, 50,000 20,000
————————————— ———————————
Total, 1,270,100,000 495,050,000
From these estimates it will be noted that China ranks first in
tea-producing countries, followed by Japan, India, Ceylon and Java in
the order of their priority; the total product of the other countries
having little or no effect as yet on the world’s supply.
This most important food auxiliary is now in daily use as a beverage by
probably over one-half the population of the entire world, civilized as
well as savage, the following being the principal countries of
consumption:—
TABLE 2.
ESTIMATED TEA CONSUMPTION OF THE WORLD.
Countries. Consumption Per capita
(Pounds). (Pounds).
Austria, 1,000,000 0.03
Australia, 18,000,000 4.50
Belgium 130,000 0.03
China, 800,000,000 3.00
Canada, 23,000,000 4.00
Central Asia, 13,000,000 ...
Denmark, 850,000 0.37
France, 1,250,000 0.03
Germany, 4,000.000 0.09
Holland, 5,000,000 1.20
Italy, 60,000 0.01
India, 5,000,000 ...
Japan, 50,000,000 4.00
Java, 5,009,000 1.00
Norway, 165,000 0.09
New Zealand, 4,500,000 7.50
Portugal, 600,000 0.12
Russia, 100,000,000 1.70
Spain, 275,000 0.02
Sweden, 150,000 0.03
Switzerland, 150,000 0.08
South Africa, 600,000 0.80
South America, 12,000,000 0.03
Straits Settlements, 1,000,000 ...
United States, 82,000,000 1.50
United Kingdom, 180,000,000 5.94
West Indies, 300,000 0.03
————————————— ————
Total, 1,308,039,000 1.67
From these estimates it will be observed that England ranks first in the
list of tea-consuming countries, the United States second, and Russia
third, the Australian colonies and Canada coming next in order,
comparatively little tea being used in France, Germany and the other
European countries. It is rarely used in some parts of the globe, and is
practically unknown in a great many other countries. It is also apparent
that 90 per cent. of the world’s supply is chiefly consumed by
English-speaking people, fully 75 per cent. of this being used by
England and her dependencies alone, the United States being next in
importance as a tea-consuming country. And it may here be noted that
while the world’s production of tea has been very largely increased
during the last quarter of a century in greater ratio than that of any
other of the great staples of commerce, the production of China and
Japan having increased at least 50 per cent. in that period, to which
must be added that of India and Ceylon, from which countries little or
none was received until a few years ago. Yet it cannot be said that the
consumption has increased in anything like the same proportion, which
will account for the great decline in price in later years, and to
prevent prices from going still lower it is evident that new markets
must be opened up for its sale in other countries where it has not yet
been introduced.
TABLE 3.
SUMMARY.
World’s Production, 1,377,600,000
“ Consumption, 1,307,130,000
————————————
Surplus, 70,470,000
or
Quantity exported, 503,100,000
Consumption in non-producing countries, 432,630,000
——————————
Surplus, 70,470,000
In England, particularly, the increase in the consumption of tea in late
years borders on the marvelous, the figures for 1890 reaching upwards of
195,000,000 pounds, which, at the present rate of increase, will, in all
probability, exceed 200,000,000 in 1892, as in the quarter of a century
between 1865 and 1890 the consumption rose from 3½ to 5 pounds _per
capita_ of the population. But as in the latter half of that period
strong India teas were more freely used, being increased appreciably by
the similar Ceylon product in the closing years of that time largely
displacing the lighter liquored teas of China, a larger consumption is
indicated by the number of gallons of liquid yielded. This is calculated
on the moderate estimate formed in a report to the Board of Custom to
the effect that if one pound of China leaf produces five gallons of
liquor of a certain depth of color and body, one pound of India tea will
yield seven and a half gallons of a similar beverage. Then by allowing
for an apparent arrest of the advancing consumption when the process of
displacement was only commencing, the increase in the consumption of tea
in the British Islands has not only been steady but rapid; thus, from 17
gallons per head in 1865 to 24 in 1876, 28 in 1886, reaching 33½ gallons
per head per annum in 1890, the figures of last year almost exactly
doubling that of the first year of the series, so that in consequence of
the introduction of the stronger products of India and Ceylon the people
of Britain have been enabled to double their consumption of the
beverage, although the percentage of increase in the leaf has been only
from 3½ to 5 pounds during the same period. Ceylon tea, which a decade
ago was only beginning to intrude itself as a new and suspiciously
regarded competitor in the English market with products so well known
and established as the teas of China and India, has recently made such
rapid progress that its position in the British market in 1890, rated by
home consumption, occupying third place on the list. India teas 52 per
cent., China 30 per cent., Ceylon 18 per cent.
TABLE 4.
Showing relative positions of kinds of Tea consumed in England, and
increase in pounds of same since 1880:—
Kind. 1880. 1885. 1890.
China, 126,000,000 113,500,000 60,000,000
India, 34,000,000 65,500,000 95,000,000
Ceylon, 3,000,000 24,000,000
In 1868, when the price of tea was reduced in England to an average of
36 cents per pound, the consumption increased to the heretofore
unprecedented figures of 107,000,000 pounds, while in 1888, when the
average price was again reduced to 20 cents, owing to the enormous
increase in the production of India and Ceylon teas, the total
consumption became augmented to 185,000,000 pounds, comprised as
follows, in round numbers:—
Kinds. Pounds.
China teas, 80,000,000
India and Ceylon teas, 105,000,000
———————————
Total, 185,000,000
The latter, for the first time on record, exceeding that of China teas,
being an almost exact inversion of the figures of 1886 in favor of India
and Ceylon teas, by which it will be seen that China is year by year
becoming of less importance as a source of tea supply to English
consumers. And as the demand becomes greater the importations from India
and Ceylon are constantly expanding, prices being correspondingly
reduced to an unprecedentedly low figure, being now so cheap in the
United Kingdom as to be in daily use in almost every household. The
relative positions of China, India and Ceylon teas in England at the
present writing being
Kind. Consumption,
Pounds.
India (estimated), 105,000,000
China “ 50,000,000
Ceylon “ 35,000,000
——————————
Total, 180,000,000
The proportion of Black tea consumed in England is about as 5 to 1, the
_per capita_ consumption ranging from 5 to 6 pounds for the entire
population.
