September r, 1884.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



225 



XI— Peru. 



Here the cocoa is cultivated in the gardens of Montana, 

 but in the forests of Peru, the tree thrives also luxuri- 

 antly. The sort cultivated here, or rather called from 

 trees growing wild, is the same as the Ecuador, and known 

 there as guayaquil. The export, however, is of very little 

 consequence. 



XII. — Surinam. 



In Surinam the cocoa culture has attained great exten- 

 sion of late years. The plantations there were for the 

 most part worked by Creole labourers, but experience has 

 shown these people to be so unmanageable, that they had 

 to be supplanted by coolies. During the last years the 

 crops have suffered greatly from great droughts. 



XIII. — Venezuela. 



The varieties of Venezuela cocoa known under the names 

 of Caracas and Maracaibo, are acknowledged to be the 

 best of all the sorts produced in the Western Hemisphere, 

 and though the bean was first imported into Spain from 

 Mexico, yet very great quantities were afterwards sup- 

 plied from Venezuela. 



The tree is considered to grow best there in moist, level 

 regions ; it then bears one pound of fruit as early as the 

 fifth or sixth year. In the proximity of the coast the 

 tree grows to maturity in the eighth year, hut in the Unique 

 districts along the lake of Valencia, and in the Province 

 of Oarabobo, it lasts a year longer. Experienced planters, 

 however, aver that the culture covers all expenses as early 

 as the sixth year. 



The quality of the Venezuela cocoa has been much spoiled 

 by the introduction of the more profitable, hut much in- 

 ferior surt, called Ti-initario or Trinidad. This is now the 

 main product of the district of Guiria, Maturin, Oarupano 

 and. the tract along the coast as far as Rio Chico ; on 

 some plantations, however, the so-called Oriollo or Creole 

 is exclusively cultivated. 



The Trinitario sort is also cultivated in some parts of 

 the Tuy, though the majority of the plantations apply 

 themselves to the cultivation of the Criolln. There is thus 

 a supply of good cocoa from this region. 



The region that produces the best cocoa extends from 

 the harbour of La Guayra westwards as far as Puerto and 

 Cabelle; especially in the neighbourhood of Ghoroni, 

 O'Oumar, Turiamo, Patanemo and Borburato the product 

 is excellent, while the very best is furnished by the Plant- 

 ation Chuas, situated near Ghoroni. 



From the neighbourhood of San Felipe, the capital of 

 the State of Yaracuy, an average quantity of 5,000 cwt. 

 of very good, though of a mixed sort of cocoa is annually 

 exported. ,, 



The district of Ohichiriviche, formerly one of the regions 

 that produced the coca, has declined considerably by the 

 importation of the Trinidad sort. 



On some plantations where the Trinidad *ort is now cult- 

 ivated, the planters are introducing the red earth of Gho- 

 roni, wherewith they colour the beans. 



In general it may bo said that Venezuela, especially 

 by the importation of Trinidad seed, has retrograded as 

 regards the cocoa culture; not only has the quality de- 

 teriorated, but the quantity exported has also diminished 

 considerably compared with formerly. The best marks are 

 taken by Spain and France; these grow almost exclusively 

 in the coast districts, and are therefore called cacao de la 

 costa. The beau is of a dark colour, larger, richer and 

 containing more oil than the other sorts. 



The so-called cacao meeelado 'mixed cocoa) is the pro- 

 duct of the plantations on which the indigenous and the, 

 Trinidad sorts are cultivated promiscuously. This sort is 

 of a much inferior quality, though the foreign trees have 

 unproved by growing in a so much better soil. This pro- 

 duct goes chiefly to England and Germany. 



The fragrance of the cocoa depends chiefly on the nature 

 of the soil. The very best Venezuela cocoa is furnished 

 by only one plantation, and though seeds of this sort have 

 been tried within the circumference of one mile, yet no 

 where has any sort of equal excellence been able to be 

 reared. This sort is never exported, it fetching there double 

 the price of what Europe is willing to pay for it. 



