20 COCOA AND CHOCOLATE. 



which, except in color, is the counterpart 

 of a young muskmelon, being elongated 

 and ribbed in the same manner. Its color, 

 when green, is like that of the egg-plant, 

 but, on ripening, it assumes a reddish 

 hue. A peculiarity of the cocoa is that 

 it bears fruit u from the ground up," the 

 trunk yielding fruit as well as the 

 branches. Upon ripening, the pods are 

 gathered from the trees and heaped in 

 piles on the ground, where they are left 

 for some days to ferment, after which they 

 burst open, when the seed must be shelled 

 out. After a light 'exposure to the sun, 

 during which time great care must be 

 taken to protect them from the rain, they 

 are sacked and ready for market. 



u The cocoa-trees, when very young, 

 require to be carefully watched, to protect 

 them from the ravages of the borers, which, 

 instead of entering the trees near the ground 

 or in the roots, as is the case with the 

 borers in our peach-orchards, burrow under 