Ceylon teas continue to grow in public favor to a marvelous extent in
England and beyond anticipating in the natural growth of consumption,
they help fill up the yearly displacement of China teas. The total
production for 1890 was nearly 38,000,000 pounds against over 30,000,000
pounds for 1889, and 18,500,000 pounds for 1888, thus showing an
increase of 19,500,000 pounds for the two years. The supply for 1891 is
about 40,000,000 pounds, the stock being increased 3,000,000 pounds,
which may be considered very moderate and quite steady considering the
steady all-round demand there is for Ceylon teas in that country. But
there is not the slightest doubt but that the check which the
consumption of China tea appears to have sustained in England is
entirely due to the _forced_ use of India and Ceylon teas in that
country and her dependencies, there being a positive revulsion of taste
in many sections in favor of the truer, purer and more delicate and
richer of China teas. Medical opinions have been recently given to prove
that the excessive quantity of tannin contained in India and Ceylon teas
is very injurious to health, and a revival of the Chinese tea-trade may
be confidently expected in the future.
So far as the English tea-trade is concerned the market for China and
Japan teas is now but a tame affair to what it was only a few years ago,
little interest being taken there in the tea product of these countries.
Year by year since 1885 China and Japan teas has had less hold upon the
English market, and it is remarkable to note how continuously the
consumption of these varieties have been on the decline there from that
time, notwithstanding their superior merits in drawing and drinking
qualities over both India and Ceylons. In that year their consumption in
the British isles amounted to over 113,000,000 pounds, but fell off to
less than 105,000,000 pounds in 1886, to about 90,000,000 in 1887, to
80,000,000 in 1888, to 60,000,000 in 1889. The quantity of China and
Japan teas consumed in the whole United Kingdom declining to about
50,000,000 pounds in 1890, although the prices for them were exceedingly
low during that period. There are two main causes for this serious
reduction which have been in operation simultaneously and for a length
of time. The first was the great competition of India teas stimulated
for the reasons already named, and the second cause the extraordinary
favor that Ceylon teas found with English consumers in 1888, when the
quantity imported for use from that island amounted to 18,500,000
pounds, or nearly double of what it was the preceding year, the
quantities cleared for 1889 and 1890 being respectively 28,500,000
pounds and 34,500,000 pounds, showing an astonishing increase within the
short space of three years, and which fully accounts for the decadence
of the English demand for China and Japan teas. The consumption of the
latter varieties has retrograded there, while that for India and Ceylon
teas has increased proportionately, so that, although the market for the
former descriptions has occasionally given signs of revival, they have
been only spasmodic efforts at recovering, the much expected and
promised reaction soon subsiding. And instead of the phenomenal
cheapness of China and Japans being regarded as a recommendation to
consumers it has been used as an argument by British dealers as an
evidence of their unpopularity, and so completely has the demand been
transferred from China and Japan teas to Indias and Ceylons that it has
been no uncommon occurrence for the latter kinds to be selling at
improving rates whilst the former descriptions have been disposable only
at drooping prices.
The enormous size of the tea estates in India and Ceylon as compared
with the small gardens of China and Japan give the growers in the former
countries several advantages over those in the latter as they can be
worked more systematically and with less expense in larger areas. The
use of machinery in curing and firing also lessens the cost of
preparation for market, together with a saving in freight and quicker
sale consequent to English preferences giving a speedier return for the
money invested. The advantages which India and Ceylon tea-growers have
over those of China are greater command of capital, as in both India and
Ceylon tea estates are generally owned by companies consisting of
shareholders whose living is not dependent on the product of the
plantations. The companies can consequently afford to carry on the
business at a loss for several years, can purchase extensive tea lands,
and can spend large sums on machinery, labor and experiments as well as
on agents to introduce and distribute them. The India and Ceylon
tea-growers can obtain loans at a lower rate of interest, borrowing
money at from 4 to 5 per cent., while their Chinese competitors have to
pay from 20 to 30 per cent. for the same accommodations, in addition to
a command of better chemical and agricultural knowledge. But against
these admitted advantages of India and Ceylon, China possesses one great
advantage, that is, that the Chinese grower, working for himself instead
of wages, brings greater care and more industry to the task. Experience
with him takes the place of science, and he is thus enabled to produce a
finer flavored tea than has yet or ever will be produced in either India
or Ceylon. Again the great decline in the consumption of China teas in
England and her dependencies cannot be attributed, as is so loudly
proclaimed by her statisticians, to any falling off in the quality of
China teas or any inherent merit possessed by those of India or Ceylon,
but simply to the narrow and contracted policy of her merchants of
favoring and forcing the product of her colonies to the prejudice if not
positive exclusion of that of the older tea-growing countries.
In 1865 China exported over 120,000,000 pounds of tea, in 1870 nearly
170,000,000 pounds, in 1880 over 214,000,000 pounds, reaching the
enormous total of 221,000,000 pounds in 1890, thus China’s export has
also been increasing in a proportionate degree. But although the figures
for 1870 and 1890 show that in twenty years it has nearly doubled, still
it is not such a remarkable increase relatively when compared with that
of India, which during the same period has increased nearly fourteen
fold in quantity. In estimating the probability of a recovery in the
position of China teas in the markets of the world the following
considerations are of interest on the subject: First, it is well known
that the heavy _Likin_ (grower’s tax) _Kutang_ (transit dues) and export
duties levied on tea have contributed in a great measure to the
decadence of the tea-trade in that country and to the development of
that of India and Ceylon, where the article, at least, starts free and
unencumbered. The Chinese laboring under this disadvantage, at the
outset, have endeavored to compete with India and Ceylon by reducing the
cost of production and lowering their standard of quality with a
consequent deterioration in the grade of the leaf. This changed
condition of the tea-trade may be attributed to these specific causes.
Fifty years ago India and Ceylon produced no tea, as it was not until
1840 that the export from the former began with a small venture of 400
pounds, since that year, however, the increase has been both rapid and
striking. Thus, commencing in 1840, the export has steadily increased
year after year until now, when the average annual production reaches
100,000,000 pounds, of which England consumes some 97,000,000 pounds,
the balance going to Australia and other of her colonies. It is
contended by the Chinese themselves that if the Likin and export duties
were removed entirely or the export duty alone reduced to an _ad
valorem_ charge of 5 per cent. it would greatly help those engaged in
the China tea-trade in their competition with the growers and shippers
of India and Ceylon, others holding that a simple reduction of the duty
will not permanently benefit the China tea-trade unless it enables China
to lay down teas in Europe and America at a less price than can be done
by either India or Ceylon.
