Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1854-11-04
MistflIantous.
from the Boston Traveller of Monday.
Tea In China.

Hone KoNG, Tuesday, May %, 1851
My DEAR BRorHER: Il i, pretty difficult to find
ou anything by the Chinese abou, The culture or
manufacture OF tea. They seem TO think that it is
against their interest 10 allow foreigners 10 know
any thing OF their arts therefore they all means
10 prevent them from obtaining any information -
You ask them questions, and il is one chance in
fifty, if they do no; tell you lie in every answer
they give you, and if they cannot tell The lie, they
will purposey misIead you in some way As long
as they do not consider lying TO be vice, you may
easily Judge oflhe extent to which they may be
capable OF lying believe they con.ier ii tai.
ent or a fine accomplishment, 10 be able TO tell a
lie that cannot be detected the only disgrace in it
being the detection. You ask one of them about
teas, ard he tells you this and iha, but you do not
know if he is telling the truth or not You ask
another in order 10 ascertain if The statement is cor.
rect and you gel an answer different from his; and
The lhird man perhaps gives an explanation differ
eni from The other two. So you may 60 on, and
get information from them, and when you come to
observe for yourself, you will find that you must
dispossess yourself of that, and adopt something
else. | would no, say that they always lies, bnt
do believe they lie ofener than they tell the truth
Whenever Chnaman tells me anything that I
have before known about, do not take it into full
belief until it is confirmed in some olher way
You will think this, perhaps, rather severe CON-
men upon the Chinese but | did not adopt The
opinion until had seen the fact verified many
times. 1t is just The reverse with the European -
| always believe Them, until something appears
which is inconsistent wi The belief; IT is only then
that change my opinion so that think there is
no prejudice in it.
But you will say, know, that you do not con-
fine yourself 10 your subject. Well | admit it, AMI
will endeavcr 10 keep from running of The track
for The future
Tea is raised now, you know, in other places
beside China. Whether it is generally as good as
China lea cannot say That in Java Sumatra,
Hndosan, &C., was, of course, originally from
China. In Java have drank tea which they said
was raised there, and which could no, distinguish
from China lea They have, al all these places,
Cinnamon 10 overlook the raising and curing, SO
that the soil or climate has no peculiar effect il
ought 10 be quite good.
saw notice IN paper that trial was 10 be
made in America. | think they will there fail
there is so much difference in the price OF labor
Probably would grow and flourish as we'll there
as IN Chaa, say no iufheT north Than New-York,
though il would no doubt do well in Massachu-
se''S' 1t IS raised as far north as Japan; the same
la'hnde OF Connecticut and Massachusetts. But to
cultivate tea IN America with The expectation of a
remuneration for expenses, is, think, out of the
question, until The population shall have so increas
ca mat labor can be had from one to len cents a
day
Inc teaplant is pretty shrub, growing from
TWO 10 SIX feet high, though ifnot molesed, think
adams 10 the height of even thirty feet. The
AeIsh' TO which have seen il growing in the island
o'Chusan and back in the country from Ningpoo
me latitude oil 800 north, in which the greater par
s'ows, is Two and three feet, and in Java four and
s~' Bu, it is cropped down every season, for the
reason that from the new sprouts greater quantity
oileaves are produced. One shrub, think will
"eId, opon average, from FIVE to ten ounces j
PANIED both in rows like hedges, and in hill.