The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-10-21
TEA GROWING IN INDIA.
LITE OF THE PLANT FROM SEED
 TO FINISHED PRODUCT.

LIFE OF THE PLANT FROM SEED
 TO FINISHED PRODUCT. Stages of Curing tho Leaf-yIthering Fermentation and Sorting -Unbrok-
 en Buds ths Finest GEads-cIaimsd Superiority Over the Chinese Article Many Thousand Acres Under cuIti-
 vaiion.
 Well-cared-for tracts of level or mountainous land are used in India for the cultivation of tea. The term ''gar- dens' is used to denote these tracts, which vary in size from one hundred acres in the hill districts of the lower Himalaya Mountains to fifteen hun dred acres on the plains. The tea bush Is raised from seed, which is now care fully planted about one inch deep in a nursery of soft, fertile soil. In the: early days of tea planting the seed was sometimes scattered broadcast from the back of an elephant. The young plants require rich soil and a very moist heat in order to thrive well. When the plants have obtained height of twelve inches they are transplanted It is generally considered that a, bush re- quires about sixteen square feet of we'll cultivated soil around it to gain the best results. The tea is planted in reg ular rows, either in squares or trian- gles. The triangular planting, which giving each bush exactly the same space from it's neighbors, effects saw ing of nearly fifteen per cent. space, as it is possible tosplant one hundred and fifteen bushes in the same area that would be occupied by one hundred plants in rectangular planting.
 By the third year the plants should be from four to five feet high, and they are then pruned down to about twenty inches, so as to promote the growth of new branches and tender shoots and thus produce a larger number of new leaves The methods of pruning vary greatly and in some cases the plants are pruned before they are taken from the nursery. The bush is so pruned and trained that instead of growing tall it is kept short and broad in order to furnish young bushes have developed succulent a greater plucking surface. When the shoots upon which there are four or five leaves they are said to have produced their first bush''-that is, they have sprouted sufficiently to pluck. During the rains successive "fushes'' occur at intervals with fifteen to twenty days, varying according to the soil, cultiva- tion, and climate. The top part of the shoot is the only portion that is plucled It includes the bud and the first two or three leaves, according as fine, medium, or coarse tea is wanted, for tea can only be made from the young and tender leaves, and the younger and tenderer the leaf the better the quality of the tea.
 PIucking is performed by turning the thumb downward and nipping off the shoot between the thumb nail and the forefinger. It is done almost entirely by women and children, as it is compar- atively easy work and does not require strength. Each quicker carries a large open-mouth bamboo bas- ket about two feet in diameter and three feet in length, tapering toward round- tu llC tlCelI 10 t4ltON II AlAtO tAAis basket and protected by covering from the rays of the sun, which would otherwise cause it to turn red. Late in the afternoon the leaf is brought to the factory, where it is carefully weighed and examined by the manager and his assistants and the several amounts en- tered in a book against each plucker's name. To earn 8 full days pay a cer- tain number of pounds of leaf must be brought in. This amount is determined beforehand by the manager, and varies, as it depends upon the condition of the flush. Extra pay is given for whatever quantity is brought in above the re- quired amount of the day, and in this way many good workers earn double pay during the height of the season. The rate of pay for the extra work is always relatively higher than the reg ular wages in order to offer an induces ment for hard work.
 The leaf is taken to the whitening room after it has been weighed, and evenly spread upon wide trays. The men who spread the leaves work with remarkable dexterity, making pound of the green leaf cover about one square yard By morning the leaf is sufficient ly withered to be rolled without being broken, and is then taken to the rolling machine. The object of rolling is to liz crate the juices of the leaf cell, and dur ing the operation the leaf changes color from bright green to a slightly vel Jewish tint. Tn former years the rolling was done by hand, and eighty pounds was a good days work for one man;