Russia is now regarded as the main hope of Chinese Congous and sorts,
the British islands consuming Indias and Ceylons almost exclusively, the
United States favoring Oolongs and Japans principally. The trade in
China teas with Russia is increasing annually, while it is decreasing
with England. In former years tea was first shipped to England and
thence to Russia, the Russian tea-dealers now purchasing direct from
China. The Russian demand seems, in fact, to grow as fast as that from
England declines, constituting a total which is hardly suspected by
those who are interested in the trade, so that, although ousted from her
monopoly, China has still a great market for her produce.
Great quantities of tea are consumed in the domains of the Czar and it
is believed that the Russians use as much tea _per capita_ as the
Chinese themselves. The “Samovar” or tea-urn is always steaming and the
natives never cease sipping tea while there is water left to make it. It
is served at all hours of the day, in palace as well as hovel, being
regarded as much a necessary of life there as bread or tobacco. Shops
abound for its sale in the principal cities; bargains made and business
transactions sealed over steaming tumblers of tea.
TABLE 5.
The earliest official record of the importation of Tea into the United
States is in 1790, the order of increase for its importation, value and
consumption in the country by decades since that year being as follows:—
Year. Imports, Value. Consumption Average
Pounds. per capita. Import
Price.
1790, 3,022,983 . . . . . ... ...
1800, 5,119,341 . . . . . ... ...
1810, 7,708,208 . . . . . ... ...
1820, . . . . . . . . . . ... ...
1830, 8,609,415 $2,425,018 0.53 22.3
1840, 20,006,595 5,427,010 0.99 24.1
1850, 29,872,654 4,719,232 0.87 27.9
1860, 31,696,657 8,915,327 0.84 26.3
1870, 47,408,481 13,863,273 1.10 29.4
1880, 72,162,936 19,782,631 1.39 27.2
1890, 84,627,870 13,360,685 1.40 20.0
The first duty levied on tea by the United States was in 1789, when a
tax of 15 cents was imposed on all Black teas, 22 cents on Imperial and
Gunpowder, and 55 cents on Young Hyson. But in order to stimulate
American shipping these duties were reduced to 8, 13 and 26 cents
respectively, the following year, when imported from Europe in American
vessels, and to 6, 10 and 20 cents when imported direct from China in
the same manner. In 1794, however, the rates were increased 75 per cent.
on direct importations, and 100 per cent. on all teas shipped from
Europe, but again reduced to 12,18 and 32 cents in 1796, the latter
rates being doubled during the War of 1812. In 1828 this tax was again
reduced, being entirely removed in 1830, except when imported in foreign
bottoms, when a duty of 10 cents per pound was collected. The latter
rate continued in force up to the outbreak of the Rebellion in 1861,
when a uniform duty of 15 cents per pound was placed on all teas, which
was eventually increased to 20 cents and finally to 25 cents per pound.
In January, 1871, this duty was reduced to 15 cents, being entirely
removed in July, 1872, since which year tea has been uninterruptedly on
the free list in the United States.
TABLE 6.
Showing net imports, value and per capita consumption of tea in the
United States, from 1885 to 1891, inclusive:—
Year. Net Imports, Value. Per Capita,
Pounds. Pounds.
1880, 69,894,760 $18,983,368 1.39
1881, 79,130,849 20,225,418 1.54
1882, 77,191,060 18,975,045 1.47
1883, 69,597,945 16,278,894 1.30
1884, 60,061,944 12,313,200 1.09
1885, 65,374,365 13,135,782 1.18
1886, 78,873,151 15,485,265 1.37
1887, 87,481,186 16,365,633 1.49
1888, 83,944,547 13,154,171 1.40
1889, 79,192,253 12,561,812 1.28
1890, 83,494,956 12,219,633 1.33
1891, 82,395,924 13,639,785 1.32
TABLE 7.
Estimated average annual Quantity and Value of tea imported into the
United States:—
Countries. Quantity, Value.
Pounds.
China, 43,000,000 $7,000,000
Japan, 38,000,000 5,500,000
India, 100,000 20,000
Java, 200,000 30,000
Ceylon, 100,000 20,000
England, 3,000,000 650,000
Ireland, 1,000 500
Scotland, 12,000 2,500
Germany, 10,000 2,000
Russia, 200 60
Belgium, 50 25
Canada, 300,000 50,000
————————— ——————————
Total, 85,000,000 $13,000,000
The average annual exports range from 1,000,000 to 5,000,000 pounds.
TABLE 8.
Showing varieties most in demand in the United States:—
Varieties. Kinds. Quantity, Pounds.
Oolong, (Formosa), 10,000,000
“ (Amoy and Foochow), 8,000,000
Green Teas, (all kinds), 10,000,000
Japans, “ 38,000,000
Pekoes and Congous, (China), 10,000,000
India, Java and Ceylon, 6,000,000
——————————
Total, 82,000,000
During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1890, there was imported into the
United States, at all ports, 84,627,870 pounds of tea, of which
43,043,651 pounds were received from China and 37,627,560 pounds from
Japan, the balance consisting of imports from India, Java and Ceylon,
received _via_ England and Holland. The United States official reports
show that tea represents 27 per cent. of the total value of imported
merchandise into this country. The gross trade in the article, however,
even at retail prices, does not exceed $35,000,000, the total annual
value of all food products being about $220,000,000, of which tea only
represents a value of $13,000,000, equivalent to about 6 per cent. of
the whole.
In round numbers the consumption of tea in the principal importing
countries has increased from 350,000,000 pounds in 1880 to upwards of
400,000,000 pounds in 1892. To which may be added for the minor
consuming countries another 60,000,000 pounds, in which case we get a
grand total of 460,000,000 pounds. Tea consumption in India and Ceylon
is scarce worth computing, and it is also claimed that the consumption
in China has been greatly exaggerated, for although the Chinese drink
tea constantly much of the liquor is little different from hot water, so
that to credit China and her feudatories with another 500,000,000 pounds
would be an extravagant estimate. But, admitting it to be near the mark,
we may then take in round numbers 1,000,000,000 pounds of leaf, or say
6,000,000,000 gallons, as the world’s annual consumption of tea. But it
is confidently predicted that if peace be preserved and wealth and
civilization continues to advance that much greater increase during the
closing years of the present century and the whole of the twentieth
century—for large portions of mankind are at length discovering that
alcohol with its “borrowed fire” is a deceiver and a curse. If the
civilization of an age or a community can be tested by the quantity of
sulphuric acid which it uses, much more certainly can the moral status
of a time and a people be judged by a comparison of the quantities of
alcoholic and non-alcoholic stimulants it uses.
