July i, 1890.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
43 
fattened, and was more wholesome than swe,ets. 
Passing on to deal with chocolate, the lecturer said 
that the derivation of the word was difficult to trace 
and the only suggestion that seemed to be at all valuable 
was to the effect that when the Mexicans ground 
the cocoa up with starch and sugar for the purpose 
of making chocolate, the pestle made a peculiar noise 
in the mortar which they tried to imitate in their speech 
by the word “chrcrlate.” The chocolate which was 
supplied to the Navy contained PO per cent of cocoa 
and 20 per cent of pure Demerara sugar. Chocolate 
creams were made of sugar and glucose spread over 
with a paste of chocolate — a process which was mostly 
done by hand. The quantity of cocoa imported into 
this country in 1873 was 19,601,247 lb., and the con- 
sumption was 8,311,023 lb. or 20 lb. per head. In 
1883 the three quantities had risen to 22,632,094 lb., 
12,808,170 ib., and 30 lb.; and in 1839 the quantities 
were 26,735,974 lb-, 18,464,164 lb. and 48 lb. 
In his lecture on Oopfek Mr. Bannister said that 
the chemistry of coffee wa.s particularly interesting as 
affording a comparison of the beverage with tea. 
The almost entire absence of tannin fitted it admir- 
ably for after-dinner use. The presence also of 
fatty and oily substances rendered it to some 
extent a true food, while the alkaloid-caffeine 
C8, HlO, N4, O 2 — performed the function of n nerve 
touio of the greatest value. Coffee, when properly 
roasted, did not suffer much lose of the most valu- 
able constituents ; the amount of caffeine usually pre- 
sent in raw coffee was about I-IB per cent, and in 
roasted hardly less; in an ordinary infusion, 3 fluid 
ounces were reckoned to contain nearly 2 5 grains of 
caffeine. Naturally, the roasting of coffee was an opera- 
tion requiring great skill and judgment. A good 
roaster must understand the peculiarities of the dif- 
ferent kinds of coffee: some were tough and more moi.st 
than others. The perfectly roasted berry was of a 
rich chestnut colour, it had lost its toughness and be- 
come 0 rsp, so that it readily disintegrated in the mill, 
and at the same time it liad not that dark brown tint, 
which meant that it was over-roasted. However good 
the quality of the original coffee, over-roasting spoiled 
it. It might give a darker liquor, but it possessed little 
or no aroma, and had destroyed the natural constituents 
which mike up the quality of good coffee. When pro- 
perly roasted it lost 16 to 18 pc r cent, of its weight, 
mostly moisture, but in addition the constituents of 
the berry had been modified, and an aromatic oil was 
produced which had an intense flavour. A judicious 
blend of different kinds of coffee always produced 
a better liquor than any single coffee, but this 
mixture should always be made after roasting. The 
cooling of the roasted berry was also a very delicate 
operation. 
The steady falling off in the consumption of coffee 
proved beyond doubt that ooffee was not a popular 
drink, one reason, perhaps, being that its preparation 
for the table was more complicated than that of its 
rival — tea. Thus in 1873 we consumed 288,669 cwts., 
or 1.011b. per head ; in 1889 this had fallen to 
259,279 cwt. , or '7611). per head. The total imports 
fell in the same period from 6,183,078 cwt. to 
1,010,606 cwt. 
A French professor claims that he has almost suc- 
ceeded in producing artificial silk, which should render 
u.s independent of the silkworm. He says all the con- 
stituent materials of silk are to be found in the 
mulberry-leaf, upon which the silkworm feeds. 
THE MERCHANDISE MARKS ACT 
CEYLON Ti'lA, 
In a few months’ time we are promised a wave of 
litigation under tho Merchandise Ma-ks Act, more es- 
pecially in connection with the adulteration of the three 
breakfast table beverages of tea, coffee, and cocoa. But 
a short time back, one offender was fined tho email 
sum of .-£10 for selling “ Sogaina” tea. The inside of 
the packets containing tho so-called Sogama tea was in 
reality a mixture of cheap Indian and China teas. Tliis 
at all events, was the opinion of Mr. W. J. Thompson, 
whose experil uco has extended over thirty years. Mr. 
