The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-09-23

churian ginseng Is reserved for royalty
and the very rich. The poorer cinEseS
use cheap grades and broken roots.
There ore three ways OF taking gin-
seng. In pills, In CONNECTION and py In
fusion.
Ginseng has been an important ar
ticie OF export from this country since
his. a letter from a missionary III
China describing the wonderful plant
attracted the attention Of O Jesuit
priest at Montreal who made search
IN INC and found It growing n the for
eat of that locality. The French ut
once began digging Il for export TO Chi
ma and for years enjoyed monopoly
that brought rich returns. In 1850 gin
seng was found In central New York
and later in Vermont. Pennsylvania,
Ohio. Minnesotn, Wisconsin, Vlrginia.
West Virginia, Kentucky. Tennessee.
Massachusetts. the CRrollnas and Geor-
gia. Every year some new diggings are
found. In 1862 the export trade reached
700, 900 pounds, the average price that
year being geventy-four cents q pound.
This was high tide. Since that year
the amount exported has annually de-
creased and the price increased. Last
season $4,000 pounds were exported
and the average price was a q pound.
One reason why Chinese ginseng
brings higher price than the Ameri-
cnn root Is due to the care exercised in
preparing It for market. American dig
gers simply wash the roots and dry
them in the sun or In an attic. In Chi
ma the roots are scrubbed clean and
macerated for three days In water In
which rice hns been boiled. then placed
In covered vessel and slowly dried
over fire until hard and brittle. When
the drying is finished the roots are
yellow and semI-trnnsparent Ameri-
can consufs in China have often inform
ed the state department Of the manner
in which American ginseng reaches the
chinese market and have advised
greater care In preparing.
The faith OF the Chinese in the GIN
senB root has not wnvcred in centur-
les and fB likely to continue for ages 10
come. One OF the presents given Ii
Hung Chang on his recent visit to New
York was fine collection Of ginseng
roots, and It is doubtful II any gift
could have pleased him more. II
America Is TO continue to profit TO the
extent Of million dollars or more a
year. the extinction Of the wild plant
through the ignorance OF dlggers must
be stopped by laws such as Kentucky
Inns passed; but such laws It must be
admitted are hard to enforce. The de-
partment OF agriculture has taken q
hand In the matter and systematic
effort win be made 10 show the diggers
the folly OF digging the plnnts before
the berries are ripe and the necessity OF
planting the berries.
The ginseng diggers are not distinct
type. In New York and Pennsylvania.
many OF them are farmer boys who
. 10, he I'll
Yesting. Five young fellows near here
earned money to visit the Worlds Fair
by digging ginseng Another young
fellow has paid oil the expenses OF
normal course IN the same way. In ev-
cry community there are two or three
men who sOeHd their time Ia hunting,
fishing, and finding bee trees. These
men always hunt ginseng and are usu-
ally experts. Nearly all the mountain
people In Kentucky and Tennessee dig
ginseng and rely on It to furnish the
food to tide them every year and unless
great care is exercised this profitable
industry will be destroyed.