264 



TRINIDAD : THEN AND NOW. 



was elected a non-resident member of the Medical 

 Society of Halberstadt, to which he had addressed 

 many scientific essays, particularly on the subject of 

 tropical herbs and plants, of the medicinal value of 

 which he had made a special study. 



Some years previous to this, in 1824, he first 

 made for his own use a preparation which he called 

 Aromatic Bitters, and which soon acquired such 

 favour among his friends and the public that he was 

 encouraged to devote himself to a greater extent to 

 the preparation of this compound. 



The bitters were exported for the first time in 

 1830, when a shipment was made to the British island 

 of Trinidad, and to England, and from that date the 

 actual manufacture of the article may be said to 

 have begun. It became widely known from the 

 place of its origin, under the name of Angostura 

 Bitters. It is well to observe here that the name of 

 the town of Angostura was changed in 1846 by an 

 Act of the Venezuelan Congress to that of Ciudad 

 Bolivar, in honour of the Liberator, Bolivar. 



In the year 1853, when the sale of the bitters was 

 still small, Carlos Siegert, Dr. Siegert's son, upon the 

 completion of his education, returned from Europe 

 and commenced to help his father in the manufac- 

 ture of this tonic, and devoted himself with such 

 earnestness to the business that its sale spread to all 

 parts of the world. 



Having given, by his attention and perseverance, 

 considerable impetus to the business, his father took 

 him into partnership in the year 1864. This part- 



