The Adulteration of Coffee 47 



Casuariana equisetifolia, called Australian 

 pine, would make valuable windbreaks in many 

 places. It is also a fast grower, and reaches a 

 considerable height in a short time. 



THE ADULTERATION OF COFFEE. 



Things have really changed since 1820, 

 when the famous book entitled " There's 

 Death in the Pot " was published, but not 

 without giving a shock to the public. To-day 

 you can safely go to any restaurant in this 

 country and ask, and even get, a cup of 

 coffee more or less well made, but you can 

 rely as to its purity. At the time when the 

 above book was published, and even later, when 

 the disclosures by the " Analytic Sanitary 

 Commission " instituted by the " Lancet," 

 coffee was adulterated to such an extent that it 

 became a dangerous drink. The part roasted, 

 that is the bean itself, is a hard, horny 

 albumen, and many other plants similar in 

 texture were, and are even now, used in some 

 parts of the continent to adulterate it. 

 Machinery has even been invented to manu- 

 facture coffee beans, which seems incredible. 

 Coffee used to be mixed with mahogany saw- 

 dust, and even when sold as " genuine " was 

 mixed with chicory. Coffee mixed with 



