NUTMEGS AND MACE 149 



AVhen they are quite dry, the shell or testa must be 

 cracked off. This is usually done by striking them on 

 the end with a wooden truncheon. They must not be 

 struck on the side or some of the oil cells will be ruptured 

 by the bruise, and a black mark will be left, which mars 

 their appearance. In Banda the seeds are spread on a 

 flat kind of drum-head, where a man strikes them with 

 a flat piece of board, so that several are cracked at a 

 blow. Another man standing by sweeps them off as 

 they are cracked, and supplies fresh ones. A man 

 working in this way will crack more nuts without 

 injury than half a dozen men with the truncheon. 



A machine for cracking nutmegs was invented by 

 Mr. John Eudder, a native of Barbados, about 1902, 

 and was much in favour in Grenada. It consisted of a 

 long, high, narrow box, within which revolves a wooden 

 wheel, the rim of which is as wide as the box and is 

 formed of a series of wide, deep sockets. The nutmegs 

 are fed to the machine by a funnel-shaped box, into 

 which they are dropped at the top and fall into the 

 sockets, where they are dashed against the end of the 

 box. The force with which they strike cracks the shell 

 and the kernel and shells fall to the bottom of the box. 

 The whole machine was made of white pine-wood, and 

 cost 12: 10s. It would crack a barrelful of nuts in 

 two minutes. Most of the big exporters of nutmegs 

 in Grenada used the invention, and one who exported 

 600 barrels a year said he qould not do without it. 

 Some, however, objected to it on the ground that it 

 was apt to bruise the kernel. The inventor declared, 

 however, that it only damaged nutmegs which were 

 insufficiently cured or unhealthy. 



After the seed is taken from its shell it is liable to 

 the attacks of beetles, especially if it is left for any 

 length of time in the store or godown. To obviate this, 

 formerly at least, the Dutch used to lime the nutmegs. 

 This was done either by sprinkling them profusely or 

 rubbing by hand with powdered lime, or by dipping 

 them in a mixture of lime and water. In Banda, 



