XiL The Fermentation of Cacao 
Kako Einkaufs Ges., Germany. 
The Sarotti Cocoa Manufacturing Co., Ltd., 
Germany. 
Messrs. Suchard, S. A., Switzerland. 
Agricultural Society of Dominica, B.W.I. 
Arnold Gay, Esq., of ‘The Brothers” 
Cacao Estate, Grenada, B,W.1. 
Tropical Life, London, 
Having secured such generous support, I 
asked Mr. Fawcett if he would kindly translate 
my crudely worded phrases, setting forth the 
requirements and conditions of the competi- 
tion, in a neatly worded: paragraph, which he 
did thus -— 
‘“The essay should record precisely and in 
full detail the changes resulting from the pro- 
cesses of fermentation and drying that take 
place in the bean from maturity in the pod to 
the time of putting the cured beans into bags 
for market. Biological as well as chemical 
changes should be noted. The action of 
maximum, minimum and optimum tempera- 
tures, and of checks producing differences of 
times in the fermentation and drying processes 
should be noted for every stage. The differ- 
ences due to such variations on the resultant 
cured bean should be clearly traced. The 
possibility should be discussed of producing 
at will by such variations, and independently 
of the natural character of the bean, varieties 
of taste and of colour, both internal and 
external, so as to simulate the different kinds 
