78 COCOA 



rushed back for a fresh load, we follow our guides to 

 the mill-house, and emerge from a wide corridor into a 

 spacious apartment that is humming with the chorus 

 .of grindstones. From end to end of the room stretch 

 row upon row of mills, some with one pair of grindstones, 

 some with two pairs, some with three pairs; overhead, 

 the machinery belting in ceaseless motion looks like 

 decorative festoons dancing in a breeze. At random 

 we come to a standstill before one of the mills to watch 

 the performance of its merry-go-round grindstones. 



A batch of nibs is showered into a hopper which 

 automatically feeds the mill. The motion of the hori- 

 zontal millstones generates heat, and as the nibs come 

 within their clutches they are crushed to powder; 

 at the same time the heat turns the powder into a 

 fluid by melting its butter ingredient. The melting- 

 point of cocoa butter is 91 Fahrenheit. When the 

 mills are in full swing they generate heat well above this 

 temperature, and are easily capable, therefore, of doing 

 their work without the assistance of artificial heat; 

 but when, after a week-end's rest, they are quite cold, 

 they are restarted with the help of a gas-burner. 

 A second grinding results in a finer paste, and a third 

 grinding fines it down to Epicurean standard. 



Now comes the process of extracting a given pro- 

 portion of the butter ingredient. Crossing the room 

 to the press department, we see how the butter is 

 removed by mechanical means. 



The cocoa paste is ladled out into clean press-cloths 

 of very fine texture. The sides and ends of each cloth 

 are folded over to- form a large oblong package about 

 two inches in thickness. These packages of cocoa 

 paste look like brown-paper parcels. The packages 

 are put into hydraulic presses. Immediately the 



