As far as can be ascertained, the first announcement of the discovery of the tea-plant in India was made in 1833, but owing to imperfect specimens being sent to botanists for inspection, it was not at the time considered a true species. It was fully demonstrated, however, in 1835, when a plant with perfect leaves, flowers and seeds was obtained which proved on analysis to be a species of the genus tea allied to, but not identical with that of China; Burmese and Chinese experts, to whom the specimens were submitted, concurring in the statement. The report being favorable, an experimental plantation was immediately established under government auspices with results not known. The first plantation for its cultivation on a commercial scale was formed in Lukhimpore in 1836, from which the first samples were received in 1839, and the first sales made in 1840. But, owing to the unfavorable reports given on the first samples of the tea prepared from the India leaf, it was rejected by the London brokers. The propriety of introducing the China species was next suggested by some planters, and tons of seed were at once imported from that country, large estates being formed from the plants raised from it. Many of the plantations were finally composed of hybrids or crosses between the China and India species, which is now claimed to have been an error, as the nearer each variety approaches to the indigenous the higher its excellence. The tea-producing districts of India are widely scattered, the largest—Assam—being situated in the extreme northeast of the country bordering on the Burmese Empire, the others being located on the northwestern boundary of Nepaul and the Punjaub, while Central India appears to be entirely devoid of tea gardens up to the present. There are numerous plantations, however, scattered over the southwestern provinces of the peninsula, most notably in Wynaad, Neilgherry and Travancore. In India, tea is grown on extensive estates, often comprising thousands of acres, situated principally in the alluvial valleys of large rivers, or formed on land reclaimed from primeval jungle, possessing all the richness of virgin soil and cultivated either by the individual owners or the agents of companies commanding considerable capital. Every detail of cultivation and preparation is conducted under close and careful European supervisors. The plants are raised from seed sown in nurseries until they are about 18 inches high, when they are transplanted to the rows in the gardens in which they are to grow, the closest attention being paid to weeding and irrigating. The young trees are carefully pruned periodically and reduced to a bushy form, until they are from two to three years old, when the first picking commences, the exact time for picking being determined by the overseer. The leaves are removed in such a manner as to cause no subsequent injury to the plants, by which care the India planter is enabled to obtain from