plantore advocate circular rolling ; some roll the leaf forward, but bring it hack without letting it turn ; the ordinary forward and backward'motion is the simplest and quickest, and that which rollers adopt when given a certain quantity (say 30 lb.) of leaf to roll for a day's work. Rolling in hot pans, formerly extensively practised, is not much done now, and has no advantage. Bolling on coarse mats placed on the floor is a great mistake, as the coarse bamboo mat breaks the leaf, and much of the juice from the leaf, whioh adds to the strength of the tea, runs through and is lost.
A smooth rigid table 4i ft. wide, with planks well joined so that no apertures exist for the juice to run through, is best to roll on, especially if covered with a flue seetul-prttie mat, nailed down over the edgee. A border of wood 1 in. above the surface of the tablo is screwed on to the edges over the mat, to prevent leaf falling off. The leaf is rolled by a line of men on each side, who pass it up one by one from the bottom of tho table to the top. The passage of each handful of roll is regulated by the man at the end, who, when it is rolled enough, forms it into a tightly compressed ball, and puts it on an adjacent stand. The roll is ready to make into hall when it is soft and " mashy," and when it gives out juice freely. This juice is mopped up into the roll, again and again in its passage up the table, and finally into the ball when made up.
Coarse leaves in the roll cannot be twisted, and if left would give much red leaf in the tea. They should be picked out by the 3rd or 4th man from the bead of the table, who should not have to roll at all. Ile spreads the roll and picks out as much as he can between the time of receiving and passing it on, in no case allowing roll to accumulate by him, or it hardens and dries, and gives extra work to bring it into a mashy state again, besides helping to destroy Pekoe ends, and being injurious to the after-fermentation.
Many apparatus and maohines have been invented for rolling tea, maiely with the object of reduoing the labour, and increasing the proportion of Pekoe tips.
McMeekin's rolling-table is constructed of battens, so that while rolling, many of the small leaves (Pekoe tips) fall through. This table is well k Down in Cachar, and used in several gardens, but the objection to it is that the leaf must be rolled lightly, and such leaf cannot make strong tea. Pekoe tips may be in a great measure preserved by rolling all the leaf lightly on a common table, but this plan will not give se many Pekoe tips as McMeekin's table. Planters still feel the want of a maohine to separate quickly and cheaply the two said small leaves from the others after they have been picked together. All the other processes can be done cheaply by hand, but this
cannot.
Kinmond's rolling-machine consists of two circular wooden discs, the upper one moving eccen trically on the lower, which is stationary. The adjacent faces of the discs are made rough by steps in the wood, cut in lines diverging from the centre to the circumference, and over theae rough faces is nailed coarse canvas. The leaf is placed between the discs and rolled by the motion described, the lower disc being arranged by weights and pulleys, to press against the upper with any force desired. The motive power may be animal, water, wind, or steam. The machine is shown in Fig. 1431. The rolling of the leaves is effected between superposed horizontal plates, cs b, the opposite faces of which are recessed to a depth of 3-4 in., these recesses being corrugated to aid the rolling and prevent the leaves from slipping. The under plate a is mounted upon 3 strong cranks arranged equidistantly in a triangle; the shafts supporting them are carried by exterior plummer blocks, ono having a revolving motion iraparted to it by bevel-gearing e from a driving-shaft f, carried also by exterior plummer-blooks, and provided with fast and loose pulleys. The plate cs thus receives a horizontal circular tmversing motion, but it has no rotating motion around its own axis, neither has it a rising-and-falling motion. The upper plate b is similarly suspended from cranks connected by a triangular frame, the shaft g having a revolving motion imparted to it by spur- and bevel-gearing h from the shaft f. The various levers and weights shown are for the purpose of raising the upper plate for the tea to be fed in, and to enable the pressure to be adjusted according to requirement.
Jackson's rolling-machine is an improvement upon Kinmond's, but is declared to be an infringe ment of the latter. It is shown in Figs. 1432, 1433. a is a cylinder composed of teak staves, with an uneven internal surface, mounted so as to be capable of rotation, supported at one end on rollers b, on the main frame of the machine, and at the opposite end upon a sleeve c, supported in a bearing ou the frame. Through the sleeve passes a central shaft d, bearing at the opposite end on the main frame This shaft carries a roller e, having an uneven external surface, and of such dimensions that an annular space is left between it and the cylinder a. Rotary motion is imparted in opposite tions, as indicated by the arrows, the roller receiving the greater speed. A supply of tea-leaf is introduced into the feeding-trough f, whence it passes down a hopper g, and through nn opening h, in the non-rotating end of the cylinder a.