NOVEMDER I, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



369 



colony may permit, in preference to concentrating all effort 

 ami attention to the development of one or two producis 

 for ■which the conditions of the country may be ir^Y suited. 



So far and so successfully has its influence operated in 

 Ceylon (as well as India) that today we see — uot as here 

 the principal exports consist of only One or two subjects, 

 but of a dozen or more. 



Some of these besides the leading ones are on such elastic 

 bases that on a leading export showing signs of falHug-off 

 one year, some product of lesser importance is made to 

 double its output in a single year — as seen at present 

 in respect of Cinchona Baik, Tea and Cacao — three strik- 

 ing examples which a perusal of this excellent " Tropic- 

 al Agricultui'e " will afford ample information of. 



The first two wc cannot of course do here — for want 

 of elevation— so that notice of their cultivation would be 

 waste of time — but what of' Cacao 'i With this subject 

 there is an extraordinary increase of output — in the course 

 of three years the export having developed from a few 

 pounds obtained from a few neglected trees in the jungle, 

 and wliich a happy thought had brought to light by 

 clearing and pruning, to the present considerable export 

 of 101,800 lb. and wliich, besides, in the London market 

 — by tlie beauty of its sample is the envy of both buyers 

 and sellers, and has accordingly settled down to a lead- 

 ing position in the market at lOds— abreast of the best 

 from Trinidad. 



Of coui'se there is no reason why the very best Trini- 

 dad Cocoa should uot be better than it now is : or that 

 the present Trinidad seconds and thirds and even fourths 

 (if such can still be cacao) should not be equal or very 

 nearly equal to the present Trinidad best, and thus leave 

 the Ceylon cacao at least a shade behind. 



In order to obtain this desii'able position it will be ne- 

 cessary — simultaneously with the adoption of a method- 

 ical plan for sampling our cacao into about five sets (of 

 varieties) — to fallow tlie system of Ceylon growers : what 

 tliis is I venture to subjoin an extract from the Tropical 

 AgyiciiUvitat to sliow. 



From this it will be seen that — as I have previously 

 advocated as indispensable, under a rational method 

 of preparing cacao .for the market, and for realiz- 

 ing the full value of the produce — the Ceylon plan- 

 ic/'d' wash their Cacao, Here, however, and elsewhere 

 in the West, it is affirmed that to wash cacao is to spoil 

 it both in the operation which breaks the skin, and in 

 its after state : or that it costs too much to be practic- 

 able even when the sample is improved. 



But these objections arise only from a want of appreci- 

 ation of the requirements in the operation and — prob- 

 ably — carelessness in conducting it, it even such had been 

 tried. Previous impression of the effects on the beans of 

 the common practice of amassing, sweating, rubbing, 

 , drying (w)iich is simply encasing the beans in their 

 mucilaginous ccverii'g decomposed and dried with a con- 

 siderable addition of foreign matter) must for a long 

 time stand as an obstacle in the way of the creole planter 

 under.standing a perfectly clean pale cinnamon brown 

 light bcnn with ea.sy fracture, as the right sort of sample. 



It may be questioned what led the Ceylon planters to 

 wash their cacao — for we may conclude they got no advice 

 liom their friends in the West to wash it. 



For the answer we may reflect that the Ceylon cacao 

 ha.s been dealt with under the immediate supervision and 

 manipulation guided by the high intelligence of — for the 

 most part— English and Scotch gentlemen resident pro- 

 prietors or managers. Thry were suddenly aroused to the 

 necessity of appropriating to the utmost .anything in the 

 way of cacao, and a few old trees neglected for years 

 were at all once made recipients of their most tender regard 

 and attention. The trees were bearing profusely, so that 

 cocoa had to be " cured" at once. Old papers and notes 

 on the subject were hunted up, and cacao was found to 

 be cured by being either " sun-dried" or " sweated" and 

 dried, so the sun-drying process being the simplest was 

 started ; but then, there was so much mucilage, and 

 after the first day had become so uninviting in appearance 

 that with their feeling of respect for everything clean, 

 they concluded that their cacao was not going to be the 

 right sort of thing for the English market— (though this 

 was the first new cacao they had ever seen)— even if it 

 coidd be dried, so they decided to lanh it— for as one 

 told uie they could do nothing else with it— hut the ad- 



dition of water so greatly increased the mucilage as to 

 leave it impracticable and besides the ekin of the beans 

 broke in the washing and thus the whole thing was 

 thrown away — as actually happened in more than one in- 

 stance. Further on it was desired to try what " sweating" 

