150 TlMEHRI. 
with the view of helping forward this industry which had so much of 
promise in it. But it appears to me on the face of the article in the 
11 Argosy " that the difficulty is not altogether with packing and stowing 
the fruit, but in making arrangements at this end to dispose of the 
fruit immediately on arrival, and so save loss by deterioration after it is 
taken out of the chamber. 
As far as the selection and arrangement of the fruit at Demerara — 
all that is necessary is to sele6t bunches that are uniformly full but not 
ripe. By being full, I mean the stage when the fruit has reached its 
full size, but has not begun to turn colour or get sugary and sweet. No 
fruit should be packed which shows any signs of ripeness ; and in 
packing the bunches, it is important that they stand clear of each other 
to prevent " sweating ", and have sufficient room not to rub one against 
another. I have not seen the arrangement of the cold chamber on 
board the " Nonpareil ", but there is something, either in the temperature 
not being kept low enough, or in the packing and arrangement of the 
fruit in the chamber, which requires alteration. 
The bananas from the " Nonpareil ", I noticed, were wet and " soppy ". 
This may be due to the bunches being suddenly taken out of the 
chamber and exposed to the warmer air outside ; or it may be induced 
by overcrowding of the fruit in the chamber itself. Whatever may be 
the cause of this state of the fruit, it is one which requires some 
attention, as the fruit appears on this account to perish very quickly 
after landing, and is disliked by dealers. 
I suppose Messrs. Scrutton & Sons have arranged so that the excess 
of moisture is removed from the chamber during the voyage, and that 
the air is kept as dry as possible. This is purely a matter of temperature. 
It is only naturally to be expected that the first steps taken to import 
Colonial fruit to the English market should not be wholly successful ; 
but if a company is formed with good connections amongst large dealers 
in London there would soon be a trade established on satisfactory and 
permanent lines. 
D. Morris, 
Assistant Director, Royal Gardens, Kew. 
BRITISH GUIANA COFFEE. 
38, Mincing Lane, E., 13th Nov., 1886. 
I have carefully examined, roasted, and tasted the samples of the 
