Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1892-05-26
TEA ROOT CARVING.
Curious Industry Furnishing EN-
ploymont to Many Celestials.
odd Figures Fashioned from tho Plant
which Furnishes Our Evening Bovsr-
ags-How tho Material Is OBJ
tained and Prepared.


there has been n guild OF artists In this
populous province OF Fo-kicn whose life
work Is the conversion OF the gnarled /
and intcrlnced roots OF the tea tree into |
things Of beauty, that IT, beauty from n |
celestial point OF view, says II writer In |
the Collector The herb whose leaves !
gladden. western palates In the form OF |
Oolong. Tyson and Souchong, IL hardy |
plant aud takes firm hold ON mother |
earth Its roots seem 10 have no regu-
lar law Of growth Sometimes they de- |
velop very much rs beard sprouts
from the chin; ut others they separate
and move along parallel lines rs II they
were "A lignose centipcde. In general IL
may bc said that they make one large,
clumsy mass from which shoot out any
where from three 10 thirty rootlets
Their surface In never smooth, but al
ways irrcgularly corrugated. The value
Of n root depends upon its size, It's out
line. its freedom from decay and It's
suggcstivcncss Of some everyday object.
II In rare that main root or root mass
is more than six inches In diameter.
such belong TO trees ranging In age
from thirty years To n century Infrc-
qucntly they attain to twelve and If
teen inches, and are then said by Chi
nesc experts 10 he four hundred or Ave
hundred years old.
The roots are dug from tho soil and
allowed to thoroughly dry In the open
air under shed or else In moderately
warm room. The loose earth Ia careful
ly removed, as Is the loose bark and all
pieces dccaycd. cracked or wormcaten.
The artist then determines what Is 10
bc done Tho favorito types are drag
ons. buffalocs, cows, cnrnivorcs, bears,
mandarins, priests, bowling dervishers,
dancers or mystic heroes. II the root
cannot be worked into one OF these
shapes II IL converted into pedestal or
platform for a figure piece. The primary
operation consist In saving II into
rough shape. This Ia done with fino
cross.cut, and the clean edges removed
by rubbing them on tiles or bricks.
Sometimes n root Is bent by softening
II with steam or boiling water and then
twisting II In any desired direction.
Now comes the hardest task Of all.
The most valued piece is that which
shows no art and seems perfectly natur-
al The carver goes over the block, re-
moving here Hber and there set OF
roots, here thinning out one on the under
side and forcing IL down, and there
burning another and expanding II at
the burned point ! Nave one In my
drawing. room which is n capital figure
OF a Dragon, rearing and opening his
Jaws as II 10 spring upon his prey.
Careful examination shows that moth
ing has been added 10 tho mass, but
that hundreds Of lbers, knots and cor
rugations have been slfillfully removed.
In nearly every instance n human
figure made In the same manner or
carved from wood OF the same color
or else made partly from tea roots and
partly from carved wood Is added 10 the
frst piece. The designs are endless In
this field. Learned men lccturing birds,
mandarins standing on dragons, boys
riding cows and other ridiculous quad
rupeds, dancing bcggnrs, men fighting
each other are the commonest groups,
but Of the more uncommon there are
thousands. One famous artist In Foo
chow claims 10 have produced, with the
aid OF his apprentices, over fifty thou
bhnu ulHcTtnI hNhlkHhf anu JhhBihb
from his stock on hand, his claim seems
reasonable enough
The tea-root carvings are seldom very
costly. running from fifty cents TO one
hundred dollars Nine-tenths bring
less than two dollars each A hand
some Bet OF dozen can be puschased
for twenty dollars, which will decorate
a drawing-room or hall better than
bric-a. brac many times more expensive.
The figures are strong, durable and In
no danger OF fracture by Bridget or All
Sin. Outside Of their aesthetic value
they are Of interest in showing the won
derful ingenuity and economy Of our
Chinese cousins