The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1880-02-27
4 CHAPTER on COFFEE.

al OF the CtachOl0 tribe is the coffee {
plant. Coffee is the produce of an ever !
green shrub. a native Of AbySsinia and /
Arabia. The fruit is berry about the \
size Of a cherry, covered with pulp
sweet in taste and not very thick. In
side this pulp are two seeds, separated
from each other by a parchment-fike
mefnbrane. These seeds are the well .
known coffee. The cOffee-seed has been
frequently analyZed; chemists have found
in it several oily gums and albumlnOuS
matters. Int the valuable pr ineiple is
CRYSTALLINE, and denominated 'cateine.
Every person Knows that coffee Is rem
dered tit for culinary purposes by the
process of roasting. but the precise agen-
cy of this roasting process is not under
stood.
1t is supposed that it was only in the
fifteenth century that coffee was trans
ported from Abssinia to Arabia Felix.
But il Arabia be not the native land OF
coffee. it is at least its most prosperous
adopted home. Nowhere does the plant
flourish better, nowhere is the resulting
coffee so delicious in flavor, especially
that raised in the country of Yemen, in
the environs of Mocha. The Orientals,
it is well known, first introduced the use
Of coffee into Europe but when they.
with the beverage is still uncertain.
An Arabian author of the fifteenth GEN.
tury. named Shehabeddin. states that
the Mufti of Alden. in the nintlIcentury,
was the first who used coffee as a bever-
age but it is certain that at this period
the use of the infusion was known IN
Persia. According to vulgar tradition,
the discovery Of coffee is due to the mol
lah Chadelly. whose memory is held in
reverence by all true Mussulmans. This
pi0us man. afflicted with sorrow at the
thought that he could not keep awake
for the performance Of his nocturnal de
EotiOns, besOUght AIOhammed TO indi-
cate some means by which sleep might
DE chased away. Mohammed, touched
with pity, as we'll he might, seeing hat
his own honor was concerned. so brought
matters about that herdsman came to
ICquaint mOllah Chadclly of the curious
tact that his tthc herdSman 81 goats
could not 60 to sleep after they had par
taken of coffee berries, but kept frisk-
ing about all night long. The mOllah.
taking the hint, at once prepared a good
strong uDse Of coffee. He drank it. and
was delighted beyond measure at tie re-
suit. N5t u wink Of sleep did he get
delicious sensations crowded on his brain;
and his midnight deyOtiOns were SO fer
vent that he at once communicated the
precious secret to some dervises. who.
initiating his example. be.eaguered the
prophet, now iu the seventh heaven Of
bliss. with UEceaSiug prayers.
According to another tale, the discov-
Cry was made by the prior OF a convent
of N8rOuites, who. ON receiving the re-
port of a Clmel-drIver TO the effect that
his beasts could get no sleep after hay
ing Lrowsed ON the coffee plant, at once
Dethuught himself what a good thing
coffee would be for his monks. who. like
the mOllah Chadelly, appear to have
been torpid. sleepy fellows. and had ac-
IuIrcd the disreputabie habit-uOt quite
pbSJieteuo uow--of going tOsleep in church.
ILe.pracJice, we are told, was quite sue
.cessful.
But coffee, like mauy. other good
things, had its enemies, and strange TO
say, the very NTuhammeian- priests who
were amongst the first to patrCnizc it
became its most raHcJrOus foes. The
fact was this. - generally was coffee
approved of 10y the Arabian populace.
that people, in stead Of going to the
mosque spent their days in coffee-sh :
and, as there does not appear to have
been amy act O. parliament to enforce
Tire closing of COIice-hoUsesd during church
or rather mOsque-hOUrs. the priests
had an audience of empty benches.
Forthwith the mOlldhs mathematical
the seductive berry and those who used
-t. Coffee, they said was as bad as
wine and spirituOus liquors, if not worse.
Its employment was iuterdicted through
out every part of the Turkish empire.
Religious auathcmas, however. beingin
sufficient TO check the growing evil. at
length an appeal was made 10 physical
force. In the year Of the Hegira. 91J''
\. j. 1885, says an Arabian historian
whilst large numbers were assembled
in the month of Rhamadau employed I'm
drinking coffee. the captain Of the guard
surprised them. hunted them ignomini-
OuSly from the shops. locked them up all
night in the pasba' house. and the next
morning administered to each individual
by way Of Salutary admOnitiOn, seven
teeI stripes'
Persecution. as usual. ACCOMPLISHED
q result the very opposite TO hat intend
cd. Coffee speedily became universally
popular. In the first half of the sever
teeuJu century there numbered i'm Cairo
no less than two thousand COlfec-shUpS.
vt the present time coffee is amongst
Eastern NUSsuImaus one of the first ne
ceSsaries of life. When a Turk adds a
new wife to his associated beauties. he
formally contracts with her friends that
Size is always to lave plenty of coffee.
If certain modern accounts, however.
are TO he trusted. Turkish ladies have
got into the habit of drinking brandy.
According to Nohammed, they have no
souls TO lose; hence they may drink spir-
itaus liquors with impunity.
Before the seventeenth century coffee
was scarcely known in France. even by
name. At length certain travellers re-
turning from the East brought a little
coffee with them for their own private
use. In the year l647, Thevenot inyi-
led some friends to a party. and gave
thcm coffee 10 drink but he had been
preceded by 4 Levantine, who. three
wears before, established at Paris a Cof-
lee shop his speculation, however. did
not succeed. 1t was i'm the beau aoudc
that coffee first became pOpUlaTiZcd.
The Turkish ambassador at the French
Court. SOliman Aga, was in the habit of
offering coffee, after the manner OF his
country. TO those who attended his le-
wees. The ladies of the French Court
40 sooner heard OF this custom than
they expressed their desire of tasting
the seductive liquor Uhereupou the
Turk. being a polite man, as all Turks
are. invited the ladies 10 his house, and
gave them coffee to their hearts con-
tent Madam dc Seyigne was opposed
10 this fashion she did not approve of
coffee said it was only Il short-Iived
taste; that iJ would pass away and be
forgotten, like Racine. We'll. the lady
was right, after all, though not after
the fashion She intended coffee has
passed away and been forgotten, like
Racine =. About the same time it was