s into the
shapes so familiar to you all. Some of the finer kinds often prepared
for exportation are rolled over by hand before being fired. The great
object appears to be to prevent the leaf from breaking; hence, in the
commoner kinds and those intended for home consumption, which do not
receive the same care, the leaves are found to be very much broken. In
fact, the preparation of this latter sort is very simple: a mere drying
in the sun, after which it presents a dry, broken appearance, like
autumn leaves.

Green tea, although grown in particular districts, receives its
peculiar color by being stirred with a mixture of gypsum and Prussian
blue during the firing, but is prepared in a more laborious manner, the
leaves being selected and divided to form the different kinds known as
Imperial, Gunpowder, Young Hyson, Hyson, Hyson Skin and Twankay. An
aggregation of these kinds, proportioned according to their value,
forms what is known as a "chop," whereas a chop of black tea comprises
all of one grade or quality. Chinamen wonder at the taste of "outside
barbarians" in preferring a tea colored green, but would provide them
with a leaf of yellow or blue if there was a market for it.

[Illustration: ONE OF THE SING-SONG GIRLS.]

The entire operation pertaining to the business appeared to be carried
on in the cluster of little buildings with court-yards between, but
almost under the same roof, and afforded occupation to an immense
number of persons. And yet the payments could not have been very
large; from six to ten cents per day being about the wages they
received. In one room men were engaged in making boxes; in another,
lining them with thin sheets of lead. Further on, the outsides of the
boxes were being pasted over with paper, on which was stamped the name
of the tea and the maker's business-title. Finally, they were being
filled, soldered up and carried off to the boats, not to be opened
again until they reached the shop of some London grocer.

The principal object of our friend Akong's visit was to convoy with his
mandarin-boat a fleet of tea-junks to Hankow; so that but one day was
given us for our visit. The boats being nearly ready, it was arranged
that we should start on our return the following morning. The evening
was devoted to a dinner and "sing-song" given for our entertainment by
the tea-men. Aho asked if he should take our knives and forks, a
proposition which we indignantly rejected. As it was to be a