JVLV I, 1886.J 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



^7 



however, only just to several of the other colonies to 

 say, that their exhibits of Arnatto seeds are for the 

 most part of good quality. Amongst other products 

 less generally kuowu are fruits of the Akee (Blighia 

 sapida), a sapiudaceous tree, native of tropical Africa, 

 but iutroduced to the A\'est Indies by Captain Bligh, 

 of H. M. S. " Bounty " in 1793. These fruits are fleshy, 

 somewhat Pear-shaped, but flattened on their sides. 

 When ripe they are of a reddish colour with a yellow 

 tinge. They dehisce by three longitudinal slits, each 

 division containing a shining black seed partly en- 

 veloped in a white fleshy aris, which is the edible 

 part and has an agreeable sub-acid taste, which seems 

 to be developed only in tropical countries; those 

 grown in hothouses here are said to have no such 

 flavour, but to be very insipid. The collection from 

 the island of Dominica is one of much interest, some 

 of the exhibits being of excellent quality and unusual 

 size; this is notably the case with the pods of the 

 Purging Cassia (Cassia fistula), the soft, pulpy dis- 

 sepiments of which is used in English medicine as 

 a laxative, being imported from both the East and 

 West Indies. The tree is well known in tropical 

 and warm countries on account of its ornamental 

 character, for which purpose, as well as for a shade- 

 tree, it is much grown. In this court are shown 

 some specimens of Cairo ginger in remarkably large 

 brands, indicating, that if this quality of the ginger 

 is equal to that of Jamaica it might be worth some 

 attention. Antigua, St. Lucia, Tobago, and St. Viuceut 

 all make a good display, and each has many interest- 

 ing exhibits which want of space alone prevents us 

 referring to more in detail. There are also some 

 striking exhibits from British Honduras, notably a 

 magnificieut slab of figured Mahogany, 10 or 12 feet, 

 by about 4 feet wide. Honduras, it is well known, 

 is a Mahogany producing country, from whence large 

 (juantities of this valuable wood are sent to England, 

 but the dark transverse wavy lines as seen iu this 

 specimen, are exceptional iu Mahogany, and if it 

 were more frequent so as to be procurable in sufh- 

 cient (juantity a demand would soon be created for 

 it for superior cabinet-work. A large and interesting 

 collection of water-colour drawings illustrating the 

 flora of the West Indies, by Mrs. Blake, wife of the 

 Governor of the Bahamas, most of which are extremely 

 well done, are displayed iu the centre of the court. 

 The whole of the West Indiau divisiou is well arranged 

 and its general aspect pleasing, reflecting very great 

 credit on Mr. A. J. Adderly, C.M.G., the Executive 

 Commissioner for the West Indian Colonies. — John 

 E. Jacksox, Museum, Royal Gardens, Kew. — Gardeners' 

 Chronicle. 



SHADE-DBIED AND HUN-DRIED COFFEE. 



