138 



THE AMERICAN GARDEN. 



[September, 



A superior white vinegar is also prepared 

 ! from the Cocoa. The juice is also boiled 

 down into a sauce which in color and taste 

 much resembles Shaker apple-sauce ; and 

 ! a most delicious amber-colored jelly, far 

 superior to guava jelly, is made from the 

 ] wine, from which also a strong and very 

 The husks 



contain a large amount of potash, and are 

 burned to yield a lye which is used in 

 making soap. Great quantities of the Cocoa 

 fruit are annually destroyed by monkeys 

 and parrots, which are very fond of the seed. 



When first planted, lines of Plantains or 

 Bananas are set out alternately with the 



COCOA AND CHOCOLATE, 



Probably few of our readers, while drink 

 ing these favorite beverages, have ever j high-flavored brandy is distilled 

 thought to ask how the plant producing 

 them grows. Yet its culture forms a large 

 part of the industry, not only of the great 

 Amazonian valley, but of other portions of 

 tropical South America. 



The Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) — the name 

 signifying "food of the gods" — is a small 

 tree, or rather large bush, seldom ex- 

 ceeding fifteen feet in height, although 

 we have seen very old trees which were 

 thirty feet high. It has large, oblong, 

 taper-pointed leaves, which, when 

 young, are rosy and very beautiful. The 

 flowers are small, fragrant, yellowish, 

 and are borne in clusters on the trunk 

 and larger branches. The fruit, of which 

 we give an illustration, is about twelve 

 inches long, varying, however, greatly 

 in size, and about five broad ; it is oblong, 

 blunt, and is marked with ten elevated ribs 

 running lengthways, and is, when ripe, of a 

 bright orange-yellow, with a hard shell. Al- 

 though authorities state that the fruit con- 

 tains from fifty to one hundred seeds, we 

 have never been able to find one containing 

 fifty ; the average is from thirty to forty- 

 five. These seeds are imbedded in a white, 

 semi-acid pulp, and in size and shape some- 

 what resemble almonds ; it is from these 

 seeds that the Cocoa and Chocolate of com- 

 merce are prepared. 



The fruit is, when ripe, gathered by hand, 

 and broken transversely by a large knife ; 

 the mass of pulp and seed is taken out, and 

 is either left for a day to slightly ferment, or 

 is at once put into a " Tipici" and pressed 

 almost dry ; it is then dried for from one to 

 three days in the sun, and is then ready for 

 market. A "Tipici" is a tube of wicker- 

 work, about eight feet long, with a diameter 

 of about ten inches ; the top is open, and at 

 a loop ; the tube is filled 

 hung upon 



each end ther 

 with any substance to be 

 a peg or branch by the 

 upper loop, while a 

 lever, upon which a 

 woman sits, is inserted 

 in the lower loop, the 

 tube contracts, and the 

 juice runs out through 

 the interstices. 



The juice running 

 from the " Tipici " is 

 called " Vinho da Ca- 

 cao," or " Wine of Co- 

 coa," and is a most re- 

 freshing and delicious 

 drink ; it is slightly 

 acid, aromatic, and 

 possesses a flavor es- 

 pecially its own. Un- 

 fortunately, it soon fer- 

 ments, and can be pre- 

 served in its freshness 

 for only a single day; 



by boiling, however, fermentation is checked, 

 but all the delicate aroma of the wine is 

 lost. It is almost worth a voyage across 

 the Atlantic to drink the wine of cocoa 

 in its freshness. This drink is very healthy, 

 and one can consume an immense quantity. 



COCOA FRUIT. 



rows of young Cocoa plants, to protect them 

 from the sun ; these bear fruit in about nine 

 months, and are cut away as soon as the 

 Cocoa plants attain some size. One who 

 has not seen cannot imagine the deep gloom 

 of a Cocoa-plantation. The rows of trees 

 are planted so close that the branches inter- 

 lace overhead, and the broad, dense foliage 

 makes it almost dark even at noon-day. The 

 ground is thickly carpeted with the long, 

 dead leaves, among which is a favorite haunt 

 of one of the most poisonous of Brazilian 

 snakes, the jararaca, and no grass or plants 

 of any kind are to be seen. 



The natives, however, all go barefoot, and 

 it is very seldom that one is bitten ; iiideed, 

 in three years we never knew of a case. 

 When, however, the Cocoa is ripe, the effect 

 in the cocoal is very beautiful ; the large, 

 bright, orange-colored fruit hangs thickly on 

 the trunks or from the large branches over- 

 head, parrots enliven the scene by their con- 

 stant chatter, and the bright blue, red, and 

 black butterflies (Morphos or. Heliconias) 

 are by no means uncommon. One weary of 



AQUARIUM. 



the turmoil of civilized life would find rest 

 and quiet, with so much to enjoy, if he were 

 a lover of the beautiful in nature, that the 

 days would seem all too short, by spending 

 a winter upon a Cocoa-plantation. 



E. S. Band, Jr. 



THE AQUARIUM. 



The various pets nursed and cared for in 

 Aquariums are of a rather peculiar kind, but 

 certainly not less interesting than those that 

 move on the dry ground or fly in the air ; 

 and a more charming and attractive parlor 

 ornament can hardly be imagined than a 

 properly kept Aquarium. It affords an inex- 

 haustible source for study and intelligent 

 amusement during the winter months, when 

 lawns and flower-beds are hidden under 

 ice and snow, while it suffuses an air of 

 intelligence and refinement throughout 

 the entire house. 



When once properly started, it re- 

 quires but little further care and atten- 

 tion. It is a mistake to suppose that it 

 is necessary to change the water fre- 

 quently. The contrary is true, as fishes 

 cannot thrive when subjected to fre- 

 quent changes of water. In an Aqua- 

 rium, as well as in lakes and ponds, the 

 water is kept pure by the action of the 

 plants growing beneath the surface. Plants 

 absorb carbonic acid, of which they retain 

 the carbon and throw off the oxygen, while 

 animals take up oxygen and exhale carbonic 

 acid, thus completing a continual circuit. By 

 this reciprocal interchange, both animals and 

 plants may remain in perfect health, even in 

 a comparatively small space. 



Nearly all plants found growing under 

 water are suitable for a tank; yet they 

 should be sought in slow flowing streams 

 and ponds rather than in rapid running 

 brooks. None but soft spring or rain water 

 should be used for filling. Well water is gen- 

 j erally too hard. 



In fitting up an Aquarium, first get a suffi- 

 cient quantity of clean pebbles and sand to 

 fill the tank to the depth of about three 

 inches. A few larger stones arranged so as 

 to form eaves and grottoes produce a pleas- 

 ing effect, and most fishes love such hiding- 

 places. A tank of ten by eighteen inches 

 will support about twenty fish. These should 

 be nearly of a size, and 

 not more than three or 

 JL JaK four inches long. Liz- 



Ig Ej gggy B ^ ards > Eels > Tadpoles, 



- - S ^<'Vrr;i] s|iiM i('s of beau- 



' - * tiful water Snails, and 



some kinds of bivalves, 

 which are valuable as 

 scavengers, should not 

 be omitted. 



The tank should stand 

 near a window or sky- 

 light, but not in direct 

 sunlight for any length 

 of. time. If the glass 

 becomes coated with 

 confervse, or slime, it 

 can easily be cleaned 

 with a sponge fastened 

 to a stick. 



The whole secret of 

 success of an Aquari- 

 um consists in the exactness with which we 

 imitate nature. The plants and animals 

 should be so selected and disposed that they 

 become mutually self-supporting and flourish 

 as well as in their native locality, forming 

 a little world of their own. 



