TEA DRINKING

Evening Post, Issue 145, 22 December 1928, Page 6

TEA DRINKING

A iQUAiNT ADVERTISEMENT THE CUP THAT ®EEis Next. to water, tea is-the? beverage most widely .in iiso throughout; ' the world as regards the number of its votaries as" well as' the. total, liquid, quantity consumed. New .Zealaiiders have, the reputation of being great tea drink:, ers; and. undoubtedly' they are, that, out of an animal world, production of something, like !ono thousand million pounds of ; tea, their1 consumption is not far short of ten."million' pounds;* -. ■" •'■ :'■■■ " ; „■' .■■'•'■'■'"/*:;..:-./' ■ ' It is a long way back, to 25th September, IGGO, when Pepys, the famous diarist, wrote:—"l did send for a cup of tea, ;a China drink,'of. which-I had." never drunk before,'" thus proving the novelty.of tea in England ,'at that date. As a matter of .fact,probably ' the first;; mention ;of tea 'by an Englishman' is that ; contained; ;in: a letter;::froru., Mr.. Wickharn,. an agent, of ;• tke-East; Jndia; Company, .''written from': Japan -in '1615, to another officer of the company ;.'at Macao, and.asking for }, ".a,.'.pot of the best; f -..- of;.chavy,;''.'■-.• Hoiv .the- commission was executed- does*;n.ot;lappear, but ; in'■■ subsequent accounts'.'■' of /expenditure occurs this item: "Three: silver pomingei's to -drink' chaw in." /i>rV Johnson gives Earls^ 'Arlington and Ossory; the : credit of being the first/to import tea into England.1 .Ho says.' .that: they.•brought it from Holland..in '1(366 '-and that: their ladies taught 'women.of quality,how to use i ;it?v,But;,from Pepys's': diary.it is obvious that -tea was known, in.England by, "1660; 'indeed, ah Act: of Parliament passed;.in; that-year -levied a duty of: eightpenee. a' gallon; mi: '■ 'all" sherbet, 'chocolate,/, and's tea//made/for, .sale."-'; ,*,.,',. ''■';": „...' '■■'"''■■;':''".'_■'. .",'■ : "', '*.' ./:,,: ;..'As early as 30th, September,' 165S,r in7 the .i-'Mercurius'.Politiens'?'- occurs- the following quaint'adver.tisement.:— ' "That; excellent /and :' by all 'physicians, approved > China drink, called by the Chineans 'Tcha;* by other;nations1 'Tay,' alias 'Tee,' is:. sold a~t the Sul-'! -.taness... Head '; Coffee-House, In, ■ Sweeting's Rents, by ,- the Royal, Exchange, .London." : Possibly .this.;announcementprompted .the fpunder;;.pf Garraway's to .issued the'.broadsheet,.;preserved in the: British; Museum: library, in : which' he| thus: runs .riot. in exultation- of tea: "The quality/is'moderately,hot, proper' for winter or summer. ;:Tlio; drink,is declared to bo most wholesome, preserving'in perfect health until extreme:old age. ' The particular "virtues are " these.. It maketh the body active and lusty.' It.helpeth tho headache,'giddiness, and heaviness thereof.;. It"removeth the- obstructions of- the spleenV'Mf' is very good against the stone.and gravel.'.. .' It taketh away the difficulties'of breath-i ing, opening obstructions./ It is -good against '--lippitude'- distillations, and elcareth the: sight.- .It removeth lassitude, and" cleansetlr and purifieth adust humours and a ;.hot': liver.- It; is' good against -crudities, /.strengthening .the weakness of the stomach, causingl good appetite and digestion, and/particularly' for1 men. of corpulent' body". and", such as' are great eaters of'flesh. ; It/yanquishcth heavy:dreams, easoth tho brain):andstrengtheneth: the' memory.. If■'overcome th •■' superfluous sleep, and prevents sleepiness in genera], a draught of the infusion being taken; so • that, without trouble, whole nights/may be spent ml study without' hurt'/to^the body.'' • "It prevents and- cures iagucs/-surfeits, :and> :feversi by infu'sing-a.fair quantity of; ..the »leaf -thereby provoking 'a most geii-' tie; yornit. and breathing of the pores, and; hath been given with wonderful' success.; It (being■prepared and drunk with,milk and water) strengtheneth the" inward parts and-vprevents "consumptions./. .