OFF TO THE BUSH 33 



trees, and as we get nearer to Nsawam they become 

 a more and more prominent feature of the small farms 

 on either side of the railway line. 



We leave the train at Nsawam, and walk a few 

 hundred yards to the bungalow residence of our host's 

 assistant who is in charge of one of the many factories 

 here. We are greeted with the typically warm 

 welcome of the Bush, the welcome which in a twinkling 

 turns strangers into friends and would fain make the 

 visitor believe he is doing a favour by coming. 



After a good breakfast, nicely served, to which 

 we do full justice, our host of Accra and his assistant 

 go down to the office for a few minutes to discuss 

 business. During their absence let us have a further 

 little talk about the cocoa tree. 



There are several varieties of cocoa, each with its 

 own botanical name. The distinctive names depend, 

 mainly, on the shape and colour of the fruits, or, as they 

 are more usually called, "pods," and on the internal 

 colour of the beans within the pods. At first sight of 

 beans taken from different varieties of freshly gathered 

 pods you would probably think they are all white, 

 because nature fits them carefully into the pods amongst 

 a quantity of soft, pasty white packing material, which 

 prevents them getting broken or scratched. 



Most scientific experts divide the cocoa trees into 

 two main classes CBIOLLO and FOBASTEBO. 



The CBIOLLO varieties have thin-skinned pods, with, 

 usually, rough skins, and a shape resembling that of a 

 plump ridge cucumber with a pointed tail end; the 

 beans are generally white or pale coloured. The 

 FOBASTEBO varieties have hard and thick-skinned 

 pods something like a lemon in shape; the beans are 

 Usually purple in colour. 



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