The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-08-15

gold from the interior 10 Trade, anu we
procured - ruby, picked up from the
ground. The Libcrians claim that there
are diamonds also, but precious stones
seem very scarce. These things | do
not give is rumols bat as the result OF
diligcnt inquiries among diilcTen. people
at different times and places, and Of
personal inspection. At Clay Ashland,
as well as everywhere else in Liberia,
everybody is mad on the subject of
coffee.
THE COFFEE TREE
is q beautiful one, generally growing,
when developed and under cultivation,
from six to ten feet high, with large
dark green leaf, (here like everything
else ali cvcrgrcen.l 1t generally plant
cd By scions or slips, tho little trees being
taken from the beds when well started,
and transplanted. The coffee grows in
thickIy clustering punches along the
branches, and is green in color, until
ripe, when i: turns red. a thick pod or
case envelopes the grains, which is
beaten off when gathered and dried.
The grains are very large, and the coffee
itself is delicious, to my taste fully
cqualling, il not supassing, Mocha. The
coffee trees are usually planted about
400 to the acre, and begin to bear we'll
the third year. The trees yield from one
to five pounds of coffee grains each,
which sell at 90 cents per pound, whole
sale, at 1Ionrovia. While on this sub
ject, may say that l saw in the Court
house yard in Monrovia a coffee tree full
ly twenty-five feet high, from which from
five to ten pounds of the grain are
gathered every year. The coffee picking
season is over now, lasting from February
to May. l saw the trees growing wild
and uncared for in the bush in one place,
and about the yards and streets in Mon
rovia. Almost everybody near the land
ngs along the st. Paul's has little store
under their dwelling where they carry
on q
TRAFFIC WITH TIE NATIVES.
Exchanging calicocs, kettles, guns
beads &C., for country clothes, palm
kernels, coffee and rice. The palm kerr
ncls are the nuts gathered from the palm
tree, and, with the oil pressed from them
form one of the chief articles ofeXport, the
oil being extensively used for the man.
ufacture of fine paints and soaps. The
English and French manufacturers ex-
tract the oil from the kernels, and press
the remainder into cakes, which is said
to make an excellent food for cattle.
Almost everybody handles palm oil
nearly the whole of Liberia seems to
smell of it, and the odor is not par
ticularly delightful one.
RICE
also grows in wild and half wild state,
and but little care seems to be devoted to
its production. 1t is kept in the hnsk
until wanted for use, when the required
quantity is put in wooden mortar, and
hammered on until it is cleaned, and
tolerably well broken up. 1t is good
article TO the taste, being richer than
our fine white rice. The Liberians claim
that this effect is produced by keeping it
unhulled. Notwithstanding its growth
at their very doors, however, they import
India rice for consumption. Although
in the country with cattle all about, we
had English canned butter at Clay-Ash-
land. | only saw milk at two places in
Liberia, and then it IVES in the coffee,
They say that the COWS give so little
milk that it's hardly worth while feed
ing them. believe, though, that the
experiment of carefully feeding and at
tending to milch cattle has not as yet
been tried. Clay-Ashland is like the
other settlements, scattering far and wide
over the country, with every vacant lot
densely oveTgrown with undcrbrush, and
all the roads covered with grass. We
left there early on Monday morning, con,
tinuing our course up the river. The day
was the one appointed for the opening Of
the quarterly court at Monrovia, and as
we went up we met quite number Of
planters coming down to attend. They
make quite
LUXURIOUS CoNvEYANCEs
of the long dug outs" having cushioned
or covered and backed seats near the
stern, in which the "boss" rcclines be.
meath the shade of his umbrella and
smoked his pipe, or lcisurcly discusses a
lunch or 4 bottle of wine, while the
seven, eight, nine or ten natives who
compose the crew paddle away singing
merrily. Iu one of these craft / noticed
the two "bosscs," leaning comfortably
back, facing each other, with little table
between them, from which they ate
breakfast. In several places, on each
side of the river, small creeks flow into
it. These are generally bridged just al
the mouths by ilimsy foot bridges, sup
ported on long, insecure looking poles
These creeks are the great resorts Of the
hippopotamus, (river horse.l
GAME
does not seem very abundant. saw but
few birds along the river. There arc
several species OF deer, the principal ono
being apparently the water deer, Il small
animal, savory 10 the taste, and from
whose skins the natives make shot
pouches and other articles. Quite a
number of other deer are, however, kill
ell in "the BUSH" Monkeys are abund-
ant, but SAW none, those ancestors ol
ours having constitutional objection
to being wettcd by the ra' PanthcrS
occasionally make themselves trouble
some by lcaping the apologies for fences
and killing cattle. Those Interesting
animals are, however, becoming scarcer
Porcupincs, squirrels and similar small
"varmcnts" seem plentiful. | saw one
large alligator on rock. lie seemed Ia
be rather lighter in color than his Amer
ican brother, but he gave evidence
of eqnal alacrity in moving al
+ the whistle of rifle bullet, and oi
equal persistcncy in refusing to give any
tangible evidence of whether lie was
hit or not There are no tigers or lions
hcreabout, but elephants there must be
not far in the interior, as the natives
bring considerable rflmbcrs of their
tusks in for sale and barter. Fish swarm
so WAS told, in the rivers. noticed
many traps along the banks.
\. b. WILLIAMS.
ARSEHIc.-Thc Master of the State
Grange has issued Il circular to the loca
oranges of Massachusetts and the State