PLANTATIONS 



leaves do not ferment as do tea-leaves. Mate is a much more whole- 

 some drink than our tea, and drinkers who once become accustomed 

 to its slightly smoky flavour cannot bear to be without it. I was 

 told that the countryfolk of Rio Grande do Sul and the Argentine 

 — the gauchos — would not be able to get through their heavy 

 work without their mate ; it is at once nourishing and stimulating. 

 In the south the traveller who enters the lonely hut of a country- 

 man is offered the drink of the country, contained in a little 

 gourd, into which a small tube is introduced, the lower end of 

 which is closed, but perforated like a sieve. This bombilla goes from 

 mouth to mouth, and one must not offend one's host by refusing to 

 drink. 



I must mention also the Guarana, a liana from whose seeds the 

 natives of Amazonas prepare a stimulating drink; and many 

 factories use the paste which results from crushing the seeds for 

 making an aerated "lemonade." But the most important beverage 

 of Brazil is coffee. Coffee is always offered when one pays a call in 

 Brazil ; even if one calls on a cabinet minister, coffee is served to 

 shorten the time of waiting. It is drunk out of small "mocha" cups; 

 it is very strong, and sweetened with the finest cane-sugar. Personally, 

 I think this is the best way of taking coffee, and that the harmful 

 effects of coffee-drinking may often be attributed to the addition of 

 milk. While at Jahu, in the interior of Sao Paulo, I once suffered 

 from a bowel trouble, and was advised to drink a few cups of coffee ; 

 which I did, with good results. In Brazil a cup of coffee taken late 

 at night never disturbed my sleep, as it often does in Europe. The 

 tropical climate may of course have something to do with the 

 matter. The Brazilian coffee is admirable ; its flavour and aroma are 

 incomparable, and since my visit to Brazil the coffee which is drunk 

 in Europe is no longer to my liking. There I always enjoyed the cup 

 with which every meal ended. Once, in a restaurant, I forgot to 

 order coffee after dinner, but the waiter brought it none the less; 

 he seemed to regard my omission as due to a temporary mental 

 aberration. 



As regards the quality of Brazilian coffee, I remember a Brazilian 

 assured me that just as we Germans can distinguish the qualities of 

 different vintages of wines, so the Brazilians can name the years in 

 which the best coffee was grown. 



Sorting and treatment are of course factors of importance; 

 moreover, transport by sea may to some extent affect the aroma. 

 Brazil is the largest coffee-growing country in the world, and the 



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