Avory, for tho defonco, denied that kfos.srs. Paget ami 
Pigott, tea dealers, of 36, Middlesex-street, White- 
chapel, had any intention to defraud. The tea was 
sold in packets bearing the brand of “ The Sogama 
Estate.” The Ceylon Association having ascertained 
that tea, bearing falsely the braud of the Sogama Es- 
tate, was being sold by certain persons, communicated 
with the company owning the estate, and the proceed- 
ings naturally followed. Some mention was inciden- 
tally made of a Sogama “ District.” To anyone con- 
nected with the planting enterprise of Ceylon such a 
theory is peculiarly, net to say amusingly, absurd. The 
names of the districts in Ceylon are naturally in the 
Singalese language, whereas Sogama is clearly a Tamil 
word meaning “ quite well,” from soy/icoir, health. We 
have known the estate for the past ten years, together 
with the entire district of Pussellawa, in which it is 
situated, and feel perfectly sure that its tea fully de- 
serves the good price which is paid for it in the Lane. 
Mr. Bushby, in giving judgment, said the label “Sogama 
Estate” tea distinctly misled the public, and that it 
was a serious evil which must be put a stop to. He im- 
posed a fine of £10 and allowed 25fs costs. 
Now, this case is merely to be the forerunner of a 
dozen similar ones. For the protection of British-grown 
tea, the Ceylon Association in London intend to com- 
mence actions against other manufacturers of choice 
blends and mixtures, many of which are conspicuously 
labelled “ pure Ceylon tea.” That which we particularly 
desire to ask those of the public who may find themselves 
called as jurors in any of these oases is whether or not 
such an expression as “principally pure Ceylon tea” is or 
is not an actual contradiction iu terms. Tons it gives 
the most perfect example of oxymoron that the English 
can present, and would, we are sure, have been used 
by Mr. Lindley Murray in his grammar had he lived 
at the present day. No mention need be made of the 
fact that the word “principally” is printed in small 
letters in order to give that deceptive complexion to 
the label which is so profitable to the tea dealer and 
so disastrous to the palate and pocket of the small 
and ignorant consumer. Can we talk of diluted neat 
brandy, of alloyed virgin gold? AVe, indeed, hear of 
rial paste diamonds and of real mock-turtle soup, but 
believe no harm is done by these terms; but the coupling 
of two such word as principally pure is, to our mind, 
wilfully misleading, besides being nonsensical. Surely 
“pure Ceylon tea ” cannot be guarded in any way. 
If it is pure, then, what is the use of the word ‘princi- 
pally ” ? If ibis not pure, the word is nothing more or 
less than a lie. 
As the law now stands, tea dealers can drive a 
coach-and-four right through it in every direction. 
The subtle alteration of a single letter can be made 
with impunity', with the effect of giviug the public the 
idea that they are buying tea from the advertisers at 
fully 6d. a pound reduction on the price charged by 
other shops. So far, indeed, is this carried that if only 
the public were not, as Carlyle averred, “ mostly 
fools,” they v/ould see that the tea offered them 
must be sold at an average loss of about 3d. a 
pound to the advertisers. “Sogama Estate” tea 
is only one example of tho many frauds that are 
printed. As we have said, the usual plan is to seize 
upon the name of a well-known district or estate, 
such as Kaltura or Blariawattie, and to alter one or 
two letters. A large label is then affixed, with the 
false word well di.splayed, and guarded by a small- 
typed “principally” or “blend." The mala Jhles of 
this is so apparent that any judge on the bench or 
any twelve men in the jury box would be bound to 
give a verdict against the advertisers. Mr. Coschen, 
iu his Budget speech, advised the poorer tea consum- 
mera to exercise more care with regard to the tea 
they bought. But he omitted to tell them how to 
set about doing so. Like Dr. Johnson, he can find 
them facts, but he cannot fiud them iutelligenoe. 
When anyone sees the word “ pure ” iirinted iu large 
letters on a packet, we think he should be able to 
obtain redress in a court of justice as soon as it is 
owned that f'e contents arc not pure, or, in other 
words, aro pure adulterations. AVo have iu this office 
six difi'ereut packets of so-called Ceylon tea,” tho 
labels on all of which are, iu our opinion, gross frauds 
on thepublic. Thoy have boon carefully prepared 
