The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1858-05-15
GrIeft 1flisfcIlanD.
curious History of the Use OF Coffee,

Coffee is of Asiatic origin, and was brough
TO the Occident by the Turks. They called i
Cahveh. Yehman, province in Arabia. i.
generally considered the place where coffee
| sprang up. Certain it is, that Arabian herds
men Of the desert of Aldshesria, approachin;
ole evening the shores of the Euphrates, wer,
| the first to discover the enhvening power OF
coffee. Worn out rs they were, after tire
some journey through the desert, they were
reclining beneath coffee tree, and for past.
time commenced chewing tile coffee beans
They soon observed that their WEAKNESS pass
cd away, and left them fine-spirited during
the night. Next evening they repeated their
pastme, and it had the Same effect They
were convinced that there was hidden and
refreshing power in the coffee beans.
1t was then introduced as kind Of medi'
cine for relaxation, for which purpose it was
roasted. ground and boiled in hot wafer, IN
the manner we prepare coffee now. Conse-
qucnt on the prohibition Of wine-drinking by
Mahomet, the use of coffee soon became in
extensive demand all over Arabia, Turkey
and Persia From these countries coffee was
init oduced by the Venetians, in the year 1891
in Italy, to be used only as an enlivening
medicine. At first they tried it with the
leaves of the cofee-trec, which was, however
abandoned, and they resorted TO the coffee
beans and prepared them in the same manner
as the Arabians After while it became a
favoritc beverage for dainty persons, and its
importation from foreign country rendered
it, in the eyes of the arislocracy of that period
desirable.
From Venice, coffee was introduced to Eng.
land, France and Holland. The first public
colfee-honse was opened in London in tn,
year 1852 a few years afterwards second
appeared in Paris and third in Amsterdam
Not, however, until the year 1902, was coffee
known in Germany it was imported from
Holland already roasted. The first public
coileehouse was established at Leipzig, in
the year l720, which, no doubt, is the odes,
colicc-housc in the world, and it is even nj
the present day place of public amusement
Two circumstances contributed principally tc
make coffee a general beverage in Germany
| firstly, that coffee was excepted by the
government from the taxes laid on beer and
wine: and secondly the powers Of coffee to
produce an agreeable excitement without pro.
ducmg intoxcation. These qualities made
| il the most agreeable to ladies and business
men. The Jews in Germany, known to BE-
| the most active merchants, became exceed.
| ingly fond of this enivenng beverage, and
also the poets. 1t is well known story
that Rosseau once on a visit to Voltairc
remarked to the latter, that coffee was poison
Voltaire replied: True, but a poison tina,
affects the health very slowly, as have beer
drinking it for sixty years."
The greatest opponents to coffee drinking
are the homeopathic doctors, who consider
coffee as most injurious to health. Indeed il
is to nervous people, particularly strong cof
fee; also to dyspeptics it may prove not di
| geStible, but in the latter case, its ill-digcs
ton arises from the impure milk which i.
mixed with it.
| The French and Germans drink more
black coffee than white, and take soon after.
ward glass of pure cold water, and that
custom is one which it would be useful tc
adopt in this country: as in this manner
! coffee is not injurious to pehorc people: il
they drink only a small quantity Of it. II
serves under this condition 10 aid digestion
and to enlvcn the spirits. To young people
| it is not so wholesome as beer soup which is
used for them in Germany. There is otter
added to coffee, roasted roots, as that of sue
| cory or carrot for instance. which diminshe.
the flavor. Roasted beans Of cocoa, on thu
other hand, are most healthy and paatablc il
mixed with coffee. The Turks add differen
spices. and the French pour rum in it, as do
the Italians and Germans; and they use
sometimes the yolk of an egg instead o
| cream, which Is commcnGable where there il
no good milk to he found. Particular care is
everywhere taken, except, in this country
not to roast or grind coffee before it is wantcl
for immediate use, otherwise it looses by
eXhalation the volatile oil which imparts such
an excellent flavor to it.
The smoke OF the roasted coffee is one o
the most powerful disipfectants. Coffee il
also an antidote to posons of opium, cherry
| laurel and intoxication. The consumption o
coffee is from year to year increasing. Ir
Europe alone. for instance, the importation
in reriod of ten years from 1917 to 1897
increased from one hundred and sixty million.
to two hundred and twenty-five millions o
pounds.
The coffee tree reaches height Of twenty
feet. has with its branches pyramidal forme,
evergreen leaves, and is considered one Of til,
most beautiful Of trees. In the third year j
yields three pound of beans. In highest es
timation, concerning the quality, stand
Mocha coffee from Arabia; next to it St
Domingo, Java, St. Jago de Cuba, and thcr
Rio of Brazil and Cuba. However, one kline
is found more palatabe in one country thar
in another. and different nations give pref
erence to different kind Of coffee.
| T,rr NpN -Rrrno famous Trcb piopt