liG COFFEE. 



any obstacles in order to be still further extended. It forms a 

 large ingredient in the local trade, and furnishes many petty 

 traders with their daily bread, not to speak of the landowners, 

 for whom the cultivation of the cacao affords the only subsistence. 

 The preparation of the product differs from that adopted in the 

 West Indies, but we have not been able to ascertain the practice. 

 We may reckon that 1,200 to 2,000 piculs of 138 Ibs. are yoarlv 

 produced ; the prices vary much, being from 50 to 75 florins per 

 picul. (" Journal of the Indian Archipelago," vol. ii., p. 829.) 



Bourbon now produces 15,000 to 20,000 kilogrammes of cacao 

 annually. Cacao is grown to a small extent in some of the settle- 

 ments of Western Africa, but as yet only a few puncheons have 

 been exported, all the produce being required for local con- 

 sumption. 



The following figures give the imports and consumption of 

 cacao into the United Kingdom in the last five years : 



Imports. Consumption. 



Ibs. Ibs. 



1848 . . 6,442,986 



1849 . . 7,769,234 



1850 . . 4,478,252 



1851 . . 6,773,960 



1852 . . 6,268,525 



3,233,135 

 3,103,926 

 3,024,338 

 3,382,944 



The home consumption is very steady at about 3,000,000 Ibs., 

 yielding to the revenue 15,000 to 16,000 for duty. The pro- 

 duce of British colonies pays Id. per Ib. duty, that from foreign 

 countries 2d ; cocoa husks and shells half these amounts ; when 

 manufactured into chocolate or cocoa paste the duty is 2d. per Ib. 

 from British possessions, and 6d. from other parts. The quantity 

 imported in this form is to the extent of about 14,000 Ibs. 

 weight. 



COFFEE. 



The next staple I proceed to speak of is coffee second only 

 in importance as a popular beverage to that universal commodity, 

 tea. I shall proceed, in the first instance, to take a retrospect of 

 the progress of the coffee trade, and glance at the present con- 

 dition and future prospects of produce and consumption. It will 

 be seen, by reference to the following figures, that the consumption 

 of coffee in the United Kingdom shows a successive decrease, 

 from 1847 to 1850, of 6,414,533 Ibs., and a loss to the revenue of 

 179,614. 



HOME CONSUMPTION AND REVENUE OP COFFEE FOR THE 



Years. Ibs. 



1824 8,262,943 420,988 



1826 11,082,970 315,809 



1828 17,127,633 440,245 



1835 23,295,046 652,124 



1839 26,789,943 779,115 



1840 28,723,73/5 921,551 



1844 31,394,225 081,016 



