<X1  MONTHLY.  I>  ^ 
Vol.  XVI.]  COLOMBO,  NOVEMBER  2nd,  1896,  [No.  5. 
COFFEE  GROWING  IN  PERU 
S once  more  engaging  attention : 
Engineering  of  August  21st 
lias  an  interesting  paper  with 
“Estimates”  referring  to 
coffee  planting  in  the  vallej's 
of  the  Chanchamayo  and 
Perene,  about  w'hich,a  great 
deal  can  be  learned  in  “ Old 
Colonist  ” ’s  book.  I send  you  the  paper  for  repro- 
duction. “ Old  Colonist”  will  especially  agree  with 
the  writer  in  describing  Peru  as  one  of  the 
most  favoured  of  countries  in  natural  resources 
, and  climate — and  only  wanting  an  able  Governor 
— a “Porhrio  Dias”  who  has  done  so  much  for 
' Me.xico — to  release  her  from  being  the  victim  of 
political  jackals”  \ The  want  of  a proper  labour 
supply  is  another  drawback  owing  to  the  in- 
■ veterate  laziness  of  the  Cholas  (Indo-Spanish) 
< who  might  do  much  to  develope  their  country 
i if  they  would  only  work.  As  it  is,  however, 
the  estimates  given  for  coffee  gardens — on  a 
I small  scale,  however’ — ^shew  such  returns  as  would 
pay  back  all  the  capital  outlay  in  the  6th  year 
and  leave  an  annual  income  thereafter  of  over 
£800  sterling  from  20,000  coffee  trees  covering  10 
“hectai’es”*  of  a “Chacra”  or  coffee  garden. 
IFour  weedings  or  clearings  a year  are  pi-nviflod 
for  and  yet  the  coffee  trees  are  only  given  20 
\years  of  life  if  kept  clear  of  weeds ! Surely 
with  care,  40  years  might  be  counted  on. 
The  valleys  of  the  Chanchamayo  and  Perene, 
which  were  described  in  Engineerinq,  vol.  Iviii.,  pages 
174  and  507,  are  developing  such  importance  as  a 
ccoffee  growing  region  that  it  may  be  of  interest  to 
g^ive  an  outline  of  the  work  of  developing  c/;acms  in 
t ihat  part  of  the  world.  The  following  details  have 
’ oeen  gleaned  from  several  of  the  persons  interested 
m coffee  culture  in  the  Chanchamayo  valley,  and 
i-.s  all  the  districts  on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Peru- 
ian  Andes  are  worked  in  the  same  manner,  the  one 
lustration  will  apply  to  the  whole  territory. 
* The  hectare  equals  2’471  English  acres. 
To  claim  land  for  the  purpose  of  cultivating  it 
for  coffee  or  other  produce,  it  is  necessary  to  “ de- 
nounce” it  before  the  Prefect  of  the  Department. 
The  person  requiring  the  land  must  make  his  own 
survey  and  send  in  a plan  with  his  petition.  The 
land  is  divided  into  lots  of  fifty  hectares  (about 
123j  acres),  and  the  smallest  claim  that  will  be 
entertained  is  for  one  lot.  On  the  other  hand,  if 
more  than  a certain  number  of  lots  are  required 
the  petition  must  be  made  direct  to  the  National 
Government. 
There  is  no  fee  required,  but  the  “ denounce, 
meuts”  are  usually  written  upon  stamped  paper, 
which,  although  not  compulsory,  saves  considerable 
trouble  in  the  future.  It  is  also  well  to  know  how 
to  shake  hands  with  the  officials  properly,  for  they 
can  do  ranch  to  smoothe  the  path  of  a land  hunter 
and  can  place  no  end  of  obstacles  in  his  way,  if  th« 
interchange  of  animal  magnetism  is  not  carried  out, 
through  some  metallic  conductor,  the  colour  of 
which  lias  much  to  do  with  the  intensity  of  the 
interest  developed.  One  of  the  greatest  impediment* 
to  the  rapid  development  of  the  district  is  the  want  of 
official  maps.  The  Government  has  utterly  neglected 
this  most  important  duty,  and  there  is  naturally  a 
certain  want  of  confidence  among  the  people  who 
would  take  up  land,  because  they  are  afraid  that  in 
the  future,  when  the  boundaries  have  to  be  adjusted 
the  independent  surveys  will  be  found  to  have  mixed 
up  neighbouring  properties.  The  Government  does 
not  even  take  measurements  at  the  time  of  giving 
Possession  of  the  land  to  the  claimant,  so  that  the 
dividing  lines  have  to  be  adjusted  by  the  parties  them- 
selves. It  is  therefore  more  than  probable  that,  as 
the  district  becomes  more  thickly  populated,  quarrel* 
as  to  location  of  dividing  lines  will  arise,  and  the 
lawyers  will  reap  a rich  harvest  as  soon  as  the  season 
for  litigation  comes  around. 
Peruvians  are  for  ever  complaining  of  the  poverty 
of  the  country,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  it  is 
one  ot  the  moat  favoured  in  natural  resources  and 
climate.  They  have  no  one  to  blame  but  themselves. 
The  Government  at  the  capital  is  too  busy  fomenting 
or  combating  internal  quarrels,  and  the  interest  of 
the  people,  who  are  really  keeping  the  Republic  alive, 
are  relegated  to  the  charge  of  tiptaking  officialdom 