 would do, accordingly beans were put to sweat under the 

 discomfort of wide diversity of opinion as to the period 

 necessary for the " sweating." But being put to sweat, 

 in the course of a few days the mass presented a dis- 

 gusting appeariince of rottenness that washing was again 

 tried as one way of getting out of the fright : this timo 

 with very different results. The sweating had decomposed 

 the mucilaginous covering of the beans, and light waslung 

 left them clean and as pleasing in appearance as new 

 copper coins. Put at once in the sun, they dried in a 

 surprizingly short time, and soon the result of the prized 

 Ceylon Cacao of sweet mild flavour, cinnamon colour and 

 free 'break,' was attained. 



Before all this however a civilized practice in respect 

 of fruit gathering was followed : — viz 



Only the ripe pods were gathered, and thus the beans 

 were uniformly affected in the sweating and drying and 

 came out a uniform sample. 



The process herein followed successfuUy was therefore 

 briefly this : — 



Only ripe pods dealt with ; the beans amassed to sweat 

 (being turnecl once or twice) then carefully washed and 

 put in the sun to dry. 



Jt may here be remarked that the beans being suffici- 

 ently sweated to admit of being washed readily, and yet 

 not sufficiently sweated to have fully expanded their coty- 

 ledons — i. e. the parts which become nibs — or to have re- 

 duced their acridity — can be returned for further sweat- 

 ing after the washing. 



The drying being effected immediately after the wash- 

 ing or second sweating, mildewing and discoloration there- 

 from would never occur , and of course the labour of 

 *' rubbing" would be avoided. Necessity for prompt drying 

 renders washing indispensable, for washed beans dry in 

 one-third the time of beans covered with the decomposed 

 mucilage ; and as during the wet mouths artificial means 

 for drying cacao as employed with Tea is a great desider- 

 atum of the time — a point which it is my chief object in 

 addressing you now to draw attention to, it should not be 

 overlooked that drying by artificial means will not be 

 practicable or unwashed beans — except for re-drying damp 

 cocoa, cured in the old manner. 



It would be well for the cocoa interest generally if in 

 view of the November and December rains a practical con- 

 sideration were to be given to this point at once. 



It should never be lost sight of that cocoa beans in bulk 

 — uot larger than the usual quantity of a "crook" basket 

 or sack and if kept from the air by such a covering as au 

 ordinary sack — will keep fresh and sound for 3 to 5 days — 

 except as to the mucilage which will waste somewhat — as 

 is desirable. Beans might therefore be brought in from all 

 but the most remote parts to be carefully washed and dried 

 at central towns or villages — with great pecuuiary advant- 

 age both to grower and dealer. — I am &c., 



H. PEESTOE, 

 Covt. Botanist. 



St. Ann'.s, 30th June 1883. 



Extract from Tropical AgricuUuriit, 



•• low couxtky proditcts." 



("Notes by a Pl.\nter on his tr.wels.") 



" cveinu the be.-vns" l,cavao). 



A cooly piukb two I'Usliels of totoa braus per diem, aiiil as 

 five bushels wet— 1 (wt the cost is only about 87c a cwt for piclc- 

 iiig as compared with K2 to R3 for Liberian coffee. The jMids 

 are first cut from tbe tree, a small piece of stem being left on 

 the tree, unci the eooly talies one in each band and with a knoclt 

 breaks them both in halves, and tlien w itli one draw of bis 

 lingers dexterously strips all the beans off tbe centre pulp, 

 Tbe pods aie then tlirown round tbe trees and ait ils mainire, 

 wbile Ibe beans (.re removed to tbe fermenting ci.sterns. It takes 

 from ii to it days to properly ferment the cocoa, and it is then 

 ready for washing. It is trampled first, ns in coffee, with tbe 

 feet, and then is removed in baskets and carefully handwasheii, 

 us wasbiug with tbe "matapalagei" damages the beans. I bave 

 no doubt tbat ere long some means less expensive will be found 

 for washing, and the Clerihew will be much improved on too. 



After wasbing, the cocoa is laid on mats to dry as coffee is, if 

 the weather is suitable; ami at times it is udvisal'le to give it 



