Tea & American Indipendence
「Like all the good things of the world, the propagnda of Tea met with opposition. Heretics like Henry Saville(1678) denounced drinking it as filthy custom. Jonas Hanway(Essay on Tea,1756) said that men seemed to lose their stature and comeliness, woman their beauty through the use of tea. Its cost at the start (about fifteen or sixteen shillings a pound) forbade popular consumption, and made it "regalia for hight treatments and entertainments, presents being made thereof to princes and grandees." Yet, in spite of such drawbacks tea-drinking spread with marvellous rapidity. The coffee-houses of London in the early half of the eighteenth century became, in fact, tea-houses, the resort of wits like Addison and Steele, who beguiled themselves over their "dish of tea." The beverage soon became a necessry of life-a taxable matter. We are reminded in this connection what an important part in it plays in modern history. Colonial America resigned herself to oppression until human endurance gave way before the heavy duties laid on Tea. American indipendence dates from the throwing of tea-chests into Boston harbour.」
From The Book of Tea-the Cup of Humanity pp.12-13(Charles E. Tuttles Co. Rutland,Vermont-Tokyo,Japan)
The throwing of tea into Boston Harbour was the important historical happening to induce the indipendence war against England. The facts mean at that time Tea was already inevitable drinks in their daily life. I don't hesitate to agree to Okakura's description "in spite of drawbacks tea-drinking spread with marvellous rapidity". He also recognized the facts of "necessary of life-a taxable matter." I laugh silently to myself becuse our japanese goverment is always struggle to find a taxable matter in daily so called non・alcoholic drinks.
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