The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1896-01-30
CHICORY DRYING AT ORCAs.
As an Experiment, Mr.. Geo. Gibbs
Tries Drying ChicOry Root, and
is Very Successful.

l have just finished drying the Chi
cory root from an experimental patch
of one-twentieth of an acre, planted
June 4th last. In our tall roony
kitchen We suspended racks to hold
twenty-six trays from the present
drier, and commenced digging, wash
ing, slicing and cutting the roots Nov.
lst. The last went OH the trays Dec.
3lst. Found that the fall rains much
increased the size of the roots. Chic
DRY should he drilled III with Hill
dropping dill as soon as carrots and
parsnips are planted i'll the spring.
Drop four or five seeds in a hill eight
Inches apart and two feet apart in the
rows. The land should be fall plowed
as deep as possible. Subsoiled to eight
teen inches would be better. In the
fourth leaf thin the plants to eight
inches apart and cultivate as for carrots
and parsnips. Ii your land holds mois-
ture we'll and is we'll drained the crop
will be heavier. Cutting is done rapid
ly, thus we want it cut rs near as
may be into cubes of One-half inch
so uares or about that. All roots larger
than One-half inch in diameter are cut
into halves, quarters, elghths or SIX
teenths and then cut crossWays i'll
punches of ten or more. We lind
in our room; dining room stove and
kitchen stove both i'll use, as our room Is
one 14X26 feet, the roots dry hard IN
seventy-two hours without any expense
for extra fire. Now for the roasting.
We place it in bread drippers IL the
oven and never leave 1t till done a nut
brown, keeping it we'll stirred AS it burns
quicker than coffee. Before roasting,
L would prefer to have TIE hard cut
roots run through some KIND OF mill
that would granulate it to the size OF
grains OF plump wheat. We do not
approve of grinding it after roasting.
Properly roasted 1T makes a delicious
beverage as clear AS French brandy and
without particle of sediment. We
use one heaping teaspoOnful to two and
a-half cups of cold or hot water,and put
coffee pot on back of stove while the
meal is preparing. Don't boil but five
minutes, ..dding chicOry and water to
suit number of persons to serve. Add
cream and sugar to suit the taste. My
chicory yield is seven fifty pound flour
sacks of chicory ready to roast. There
is health and economy in more gen.
eral use chicory. The thrifty people
of Europe have for more than fifty
years cut down the cost of their coffee
bill by mole than IS per cent annually,
and find health and profit thereby.
The PEE pie of the United States are the
largest consumers of coffee IN the world.
[ give the imports of coffee for the
years 1891, 1892, 1898 and 1894 i'll dol
lars from the government statlstlcian's
report:
1891. 1892 $685. 1894.
$780, l3 TT $128 04l $50 $50 AS. 55S 500, $40
Four years coffee bill 1896, 265, GAL.
The Secretary of Agriculture, Morton,
tells the farmers to study more closely
the lists of our imports of agricultural
products that can and should be grown
IN the United States If they wish to see
more prosperous times.
l have shown you the figures for cof-
fee; here is our sugar bill for the same
four years.
1891. 1897. 1885, 1894.
sos, 3s9541 sro7 as6.5s7 $r8 74s.rIs sraS,ss6667
Chicory for same time.
1891. 1892 1898. 1894.
S342,517 $l54,954 $208,SS4 243, 408.
The question is, how soon can we
cut these enormous figures down and
distribute the money at home? Are
you willing to help now?
GEO GJRpS