Dr. Axel Preyer IL 
every other day the covering is taken off, the 
heaps stirred round, and again covered over 
as before. The vinegar or liquid percolates 
through the bottom. The fermentation goes 
on slower in, damp weather than in dry; on 
the other hand, a certain amount of moisture is 
necessary for fermentation. If the air gets in 
owing to the faulty covering of the heaps, 
decomposition and discolouration of the shells 
of the beans take place. The fermentation 
is ended when the outer pulp of the cacao 
bean is so far loosened that it can be removed 
in the succeeding washing. The pulp of well- 
fermented beans comes away in the washin 
in small particles, not in long, slimy threads. 
The washing itself is done in small baskets 
which are smooth inside; made from _per- 
forated palm leaves, these are filled with the 
beans, which are washed where there is a large 
volume of water but not too strong a current ; 
immersed in this the baskets are subjected to 
a steady, constant shaking, after which the 
contents are transferred to a large receptacle. 
All this takes place very quickly, and a 
thorough cleaning of the bean is obtained 
without any damage. In wet weather the 
washed cacao is dried in layers in a drying- 
house by artificial heat; on sunny days they 
are carefully spread out in the open on coco-nut- 
matting, so that no two beans lie one on the 
other. At night the whole is placed under 
shelter. After three or four days the cacao is 
