Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/306

298 but not such an aromatic flavour as the Formosan tea of the same name. "Oolongs have some of the characteristics of black tea combined with certain of the cup qualities of green teas, and therefore in a measure somewhat resemble a blend of the two." The other varieties of Southern teas are Scented Capers, Scented Orange Pekoes, Pouchongs, Kooloos, and Flowery Pekoes. The fragrance of all scented tea is not natural, but is imparted by firing the leaf with a sort of jasmine flower, called by the Chinese "Mok-lee." In inferior teas the scenting flower is strewn over the top of the tea when packed and removed after a day or two. It is needless to say that the scent so applied is not long retained. "Flowery Pekoes are white, velvety tipped teas with no fragrance and are unfermented, and are used only on the continent of Europe and in Persia. These teas are made only from the earliest buds of young leaves in the Packlum, Chingwo, and Panyong districts. Scented teas generally possess but little cup merit."

As with black teas so with green. The dividing line between green teas of Anhwei and those of Chekiang is broad and distinct. The former are known as country teas, and in order of merit and popularity are the Moyunes, Tienkais, and Fychows. Although very similar in make and appearance they are wholly dissimilar in their liquoring qualities. The Moyunes have a most delicate flavour, emphasised by a slight but acceptable burntness. The Tienkais are wanting in any marked cup merit, but the infusion is of a very delicate yellow colour. The Fychows are of a lower grade altogether, not so well made in the leaf, and drawing a comparatively strong, rather rank and smoky water.

The Chekiang teas comprise the Pingsueys, Hoochows, and Wênchows. These latter arrive here from the Chekiang port of Ningpo, and in make somewhat resemble the Fychows. The Pingsueys are, with the exception of the allied Hoochows, very metallic in the cup—brassy was a term applied to them in earlier days—and are made up entirely for style to catch the eye—the American eye. The Hoochows, which are confined almost entirely to gunpowder makes, draw, when good, a water not unlike the Yenshu district teas of Japan.

A third kind of green tea which can always be made to order in any quantity, and is made largely for the continental markets of Europe in the form of small leaf Sowmee, goes by the name of Shanghai packed. Its chief constituent element is Pingsuey leaf, with sometimes a very modest admixture of country tea to "bring up or brighten the infusion." Though not at all "desirable" teas, yet a very considerable business is done in them, while a new outlet has been found for them by Parsee buyers, who blend certain grades to cheapen the cost of their extravagantly high-priced Hysons.

Formerly country green teas came to market in the shape of full chops of 500 to 1,000 half chests. Now they arrive for the most part minus the Hysons, which are almost entirely taken for Batoum, and which aggregate the large total of 130,000 half chests. The modest quantity of green tea which is now shipped to Bombay, about 1,000,000 lbs. is made up of the lower kinds of Hysons and a small proportion of choice Chun-mees, the highest type of Young Hysons. Whether the export trade in green tea to Russia will increase is a question which time alone can decide. Meantime, the tendency is towards increase. Regarding America, unless some wonderful increase in the general consumption take place, the prospects are anything but encouraging, for British-grown teas are but too visibly growing into favour, and so ousting the China article, possibly as some compensation for the cold water thrown upon the attempts to foist foreign made green teas upon her markets. The manufacture of Indian and Ceylon green tea has not been a success, despite the advantage of a "cess" under which it was started.

A full chop of green tea consists of several grades of leaf, of different make and flavour, well known in their order of make as Gunpowders, Imperials, Hysons, Young Hysons, Hyson skin, and Twan-kay, and the derivation of those names is not without its interest. Dr. Wells Williams tells us that "Gunpowder and Imperial are foreign made terms; the teas are known as Siaou Chu (small leaf) and Ta Chu (large leaf) by native dealers. The first is rolled to resemble shot"—rather an Irish way of putting it. The native names for Imperial are the equivalents of "Sore crab's eyes, sesamum seeds, and pearls. Hyson is a corruption of Yu-tsien, before the rains, and of Hi-chun, meaning flourishing spring." Young Hyson, of course, and Hyson skin explain themselves, while Twan-kay is said to be the name of a district.

Black teas as a rule derive their names from the districts from which they come. A list was once made of the "localities, each furnishing its quota and peculiar product, amounting in all to forty-five for black, and nine for green. The area of these regions is about 470,000 square miles."

Until comparatively late years green teas arrived in full chops, and were shipped off in their entirety. At first began the selling out of the Hysons to Bombay buyers at such prices as would materially lessen the cost of the original chop. The opening of Batoum ruined the Bombay market, and so great has been the demand for Hysons for the newer market, and so high the prices paid, that the natives now seldom include the Hyson in a chop, but send it down to Shanghai three weeks ahead of the arrival of the bulk there. Later again Batoum and France have made such inroads into the young Hyson grades that a special preparation of them has been made, commonly designated small leaf Sow-mees. And as the demand for special lines continues to increase so much the nearer comes the day when the "chop," as a chop, will cease to exist. The green tea "chop" will not recognise itself in the near future, any more than now do the once distinctive teas, Oanfa, Cheongshukai, and Shuntam, amongst many others, recognise themselves. An extra demand upon any one special district naturally leads to its being supplied by tea nominally only from that district. The extra quantity required is usually made up from an admixture of leaf from contiguous districts; this has noticeably been the case with Oanfa and Shuntam teas, when extra supplies of each have been found in mutual borrowings. And the fair name of Moning covers a multitude of sins.

It is not necessary, nor would it serve any practical end, to furnish here in detail the progressive export of tea from China since the opening of the Treaty port of Hankow in the sixties, triumphant as that progress was until the culminating year 1886, when the direct export to foreign countries amounted to the great total of 295,626,800 lbs. Then China began to feel seriously the effect of competition with British-grown teas, as shown by the figures of 1906, when only 187,217,100 lbs. were exported. So that in the space of twenty years had occurred the visible shrinkage of 108,409,700 lbs., or 63 per cent. This difference, it is true, was somewhat reduced last year, 1907, when, owing to a temporary demand in England, the export rose to 214,683,333 lbs.; but for the past decade, 1898 to 1907, the average of 196,500,000 lbs. has been maintained; an average not likely to be disturbed for some time unless any further phenomenal expansion should take place in British-grown production to the expulsion by so much of China tea, or consumption outstrip the general average