The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1866-02-19
TEA-POTS AND CREAM.JUGs.

Strange to say, the teapot is q modera
invention. The ancients never SAW tho
tea-plant, nor tasted that delicious beve-
rage which "cheers but not inebriates.r
Among the remains of ancient Egypt
you will find plenty of earthern lara
once filled from the sacred Nile the
mighty empire of Azek has still IL cine-
rary urns to show the earthenware of
Celtic peoples is constantly coming to
light; and Etruria, the long vanished
home and kingdom Of the arts, presev-
yes to this day her vases of every shnpe
and unrivalied beauty; but noneof these
extinct nations possessed that precious
teapot which every howell in Englend
can boast. The case Is not the same
with the cream,jug.
The museum of Gregory XVI, con.
tains numerous vessels which the Etrus-
cans probably used for milk. Virgil tell
US of the pals i'm which the Latin pea
SAINTS carried their goats milk to market
at daybreak; and every reader OF the
Georges remembers what pains they
took to render the milk savoury--how
they fed the ewes on clover, lotus and
salt herbs, that SO they might drink
more water from the brooks aad yie!c
more copious and tasty milk, having !,
pleasant smack of salt. AS to :eseg'
milk the Roman bellies used to b. the In
it as certain Parisians are said to do in
champagne; and we may be quite rure
that those who knew the value Of milk
30 well had no lack Of elegant and cost
ly jugs in which to serveit.
The delight of tea.drinking had hsen
felt by the Chinese long before 1t 5ec.me
common to the rest OF mankind. II Wa~
not till The 18th century that Pekoe end
Souchong visited Europe, and nowhere
did they find a more hearty welcore
than at English fresides. The BUS
slams, indeed, get tea in greater perSec-
ton than ourselves. With them IL 70
tains the flavor of which q sea-vOy-ge
deprives it; and being conveyed over
land through the large fairs OF Indak
aud Nijni-Novgorod, it. tastes Of the
leaves of the olea fragans, in which the
Chinese pack it for ajourney northward.
But there is no country where its use q
so general as among US. What yelgisn
| its ghost. We for the most part make Il
good, and drink it often. Plenty of
| tea--the water quite boiling--pour it off
quickly-that is the true receipt.
1t mus. wind up our breakfast, even II
coffee takes the precedence; it must fol-
low the late dinner, and be served in
every gentlewoman's boudoir at five o.
clock. TO the Englishman it scarcely
comes amiss ut any hour. 1t is the stu-
| dents stimulant, theinvalid's medicine;
| and to the lone woman in her old are II
| Is more than her spinning wheel eveI
was, or her cat and her canary ever can
| be. 1t affords "the nice young gentle.
man for small tea party" an admirable
opportunity of Displaying his affectation
and cracking his feeble Jokes. IT is TIE
most social of all beverages, and the al
ready immense consumption of It here
is decidedly on the increase.
But though the Chinese send us tibet,
tea, we are not indebted to them for ouI
teapots. They have each teacup, fur
nished with a lid, in which the ten !,
made &c carately. The leaf, chopped IN
very small al..d almost in powder, 10 pu
into the cup in tn. quantity required
Then hot water is pour.,' upon II, ar.
the Iid replaced. When n ba $1,000 I
lutte ti.me they stir it up. and dr,, <l
| quite not and turbid; without smcar ~
cream. IL ls a very different thjnS fro,,,
U ,.a TEA having delicious favour pecr |.
l,ar 10 the climate. There. can be No
| aoupt that the extensive use of the lac
~ snis country has given.a great tn
| pulse to the ceramic art.
| Durihg iong ages It's beauty and NOR
lection lay buried in Etruscen to,abs
The Italians first raised it from, the a,s;
IN the i4th century, and Luca dells Roh.
bia, using glaze and colouring with b;s
terracottas, produced the famous Maj.
! iica: The delicate art then p,o-.;mr
northward, forsook the Tuscan soctorss
les, and fixed it home in the little tow,,
OF Fayence in France. Here and ID" -, :,
Nevers, patronized by Catherine a. a.
| ,Medicis, and improved by bernard Pc
llssy, 1t attained high reputation: and u; H.
| productions are well known TO caIiao
tors Of old "chinan by the serpents fab
ana other creatures, which cover tbai,
me manufacture of porcelain in Chin,
anu japan had been common from In,
nrst century of the Christian era. b,,t h
was not till 1913 that the Portuguese in,
ported 1t into Europe. Factories follow
ed each other in rapid succession r.
France and England, but the artiele
produced cracked easily, and would Nc
pear strong heat. The first real oroe
lain was made at Nielsen. on the IIbe
In l7lo, and under the name of Dreede,
china became known ali over tic woy,d