Nearly a year ago we commented on the alleged 

 deterioration of colour in InJian plantation coffee, 

 and endeavoured to find an explanation of the bad 

 prices that had been realised by the previous season's 

 crop. The numerous letters which we received about 

 the same time from correspondents proved that 

 planters were well aware of the importance of the 

 subject. As might have been expecti-d, unusual care 

 was taken duriug the last season on estates and in 

 curing establishments, and, as a result— although the 

 season was on the whole unfavourable, owing to heavy 

 rain in December — the account sales already to hand 

 show, in most cases, a marked improvement, which 

 we hope will be maintained to the end. At the 

 beginning of crop, wheu everyone concerned was cast- 

 ing about for some means of improving his treatment 

 of the coffee, information was received from London 

 — so circuitous are the modes of conmiunicatiou 

 between planting districts in this country — that the 

 most surprisingly good results had been obtaiued by 

 a few Goorg and Mysore planters from a new, or 

 revived, sy.stem of drying their parchment under 

 shade. The improvement was so marked, that some 

 coffee done in this way realised £20 per ton better 

 than another shipment from the same estate dried 

 in the open. One planter, whose coffee sold for over 

 £100 a ton, was said to have not dried it at all, but 



to have loaded it into carts from the pulping 

 vats. We presume that in this case the estate was 

 near the curing-works. The experiment strikes one 

 as rather a dangerous one, though it has been tried, 

 we believe, in Ceylon on estates near the railway, 

 where coffee can be delivered at the Colombo works 

 a few hours after its despatch. The plan, however, 

 that is said to have answered best was to drain off 

 the water ia the sun for. about twelve hours ; then 

 to dry down to about 401b. per bushel under shade 

 pandals; after which, the parchment could be reduced 

 to any convenient despatching weight iu the sim. 

 The London brokers testified to the superiority of 

 this coffee over the ordinary sun-dried, and the (juestion 

 arose, if it were worth while to adopt the system 

 generally, or if the better price realised was merely 

 accidental, and connected with the locality where the 

 coffee was grown. The district which suffered most 

 from the low prices in 1884-85 was Wynaad, and the 

 Planters' Association there appointed a Committee to 

 make experiments with a view to discovering where 

 tlie fault in curing lay. The Committee's report 

 has not yet been published, but it is understood that 

 neither it, nor the Coast fii-ms who cured the Wynaad 

 crop, are able to detect any marked difference iu 

 the shade-dried over the sun-dried coffee. It may be 

 admitted that nobody can speak with absolute cer- 

 tainty as yet, because the full results of the Loudon 

 sales have not yet reached India, and, in several 

 cases, owing to the shortness of notice that was given, 

 only the latter part of crops could be shade-dried ; but 

 it is worth noticing that the crop from Coorg, where 

 the new plan was presumably more generally known 

 and adopted, is spoken of in the brokers' circulars 

 as very disappainting, and as inferior to last year's. 



Without, however, attempting to guess what sur- 

 prises Mincing Lane may have in store for planters, 

 there are two facts which lead us to suppose that 

 the good prices given for a few shade-dried crops 

 last year was due to some other cause than the 

 drying, and that it will be found unprofitable and 

 impracticable to carry out the process on most estates. 

 The first is, that from the time the parchment is 

 taken from the vats till it reaches a fair despatching 

 weight of about 35 lb. per bushel, the colour of the 

 bean remains perfectly good, whether it is sun-dried 

 or shade-dried, and nobody who has taken samples at 

 dift'ereut weights is able to perceive any dift'crenco 

 between specimens vmdergoing the two processes. 

 For peeling it is necessary to dry the coft'ee further 

 down to about 28 lb. per bushel, and as it is imposs- 

 ible (except on an experimental scale) to accomplish 

 this in the damp climate where the coft'ee is grown, 

 it has to be done in the curers' yards. There is uo doubt 

 the colour does fade to some extent between these 

 last weights, but, as far as experiments go, it fades 

 in the case of shade-dried as much as in the other. 

 Tedious as the process would be, this last reduction 

 might be made under shade — it must be remembered 

 that it was not done so in the cases we reft'ered to 

 from Coorg — if the certainty existed of better prices 

 being obtained, but, as far as we know, there is no 

 evidence of this. The second objection to shade- 

 drying is its great cost. In the ordinary process, 

 and with fair weather, the parchment can be put 

 into store after about three days' sun, and, on 

 most estates, the barbecue space is only avail- 

 able for a quantity based on this calculation, so that 

 even as it is, planters often find themselves a good 

 deal hampered in rainy weather. Now, the Coorg 

 advocates of shade-drying calculated that from thirteen 

 to seventeen days are required for their system ; hence 

 at least four times as much room would have to be 

 provided, and before people begin to cut out coft'ee 

 to provide this, they will need some stronger assur- 

 ance than they yet possess of the certainty of im- 

 proved prices, and the absence of all riok, for, in a 

 good many cases where the experiment was made 

 last season, the shade-driers found themselvt-s on the 

 verge of disaster from their parchment heating. 



It may, perhaps, be asked what steps may be re- 

 commended for avoidance of the repetition of the 

 low prices realised in 1884-85. To a great extent, 



