The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1877-04-19
Home and Farm.

impunity to swinging limbs, gate posts
horse racks, or even the inside (neyer
the outside) corner of q worm fence
but there should always be discretion,
judgment or skill displayed in hitch
ing harness horse without taking him
from between the shafts. We frequent
ly see drivers jump from the buggy and
leave the horse unhitched. This is 8
dangerous experiment, we care not
how thoroughly the horse is trained.
The owner risks the cost of his vehicle
every time he does this. But he had
better train his horse to stand without
hitching than to treat him as some do,
who in their effort to prevent him
moving subject him to possible torture
If he moues. For instance, we have
seen horse in the shafts choked to
the ground by having the lines tied to
some lmmovable post. Becoming g
little restless, the horse would move
forward aud back until presently he
would get far enough back TO tighten
the lines, when he would try to move
still further back, and hence draw his
lines still tighter until he would choke
himself to the knees unless the lines OF
rings in the saddle would yield by
breaking. The same effect will be
produced by tying the reins tolerably
tight to the felloe or to a spoke of a
front wheel. To hitch q horse left
standing in harness or shafts, the near
trace should be loosed from the end OF
the singletree, and the lines tied gent
ly tight to the same end of the single
tree from which the trace had been
loosed. If the horse then backs moth
ing happens. If he starts forward
the hitched trace tightens on the of
end of the siDgletIee, which pulls back
the near end, and this tightens the
lines enough to prevent his going for
ward. The more he pulls the tighter
the lines are drawn. The moment he
steps back or yields to the pressure OF
the lines, that moment he gets relief,
and is encouraged to stand still.
TEA.-Everybody knows that there
are two kinds of tea, green and black
and most people know that the almond
eyed cultivator values his tea accord
ing to its Chop" but very few know
how tea is grown, how it is prepared,
and how to make beverage from the
leaves.
Tea has been grown successfully in
South Carolina. 1t is cultivated ex-
tensively in Brazil and Japan, but the
home of the tea plant is China. In all
Of the Chinese towns, where people are
as thlckly crowded together as ants in
a hill, tea shops or restaurants are more
numerous than 'bar-rooms' in America,
and thousands drop in hourly to enjoy
their glass of tea. The leaves from
these saloons, "'tis said" are gathered
up, dried, relied and boxed for the
American market.
If a Cinnamon dies in America his
last will and testament requires that
his mortal remains be sent back to his
Oriental home. These fellows are
boxed up, "'tis sald," in immense
chests of tea leaves; which, after the
interment of the body, are aired lit
tie and re-caddied for the American
market. Hence it is that we have q
great variety of teas brought to this
country, but seldom do we get the
choicest.
We give below readable extract
from a letter of Virginian, who has
recently been travelling in China, and
we call the attention of our fair read
ers to that portion of it which tells us
now to m4ke a good cup of tea. II
our fond lovers OF flowers and vase
plants would give half the attention
to garden of tea plants that they do
to their hot house plants, they could
realize profit from their labors, be-
sides having the satisfaction of knowing
that they drank nothing but the pure,
anadulterated tea. Hear the Virgin
ian. He saws:
The green tea plant differs but
slightly from that which produces the
black tea; the latter Is called by the
botanists Mea bOhea, and the former
the thea viridis, but they seem to be
convertible terms, for black tea may be
made from the green tea plant, and
green tea may be made from the black
tea plant. The mode of preparation
makes the difference. Do not be
startled. The green color Is given to
the green tea by mixing with it, during
the drying process, gypsum, Prussian
blue and turmeric. There is no doubt
of this, for it is a we'll authenticated
fact, hence the more puugent taste of
green over black tea. The taste of the
one is natural, the other is given by
these drugs. Turmeric is not poison
Gus, but gypsum (our common Jansen
weed) and Prusslan blue are known 10
be poisonous, hence the importance of
the mixture shall recommend in max
ing tea. No Chinaman ever drinks
green tea it is made to suit the Eng
lish taste.
abstain from saying much that
might interest, and come at once to
tell my readers how to make good tea.
Brackish water, or water sharply i'm
pregnated with lime, will not make
good tea. Rain (cistern) water is the
best. Let the water be fresh from the
cistern or river, or soft spring water
let your teakettle be perfectly clean
fill Lot quite full of water; leave some
room for steam to generate. Let the
water boil; many think water is boil
ing because there is a little steam COM
ing from the spout, but if you will wait
till the lid of the kettle clatters and
the steam gushes out of the spout like
a little steam engine, then, and not till
then, is it boiling; when In this condi-
ton it Is ready to make tea, and not
till then. The tea leaves must be
mixed in the proportion of one-third
green and two-thirds black therefore,
when you purchase, let it be in that
proportion, say one pound of good
green tea and two pouads of good black
tea; mix thoroughly together; keep il
a tightly stopped tin canister; scald
your teapot, and at once put into it a
teaspoon heaping full of tea for every
person that is to take tea and one for
the teapot, or for guest that may
come in, and I'LL up the teapot from the
kettle of boiling water. Tepid Tor
merely warm) water will not make tea,
however good your materials may be.
Let your tea draw eight or ten min
utes, and, in dishing or serving 1t, do
not fill up one cup and send 1t to some
----~-s-v --s-ss-u-Iej IISfy nOJ Ue Wei
drawn, but arrange your cups and pour
out into each cup till it is one-third
full, then the second third, and then
the third third, leaving room for cream
and sugar. BY this means your tea
will be of uniform strength. II too
strong for the taste of some, molllfy
with cream. Fill up your teapot with
the boiling water from the kettle, and
your second brew will be better than
the first. Do not bring the kettle to
the teapot, but take the teapot to the
teakettle, for, unless it Is boiling, it
will not make tea, and if you take the
kettle off the FIRE to even take 1t into
adjoining room, the water ceases TO