182 The Fermentation of Cacao 
when the box had been left “unchanged.” It 
is a necessary part of this process that the 
bottom layers of cacao are always inverted to 
the top and wzce versa. A wooden spade made. 
for this purpose should always be used ; not 
only is it lighter and more convenient to 
handle, but the contact of fermenting cacao 
with iron results in a stain on the cacao’ seed. 
. NeGATIVE EXPERIMENTS. 
Before leaving the subject of fermenting, it 
may prove useful to those interested in this 
matter to mention two experiments that were 
tried with unsuccessful results. 
The first was simply pouring back again and 
again over the cacao the exuding liquid that 
oozed from the bottom of the box. There was 
no sign of increased or prolonged fermentation 
resulting from this procedure. The maximum 
temperature attained was 109° F. with 300 lb. 
of wet cacao, and it commenced to fail on the 
sixth day. 
The second experiment was based on the 
assumed possibility that fermentation was 
prematurely checked by the production of 
acetic acid. It is a common phenomenon with 
quickly multiplying micro-organisms that, as 
a result of their rapid labours, their: environ- 
ment is self poisoned by the production of 
some substance which, as the quantity in- 
creases, becomes inimical to their welfare and 
eventually destroys them. As acetic acid. is 
