OH-^I'TKI^ IV. 





y^HE principal points which determine the value of 

 I 1"^ a location for the successful and profitable culti- 

 vation of Coffee are: — (i) Soil and climate; (2) 

 Situation and aspect ; (3) Temperature and rainfall ; (4) 

 Proximity to a river, and (5) Shelter from wind and wash. 

 Most of which are necessarily subject to variation, accord- 

 ing to country and locality, shelter from wind being per- 

 haps of the most paramount importance, and which should 

 not be sacrificed for a richer soil, as the latter can be arti- 

 ficially supplied much quicker than the former. 



Soil and climate are subjects of primitive importance 

 in the cultivation of Coffee. The soil of Coffee lands 

 varies as widely almost as the different countries in which 

 it is grown. In Africa, where the plant is indigenous, it 

 is chiefly composed of a reddish clay on the West Coast, 

 with a hard sandy subsoil, while on the East Coast it is 

 found to be composed chiefly of a dark loamy earth. 

 The Arabian soil, where the plant is exotic and where 

 the finest Coffee is produced, is purely an artificial one, 

 while in India it is successfully grown in five different 

 kinds of soil, ranging from a dark chocolate clay to a 

 deep jungle mould. The soil of Ceylon consisting of a 