All teas have declined one-half in value during the past ten years,
owing to the increased production of India and Ceylon, the position of
the market at the present time is, however, unique and unusual.
Heretofore the rule has been for the supply to exceed the demand,
particularly of China tea, it being the custom to claim that the market
would never run short of the latter, as the production could be
increased to meet any sudden or excessive demand. Now, however, the
position is entirely different, the shortage in China tea the past year
reaching some 21,000,000 pounds, to which must be added the increase in
consumption of 11,500,000 pounds, due in a measure to the reduction of
the duty in England, against which deficit is to be placed the increase
of production in India of 3,000,000 pounds, and that of Ceylon of
15,000,000 pounds, but still leaving a shortage of 14,000,000 pounds.
This position has led to an advance in China common grades, part of
which is undoubtedly due to speculation. With decreased imports and
increased consumption in the market, however, appears to have all the
requisite of strength to sustain it, and it will be years before it
reaches its late low point again.
With the great reduction in importation price and keener competition the
retail prices have been brought down to a very low figure, and as the
dealer has educated the public to the purchase of poor teas at low
prices it is not likely that the retail prices of teas will ever reach
any higher figure unless war or other cause should lead to a duty being
placed on the article. Yet, notwithstanding these unprecedented low
prices, the _per capita_ consumption of tea is comparatively very low in
this country at the present time, one of the chief causes being
traceable to the custom prevalent among dealers of charging exorbitant
profits in order to make up for the losses made in other goods. This
impolitic practice may be forgiven were it not for the greater mistake
they make of sacrificing quality to profit, which in articles of daily
use like tea is an important consideration. By rectifying this error,
and giving more attention to the careful selection of their teas, there
is no valid reason why the consumption of tea in this country could not
at the least calculation be doubled, more particularly in the present
state of the coffee market, as it is generally calculated that one pound
of good tea equals four pounds of coffee in amount and strength of its
extract, besides being cheaper and more convenient to prepare. Under
these circumstances it may be assumed that there is no probability of
any material change in the cost of tea to the dealer and there should be
no further reduction in the selling price to the consumer, any further
reduction in the retail price involving a diminution of profit which the
trade can ill afford to bear at the present time.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER X.
TEA-CULTURE, A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY.
--------------
In 1858 the United States Government ordered and received about 10,000
tea-plants from China in Wardian cases in which the seeds were sown just
previous to shipment, many of them germinated during the voyage, the
plants averaging 18 inches in height on their arrival in this country.
Being immediately placed under propagation they were in a very short
time increased to over 30,000, which were widely distributed throughout
the Southern States, the propagation and distribution of tea-plants
forming a prominent feature in the operations of the Agricultural
Department up to the commencement of the civil war in 1861, which put a
stop to all experiments in the industry. For several years after its
close but little attention was given to the propagation of the plant in
this country, still at no time was it entirely abandoned by the
Department during this period. It being fully understood, that so far as
the growth of the plant was concerned it could undoubtedly be
successfully cultivated over a large extent of the country. But many of
those interested sharing in the belief that the amount and cost of the
manual labor required in its manipulation for market was so great as to
preclude the probability of competing with low-waged Asiatics, no
special efforts were again made to disseminate plants or to multiply
them further than to supply such applicants as desired to make
experimental tests.
Meanwhile the progress of tea-culture in India was watched with
interest. The successful results of modern methods of cultivation and
the introduction of various labor-saving machines for preparation which
were being made from time to time by the planters of that country,
suggesting the probability that the production of tea could eventually
be made a profitable industry in many sections of this country, where
labor-saving appliances usually follow closely upon the knowledge of
their necessity. Basing their hopes on these results, fresh supplies of
tea-seed were subsequently imported from Japan, which enabled the
Department to again distribute many thousand of plants throughout the
country. These renewed efforts being materially enhanced, when about
1867 it was found that an abundance of tea-seeds could be procured in
many of the Southern States from the plants which had previously been
disseminated from the importation of 1858. Encouraged by the reports of
successful culture which were in many cases supplemented by samples of
manufactured tea, of undoubted good quality, in a number of instances,
more decided and energetic efforts were made toward establishing the
industry. More than 100,000 tea-plants were distributed during the past
ten years, the Department having under propagation, at the present time,
over 20,000 plants which are ready for dissemination in localities where
they are most likely to succeed. By this means it is expected to
popularize the cultivation of tea as a domestic product in this country,
with the hope that public interest will in time be directed to its
cultivation as an article of commercial value also.
The cultivation of the tea-plant is as simple as that of the currant or
gooseberry, and tea-gardens may be established in a similar manner to
those of other economic plants. They are usually divided into five and
ten-acre sections, and in laying out must be kept as much as possible
together, being easier to supervise and cheaper to work in this manner.
The usual custom is to begin at one end and dig through to the other, as
different parts of the garden may require different treatment owing to a
variation in the soil or other causes. The lines of plants must run as
far as practicable in geometrical regularity, particularly in sloping
ground, never up and down or directly across the slope. If planted in
the former manner, gutters or watercourses will form between the lines
and the soil will be washed away, and if in the latter, the same injury
will result between the shrubs. The lower side of each plant having its
roots laid bare, the sun will act upon them, thereby causing the plants
to shrivel up, languish and die. But if the lines are laid diagonally
across the hill so that the slopes along the lines shall be moderate
ones, this drawback is reduced as far as can be under the circumstances.
The closer the lines to each other and the closer the plants in the
lines the less will be the wash. While on flat lands it does not signify
in which direction the lines run, the gardens so situated always looks
best when the lines run at right angles.
That the successful cultivation of the Tea plant is entirely practicable
in the United States has been abundantly proven, and that we may by a
more extensive and intelligent effort in this direction, save the large
amount of money which we now annually pay to foreign countries for this
staple is at least worth a trial. So far as its practicability is
concerned there can be no question, as we have within the various
latitudes of our borders the soil and climate to produce any plant that
is or may be grown in any other country. The doubts expressed as to the
suitability of our soil and climate to produce as good an article of tea
as is now grown in India, Java and Ceylon are untenable, all practical
farmers being aware that soils and climates exert certain influences
upon all vegetation, these same influences being potent everywhere, and
that natural causes are not spasmodic in their operations anywhere. The
latitudes in which teas are grown in China, Japan and India correspond
exactly with those of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Florida in the
south, and with that of Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama in the
southwest.
