142 



COFFEE. 



The fine selections of Jamaica coffee command an extreme 

 price on the London market, where this variety is highly prized 

 for its very fine cup qualities. In style and flavor it rivals Plan- 

 tation Ceylon. The bean has a bluish gray appearance, and is 

 very uniform and handsome. The receipts in the United States 

 of the best descriptions are very small, most of that imported 

 being classed, as ordinary. Jamaica coffee usually comes in 

 bags of two hundred and fifty pounds and upward, subject to 

 actual tare. Occasionally smaller packages are received, weighing 

 about one hundred and fifty pounds. The ordinary bean is large, 

 and varies in color from a dark green to almost white. Fre- 

 quently samples show black beans and stones. The drinking 

 qualities of ordinary Jamaica are not equal to those of a choice 

 Cucuta Maracaibo, but are above those of what is known as Tru- 

 jillo Maracaibo. The receipts in the United States have averaged 

 seven hundred and eighty-three tons annually for the last ten 

 years. The imports, from 1866 to 1881, into the United States 

 were as follows : 



Invportation of Jomvaica Coffee i/rdo the United States {Ailamiic 

 Coast), 1866 to 1881. 



Average for fifteen years, 1866-81 7,996 



Average for ten years, 1871-80 8,650 



I tons. 



783 



HAYTI AND SAN DOMINGO. 



The cultivation of coffee began in Hayti about 1735-40. The 

 industry flourished under the protection of the French Government, 

 declining after the island passed out of the hands of France. 



In 1789 a crop of 80,000,000 pounds was produced on the 

 island of Hayti. This island lies from three to five degrees below 



