MAEAOAIBO AND LAGUAYRA COFFEE. 147 



and sliipped from the town of San Jose to the port of shipment. 

 The best Cucuta approaches Java in size and shape of bean. When 

 first gathered, the Maracaibo crop is of a greenish color, assuming 

 toward the close of the crop season a yellow cast, which adds to 

 its value. The crop is variable, the quality being, as a rule, poor 

 when the yield is large, and good when small. 



The finer sorts are regarded by many as being equal to the 

 best Java, and when roasted are often sold as Java, being pos- 

 sessed of a fine aroma. Before being roasted they are also used 

 to mix with Java and sold as such ; and on the principle that 

 " Fleas have smaller fleas to bite 'em " there is probably more 

 coffee shipped to this market, termed Cucuta, than is gTown in the 

 district of that name. 



Next in order of merit comes Merida, then Tovar, Bocono, and 

 Trajillo; the first named is sometimes equal to or superior to 

 Cucuta ; the last mentioned is the commonest, sometimes contain- 

 ing stones and dirt. 



The coffee is grown on the western side of a range of moun- 

 tains running northeast and southwest across the northwest corner 

 of Yenezuela. The plant was first introduced into the region in 

 1784 by a Catholic priest. The tree thrives best in the temperate 

 region, but to some extent is cultivated in the tierra caliente (hot 

 region), where, however, the product is of inferior quality. On 

 the high lands the plant can be grown without shade, but in such 

 instances the tree is short lived. Generally the young shoots are 

 planted in parallel lines under the shade of large trees, the Cucare. 

 The first crop is gathered when the tree is fom- or five years old, 

 the harvest beginning in October. The berries are picked by 

 hand and carried to a building where they are prepared for mar- 

 ket by one of the two processes described in a previous chapter. 

 Coffee that is prepared by means of a pulping machine is called 

 cafe descerezado, and that which is subjected to the terrace or 

 drying plan is termed cafe trillado. The latter is inferior, as the 

 drying of the berries causes a deteriorating change in color, smell 

 and taste of the bean. Good Yenezuela coffee should have a liarht 

 bluish-green color and a peculiar aromatic smell, and the beans 

 should be of equal size and shape. In Yenezuela 1,000 to 1,500 

 trees are planted upon afcmegOda (one and three-quarter acres) of 



