Jam, I, i88 7.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



49' 



To quote the words of •" Wyvern " on hi^ cook : — 

 "I doubt the policy of qutvrrellingwith your best friend." 

 If a curer of his owu free will offer a substantial 

 reduction, planters miy depend that the otfer means 

 slovenly work, and a loss to themselves by way of 

 prices realised. The recent failure on the Cioast 

 proves that coffee curing is not all " beer," although 

 there may be a good deal of "skittles" about it 

 sometimes; and even at K45, coffee-curing does not 

 always pay. 



In connection with curing, freight is a subject 

 much discussed, and some little misunderstanding 

 appears to prevail. The enterprising agents of the 

 British India Company offer to contract for 355. per 

 ton, against 425. 6i. to 45s. of the coffee steamers, 

 and some planters cotract to ship apparently obli- 

 vious to the fact that the British India rate is for 

 12 cwt. (Bombay scale; or 52.-;. 6(/. for 18 cwt. (Coast 

 scale). So the planter pays at least 10s. per shipping 

 ton more to the British India Co., than he would 

 do to the coffee steamers. Last season the difference 

 was I2s. 6d. per ton in favor of the coffee steamer. 

 The shipper by the British India has, besides, the 

 above the benefit of transhipment in Bombay, a;id 

 sometimes the additional luxury of having his coffee 

 delivered in London in broken-up parcels, the cargo 

 being sent off from Bombay as it suits the P. and 

 O. Company to take it. There is an alternative line 

 of steamers, which is being patronised by most of 

 the large shippers on the coasc to whom the tone 

 assumed ky the British India for so many years 

 has become monotonous. I can speak to the fact 

 that the Asiatic Company and their agents are 

 most desirous of meeting the wishes of planters, and 

 no effort is spared in protecting shippers' interests. 

 An old custom still survives with a few planters of 

 shipping in cases. I cannot account for the reason 

 of it. There is most certainly no enhauced price 

 realised now-a-days, in comparison with bags. On 

 the contrary, the same coffee shipped in bags will 

 net about 4d. per cwt. more than in cases, and 

 there is besides a saving in freight, and R5 per ton 

 in curing charges. In conclusion, I may state, without 

 the slightest hesitation, that it would pay planters 

 hand over fist to spend more money on the pre- 

 paration of their coffee on the co&st.— Madras Mail. 



"BELOW THE HORIZON:" 



COFFEE AND CACAO 100 Years a«o in the West 

 Indies. 



It is, perhaps, a little late in the day to write about 

 coffee and coffee estimates ; but yet there is some 

 interest in it even for many of us who, through 

 force of untoward circumstances, are now out 

 of touch of the fragrant berry. We can 

 all appreciate anyhow the present upward course 

 of the market even if we have but tea to sell ; 

 for if coffee is going to be scarce, and in time 

 become a beverage only for the wealthy, then, 

 we will have more?consumers for our tea, and thus 

 indirectly benefit it by the enhanced value of coffee. 



I have lately been dipping into an old history 

 of the. West Indies in two volumes by Bryan 

 Edwards, published in 1794, an elaborate book 

 with maps and plates and bound in a way which 

 tells of honest work; for although now nearly a 

 hundred _ years since it left the hands of the 

 binder, it seems strcng enough still to outlive 

 another century. In the chapter on the products 

 of the islands there are two at least, which are 

 o^f interest to the Obserur's readers :— Coffee and 

 Cacao. Regarding the former the writer gives a very 

 clear and full account of the then style of cultiv- 

 ation and curing with an estimate for opening an 

 estate of 300 acres, worked by slave labour. 



There is not much for the coffee planter of today 

 to learn from the old methods and it is more foj 

 the curiosity ol the thing than for ought else 

 that I seek to bring the system of these old 



planters under the notice of your constitu- 

 ents. They planted 8 ft. by 8 ft., which few Ceylon 

 places could stand ; but wide as this was it was 

 found to be too close at times, and the planter of 

 those days " thought it advisable to cut down every 

 second row, within ten or twelve inches of the 

 ground, and by well moulding (? manuring) the 

 stump they will furnish a succession of hearty, 

 young trees while the rows which are left will bear 

 much better for the room which is given them." 

 The trees were topped at a height of five or six 

 feet, so as to have from thirty-six to forty-two 

 bearing branches. The average crop was about six 

 cwt. an acre, but individual trees had borne at 

 the rate of forty cwt ! The coffee was not picked 

 until the berry was "black red," and a negro 

 with a bag hung round his neck,- provided with 

 an iron hoop in the mouth to keep it open, could, 

 if he were industrious, bring in three bushels a day. 



They had two ways of curing, drying in the 

 cherry, and pulping and then drying. By the former 

 method, if the weather was favourable, ceft'eo 

 could be cured in three weeks, the bean" weighing 

 four percent heavier than if cured without the pulp." 



It was also considered a better quality of bean. 

 As to the pulper in use, it seems to have been 

 a simple crusher :— " The pulping mill consists of 

 a horizontal fiuted roller about eighteen inches 

 long and eight inches in diameter. The roller is 

 turned by a crank or handle, and acts against 

 a moveable breast-board, which being fitted close 

 to the grooves of the roller prevents the berries 

 from passing through." There was no means for 

 separating theparchment coffee from the skin, it 

 had to be taken out by wire sieves. A negro could 

 pulp a bushel a minute. The coffee was not 

 fermented, but put out to dry at once. 



About the time the book under notice was published, 

 the duty on coffee which had been Is 6d a pound 

 had been reduced to 6^d, and the efforts of the 

 planters were being put'forth to meet the increased 

 demand at home which had arisen in consequence. 

 In the island of St. Domingo, which was a formid- 

 able rival to Jamaica, the slaves had rebelled and 

 destroyed over a thousand of the coffee estates : 

 the result was a greatly dimini.'5hed export and 

 a rise of prices in the European markets from 

 70s to 90s per cwt. There were, therefore, good times 

 before the Jamaica planters and they saw their 

 way to take advantage of them, provided 

 " labourers shall continue to be procured from 

 Africa at moderate prices." They hoped in time to 

 do away with the necessity of importing slaves, 

 through the natural increase of those already in 

 the island, as they would be much healthier on 

 hill estates than they had been in the low country. 

 By this means they would gradually abolish the 

 slave trade and this " without giving reason of 

 complaint to any body of men." This was the 

 state of things when the following estimate was 

 framed to encourage capital to embark in the 

 culture of coffee : — 



" Estimate of the expense and return of a coffee 

 plantation in the mountains of Jamaica, fourteen 

 miles from the sea, calculated in the currency of 

 that island being forty ' per cent worse than 

 sterling : — 

 First cost of 300 acres mountain land of which 



one-half is preserved for provision and pastur- £ 



age at £3 per acre. . , . , . 1)00 



Ditto of 100 negroes at £70 per head . . 7,000 



of 20 mules at £28 „ .. 500 



Buildings, utensils, mills and negro tools, . 2,000 



Expense of maintaining the negroes the first year 



before provisions can be raised (exclusive of 



other annual expenses charged below) £5 each 500 



10,900 



