Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XV.djvu/630

 TEA TEAK mixture of two or three sorts) are placed in the pot, boiling water poured on, and in a few minutes, the cups being emptied of the water put in to warm them, it is served. The char- acter of the water greatly influences the qual- ity of the tea, it being impossible to make really good tea with hard water. Excess of lime in the water may be corrected by the judicious use of carbonate of soda. The effects of the habitual use of tea have been much dis- cussed, some regarding them as highly dele- terious, while others, on account of the large proportion of nitrogen in theine, have main- tained that tea is nutritious, and serves as a substitute for food. The elaborate experi- ments of Dr. Edward Smith (" Foods," in the "International Scientific Series," New York, 1873) are worthy of study; his results in brief are : that while the amount of nutriment con- tained in the quantity of tea one consumes is not sufficient to bo of use in building up the system or in supplying heat, it has a marked effect upon the vital functions, and particular- ly stimulates respiration, as shown by the in- creased amount of carbonic acid thrown off by the lungs after taking it ; and that it power- fully promotes the assimilation and transforma- tion of other foods. Excessive use of tea pro- duces wakefulness and increased mental and bodily activity, which is followed by a reaction that brings exhaustion and a corresponding depression. Most of the unpleasant effects of tea are ascribed to the volatile oil ; the long continued breathing of air impregnated with this produces illness in the packers of tea, and the tea tasters at the tea marts in China, who are even careful not to swallow the infusion, are obliged in a few years to give up their lucrative positions with shattered constitutions. The Chinese, who drink tea at all times, are careful to use none less than a year old, as in time the oil either evaporates or is so modified that it ceases to bo injurious. There are nu- merous substitutes for tea in different coun- tries, and widely separated peoples have in use some plant the active principle of which is closely analogous to, if not identical with, that in tea. Besides coffee and chocolate, one of the most important of these beverages is the Paraguay tea. (See MAT.) The Mat of Arabia and Abyssinia, introduced into the Mohammedan parts of Africa, is eatha editlis, the leaves and small twigs of which possess the properties of tea in an eminent degree. The coca of Peru and Bolivia, though generally chewed, has similar properties, and is some- times used like tea. (See COCA.) Other plants might be cited. (See also NEW JEHSKY TK.V.I The otlteial records of importation into Eng- land begin in 172r, in which year there was imported 370,323 Ibs. ; in the first year of the present century the quantity entered for home consumption was 23,730,150 Ibs. Until 1834 the East India company had a monopoly of tea, which paid a heavy duty ; but in that year the duty was reduced, nml the trade thrown open to all. The imports of tea into Great Britain and Ireland for five years, ending Dec. 81, entered for homo consumption only, were: 1869, 998,995 cwt. ; 1870, 1,050,202 ; 1871, 1,102,943; 1872, 1,141,003; 1873, 1,178,760. The value of the total import for the same years, of which one fourth was reexported, was 10,311,465, 10,097,619, 11,635,644, 12,933,143, and 11,372,595. The imports into the United States for five years, ending June 30, for home consumption, were: 1869- 7d, -12:1,293 cwt. ; 1870-'7l, 458,615 ; 1871-'2, 569,741; 1872-'8, 578,707; 1873-'4, 498,318. The total values (in gold) for the respective years were $13,871,546, $17,254,617, $22,943,- 575, $24,466,170, and $21,212,834. TEACHERS' INSTITUTE, in the United States, an assemblage of the teachers of the public schools of a county or part of a county for the purpose of receiving instruction in the art and methods of teaching, by lectures, con- ferences, class drills, &c., from experienced teachers. An institute is usually held in each county under the supervision of the county superintendent of schools once a year, some- times oftener, the sessions lasting from one to two weeks. The instruction is free. This plan was first adopted by Henry Barnard, state superintendent of schools in Connecti- cut, in 1839. Institutes have been held in New York since 1843, and have been main- tained by state appropriations since 1847. They were begun in Massachusetts and Rhode Isl- and in 1845, and soon afterward in many other states. In most of the states they are required by law to be held, and in several the atten- dance of teachers is obligatory. In some states provision is made for their maintenance by public funds. The instruction in these tem- porary training schools is necessarily almost wholly oral, and is confined to an explanation and illustration of the best methods of teach- ing and governing schools. Conferences are held, in which the teachers relate their own experience of particular methods of instruc- tion and discipline. TEAK, an East Indian tree, tectonn yranJis (called in Malabar tcc?a valuable for its timber. It belongs to the r?rln-mice*, a family which, while its most familiar representatives with us are ornamental herbs and shrubs, includes some important tropical trees. The teak is remark- able for its size and beauty; it irrows over 2<0 ft. high; the elliptical leaves are 12 to 24 in. Ion-:, and so rough as to be useful for polishing wood ; the small white flowers are fragrant, in terminal panicles, and have the structure common to the family. The tree is found in various parts of India and the adjacent isl- ands, and has been introduced into other Brit- ish possessions. It is probable that other and closely related species contribute to the supply of commerce. The wood of the teak is one of the most remarkable known on account of its great weight, hardness, and durability, qual- ities which have caused it to be long used in