The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-07-01
TEA CULTURE IN AMERICA.
Efforts Being Made 10 Establish the In
dustry In the SOut1,.

Efforts BEING Made 10 Establish the In
dustry In the South.
Tea dealers in New York have once
more been asked to take an interest in
the South Carolina tea-growing eX-
periments. Commissioner of Agricul-
turc LeDuc, who once contributed to
the gayety of nations, was the first
person seriously and officially to urge
the wisdom of tea culture in tho
United States He obtained seeds, had
them distributed from his bureau and
spread broadcast elaborate instructions
rs to the best method of carrying on
the culture. An expert from the tea
fields of Assam reported that the tea
could be grown for fifteen or twenty
cents pound in North and South Caro-
lima. Ever since there have been peri
| odical efforts to inherent the tea trade
in American teas and in spite of dis
couragements u few experimenters in
South Carolina have persisted in tea
culture.
| There is no subject touching which
the tea trade of New York is more s<ep-
tical than the possibility of making tea
culture a profitable industry in the
United States. The men who sit in
dingy little downtown offices with
small. brass tea kettles about them and
ugly little teacups stored in cupboards
that would drive any neat housewife
into Mysteries, smile whenever Amer
lean tea is mentioned The skepticism
of the tea dealers results partly from
the fact that they know so much. part
ly from the fact they know so little.
The literature of tea culture is a library
in itself. To know the subject is &c
spend years in study. There are men
down in the tea trade who can appraiso
to IL mill the value of given specimen
of tea. but who use the very names ol
teas without a knowledge of their sig
nificance. Tea, before it's arrival in
market, is to the average dealer an ORR
entail mystery. Those who read books
on the subject find them full of contra
dictions. Some dealers fatty declare
their belief that travellers who write
upon tea culture in China have never
reached the interior of the country.
AS Il matter of fact. different
writers upon Chinese tea culture are of
necessity contradictory, because they
happen to have seen the operations OF
different districts. There are many
ways of cultivating tea in China, as
there are many of preparing it for mar
ket. Tea bricks. for example, which
are sold by the million pounds all over
Central Asia, never appear in the trade
of the United States. Should the aver
age tea dealer see close-paclSed. dark
green brick hard on the surface and
-a1 nhn
acters. he would scarcely recognize il
as tea. The dealers find that the
oriental plays strange tricks with this
market. When one sort of tea has
been drug on the market, next sea
son the same tea appears under diff
ferent name. Young Hyson and Gun
powder are the same tea, differently
rolled. and there are IL dozen devices
by which the celestial takes advantage
of the occidental world.
In the face of all the current skepti
cism as to the American tea Soutf
Carolinian, who has ten-acre tea gar
den, recently sent up some of his owl
product to be appraised by firm o
New York tea dealers. He sent along
also, tea plant. which has been exhib
tied in dealer window. The firm t.
whom the sample had been confide'
tasted, smelt and drew the tea an,
after mature deliberation wrote to tn,
eXperimenter that all the tests indi
Gated that his tea was worth twent,
! cents und. The grower wrot
back to thank the dealer and to expires
satisfaction that his sample could b'
appraised at such a rate
All this makes no great impression
upon the skepticism of the tea trade
Tea that WHOLESALERS at twenty cents
pound should fetch about forty cents
pound at retail. A fair average i'm
ported tea, such as is consumed by pei
sons of mc derate means demanding
!, articles of good quality, WHOLESALERS a
about twenty-five cents a pound. Abov
: and below that prices have wide range
Tea dust from China WHOLESALERS in thi
market at from six to eleven cents
. pound. The best of it is drank by tn
: poor, who pay for it twenty cents
pound retail. The worst is bought b
druggists and by dealers in whisky
There is an unllind suspicion in the tie
!, trade that good deal of cheap tie
=. | uuou soSS iHuo pms VI Oh
kind or another, in place of quinn,
- for example. 1t is well known that
: great deal of tea dust is used to colo
. new whisky and give it an appearanc
. of age.
After the tea dust comes variou
. cheap grades of Japan, Congou. Youn
;, Hyson and Annoy. wholesaling &
twelve or thirteen cents pound. The
a there are other Young Hysons an
Japans and Formosa teas wholesalin
" at twenty or twenty-five cents pount
:. The Ceylon teas range from fourtee
). to forty cents wholesale, with fanc
a qualities as high as eighty cents
i pound. Some of the fancy Young III,
4 sons and Formosas wholesale at frol
n sixty to eighty cents, and Chicag
f firm has been retailing fancy brands &
high as three dollars pound. Dealer
downtown smile at such prices as tn
last and say that there is really II
d better tea in this market than SON
d that may be retailed at one dollar
J. pound. AS matter of fac, the fine.
# China teas do not leave the country an
}. probably would not endure transports
h tion.
e The downtown skeptics say TIL;
s. American tea must compete, if at al
e with grades of imported tea somewh,
e below medium quality. They belle,