MONSOON. 149 



glad of the opportunity of seeing the method of culti- 

 vation followed in that province. 



The monsoon in these hills, with rare exceptions, 

 sets in about the beginning of June, and the down- 

 pour continues with longer or shorter interruptions 

 until the middle of September ; during that time 

 seedlings of coffee are planted out from the nurseries, 

 vacancies filled up and new plantations formed. That 

 operation completed, weeding becomes the principal 

 work, requiring all the hands that can be obtained. 

 This is a trying time for the occupants of the 

 bungalow, whose thatched roof then almost resembles 

 a sieve ; every available vessel is set to catch the rain, 

 still pools of water ai-e unavoidable throughout the 

 house, and fires become most acceptable. 



Crop time was now at hand, and I only delayed my 

 departure from Pore to witness the harvesting opera- 

 tion. Of course, the time of the year when coffee 

 gardens look their best is during the few days, or 

 sometimes a week, in the middle of March, when every 

 bud opens under the influence of the so-called blossom 

 or mango showers, and when slopes and valleys become 

 all at once covered, as it were, with a thick layer of 

 snow-flakes, whilst the perfume — a strong spice or 

 vanilla scent — pervades the atmosphere for miles 

 around. That is the time par excellence, I say, to 



