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Stitchawl · 11-15-2011, 07:13 PM

Don't know much about history
Don't know much biology
Don't know much about a science book
Don't know much about the french I took

But I do know that I love you
And I know that if you love me too
What a wonderful world this would be

Don't know much about geography
Don't know much trigonometry
Don't know much about algebra
Don't know what a slide rule is for

But I do know that one and one is two
And if this one could be with you
What a wonderful world this would be

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNO72aCnVr0 )

Good morning, all! Happy Wednesday! Steam coming out of my cup right now... smells like East India Company's 'Assam' tea. Hmmmm.... I wonder.... Being one of the oldest tea merchants, could it have been East India Company's tea that was dumped into Boston Harbor?

Yes, there was a 'Boston Tea Party' that did dump tea... just not that much of it. Only a few cases were thrown overboard before the soldiers chased away the 'vandals.' Considering that the ships carried thousands of creates of tea, it wasn't much of a loss.

But it wasn't the tea tax, per se' that they were protesting with their cry of "No taxation without representation!" It was a much more serious tax, one that took away not pennies for a beverage, but homes, livestock, and even lives... for some wood!

A law was passed by the Crown that read "Every White Pine tree with a diameter, at breast height, of over the forearm of a grown man is property of the Crown, and cutting them is subject to taxation." These were the trees used by the British Navy for the masts of their ships. At the time, the north east part of colonies were covered with huge stands of White Pine, and anyone homesteading had to cut down hundreds of them just to clear land for raising crops. In 1750, almost 80% of the area now known as north-eastern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine had been deforested and turned into farmland. (Today it's less than 40% and Vermont is back to being 85% forest.) Anyone cutting a tree was forced to pay a tax for each and every one of them. Non-compliance was grounds for having home, livestock, and property seized and the head of the household thrown in jail. It was this "Pine Tree Tax" that people were up in arms about, and one of the major contributing causes of the American Revolution. So important that several of these States have put the White Pine tree in their state flags!

Today, there are just seven virgin White Pine trees left in Vermont. They are almost 200 feet tall and about 2 meters in diameter. They are on private property and the owner only allows visitors in to see them by appointment. (Note: There are plenty of White Pine trees all over New England today, but only these seven are virgin. The rest are all second and third growth trees, and much smaller.)

The Tea Party was just symbolic. And in sympathy, I'm going to have a second cup of Assam tea!

Stitchawl

11-15-2011, 07:13 PM	#16747
Stitchawl Opsimath Posts: 12,344 Karma: 187123287 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand Device: Sony PRS-650, iPhone 5, Kobo Glo, Sony PRS-350, iPad, Samsung Galaxy	Don't know much about history Don't know much biology Don't know much about a science book Don't know much about the french I took But I do know that I love you And I know that if you love me too What a wonderful world this would be Don't know much about geography Don't know much trigonometry Don't know much about algebra Don't know what a slide rule is for But I do know that one and one is two And if this one could be with you What a wonderful world this would be ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNO72aCnVr0 ) Good morning, all! Happy Wednesday! Steam coming out of my cup right now... smells like East India Company's 'Assam' tea. Hmmmm.... I wonder.... Being one of the oldest tea merchants, could it have been East India Company's tea that was dumped into Boston Harbor? Yes, there was a 'Boston Tea Party' that did dump tea... just not that much of it. Only a few cases were thrown overboard before the soldiers chased away the 'vandals.' Considering that the ships carried thousands of creates of tea, it wasn't much of a loss. But it wasn't the tea tax, per se' that they were protesting with their cry of "No taxation without representation!" It was a much more serious tax, one that took away not pennies for a beverage, but homes, livestock, and even lives... for some wood! A law was passed by the Crown that read "Every White Pine tree with a diameter, at breast height, of over the forearm of a grown man is property of the Crown, and cutting them is subject to taxation." These were the trees used by the British Navy for the masts of their ships. At the time, the north east part of colonies were covered with huge stands of White Pine, and anyone homesteading had to cut down hundreds of them just to clear land for raising crops. In 1750, almost 80% of the area now known as north-eastern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine had been deforested and turned into farmland. (Today it's less than 40% and Vermont is back to being 85% forest.) Anyone cutting a tree was forced to pay a tax for each and every one of them. Non-compliance was grounds for having home, livestock, and property seized and the head of the household thrown in jail. It was this "Pine Tree Tax" that people were up in arms about, and one of the major contributing causes of the American Revolution. So important that several of these States have put the White Pine tree in their state flags! Today, there are just seven virgin White Pine trees left in Vermont. They are almost 200 feet tall and about 2 meters in diameter. They are on private property and the owner only allows visitors in to see them by appointment. (Note: There are plenty of White Pine trees all over New England today, but only these seven are virgin. The rest are all second and third growth trees, and much smaller.) The Tea Party was just symbolic. And in sympathy, I'm going to have a second cup of Assam tea! Stitchawl Last edited by Stitchawl; 11-15-2011 at 07:17 PM.