But while the question of making its production a commercial success is
conceded by many authorities, some contend that while we can undoubtedly
cultivate tea of fair quality in many sections of the country, we cannot
supply the cheap and skilled labor necessary to prepare it for market,
advancing the argument that from the time the leaves are picked until
they are packed for export they are subjected to a continued series of
manipulations, demanding an immense amount of such labor without which
it is next to impossible to produce a merchantable article. But while it
is admitted that the greater part of the cost of tea in the producing
countries is that of labor, it must be taken into account that much of
the manipulation and packing of tea in these countries is for the
purpose of fitting it for the ocean voyages, and to protect it during
transportation the leaves must be repeatedly fired and sorted before
shipping, in order to better protect them from damp and moisture in
transit. But even with all these extra firings and precautions the
original aroma developed by these processes is largely dissipated before
the tea reaches its destination in the importing countries. It is a
well-established fact that the best teas are only to be had in their
highest excellence in the countries of growth, and then only before they
have been submitted to the severity of all the home processes which they
have to undergo previous to being packed in the lead-lined chests for
the long voyages, in the holds of vessels. This superior article is
entirely unknown in the consuming countries, and is one of the luxuries
in store for us when tea-culture becomes one of our industries. Thus,
seeing that much of the care bestowed upon the manufacture of tea is
merely for the purpose of meeting these commercial exactions, both in
regard to protecting its flavor as well as to its appearance on arrival,
it may be that by ignoring mere appearance and style, as equally good a
beverage may be produced by an entirely different system of preparation
of the leaf for the home market. What has already been accomplished by
modern tea-manufacturers in the way of improvements in India and Ceylon
for instance, upon the older pessimistic Chinese methods only too aptly
suggests that still further innovations are yet possible. We secure the
essential virtues of other herbs and leaves without subjecting them to
such complicated and intricate processes, which, after all, are mainly
for the purpose of preventing the leaves from moulding and decomposition
in transit, and there is no valid reason why tea should differ from the
leaves of other plants in this respect.
Yet while admitting that the manufacture of tea as at present conducted
is, no doubt, a very particular and tedious one, and that much of its
supposed value is dependent upon the uniform accuracy with which the
various processes are performed, this is more particularly true of China
tea where the difficulty is largely attributable to the primitive nature
of the methods employed there, as contrasted with the more modern
specific and exact system in use in India and other tea-growing
countries. It is yet possible for our inventors to produce machinery for
still further simplifying many of the intricate processes now in use
even in India and Ceylon. The planters of the latter countries soon
discovered that they could not profitably follow the various minute and
detailed processes practiced by the Chinese and set themselves to study
the philosophy of the whole subject of preparing the leaf for market,
eventually mastering it. The result has been that many operations which
were previously considered essential have now been either reduced or
dispensed with altogether in that country. Instead of following the
antiquated Chinese methods, which involved some twelve different
operations, occupying three days, the best India teas are now prepared
in less than five operations, the entire process being completed inside
of two days. It may therefore be found that for home use a less
elaborate method of preparation may suffice and that the article might
enter into domestic commerce. It could be prepared after the simple but
effective manner of Paraguayan tea, or put up in bales as with hops, or
it may be pressed into layers of dried leaves, as is done with senna
tea, and many other herbs at the present time. The firing, which
develops the aroma, might be done immediately before use, as is now the
case with coffee, or better still, roasted and ground like that article,
the modern cylindrical method of roasting coffee being a great
improvement on the old style of hand and pan roasting. Machinery being
unknown to the Chinese is probable the strongest reason why they still
adhere so closely to the antiquated methods now in use there.
But while it is probable that many years will elapse before tea-culture
will engage the general attention of farmers and planters in this
country, still there is no good reason why it should be so. True, the
profits of tea-culture are as yet not clearly established, the
management of the plant and the proper application of the various
processes must be for many years, as in India and Ceylon, of a purely
experimental character, and even when seemingly fair tests have been
made failures will still occur, and although these efforts may be traced
to causes, which persistent effort would eventually overcome, yet when
there is a large outlay and loss, accompanied with some doubts of
ultimate success, the efforts in most cases will be abandoned.
It has been suggested that the United States Government could, at a
comparative small cost to it, materially assist in determining and
demonstrating the feasibility of tea-culture in this country, finally
solving the question of profit. These questions could all be answered
satisfactorily and definitely in a very few years if our Government were
to secure say twenty acres of land in a suitable locality and plant a
portion of it yearly with tea plants, until ten or more acres were
planted. Then, when the plants had become sufficiently matured, provide
a small laboratory fitted with the necessary modern apparatus, placing
it in the charge of a competent manager who could make such experiments
in the preparation of the leaf as may be suggested by those interested
in the enterprise.
In a special report of the Department of Agriculture issued in 1877, we
find the following extracts from letters submitted by cultivators of the
tea-plant in the United States:—
Mr. Thomas M. Cox, Greenville, S. C., says:—
I obtained, in 1857, from the Patent Office, a box of
tea-plants. I gave the most of them away, and retained a few
myself. They have grown well without any protection, in the open
air, and have attained a height of from 8 to 10 feet. They have
frequently matured the seed, and there are a number of the seed
on the ground at this time. They are an evergreen in this
climate, and are now in flower, with the seed of last year’s
growth fully matured upon the bush. I have never succeeded in
making tea from the leaves, not knowing the process of
manipulating it.
Mr. J. J. Lucas, Society Hill, S. C., states:—
The tea-plant has been grown successfully in this State, Georgia
and Louisiana; General Gillespie’s particularly thriving well.
On the Middletown place, Ashley river, near Charleston,
tea-plants are now growing for ornamental use only, and are 10
feet high. A gentleman in Georgia obtained 441 pounds of tea
from one acre of land, which, at 50 cents a pound, would bring
$220.50; while our average yield of cotton is only about $15 per
acre.
Dr. Turner Wilson, Windsor, N. C., writes:—
I have been raising tea since 1858, but without much
cultivation. My yard and garden are sandy soil, and the plants
or bushes, without any cultivation, are of slow growth. I plant
the seed about the 1st of April, but they come up under the
bushes very thick from the fallen seed. Sometimes I throw a
little dirt on the seed which I do not pick up. I have several
hundred plants under the bushes, from 4 to 12 inches high, and
about fifty in my front yard. I send you a package of Green
tea-leaves, blossoms, and a few seed in capsules. I have no
person that understands curing the leaves, but will send a
package of the dried leaves, as I term them. I frequently drink
a sample infusion of the leaves dried in the shade, and though
not so good as the Chinese preparation, yet I know that I am
drinking the _pure_ tea, without any coloring matter.
