St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-02-10
JAPANESE TEA DEALER.
Representative of Mammoth
Tea House Talks.


Otis A. Poole, of Yokohama. Japan,
was among the guests registered yeSter-
day at the Ryan. He has resided in the
Orient for the past six years, during
which time he has acquired much in
formation of interest to those living in
the OccideDt, and especially to those to
whom travel in far-otf countries and
lands Is an unattainable pleasure. Mr..
Poole is the representative of Smith,
Baker & Co., Japan, who do a large
business in the tea trade. He visits the
United States once at least and some
times twice year, and his house is one
of the largest tea exporting concerns in
Japan. He stated that his house began
business there in 1858, and the Japanese
themselves have given it the appella-
ton of "Ane-San-Ban," meaning liter
ally in English, American No. g."
Asked to explain what this meant, MIR.
Poole laughed and said: The Japs
speaking race. They twist everything
around in way that we consider wrong
end to. Ame-San Ban is really American
No. BY this is meant that the firm of
Smith, Baker IL Co. is the third Ameri-
can tea house to be established in Japan.
The Japs have way of cutting every
thing short as possible. With them
Anne stands for American" Mr.. Poole
referred 10 the oft-published fallacy of
the unhealthfulneSs of professional al
tea-tasters. On this point he remarked
that perhaps it was because they really
used very little tea themselves, being in
the business. "Their line of duty" said
he. lis business of confidence and
strict hnnnSfu aIid nj Il
ginning to end, and it IS upon these
characteristics that people who import
teas must chiefly rely" Mr.. Poole was
asked to give some figures as to the
amount of business done by his house
per annum, but declined TO do so.
Speaking generally Oh this subject. he
said: The first shipments from Japan
that can be properly called such were
made experimentally in 1860 to the
United States and Canada, and were
small. Since that time the Ship
ments to this continent have annually
increased, until now they aggregate
about 5O,OOO,OOO pounds every year.
Although Japan tea is not the tea, per-
haps. of the Super-epicure, it is notably
the favorite drink of the agricultural
masses. Tea is one of the chief exports
of Japan, ana ranks in Importance next
to that of silk. The tea industry, like
the silk industry, can only thrive in a
country where labor is amply recon-
pensed at the rate of one cent per hour.
The same amount of labor expended in
this country in the raising of tea for the
market that is expended in Japan would
make it cheap here at s25 per pound. 1
may remark, incidentally, that in Ger
tain parts of the United States the
climate is favorable to the growth of the
tea plant. 1t has been raised success
fully in Florida. The tea plant is an
evergreen, belonging to the camelia
family. Although different varieties of
tea are made from the same class of
plant. their distinguishing character
istics are owing to climatic differences.
For instance, in the lower districts black
teas are produced, while in the higher
ATTITUDES the product is green tea. The
difference in the degrees of the fermen-
tation of the leaf during the process of
manufacture cuts an important figure
also. In rest-giving effect, Japan teas
stand far ahead OF all competitors"