THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMAQX 
AUGUST,  1894.  I     AyG  6  1894 
fci?  MTENT 
STARCHES  IN  DIFFERENT  COMMERCIAlT'^V^TETIES 
OF  CACAO. 
By  Kdson  S.  Bastin. 
The  genus  Theobroma,oi  the  natural  order  Sterculiacece,  is  a  small 
one,  consisting  of  nine  or  ten  species,  all  of  them  natives  of  tropical 
America.  The  seeds  of  several  of  these  are  said  to  be  more  or  less 
used  in  the  countries  in  which  they  grow,  but  there  seems  to  be  no 
question  that  those  which,  under  the  name  of  Cacao,  constitute  such 
an  extensive  article  of  commerce,  are  almost  wholly  derived  from 
Theobroma  Cacao  of  Linnaeus.  This  species  is  a  native  of  Mexico, 
and  probably  also  of  the  northern  portions  of  South  America,  and 
it  is  extensively  cultivated  in  Mexico,  Central  America,  Peru,  Ecua- 
dor, Brazil,  New  Granada,  Venezuela,  Guiana,  and  in  most  of  the 
West  India  Islands.  It  has  also  been  introduced  and  is  successfully 
cultivated  in  Java  and  some  other  tropical  countries  of  the  Orient. 
The  plant  is  a  small  tree,  attaining  a  height  of  from  fifteen  to  twenty 
feet,  with  cylindrical,  grayish  stems  and  branches ;  large,  petiolate, 
stipulate,  oval-lanceolate  or  oblong-lanceolate  pendant  leaves;  small 
pentamerous,  complete  flowers,  which  form  few-flowered  clusters, 
mostly  on  the  larger  branches.  The  fruits,  which  usually  occur 
singly,  present  a  striking  appearance  because  not  borne  on  the 
young  twigs,  as  are  most  fruits,  but  on  the  sides  of  the  main  stem 
or  older  branches.  They  are  large,  pendant,  berry-like  fruits,  eight 
or  ten  inches  long,  somewhat  pear-shaped,  pointed  at  the  apex, 
distinctly  ten-ribbed  longitudinally,  and  more  or  less  wrinkled  or 
irregularly  furrowed,  in  a  transverse  direction.    They  are  yellow  or 
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