James H. Rion, Esq., Winsboro, S. C., says:—
I have no experience in the making of tea, but can certify to
the adaptability of the soil and climate of my section to the
growth of the plant itself. In the fall of 1859, I received from
the Patent Office, Washington, a very tiny tea-plant, which I
placed in my flower-garden as a curiosity. It has grown well,
has always been free from any disease, has had full out-door
exposure, and attained its present height (5 feet 8 inches) in
the year 1865. It is continually producing healthy seedlings.
This shows that the plant finds itself entirely _at home_ where
it is growing. There cannot be the least doubt but that the
tea-plant will flourish in South Carolina.
Mr. W. M. Ives, Jr., Lake City, Fla., suggests:—
Tea cultivation might be made profitable here, but our people do
not pay enough attention to such objects as promise returns in
future years. The method of drying the leaves is a very simple
process. Many families already possess a number of tea-plants,
but they grow them simply for their beauty and novelty. It has
been proven that tea can be grown in Georgia as well as in
Florida.
Dr. A. W. Thornton, Portland, Ore., declares:—
That the tea-plant is admirably suited to Northern California
and Southern Oregon I have no question; more especially as the
light on the coast is so abundantly charged with actinic rays,
as shown by the richness of the foliage and gorgeous tints of
the fruits and autumnal foliage, which supports the view that
any plant, the active principle of which is located in the
leaves, would _prima facie_ yield a richer product where actinic
rays are abundant (which are known to have an important
influence upon chlorophyl and leaf development) than in less
favored climes. Some years ago, Mr. Samuel Brannan started the
cultivation of tea at Calistoga, in Napa county, California, but
through some mismanagement at the outset the crop did not
succeed. But to this day solitary plants can be seen in that
locality, exhibiting vigorous growth, proving the suitability of
both soil and climate. Since that time a gentleman has started a
plantation of tea at Modesto, in the foot-hills of the Sierra
Nevada mountains, Stanislaus county, California, in which the
plants have done so well that from the last accounts he was so
far encouraged as to extend his plantation.
Mr. Arthur P. Ford, Charleston, S. C., says:—
About four or five years ago I obtained from a friend some seeds
of the tea-plant, and planted them in my garden, twenty-one
miles from Charleston, inland. The plants came up readily, were
duly transplanted, and are now fine shrubs three feet high, and
seven in number. The foliage is luxuriant; and the plants bear
the coldest weather here without any ill effects, the mercury on
more than one occasion marking 16°, the plants being encased in
ice at other times also.
William Summer, Esq., Newberry, S. C., states:—
There are several healthy, vigorous tea-plants growing in
Columbia. I have seen, at the Greenville residence of the late
Hon. J. R. Poinsett, the tea-plants growing finely from those
introduced by Dr. Junius Smith. We have here also the _Olea
fragrans_, with which we can flavor the tea equal to any
prepared for the special use of the Emperor of China. The
fragrant olive blooms freely from early spring until midwinter,
and the flowers, when gathered fresh and put in the caddy among
the tea, impart a delightful aroma to the tea. I have, at
different times, imported a few tea-plants from Angers, France,
and these have been disseminated from the Pomaria nurseries, and
found to succeed. So that I have no doubt of the success of the
tea-plant in the middle and upper portions of this State.
Col. S. D. Morgan, Nashville, Tenn., says:—
Of all the plants for the South Atlantic States that of the
Chinese or Japanese tea promises most success. Before the war I
had a few of the shrubs growing in a small parterre attached to
my town dwelling, from which I obtained leaves as rich in aroma
and _theine_ as is to be found in tea from any country whatever.
The shrub grows luxuriantly in Central Georgia—even 100 miles
north of Augusta, to my personal knowledge—as I there used the
domestic article for several weeks’ time and found it excellent.
There may, however, be a difficulty about its culture, for want
of a very cheap class of laborers to pick and prepare the
leaves. This, however, is a subject I have not investigated, but
I think it is worthy of a thorough investigation.
Mr. Alex. M. Foster, Georgetown, S. C., says:—
The original plant I brought from Columbia. It is a genuine
_Thea Viridis_ from seed, I think, produced from the tea-plants
brought to this State some years since by Dr. Junius Smith, and
cultivated near Greenville. After my plant had attained the
height of two or three feet, it began to bear flowers and seed.
From these seeds, or nuts, I have now 50 or 60 plants of various
sizes; some of them bearing fruit also. I might have had 500
plants as 50, so easily are they propagated and so abundantly do
they bear seed. The only care necessary is to preserve the
tap-root as carefully as may be in removing the young plants
from the nursery bed. My plants are in a rich dry soil, and grow
very rapidly, requiring only three or four years to reach the
height of 4 feet, they are as thrifty and bear the vicissitudes
of our climate as well as the native Cassina. If there could be
invented some machine to imitate this hand labor, to effect the
same slow process by means less expensive than the man-hand, I
think that the cultivation of tea might become not only
practical, but profitable to a large portion of our Southern
country.
Rev. W. A. Meriwether, Columbia, S. C., says:—
I obtained a Chinese tea-plant from North Carolina nine years
ago, and set it out in open ground in a plot of Bermuda grass.
It has received no cultivation, and is now a fine shrub,
measuring to-day six and a half feet in height by nine feet
across the branches at the base. The soil where it grows is
light, sandy land, with no clay within two feet of the surface.
The plant is not affected by the severest cold to which our
climate is subject. It was not the least injured by the intense
cold of December, 1870, when my thermometer registered 1° above
zero; the coldest weather I have ever known in this latitude.
That the climate of the Southern States is well suited to the
cultivation of the tea-plant, I think there can be no question.
I sincerely hope you may succeed in your efforts to arouse our
people to the importance of its cultivation. If only enough tea
were made to supply the home demand, what an immense annual
saving would result.
Hon. James Calhoun, Trotter’s Shoals, Savannah River, S. C., says:—
Eighteen years ago some half-dozen tea-plants, brought from
China, were sent me. I set them in what had been a strawberry
bed, in a soil friable, of medium quality, unmanured. Nothing
had been done beyond keeping down the weeds with the hoe. The
plants have had no protection: but during a portion of the first
summer, seedlings have some shelter. As yet there has been no
damage from blight or from insects. Frequently leaves are
clipped in moderation from all parts of the bush, care being
taken not to denude it. They are parched in an iron vessel at
the kitchen fire, constantly stirred, and immediately afterward
packed in air-tight boxes. I enclose leaves plucked to-day,
measuring from 3½ to 5 inches, and, as you will perceive,
exhibiting three varieties.