• .- It is'good for:'colds, dropsies, and scurvies, t and 'expelleth infection. ,'.;'.. .-And that -the'-virtue"and exccllenco of ■ tho leaf and drink are many': and great is evident'and;manifest by :.the high esteem' and use;-of I it,; (especially of late years),' /by the physicians and knowing men in Prance, Italy) Holland,: and:, other parts of Christendom, and;in-England -it hath:;been vsold.,:in .the leaf, for.six pounds,' and:sometimes ■for tenfpouinds the pound-weight; and in respect of its 'former scarceness and 'dearness, it hath been only : used as a regalia/in high; treatments and/ entertainments, and presents made thereof to prince's and grandees, till the ;year /; HIGH-PRICED LUXURY. , Having furnished these excellent jeasons why 'people should /buy ./tea, Mr. Garway proeoeds to tell them why they should buyMt. off:hini:/:;:,"Th<):/IrSaid Thomas Garway ;!did .purchase ■ a/'quan: tity thereof,'and first '.publicly /sold -the, said /tea ■;.in leaf and! drink",:, made according to :'the' directions/of.:the/most knowing merchants ;and travellers ,iri 7 to,/those Eastern 'countries, /and.upon' knowledge arid experience of the said Garway's continued ;care /arid ■industry ,in obtaining the1 best;'tea,/arid, making ■•;. drink thereof,- very/ many; noblemen, physicians, merchants, and gentlemen of quality: have ever isinco sent td" hini/for the said/leaf, and. daily re-1 sort to his house in Exchange Alley to drink the drink thereof. /And to the end that all persons of "eminence and quality, gentlemen, and : others, ; : ;who have occasion for tea in' leaf, may be supplied, these are;."to givo-notiee ' that the sad Thomas . Garway; hath/tea. to sell from, sixteenvshillings,to fifty shillings/the pound.'/;.,; :":. ■ /■■■ ;:}■/.' ..:/;'! ." .'Apparently by 1678.the/English";,.market , was glutted,; the' importation .of ,4713 lbs having-this-effect for several years. ;It took many;/years for/tea /to become a. really, popular ; drink,": its' high price making its acquisition by the ordinary peoplel impossible.?.'-.- ■ . : .; LEGENDARY ORIGIN:, . * ! ■' TJie.early history of te"aas abever r age is mainly traditional.' According to .Chinese legend/the virtues of tea./we're ; "discovered by . the < Emperor Chinniing, 2737 :8.C., to whom all 'agricultural and medicinal; knowledge is traced. "Prom China a knowledge,of tea was carried to • Japan, and in the veai'ly years of the Christian era its use iri'both'coun,tries was /common. ; ; It' was,; long,' lipw.-. | ever, beforo ,know]edg,o1-.pf'',:tea: trayelled to Europe, .other products of .China "being known- and used at much e'arliei1 times. No mention of :it- is made by I Marco.Polo, and no kriowlodg'e vof thfe substance appears to have-reached Europe till : after: tho. establishment 'of.intercourso between and China in 1517, although: the Poftugueso did littlo to popularise'its use. : r' It is less than/100 years since tea-. growing was started in India, arid only 50 years since Ceylon"entered" the field seriously tho • 'disastrous effects.:,of.;cof-fec-lcaf disease,'' foreiiig'-grpwers to ., trim their attention to//tea. -'Elsewhere, too, it has been , grow /■with- varying /success. Decidod preference is/shown ::by tea drinkers the .world/over for leaf from India or Ceylon, that; from Chiua taking a very subordinate position; : :-