Page:Illustrations of China and Its People vol. I. 2ed edition.pdf/56

 TEA PICKING IN CANTON.

IN former times, before Hankow or the Yangtsze River was thrown open to foreign trade, all the tea from the great Tung-ting Lake district was brought to Canton for exportation. The bulk of the tea shipped now-a-days from Canton is grown in Kwang-tung, of which province that city is the capital.

From the leaf of the Tai-shan plantations, which are the most noted in that neighbourhood, the " Canton District Congou," and the " Long Leaf-Scented Orange Pekoe," are manufactured. These teas are prepared by twisting the leaf in the hand ; when so twisted it frequently shows a small white feathery tip at the end of the leaf, known as the " Pekoe tip."

Lo-ting leaf makes " Scented Caper" and Gunpowder teas. These teas are rolled in a bag with the feet until the leaf is twisted into round pellets.

Macao is the port from which the bulk of District Congous are exported, and Canton is famous for its Scented Capers and Scented Orange Pekoe. The green tea trade from Canton is of secondary importance, this tea being chiefly exported to the continental countries of Europe. The cultivation of tea in Kwang-tung, and the consequent export trade from Canton, are on the increase. The business fell off during the war between Germany and France ; but this has turned out to be nothing but a temporary check. As the reader will have inferred, the preparation of tea for the foreign markets is carried on extensively at Canton. The Congou and Pekoe teas are brought down from the plantations, rolled by hand, dried in the sun, and then they are in a condition suitable for subsequent firing and preparation for the market. As I shall hereafter have occasion to describe the planting and packing of tea, I will confine my remarks here to a brief notice of the process by which the leaf at Canton is prepared for exportation.

Black teas, after being partially dried in the sun, and slightly fired, are rolled either by the palm of the hand on a flat tray, or by the foot in a hempen bag. They are scorched in iron pans over a slow charcoal fire, and after this spread out on bamboo trays, that the broken stems and refuse leaves may be picked out. It is this operation, which is performed by women or children, that is shown in the photograph. The teas are then separated by passing them through sieves, so as to form different sizes and qualities of tea. The greatest care and economy are observed in carrying all these processes on, the tea-dust being sedulously gathered up and used in forming a very inferior and cheap quality of spurious tea.