Mrs. R. J. Screven, McIntosh, Liberty Co., Ga., says:—
My experience is that the tea-plant does best in land somewhat
low, but not such as water will lie upon or is overflowed. I sow
the seed in the fall, as soon as they ripen and drop from the
bushes, in drills eighteen inches apart. They come up readily in
the spring, and by winter are from three to six inches high.
Under the shade of some large tree is usually the place selected
for sowing the seed, for if the plants are exposed to the hot
sun while young, they invariably die the first summer. When six
months old they are ready for transplanting; have generally a
good supply of roots, and can be set out at any time from the
first of November to the last of March. In putting them out, I
have generally prepared holes to receive them, to give a good
start, so that fine, healthy bushes will be obtained. In April,
1867, I think it was, Mr. Howard, from Baltimore, who had been
engaged on a plantation for several years in the East, visited
my father’s plantation in this country, and expressed himself as
surprised at the splendid growth of the tea. Being there at the
time of gathering the young leaves, he plucked from one bush
alone, prepared the tea himself, and took it on to Baltimore,
where he had it tested and weighed. He wrote back that it had
been pronounced stronger and of superior flavor to the imported,
and that by calculation he was satisfied that four hundred and
fifty pounds of cured tea could be made here at the South to one
acre of ground.
Mr. J. W. Pearce, Fayetteville, N. C., writes:—
My plants are now about five feet high, very thick and bushy
near the ground; have no protection from any kind of weather,
while the mercury has been as low as 10° below zero. They do not
seem to suffer from drought, as evergreens, and bear a beautiful
white flower, with little scent until nearly ready to fall. The
seed are like the hazel-nut; have a hard shell and bitter
kernel, and take a long time to germinate. Hence it is better to
plant them on the north side of a fence or house, where they
will remain moist. They come up readily when left under the
bushes where they have been dropped. The plants then can be set
out successfully if care be taken to avoid breaking the long tap
root peculiar to them. Half a dozen plants furnish my family, of
five or six persons, with more tea than we can use. We prepare
it by heating the leaves in an oven until wilted, then squeeze
them by hand until a juice is expressed from them, then dry them
again in the oven. The tea is then quite fragrant and ready for
use, improving with age.
About 50 pounds of a fairly marketable article of American tea has
recently been produced by a Mr. Sheppard of Summerfield, S. C., who grew
and cured the leaves in an ordinary fruit evaporator. On being tested,
the sample was pronounced equal to the average of China Congous and much
superior to many of the India, Java and Ceylon growths. With other and
more proper methods of curing, the quality and character could
undoubtedly be much improved. Much more evidence could be selected as to
the quality of tea produced by ordinary domestic processes, but it is
sufficiently well ascertained that it is within the capacity of hundreds
of thousands of people in this country to grow and prepare all the tea
they require, leaving the question of its profitable commercial culture
to be settled by practical test later.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Transcriber’s Notes
Note: New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the
public domain.
Note: Archaic spellings of various words have been retained, as well as
apparently unique non-standard spellings that the author uses
consistently. Printer’s errors and apparent misspellings have been
changed and are noted below.
Note: Hyphenation and capitalization have been standardized in cases
noted below where there is a predominant form in the text, but
otherwise left alone.
Pg. 13: Corrected typo: ‘Erythræn’ to ‘Erythræan’
Pg. 24: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 30: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Kiu-siu’ to ‘Kiusiu’ - Unhyphenated
elsewhere
Pg. 30: Corrected typo: ‘Buitzenorg’ to ‘Buitenzorg’ - Corrected city
name
Pg. 31: Proper name consistency: ‘Neilghery’ to ‘Neilgherry’ -
Neilgherry elsewhere
Pg. 34: Corrected typo: ‘provice’ to ‘province’ - Context: “... in the
adjoining province ...”
Pg. 37: Capitalization consistency: ‘cha’ to ‘Cha’ - List of names of
tea, mostly capitalized
Pg. 37: Capitalization consistency: ‘it is termed thea’ to ‘it is
termed Thea’ - Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 39: Proper name consistency: ‘Thea viridis’ to ‘Thea Viridis’ -
Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 39: Proper name consistency: ‘Thea bohea’ to ‘Thea Bohea’ -
Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 40: Proper name consistency: ‘Thea viridis’ to ‘Thea Viridis’ -
Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 40: Proper name consistency: ‘Thea bohea’ to ‘Thea Bohea’ -
Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 40: Proper name consistency: ‘Twankey’ to ‘Twankay’ - Standardized
spelling in caption
Pg. 43: Capitalization consistency: ‘Che-Kiang’ to ‘Che-kiang’ - Latter
part uncapitalized elsewhere
Pg. 44: Corrected punctuation: ‘Souchong-Congou.’ to ‘Souchong-Congou.’
- Replaced comma with period in illustration text
Pg. 45: Corrected punctuation: ‘.’ to ‘,’ - “... classed as Thea
Cochinchinensis, found ...”
Pg. 46: Corrected typo: ‘panacæ’ to ‘panacæa’
Pg. 56: Corrected typo: ‘wlil’ to ‘will’ - “.. the same plant will
produce ..”
Pg. 58: Missing word: ‘(none)’ to ‘the’ - “The” - Best guess at missing
word, indicated by gap at end of page: “If (the) leaves ...”
Pg. 61: Corrected typo: ‘juciest cracking first’ to ‘juiciest’
Pg. 64: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Sai-hoos’ to ‘Saihoos’ - Without
hyphen elsewere
Pg. 66: Capitalization consistency: ‘Hongs’ to ‘hongs’
Pg. 69: Heading consistency: Missing period inserted at chapter heading
end, for consistency with other headers
Pg. 69: Corrected punctuation: Moved comma, from “Black under, which”
to “Black, under which”
Pg. 73: Corrected typo: ‘tumeric’ to ‘turmeric’ - “... kaolin and
turmeric ...”
Pg. 74: Corrected typo: ‘The leaves when infurled’ to ‘unfurled’
Pg. 75: Corrected punctuation: Missing comma inserted at “...
Loung-tsien, literally ...”
