Listen to the following passage. Altogether the passage will be read to you four times. During the first reading, which will be

The Story of Tea
    Tea remained unknown to the western world until the sixteenth century, / when European explorers who gaveled to China and other Far Eastern countries / returned with a host of new foods, spices, and beverages. / Very soon a thriving commerce in China teas was established. / In 1826 the Dutch established plantations on Java. / followed some ten years later by British, / who set up tea estates in India. / The production of tea has since spread rapidly. / Tea is made from the leaves of an evergreen tropical and subtropical plant. / Black tea is produced by first allowing tea leaves to wither. / The leaves are fed through rolling machines to release the juices. / The rolled tea leaves are then placed in extremely humid rooms / and left to ferment. / Fermentation is stopped by drying the leaves over fires in pans, trays, or baskets, / a process that also seals in their final flavor. /