IX 



COCOA-GROWING COUNTRIES 443 



abundant flowering of the cocoa tree. From this time 

 flowering goes on till the heavy rains come in May 

 and June. The cocoa tree needs in Surinam about four 

 months and a half to ripen its fruit ; accordingly, the 

 trees begin to bear about January or February, while the 

 main crop generally comes in the months of April, May, 

 June, July, while in the end of the year again a little 

 is picked. But there are exceptions to this rule : on 

 some plantations, for instance, the crop is always late, 

 and the main crop is not reaped before June and July. 



The following figures may give an idea of the amounts 

 reaped in the different months. They indicate the quan- 

 tities (in kilograms) sold to the local merchants : 



The number of the original inhabitants the Indians 



is so small that these people are of no significance 



from an economical point of view, and in old times an 



important slave-trade was necessary to import every 



year the number of slaves required for the plantations. 



After the emancipation of slaves in 1863 the planta- 

 tions had to look for other people to get the work done ; 

 for the negroes, now free, refused to work any longer 

 in the fields. 