It is beyond all doubt that both the climate and soil 

 of Venezuela are exc< ..ently adapted for this branch of 

 culture. The land is low, is now and then inundated, and 

 29 



retains the moisture throughout the summer. The climate 

 is a hot one, so that a moist warmth prevails. The trouble 

 and costs of irrigation are spared without any detriment 

 to tho crop. 



An important part of the labour of the cocoa culture 

 is applied to the making and keeping in order of trenches 

 to carry off the superabundant rainwater, as nothing is 

 so injurious to the plant as stagnant water. Nine months 

 elapse between the appearance and the maturing of tie- 

 fruit. The mean produce per tree is 1 or lj lb. per sea- 

 son. The age of the trees varies between 20 and 40 years, 

 according to the richness of the soil. 



XIV.— AVest India. 



In general the culture has not attained a high degree 

 of development in the West Indian Islands. In Dominica 

 even it is conducted in a slovenly way. The trees stand 

 too close, pruning is neglected, shading is unattended to, 

 ami fermentation disregarded. 



In Guadeloupe the culture used formerly to be as much 

 neglected ; at present, however, it is improving, especially 

 in eonsequeuce of the introduction of plants direct from 

 Venezuela. 



In Jamaica the culture formerly flourished, but the im- 

 port duties imposed by the English government on cocoa 

 very greatly impeded this industry. Now, however, cir- 

 cumstances have much improved in this respect, and tin 1 

 culture is consequently reviving. 



Trinidad still furnishes the most cocoa. More attention 

 is now paid there to the improvement of the seed, and 

 the consequences are patent ; at least, a comparison may 

 already be ventured with the Trinidad sort and the Creole 

 sort of Venezuela. 



The export amounted in tho year 1876 to 8,705,500 lb-; 

 1877, 8,103,779 lb.; 1878, 2,392,324 lb.; 1879, 11,791,032 Hi 

 Later data are wanting. — Indian Mercury 



TRAVELS OF A USEFUL PLANT. 



In M. Mangin's work, Les Jardins, published at Tours 

 in 1867, a curious account appeared of the importation of 

 the Coffee plant into France, and of its subsequent con- 

 veyance to Martinique; and the same story was repeated 

 in the Famous Parks awl Gardens of the World, an illustrated 

 volume, published in London in 1880. by T. Nelson & Sons. 

 We learn from M. Mangin that the coffee plant first struck 

 root in French soil in one of the hothouses of the Royal 

 Gardens of Versailles, in 1703. But the gardeners of that 

 time were necessarily inexperienced in the cultivation of 

 exotics, and the plant died from ill-treatment. The Dutch 

 being then large importers of produce from the East, 

 another Coffee plant soon reached the Royal Gardens as 

 a present from the Burgomaster of Amsterdam. The plant 

 flourished, and having been successfully propagated by 

 cuttings, a young plant wa, given by Antom'e de Jussieu 

 to the Chevalier Declieux, a naval officer, who undertook, 

 at the request of the donor, to convey it to the French 

 colony of Martinique, the climate of which was believed 

 to be suitable, so that coffee might be raised there as an 

 article of commerce. Aided by gods and man, by Minerva, 

 Bacchus, and Hercules, and by various enterprising and 

 colonising nations, from the Greeks and Romans to tho 

 modern English, unnumbered plants have been removed from 

 their original stations, to others in very different regions, 

 sometimes in another hemisphere, or at the antipodes, and 

 frequently the new stations have suited the emigrants better 

 than the old ones. 



The travels of transported plants have been often attended 

 with danger. Sometimes they have encountered en route 

 a latitude too cold for them; sometimes the ship's crew 

 have mutinied, as in the case of the " Bounty " with the Bread 

 Fruit on board; and still more frequently the plants have 

 been neglected. But the French captain was just such an 

 enthusiast as our great plant collectors and importers are 

 glad to meet with, and ho brought his pet plant — for he inly 

 kept the cutting from Versailles alive by petting it — safely 

 to Martinique. The dangers of the voyage are summed 

 up briefly in the words. " Want of water." Nothing 

 in a sea voyage can be more terrible than a failure of 

 the store of water. The ration of the precious fluid which 

 was served out to M. Declieux, at last, did not exceed a 

 small glassful daily, and perhaps no other such example 



