The Washington times. (Washington [D.C.]) 1901-1902, 1901-08-11
PROFIT In TEA CULTURE.
The Only Plantation in America
Located at Pinehurst, 5. c.
Result of Experiments Proves That
the Lenf May BE Grown i'm America
ns Well as the Far Enst-McthOds
of prepnriul IL for Market.

e. 1t is the property of Dr. Charles u
Shepard. who has undertaken to prove
that tea, one of the greatest staples
used by the people of this country. can
be proftably raised by American farm
ers. This attempt to enlarge the al
ready great extent and variety of our
agricultural products has been insti-
-tuted by DR.. Shepard partly as a scien-
tific experiment and partly as a bust
ness enterprise. From a purely imam
cial standpoint, the venture has proved
successful, and each crop yields several
thousand pounds year.
In 1877. Gen. William G. lie Due,
then Commissioner of Agriculture, on
being informed of the attempt TO make
tea growing an industry of this coun-
try. requested the late William Saund-
ers of the Agricultural Department, to
investigate the matter and ascertain
whether the tea plant could profitabiy
be grown. After thorough inspection
of Mr.. Shepard's tea plantation, MI
Saunders made a very favorable re-
port. predicting that it would only be
n question of time when the farmers
would supply sufficient tea for home
consumption.
DR.. Shepard. when interviewed con-
corning his plantation, said:
MY plants are affording me pro-
duction greater than the Chinese aver
age. and almost equal to that OF lndia
and Ceylon. Not long ago. the COM
mittee of the United States tea i'm
porters expressed. through their chair
man. before the House Committee on
WAYS and Means, the opinion that teas
produced on this estate eGualed any
sent TO the United States from the
Orient. The product o. these gardens
has always found ready sale, and has
been marketed from Massachusetts to
Florida: also In the Central and West
ern states.
eft is not n question whether individ-
nal plants may not be successfully
grown as interesting and beautiful OBJ
iects in landscape or other gardening,
nor whether small patches of the hard
Ter varieties of tea may not produce
sufficient leaf to supply the limited de-
mands of a household. and even of
country neighborhood- These problems
have been satisfactorily answered
long ago in several Of the Southern
States. The price of labor and the yield
per plant are not important factors
under the latter conditions. Several
large profits have already been reaped
on the imported commodity before 1t is
sold over the village counter, and no
account of the value of the labor ex-
pended in raising and preparing the
domestic article is apt to be taken.
First and foremost is the difference
in the price of labor between the Tea
producing countries of the Orient and
our Southern States. With US, the
picking of sufficient fresh leaf to make
a pound ~ tea costs almost as much
as the raising, picking. and packing of
the same quantity of most of the teas
sent us from Asia There are. there
fore. two alternatives presented TO the
would-be American tea grower. He
must raise the quality of his product
above that of the cheaper Oriental
grades. or he must reduce the cost of
production. The former course has
been maintained at Pinehurst, with
promising results.
"A suitably equipped factory is in
dispensable to even a moderate sized
garden For the present only black tea
is made at Pinehurst. and consequently
a brief description of what is requisite
for their manufacture may prove in
teresting, and not too long.
THE first step is the whitening of the
fresh leaf. This is done by thinly
spreading out the leaf on floors OF
trays, so that every pound shall cover
about ten square feet. AS each pound
of finished tea represents four and one
fifth pounds of fresh leaf, it will be seen
that an output of 100 pounds of dry tea
per diem requires about 1000 square
feet Of whitening surface-in itself an
expensive item. The purpose of wither-
ing is to render the fresh leaf suscepti-
BILE Of being rolled without breaking
AS IL comes to the factory it is
crisp and elastic; it crackles when COM
pressed in the hand; when bent it i'm
mediately resumes its former shape
Whitening requires a light, airy room;
but it is better to exclude direct sun
light. A few hours sometimes suffice
FOR the change. but usually a whole
days exposure is necessary.
when sufficiently withered the leaf
loses its elasticity and feels like an old
kid glove; no longer viii it crackla when
compressed. nor will it regain its shape
Fresh leaf has neither distinctive taste
nor odor. Withered leaf has a faint
oder: peculiar. but not suggestive Of
the finished tea. BY rolling (either by
hand or machinery the oily cells in the
leaf are broken up and the juice is
pressed upon the surface of the leaf
There ii becomes foamy from the action
of the air and the continued rolling
An oxidation begins. which is prolong-
ed by exposure to the AR. By rolling
and oxidation formerly and erroneous
ly termed fermentation) the strength
and. in part, the flavor of the tea are
developed. The rest of the flavor and
fragrance is the result of the final
process of firing or drying. In most
of these operations it has been found
advantageous to substitute machinery
for hand power, especially where the
production is sufficient TO warrant the
expense Of buying and erecting the
specially devised machines. And. aside
FROM economy in production. the great
er uniformity of product and the great
er cleanliness Of the manufacture are
commenda5le features In the rolling
of tea leaf capable man can handle
thirty pounds a day. a Little Giant
Soliing machine can do as much In half
An hour. with the labor of one mule.