. The land of the pigtail : its people and customs : from a boy's point of view . most useful society makes it its business to provide. If you go into a shop, perhaps the owner is in hissitting-room, smoking his opium pipe, or having asnooze. You knock and you are not ■v\?^aited dn; again and, for want of something better to doyou take up the tea pot On the counter, and help your-self to a cup of tea. Should the cunning little eye ofthe- spirited proprietor observe you at this, he will makeit the excuse to forty winks, if you havedisturbed him. Or, if you visit a
. The land of the pigtail : its people and customs : from a boy's point of view . most useful society makes it its business to provide. If you go into a shop, perhaps the owner is in hissitting-room, smoking his opium pipe, or having asnooze. You knock and you are not ■v\?^aited dn; again and, for want of something better to doyou take up the tea pot On the counter, and help your-self to a cup of tea. Should the cunning little eye ofthe- spirited proprietor observe you at this, he will makeit the excuse to forty winks, if you havedisturbed him. Or, if you visit a friend, you are showninto a sitting-room, and you will have brought you atonce a tea-pot and some cups! You do not wait for aninvitation, but help yourself, and thus pleasantly fill upthe time, and yourself too. When your friend appears,you will go at it again with him. Should you have no friend on whom to call, and youfeel thirsty, you wUl meet with a tea and cake stall, atwbich you may quench your thirst and have sometemptiag confectionery for next to nothing, as the say-. a TEA. 83 ing is. You may miss the mUk and sugar at first, forneither is used by the Chinese ; but you will soon get tolike it. You may suppose that hot tea in hot weatheris neither cooling nor refreshing, but experience provesthe contrary. Mr. Fortune, whose works on the tea-plant are standard ones, and from whom I shall quotepresently, says : I do not know anything half sorefreshing on a hot summers day as a cup of tea with-out milk or sugar. It is far better and more refreshingthan either wine or beer. It quenches thirst, is a gentlestimulant, and wards off many of the fevers incident tosuch a climate. It would be well if our labouring population couldbe made acquainted with that testimony, and thenpersuaded to try it for themselves. They would begainers in health and in pocket, and their wives andfamilies would be enriched. The quantity of beer andcider consumed by our rustics in hay or corn harvest
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, bookidcu3192402356, bookyear1875
