The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1901-11-17
VERY FINE TEA GROWN HERE.
rHE SOUTH CAROLINA EXPERI-
MENT CALLED A Success.
pront Now Made at the Pinehurst Gardens
Some Of the Tea Pronounced the
Frnest Ever Drunk Here-A Great In.
Z dustry MAY Result Problems to he Met

IAhEhNll ~ ~ ~
borp are the Pinehurst tea gardens, where.
according to the declaration OF Secretary
bf Agriculture Wilson, made a few days
ago at a Cabinet meeting, the best ten
ln the world is raised
In these gardens DIR. Charles L. Shepard
Tor lust ten years has worked and expert
mented, cropping in the dark very often
Tor the secrets Of the tea growers Of the
Orient. The difference in rainfall be-
tween here and China, the difficulties OF
labor and other problems less serious, whose
s~olution was requisite for final commercial
success, have been met and overcome.
Twenty years ago Congress made an
appropriation for an experiment IN tea
culture. but the money was injudiciously
Expended and on the report that there
sas little prospect OF anything OF value
being accomplished the experiment was
closed. Recently, recognising the value
Of DR.. Shepard's work, the Department
Of Agriculture has given him hearty sup
port, bearing much Of the expense and
making DR.. Shepard the Departments
special agent.
Experiments we're begun On n small
pcale. and were necessarily expensive.
6uccess has been achieved. The gardens
pre- now paying a handsome profit and
have not yet attained their full growth.
knowledge has been gained saws
DR.. Shepard. and a path opened. but
bnly to reveal more room for continued
application and study"
Experiments have not been confined
10 those varieties that promised most re-
nunerative returns. but other seeds that
seemed 10 require different conditions
have been tried, the effort being always
% increase the productiveness as there
lies the profit.
Il has been established that there Is
good profit in raising some kind of teas,
no profit in others, In yet others probable
loss. DR.. Shepard will in n short time
be able to designate those sorts Of tea that
can bring only loss and ve1ation to future
tea growers.
These tea gardens in February, 1899.
endured conditions seldom experienced
In the South. Then the mercury fell TO
2 degrees below zero. h gardens had
no protection from the weather and it
was feared they were ruined, but they
have now entirely recovered. After the
freeze the bushes were pruned literally.
OF course this temporarily affected their
productiveness
Considering that Americans Use much
tea. astonishingly little is known about
&. The multimillionaire pays little more
for his tea in America than the poorest
lsborer who drinks il; the difference in
price is declared TO he not greater than
D half cent a cup.
In the East il is different. There
the millionaire's tea may cost him from
ten TO twenty-five cents a cup and the
coolie may get fifteen or twenty cups for
0 cent. This is not because the American
In America is no, wilHng ~ pay the higher
price, but the tea for the beverage Of the
Orient cannot be transported.
The tea for which We pay from rs cents
to 81 a pound is delivered at the Chinese
ports for about fifteen cents: yet the best
tea soils in China rs high as $50 a pound.
or $50 times the price of tea sent 10 America.
IL IL not surprising, therefore, that all
American tea garden has already produced
and given to Americans the finest tea ever
drunk in this country.
Experiments have been made with both
black and green teas. The same garden IN
some cases furnishes equally good tea II
both varieties. the difference being In the
manipulation Of the leaf. A. to black
tea, pr. Shepard considers that the South
Frasier garden makes a fine showing
II contains two acre. The bushes were
planted four feet apart each way and
were from seed procured by the United
States Consul at Niugpo, China, In ISL?
II came from a celebrated garden Ia the
Province Of Chekiaug
Consul Fowler wrote that the tea was
Of the very best sort, but had no market
value. az Il was not sold putsid. Il the place
Of growth II could NOT b. bought al
Niagpo OF shanghai aud vac only do
Ainable a. the capital of Tho province %
which 4 vac grown, where % cost ten
cents an oun~.
'Only Chinese can anori 90 u-r o. y j.
TOO d-ar for those 90 America added
NJ IoWlri
Tue hl.cb tea impaired would oosi ,u the
Init-a Siatrs ahYui o.. q puuId Ils
slrdrr ~ rll-hufs' y.,li-i Be- rgs %
p.luIs. 1870 yrafs latrf 30 puurds aId
la-i yoat more than On pound. ihsI'
arr frw gardens lu tIaua tlai yirld mote
Than 30 pouuls q ly .,a I. tlr a,ry
D. garden 10 uu % rIuI Ha'YfalF r'N
snd so hraflY rurUN.I vHI ,usmfI
aal frrlisrfs
T4s zoe. 80 sarir .s o. Nuts ars uar
a. 1850 aIi Hsiu"'l .a.f s,lI I-" ssY..
81 gfrH .Haf According I. iH r.rIaIu
l4su p4 ir ~ usH .t.f .al. H' H.a
~ aandaII iiir0Yfr N.aI 40 .II.I
it.u.s j. . ss.aI0aissf HaI.f" 80 aaI
1Ua pH4ni .n, u. .fa ..H rtu
go .sisl o. u... .'
a. -
Amas fIsI -sils.Hs.H pool sI
H 100 % f.Hf. E HaIIf
Il. 49,. 49,. La. .. ..