BALL ON THE CULTIVATION AND MANUFACTURE OF TEA.
Ma. BALL was employed at Canton, in the service of the East India 'Company, when the tea-trade was in its zenith, and the British tea-drink- ing public could rely upon a "choice article," by paying for it. The mind of the late Inspector of Tea in China still seems influenced by the memory of those palmy days when the Company has paid at first hand as much as 3s. 2d. per pound for first-rate tea; and, though Mr_ Ball noes not say so, he evidently regrets the change in the trade. Still, like
sensible man, he submits to what he cannot help, and makes the best of g bad bargain. During his long sojourn in China, (1804-1826,) Mr. Mall paid great attention to the cultivation and manufacture of tea ; per- using Chinese authors, and corresponding with some of the Romish mis- sionaries on the subject, besides procuring plants from his Chinese ac- quaintance, and observing the processes pursued in roasting and manipu- lating the leaves, as performed in the neighbourhood of Canton. Since bis return from China, he has not lost sight of his object, but has watched the efforts made in Java, the Brazils, and Assam, to rival the Chinese in the supply of tea, as well as kept himself up to the knowledge acquired by means of the late Chinese war. His views on some parts of the subject have already been made public at various times ; but he has now brought together the whole of his information upon the history, botany, climate, growth, cultivation, and manufacture of tea, in the volume before us.
Many curious and interesting particulars on all these points are scat- tered through the book ; but on the whole, it is of too minute and tech- nical a character to be called popular. An Account of the Cultivation and Manufacture of Tea in China is rather for those who deal in tea than for those who drink it ; and the great practical question as to the pro- bable increase of supply should the duty be reduced is left untouched. From the incidental information furnished by Mr. Ball, our impression is rather confirmed, that it could not be increased, at least for some time to come. No doubt, John Chinaman could supply an article that he would call tea, and which may be drunk extensively in the country'; but we are speaking of the "teas of commerce." As they require a good soil and aspect, (the Chinese hold that the flavour chiefly depends upon the soil)—as the plants do not produce under three years, and a good deal of care is involved in the cultivation and of skill in the manufacture seems clear that several years must elapse before any considerable addition could be made to the quantity of teas fit for exportation. We dO not dispute the paper statistics on this point : millions of pounds of tea may exist, which the poor Chinese drink; but they are no more the teas of commerce than the composition vulgarly called "swipes" could be exported as British beer.
The other great point of growing tea out of China, Mr. Ball considers at some length, and concludes that it is practicable. A very fair tea is produced by the Dutch in Java, though the quantity as yet is limited. The Assam tea is a good article as regards strength, but not of .a fine flavour ; though that may be improved by more careful cultivation, and greater experience in the manufacture. Mr. Ball, however, thinks 'the experiments now in progress on the lower ranges of the Himalaya more likely to be successful than those in Assam. The tea-tree, indeed, is an adaptable plant, and will grow within a wide range of climate; but -it flourishes best in a rather temperate region. The author's remarks on The prospective advantages of this cultivation chiefly speak of the benefits to the Hindoo, and of a trade with Central Asia, where a large commerce of '" brick" tea is now carried on from China by an expensive land-carriage: whence we infer, that the Chinese will probably for many years to -owe command the market for good teas, in consequence of superior plants and superior skill. The point of cheap labour he satisfactorily disposes of: compared with India, labour is dear in China, and does not seem to be so cheap absolutely as has been supposed. After sketching the extreme bareness of the Hindoo's accommodations and mode of living, with the paucity areal wages which satisfy him, Mr. Ball contrasts hip2. with the Chinese. The picture may not only be taken as an arg,ument, but as a specimen of the incidental matter of Mr. Ball's hook. "The Chinese, on the contrary, has a good substantial mud or brick house, generally thatched, but not unfrequently tiled. Within are seen chairs, stools, and tables, a moveable bedstead, formed of planking and bamboo, besides bedding His shelves are well stored with cups, saucers, tea-pots, jags, basins, and jars;
and his culinary vessels consist of iron and earthen pots, pans, and kettles. Nn -e are his shelves devoid of books. At his meals he is seated in his chair
or on a bench at table; and uses two neatly turned little sticks of lacquered_wan or bone, which he places between his fingers, and uses with the same dexterity and efficiency WI the European his fork or spoon. He has his little spoon also, btu made generally if glazed earthenware, for soup or soy. And his frugal repast, though it consists mainly, like that of the Hindoo, of rice in the Sean, or souse form of wheat in the Northern provinces, yet two or three little dishes, neatly served and agreeably cooked, consi,ting of fresh or dried fish, dried water-fowl or other dried meats, a little fat pork, and some vegetables, complete the bill of far,. And, like a highly polished people' to whom the Chinese have been compared by very experienced judges, he cleans each meal, of which there are three in the coarse of the day, not very dissimilar, with his petit verre, or small cup of sanishew or spirit, but taken before his tea instead of after coffee. In this manner live the boatmen, the coolies or porters, the packers of tea, and the few agriculturists who have come under my observation at Canton and Macao. His dress consists of va- rious cotton garments, light for summer and quilted for winter; and he wears on his head a strong and well-mee bamboo or straw hat, broad enough to protect him both from sun and rain. Nor is he without his greatcoat; which, though not made of costly materials, being of flags, is nevertheless very effective in protecting him from rain.
"It must by no means, however, be inferred, that the condition of the Hindoo is one of privation: on the contrary, slender as are his means, they are adequate to his wants; nor ought he to be disadvantageously contrasted with the labonnz of China as regards the ease and comforts of life. It is evident that the wants of the two people are necessarily and widely different; that the climate of China calls for more warmth, a greater variety of clothing, and more animal food. These greater requirements of the Chinese labourer have stimulated his industry; and, being favoured by the institutions of his country, he has been enabled ti secure to himself a greater amount a the comforts and conveniences of life than the Hindoo, if rot more than some Europeans. He is raised in the scale of humanity; he feels his independence; he must be proportionately remunerated; and he is too active in mind and body to sink into indolence or apathy; preferring, as a last resource, expatriation to abject poverty?'
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