Dr. Axel Preyer 1 1 



every other day the covering is taken off, the 

 heaps stirred round, and again covered over 

 as before. The vinegar or liquid percolates 

 through the bottom. The fermentation goes 

 on slower in damp weather than in dry ; on 

 the other hand, a certain amount of moisture is 

 necessary for fermentation. If the air gets in 

 owing to the faulty covering of the heaps, 

 decomposition and discolouration of the shells 

 of the beans take place. The fermentation 

 is ended when the outer pulp of the cacao 

 bean is so far loosened that it can be removed 

 in the succeeding washing. The pulp of well- 

 fermented beans comes away in the washing 

 in small particles, not in long, slimy threads. 

 The washing itself is done in small baskets 

 which are smooth inside ; made from per- 

 forated palm leaves, these are filled with the 

 beans, which are washed where there is a large 

 volume of water but not too strong a current ; 

 immersed in this the baskets are subjected to 

 a steady, constant shaking, after which the 

 contents are transferred to a large receptacle. 

 All this takes place very quickly, and a 

 thorough cleaning of the bean is obtained 

 without any damage. In wet weather the 

 washed cacao is dried in layers in a drying- 

 house by artificial heat ; on sunny days they 

 are carefully spread out in the open on coco-nut- 

 matting, so that no two beans lie one on the 

 other. At night the whole is placed under 

 shelter. After three or four days the cacao is 