Pg. 76: Capitalization consistency: ‘fannings’ to ‘Fannings’
Pg. 77: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Ning-yongs’ to ‘Ningyongs’ -
Unhyphenated elsewhere
Pg. 77: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 80: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 87: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“Ankoi Congou--”
Pg. 87: Corrected punctuation: ‘.’ to ‘.’ - Comma at paragraph end:
“... and invariably dusty.”
Pg. 88: Hyphenation consistency: ‘re-fired’ to ‘refired’ - Unhyphenated
elsewhere
Pg. 89: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 89: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 89: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Foo-chow’ to ‘Foochow’ - Unhyphenated
in large majority of cases
Pg. 106: Proper name consistency: ‘Peko-Souchongs’ to ‘Pekoe-Souchongs’
Pg. 116: Removed extra comma: ‘the result, of the day’s work’ to ‘the
result of the day’s work’
Pg. 121: Corrected punctuation: ‘.’ to ‘.’ - Replaced mid-sentence
period: “... harsh, pungent ...”
Pg. 123: Corrected typo: ‘Buitzenorg’ to ‘Buitenzorg’ - Corrected city
name
Pg. 126: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“African Teas--”
Pg. 127: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“Singapore Tea--”
Pg. 127: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“Perak Tea--”
Pg. 128: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“American Tea--”
Pg. 128: Proper name consistency: ‘Yerba Mate’ to ‘Yerba Maté’ - With
accent elsewhere
Pg. 132: Proper name consistency: ‘Twankey’ to ‘Twankay’ - Twankay
elsewhere
Pg. 134: Corrected typo: ‘tumeric’ to ‘turmeric’ - Context: “indigo,
turmeric”
Pg. 135: Corrected typo: ‘tumeric’ to ‘turmeric’ - Context: “...
tumeric, kaolin, and China clay ...”
Pg. 135: Corrected typo: ‘tumeric’ to ‘turmeric’ - Context: “...
turmeric, kaolin or indigo ...”
Pg. 143: Corrected punctuation: ‘Ash, 9 40’ to ‘Ash, 9.40’ - Added
missing period in table
Pg. 143: Corrected punctuation: ‘Chlorine 0,81’ to ‘Chlorine 0.81’ -
Comma for period in table
Pg. 144: Corrected punctuation: ‘Plum 5.66 4 24’ to ‘Plum 5.66 4.24’ -
Added missing period in table
Pg. 145: Corrected typo: ‘EXHAUSTFD’ to ‘EXHAUSTED’ - Corrected typo in
section header
Pg. 151: Corrected typo: ‘quantitively and qualitively’ to
‘quantitatively and qualitatively’
Pg. 169: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Ping-sueys’ to ‘Pingsueys’ -
Unhyphenated elsewhere
Pg. 171: Corrected punctuation: ‘in another,’ to ‘in another.’ -
Changed comma for period, follow by capital
Pg. 175: Corrected typo: ‘better aud fresher’ to ‘better and fresher’
Pg. 180: Corrected typo: ‘kaleidescopic’ to ‘kaleidoscopic’
Pg. 181: Corrected typo: ‘founda-tion’ to ‘foundation’ - Context: “...
foundation for all tea blends ...”
Pg. 188: Hyphenation consistency: ‘Keemun’ to ‘Kee-mun’ - Hyphenated
elsewhere
Pg. 188: Corrected punctuation: ‘Foochow Caper,’ to ‘Foochow Caper.’ -
Changed comma for period, follow by capital
Pg. 189: Proper name consistency: ‘Kaesow’ to ‘Kaisow’
Pg. 195: Corrected typo: ‘spearment’ to ‘spearmint’
Pg. 199: Corrected punctuation: ‘.’ to ‘.’ - Changed comma for period:
“... from escaping. This vessel ...”
Pg. 207: Corrected typo: ‘C^8’ to ‘C_{8}’ - Changed superscript for
subscript
Pg. 208: Corrected typo: ‘quantitive’ to ‘quantitative’
Pg. 211: Heading consistency: Removed period from paragraph header:
“Tannin--”
Pg. 211: Changed parentheses and added comma: ‘methleamic (hydrocyanic
acid) a’ to ‘methleamic (hydrocyanic) acid, a’
Pg. 215: Proper name consistency: ‘Chin-nung’ to ‘Chin-Nung’ - Second
part capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 219: Corrected typo: ‘mucuous’ to ‘mucous’ - Context: “... mucuous
membrane ...”
Pg. 225: Corrected punctuation: ‘oz’ to ‘oz.’ - Added missing period in
table
Pg. 227: Corrected punctuation: ‘fatiguing work.’ to ‘fatiguing work.”’
- Added missing ” to probable quote end
Pg. 228: Corrected typo: ‘observaable’ to ‘observable’ - Context: “...
is particularly observable ...”
Pg. 230: Corrected typo: ‘physiocogist’ to ‘physiologist’ - Context:
“... physiologist of high repute ...”
Pg. 231: Corrected typo: ‘Hazlet’ to ‘Hazlitt’
Pg. 231: Corrected typo: ‘prodigous’ to ‘prodigious’
Pg. 233: Corrected typo: ‘raphsodies’ to ‘rhapsodies’
Pg. 233: Corrected typo: ‘their’s’ to ‘theirs’ - Context: “... theirs
being confined ...”
Pg. 238: Corrected punctuation: Added missing comma to table:
“4,500,000”
Pg. 245: Corrected punctuation: ‘First, It is well known’ to ‘First, it
is well known’ - Removed capital after comma
Pg. 255: Corrected punctuation: ‘between the shrubs,’ to ‘between the
shrubs.’ - Replaced comma for period at apparent sentence end
Pg. 260: Corrected punctuation: ‘$15 per acre.”’ to ‘$15 per acre.’ -
Removed unmatched close-quote at the end of block quote
Pg. 261: Corrected punctuation: ‘flourish in South Carolina’ to
‘flourish in South Carolina.’ - Added missing period to paragraph end
Pg. 261: Corrected typo: ‘Calistogo’ to ‘Calistoga’
Pg. 261: Corrected typo: ‘Modesta’ to ‘Modesto’
Pg. 262: Corrected typo: ‘Angiers’ to ‘Angers’
Pg. 262: Proper name consistency: ‘Thea viridis’ to ‘Thea Viridis’ -
Capitalized elsewhere
Pg. 264: Corrected punctuation: ‘to one acre of ground’ to ‘to one acre
of ground.’ - Added missing period at paragraph end
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