What They Say in New England/Tea-Grounds

by Clifton Johnson

Tea-Grounds
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When you find tea-grounds floating in your cup, know that you are going to have company. If the grounds are soft, it is a woman who is coming; if hard, a man, If the grounds are long, the person coming is tall; if short, the visitor will be short. When a girl or woman first sights the floating grounds in her cup, the comment is apt to be, “There, got a beau!” If the grounds are taken out and thrown under the table, the company will stay all night. If the grounds are left in the cup, the visitor will simply make a call.

After you drink the tea you can get still further enlightenment, if there are grounds in the bottom of the cup. Turn the cup around a few times. Then put it bottom upwards on your saucer, and give it a few more turns, Now turn it over. If you see paths in the grounds, it is a sign that you are to go on a journey. If the paths are long, the journey will be long, and vice versâ. Turn the cup up sideways, and if any tea runs out you will cry on your journey. If the grounds anywhere form a ring with a dot in the middle, that is a wish, and you must think what you most want. You may see hills, and people walking or working or on horseback. All the things you see have a meaning. But I believe you are at liberty to interpret them pretty much as you choose. It is to be noted that many people can see naught but the tea-grounds, where others see all sorts of objects in them.